Benedictine Family Traditions

Greetings,

Every family has traditions surrounding their holiday celebrations and our Benedictine family gathers for a Thanksgiving day too. While most of the sisters live at the monastery, those who live away from home gather back at the monastery or together at their convents for a day of praying, playing, and feasting together.

We'll begin with Lauds and Mass before sharing in a wonderful Thanksgiving meal. The Sisters (and one Father Monk) helped begin the preparations for the meal a couple earlier with slicing, peeling, and dicing up pumpkin for the pies!  The work went quickly with many hands to help.

 After a meal of laughter and sharing, the sisters continue the day of tradition...  An afternoon of play in the Chapter Room.  Tables of four sit down to Pinochle while groups of two and three break out the dictionaries over the Scrabble board; other sisters laugh over sets of Dominoes or Taboo.  The simple being together as community is the joy of Thanksgiving as we clean up the Chapter Room and return to Chapel for Vespers.

We'll be keeping you all in our prayers.

Blessings,

Advent Retreat

Greetings,

Our Peace Center Sisters plan a variety of retreats throughout the Church year.  However, Advent begins in a WEEK!  They are preparing for a morning retreat "Waiting with Mary in Advent."  We invite you to join the sisters and other seekers to learn to wait with our Blessed Mother for the coming of our Lord.

The retreat morning begins at 9 o'clock on Saturday, December 7th.  Simply follow the link to learn more about our Advent retreat.

http://www.yanktonbenedictines.org/documents/AdventRetreat.pdf

Blessings,

Celebrating the Communion of Saints

Greetings,

The month of November includes many feasts important to our Benedictine community; however, it begins with two days sacred to the whole Church.  The Solemnity of All Saints and the Commemoration of the Faithful Departed are days of celebrating all of our beloved in the Communion of Saints.  We honor the saints great and small and tell stories of our loved ones who have died.

We invite you to join our prayer through these images and antiphons from our Divine Office and Eucharistic celebrations:

"Let us keep festival in honor of all the saints giving God
the glory for the grace bestowed on humankind."
~ Vespers Call to Prayer

"Hallelujah! With my whole heart I praise the Lord among the just.
Great are God's works, a delight to explore.
In splendor, in majesty, God's justice will stand." ~ Psalm 111

"Imitate God, walk in his love, just as Christ loves us."
~ Lauds Antiphon

Reliquary and Relics in veneration (left to right):

* Saints Maur, Benedict, and Placid

* Saints Alexi, Herman, Benedict, Agatha, and Severanta

* Saints Seodati and Amandi 

* Saint Grucis

* Saints Gertrude, Scholastica, and Boniface

* Saint Benedict

* Saints Donald, Ursini, and Victoria

"...They have come out of the great tribulation and
have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb.
They need fear no peril or danger
for the Lamb will shepherd them..."

~ Lauds Responsory

* Saints Gertrude, Scholastica, and Boniface

* Saint Benedict

* Saints Donald, Ursini, and Victoria

"Give glory as the name of God deserves;
bring gifts into the courts of the Most High.
Adore God in the splendor of holiness.
Earth, tremble before the Holy Presence!"
~ Psalm 96

* Saint Grata

Our relic of Saint Benedict was carried
during the procession into Chapel for Mass.

"Let me peak your praise, O Lord, let all peoples bless
your holy name forever, for ages unending." ~ Psalm 145

Reliquary and Relics in veneration (left to right):

* Saints Speciosa, Fortunata, Nicolas, and Theodore

* Saints Columban, Victoria, Ursula, Crescenta, Desidii, and Gereon

"I will give you glory, O God my king, I will bless your name forever.
I will bless you day after day and praise your name forever.
You are great, Lord, highly to be praised, your greatness
cannot be measured." ~ Psalm 145

"For as we advance in the religious life and in faith, 

our hearts expand and we run the way of God's commandments 

with unspeakable sweetness of love. 

Thus, never departing from His school, 

but persevering in the monastery according to His teaching until death, 

we may by patience share in the suffering of Christ 

and deserve to have a share also in His kingdom" 

(Rule of Benedict, Prologue: 49-50).

"From the earth you formed me, with flesh you clothed me;
Christ my Redeemer, raise me up again at the last day."
~ Lauds Antiphon

Blessings,