Easter Joy!

"I arose and am still with you, alleluia!

I love the Lord who has heard me, alleluia, 

who has rescued me from death, alleluia!

I arose and am still with you, alleluia!

Kind and faithful is our God; alleluia. 

I will live and walk with the Lord, alleluia!

I arose and am still with you, alleluia!"

~Easter Lauds Responsory

Easter Vigil

On Holy Saturday morning, the Cantor Sisters continued to chant the reading from  Lamentations...

"Remember my affliction; my soul is bereft of peace. My soul continually thinks of it, and is bowed down within me. But this I keep in memory, and therefore I have hope.

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies still continue. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. "The Lord is my portion," says my soul, "therefore, I will hope in Him." The Lord is good to those who wait for Him. to the soul that seeks Him. It is good that one should wait in silence for the salvation of the Lord."
(3: 19-26)

"Very soon now, I shall be with you again: I am the Alpha and Omega; the first, the last; the beginning and the end." ~ Holy Saturday Vespers Antiphon

Good Friday

On Good Friday morning, the Cantor Sisters chant the readings from the Lamentations...

"Enemies have stretched out their hands over all her precious things; she has even seen the nations invade her sanctuary, those whom you forbade to enter your congregation.

All her people groan as they search for bread; they trade their treasures for food to revive their strength. Look, O Lord, and see how worthless I have become.

Is it nothing to you, all who pass by? Look and see if there is any sorrow like my sorrow which was brought on me, which the Lord inflicted on the day of his fierce anger."
(1: 10-12)

"Deep within us, shared among us, may we ever keep the mind and heart of Jesus Christ. Deep within us, shared among us, may we ever keep the mind and heart of Jesus Christ." ~ Passion Antiphon

Holy Thursday

Greetings,

"Where charity and love prevail, there God is ever found; brought here together by Christ's love by love are we thus bound." 

"But it behooves us to glory in the Cross, to glory, glory in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom is our salvation, life and resurrection: by whom we are saved and delivered." 

Holy Week & Sacred Triduum Celebrations

Greetings,

All are welcome to join us in our Holy Week and Triduum celebrations...

 Palm Sunday

• 8:30 AM ~ Lauds, Bishop Marty Chapel
• 10:00 AM ~ Palm Blessing & Process, Eucharistic Celebration
• Begins in the Chapter Room
• 5:00 PM ~ Vespers, Bishop Marty Chapel

Holy Thursday

• 8:30 AM ~ Lauds, Peace Chapel
• 5:00 PM ~Foot-washing (monastic community)
• 7:00 PM ~ Eucharistic Celebration and Procession, 
• Bishop Marty Chapel

Good Friday

• 8:30 AM ~ Lauds, Peace Chapel
• 3:00 PM ~ Good Friday Services, Bishop Marty Chapel

Holy Saturday

• 8:30 AM ~ Lauds, Peace Chapel
• 5:00 PM ~ Vespers, Peace Chapel
• 8:00 PM ~ Paschal Vigil Mass
• Begins in front of Chapel and processes to the Chapter Room 
• All are invited for refreshments in the Refectory after the Vigil

Easter Sunday

• 9:00 AM ~ Lauds, Bishop Marty Chapel
• 5:00 PM ~ Vespers, Bishop Marty Chapel

Easter Monday

• 8:30 AM ~ Lauds, Bishop Marty Chapel
• 9:00 AM ~ Celebration of the Eucharist
• 5:15 PM ~ Vespers, Bishop Marty Chapel

Easter Octave Continues

• Return to the regular horarium

Triduum travels and Easter joy

 Greetings,

Holy Thursday was a mix of joy and solemnity.  Following monastic tradition, we held our foot washing ceremony before supper.  This was celebrated in our Chapter room for the sisters of the community; however, this year we welcomed our Triduum retreatants as well.  It began with a simple service with scripture and song and then our prioress, sub-prioress, and procurator sit or kneel between the choirs of sisters as we, one by one, came forward to have them wash our feet.  It was powerful to watch as the sister we elected leader, carefully removed the shoes and socks of our sisters and gently wash and dry the sister's feet before returning her shoes.

After the ceremony, we processed with joy to an Agape Supper!  We began with a prayer reminding us of the blessings of bread and wine and community.  Then the refectory was filled with laughter and story as the meal was served 'family style' at each table.  This Agape celebrated our love for each other, community, and Christ.

Holy Thursday Mass began with our statio procession into Chapel and after Mass we also processed out of chapel.  Father Thomas, gently bearing the Blessed Sacrament, followed the procession of sisters, candles, and incense.  The sisters sang the Pange Lingua along the way accompanied by our musicians tucked into little corners along the hallways.  With the Sacrament transferred, our silence began.  Even the bells were stilled for this sacred silence.

Good Friday began in a silence which continued throughout the day allowing for the simple solemnity of prayer.  The hymns and chant of Lauds were sung without accompaniment (with an occasional single tone to keep us on pitch).  The prayer is simple, stripped of the opening call to prayer and crossing of our lips.  The reading for the day was chanted by our cantors; their Latin harmonies hauntingly beautiful in their cry for God's mercy.

A few sisters quietly carried out their services to the community, but if our work could be set
aside, it was.  Meals were simple and light.  However, there was one exception.  Our baker continued the tradition of fresh hot cross buns served at lunch.  A sweet reminder of the promise of Easter yet to come.

Our Good Friday service began in silence as Father Thomas and his acolyte walked up the aisle to reverence the altar.  It wasn't until the sisters processed forward to venerate the cross that they realized the many locals who had joined the sisters for this afternoon hour of prayer with the Lord.

Holy Saturday continued in silence with a little joy seeping between the cracks...  The morning prayer of Lauds continued without accompaniment.  The liturgist, sacristan, and their sister helpers quietly set to work around the chapel bringing out the lilies, banners, and new candles.  It's amazing how much can be accomplished with very little words and a great deal of growing joy.

Easter Vigil was filled with symbol, sacrament, and sacred song.  A perfect evening greeted the sisters and guests as we gathered outside for the blessing of the Easter Fire and the new Easter Candle.  From there we processed up to the Chapter Room for the journey through the Old Testament readings and the glory of the first Alleluias.

Our Prioress then led the procession with the Easter Candle to the entrance to Chapel and the newly filled water font for the blessing of water, renewal of Baptismal promises, and sprinkling rite.  Newly blessed and renewed, the sisters and gathered community processed into the Chapel singing the Gloria and ringing bells.

It was a glorious night with song and light filling the Chapel after a long Lent.
 
Blessings,

Sacred Triduum Schedules

Greetings,

The holy days of Triduum call us to a deeper sense of prayer and quiet in our monastic life.  While many of our times of Liturgy of the Hours (prayer) and Mass are open to the public, some of our celebrations are reserved for members of our Benedictine community.

Holy Thursday:

• 5:00 p.m. Footwashing ~ Monastic Community
• 5:30 p.m. Agape Meal ~ Monastic Community
• 7:00 p.m.  Eucharistic Celebration and Procession ~ Public Welcome
• Triduum Silence begins...

Good Friday:  

• Triduum Silence continues...
• 8:30 a.m. Lauds ~ Public Welcome
• 3:00 p.m. Good Friday Service ~ Public Welcome
• 7:00 p.m. Culpa Chapter ~ Monastic Community

Holy Saturday:  

• 8:30 a.m. Lauds ~ Public Welcome
• Triduum Silence lifts during the day...
• 8:00 p.m. Easter Vigil ~ Public Welcome
• All are welcome to coffee and treats in the Refectory after the Vigil.

Easter Sunday:  

• 9:00 a.m. Lauds ~ Public Welcome
• 5:00 p.m. Vespers ~ Public Welcome

Holy Triduum Retreat

Greetings,

Experience the liturgy and silence of Holy Week by attending the Paschal Triduum retreat at Sacred Heart Monastery in Yankton, SD.  Join us in praying the Liturgy of the Hours and celebrating the rich liturgies of Holy Week.  While pausing for this time of personal prayer with Christ and our community, you will have the option of conferences with a spiritual director to reflect on the rich symbolism of these sacred days.  You will also be invited to join the sisters for meals, to walk our monastic grounds, and to your personal reflection in the Peace Center prayer room or our Chapel.  This silent retreat begins on Holy Thursday, April 17th at 4:00pm and ends on Easter Sunday.

Follow the Paschal Triduum retreat link for more information, contact details, and registration forms.

Welcoming the Guest to Retreat

Greetings,

The Peace Center at our monastery seeks to: "Let all guests who arrive be received like Christ, for He is going to say, "I came as a guest, and you received Me". And to all let due honor be shown, especially to the domestics of the faith and to pilgrims (Rule of Benedict 53: 1-2).

As the Liturgical season of Lent approaches, the sisters of our Peace Center are reaching out through Scripture studies, theology institutes, and Holy Week retreats.

The sisters are offering two series of Lenten Scripture studies for all those seeking prepare for Christ's Paschal Mystery at Easter.  Study of the Prophet Isaiah will take place on Wednesday evenings from 7:00 to 8:30 PM beginning on February 26 and continuing throughout the Lenten season.  Study of the Passion and Resurrection Narratives will take place on Wednesday mornings from 10:15 to 11:45 AM beginning on March 5 and continuing throughout the Lenten season.

Our spring Theology Institute will be held on Saturday, March 15th beginning at 9 AM.  Father Leslie Hoppe, OFM  will be speaking about "Religion and Modernity: The Fundamentalist Response".   He will address how the terms "fundamentalism" and "fundamentalist" were first coined to describe conservative American Protestants who rejected the tenets of early 20th century liberal Protestant theology.  The presentation will begin with a description of the basic beliefs of Protestant fundamentalism before describing the fundamentalist impulse in Roman Catholicism and other world religions such as Judaism and Islam.

The Benedictine Peace Center will also be preparing for Holy Easter with one of our Catholic mystics.  Guests are welcome to join us for "Reflections with Julian of Norwich: A Lenten Retreat" on Saturday March 29th.

The final welcome to guests is a Holy Week Retreat over Triduum for women who are discerning a religious vocation.  The retreat begins the afternoon of Holy Thursday and continues through Easter Sunday afternoon and includes celebrating Liturgy of the Hours and Eucharistic liturgies with the monastic community, sacred silence, and reflection on sacred symbols of Triduum and God's call.

We welcome you as a guest in our retreat center...come to pray, to listen, and continue to deepen your faith in Jesus Christ.

Blessings,

Happy Easter!

Follow this photo link to our Facebook account (anyone can see this) to view a short slideshow of our Triduum celebrations and ceremony.

Blessings,

The Fourteenth Station of the Cross

The prayer of the Stations of the Cross for Vocations from the USCCB: 

THE FOURTEENTH STATION: JESUS IS PLACED IN THE SEPULCHER

V: We adore You, O Christ, and we praise You.

R: Because, by Your holy cross, You have redeemed the world.

V: Consider how the disciples carried the body of Jesus to its burial, while His holy Mother went with them and arranged it in the sepulcher with her own hands. They then closed the tomb and all departed.

R: We thank you, Jesus, for the infinite power of Your death and resurrection which brought salvation and healing to the world. We thank You for all whom You have called to follow You in the past 2000 years, men and women formally dedicating their lives to the building up of Your Church. We pray for all seminarians and novices in formation. Let all young men and women today reflect on the lives of the saints, and let them come to meet and know priests, religious, and lay ministers in our times who continue to respond to Christ’s call, “Come, follow me.”

(Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be...)

Virgin of all virgins blest / Listen to my fond request / Let me share your grief divine

.

PRAYER TO JESUS CHRIST CRUCIFIED

My good and dear Jesus, I kneel before You, asking You most earnestly to engrave upon my heart a deep and lively faith, hope, and charity, with true repentance for my sins, and a firm resolve to make amends. As I reflect upon Your five wounds, and dwell upon them with deep compassion and grief, I recall, good Jesus, the words the Prophet David spoke long ago concerning Yourself: ``They pierced My hands and My feet; they have numbered all My bones.''

Holy Triduum Schedule

Greetings,

Consider joining us in prayer near or far as we celebrate the Holy Triduum...

Holy Thursday~

5:00 p.m. Footwashing ~ Monastic Community

7:00 p.m. Eucharistic Celebration & Procesison

Good Friday~

8:30 a.m. Lauds

3:00 p.m. Good Friday Services

7:00 p.m. Culpa ~ Monastic Community

Holy Saturday~

8:30 a.m. Lauds

5:00 p.m. Vespers

8:00 p.m. Paschal Vigil Liturgy

*Easter reception with Guests after the Vigil

Easter Sunday~

9:00 a.m. Lauds
5:00 p.m. Vespers

Easter Blessings

Greetings,

Father lights the Easter Candle held
by Sister Penny while Sisters Acolyte
and Sacristan look on.

Easter Vigil and Easter Sunday are filled with all the symbol, sacrament, and sacred to fill a year of Sundays.  This year we were blessed with perfect weather for the blessing of the Easter Fire and new Easter Candle.  Many of the sisters, our family members, and friends gathered in front of the Chapel as Father blessed the new fire, carefully tended by our Sister Gardener, as Sister Penny, prioress, held the Easter Candle for procession.  But the fire blessing is only the beginning...the coals from the fire were used to light the incense for the Vigil, and then the whole of the gathering slowly processed inside to our Chapter Room for the Liturgy of the Word. 

After remembering God's promises through all seven of the Old Testament readings and Epistle, we rejoiced to sing out the "Alleluias" for the Gospel.  The homily wasn't as short as Mark's Gospel, but Father focused on four little words from Mark that changed the world..."He is not here!"

We then followed Sister Prioress and the Easter Candle to the entrance of the Chapel and our newly filled water font for the blessing of water, our renewal of Baptismal promises and the sprinkling rite.  In the midst of this solemn profession, Father doused us all quite well with the Holy Water; until he got to the Prioress and Acolyte.  These sisters had their hands full of the Roman Missal, incense, and Easter Candle; with a broad smile on his face, he lightly touched each of their forheads with the aspergillum (sprinkler).  Newly blessed and renewed in spirit, we all processed in statio into the semi-light of the Chapel.  The sisters at the front lit tapers from the Easter Candle to light all the altar and dedication candles as we sang the Gloria.

It was wonderful to fill the arches of our Upper Chapel with soaring music again.  The sanctuary and altar festooned with white lilies, bright spring flowers, and pussy-willow branches all reminding us of new life.  As the Chapel lights flickered to life, we continued with song, prayer and praise.  It was a joyous night to share with our sisters, family members, and friends of the monastery.

Blessings,

Good Friday

Greetings,

The monastery looks still from the outside.  We step away from our daily works and ministries and step into the silence of this day.  The shift even in our prayer is noticeable even to the visitors who join us for retreat during the Triduum... Lauds did not begin with the standard call to prayer and crossing of our lips since the prayer begun on Holy Thursday continues through today.  Our hymn, chanted Psalms, and Canticle of Zachariah were done with with only an occasional single tone from the organ to keep us on pitch.  The reading from Lamentations was chanted by our cantors of the monastery.  The three to six part Latin harmonies were as hauntingly beautiful as the cries for God's mercy that they contain. 

The day begun in prayer continues quietly.  Sisters have the opportunity for private reflection, devotion, and prayer throughout the day.  While praying our Sorrowful Way through the back lawn, I saw other sisters taking advantage of the bright spring day for outdoor prayer by our shrines or on a sunny bench.  Others prayed their way through their flowerbeds...pruning and weeding away the remains of winter to make way for new life.  Our sisters preparing the liturgies for today quietly set the Upper Chapel for our Commemoration of Christ's Passion.

Other changes in our day include our meals.  While all our Fridays at the monastery are 'meat free,' today there is also a restraint in the meal...fasting with simple, light meals.  However, there was one exception, Sr. Marcine's hot cross buns.  Freshly baked, these slightly sweetened buns were studed with currants and adorned with a simple cross of icing, a treat and a symbol.

Finally, there will be no Vespers tonight.  We leave that gap, a reminder of Christ's sacrifice.  An open space we know should not be there and is then all the more noticeable and keeps us aware. 

Blessings,

Holy Thursday

Greetings,

Our Holy Thursday service is complete; silence now hangs in the monastery hallways like the incense and beeswax from our procession with the Blessed Sacrament. Our evening of celebration, prayer and commemoration is reinforced by our call to community.

Following monastic tradition, we held our foot washing ceremony in our Chapter Room for the sisters of the community.  It is a simple service with scripture, chant, and then prioress, sub-prioress, and procurator sit or kneel between the choirs of sisters as we, one by one, come forward to have them wash our feet.  It is powerful to watch as the sister we elected as leader, carefully remove the shoes and socks of each sister and then gently wash and dry her feet before returning the footwear. 

"I chose my classmate [sister who entered at the same time] to wash my feet and it was very touching.  In fact, it brought me to tears.  Being a servant is what my life is about--bringing God's love to others." Sr. Barbara, perpetually professed many years.

"I chose to have my foot washed as a challenge to allow myself to be served rather than focusing on serving others.  At times, I find it very difficult to be served.  We need to remember to allow others the opportunity to serve."  Sr. Barbara, perpetually professed about six months.

After a closing prayer by our prioress, we processed from the Chapter Room to the refectory for a meal celebrating community and love, our love for each other and for Christ.  We shared wine and fresh breads, a wonderful meal that was hard to leave in preparation for our Holy Thursday Mass and upcoming silence.

At the end of our Mass, we processed ahead of Father Monk bearing the Blessed Sacrament to the St. Joseph Chapel.  We sang the Pange Lingua in our Bishop Martin Marty Chapel; then our musician sisters picked up the tune on clarinet and bass clarinet in the dim hallways as we silently followed the candle bearers.  The incense swung by Sister Acolyte before Father still lingers in the hallways, drifting up the stairwell.  We chanted the last verses of the Pange Lingua without accompaniment in the little Chapel as Father turned the key on the tabernacle.

Triduum silence has begun; it is palpable, heavy like the scent of incense and beeswax from the procession.  A silence that will nurture our prayer and reflection that we share as community over these days of Triduum.

Blessings,

Silence Begins...

Greetings,

Prayer began at 5 o'clock with a foot washing service for the Monastic community. The Prioress, Sub-prioress, and Procurator sat on the floor of our Chapter Room and washed the feet of the sisters...from this simple and humble reminder of service, we gathered in the refectory for a agape meal, a joyful celebration of our love for each other. This meal stretched on into 6:30 when sisters began to filter out to prepare for our celebration of the Lord's Supper.

We sang the Pange Lingua as we processed from Bishop Marty Chapel to our small St. Joseph's chapel near the care center. This year I noticed a line in our translation from St. Meinrad's that I hadn't noticed before. Verse 3: At the last, the paschal supper, with the friends before they fled, first he ate the meal of passage; Paschal lamb and Paschal bread; then himself as food he offered, so that many might be fed. I had never noticed the mention of this being his last meal with his friends before they fled in the garden. When I returned to the Upper Chapel, the doors of Our Lady of Einsiedeln are closed, the tabernacle doors beneath her are open and empty, the candles and altar cloths are carried away, and even the curtains are drawn back from behind the high cross. I don't want to flee from this emptiness...

The Triduum silence has begun at the Monastery. The procession with the Blessed Sacrament to be reposed in our St. Joseph chapel brought close to our joyous agape and has begun the subsequent time of adoration and prayer.

May God Bless your Triduum,

Anticipating Triduum

Greetings,

The Monastery is abuzz with preparations for our Triduum celebrations!

I awoke early to get ready for the day, but not earlier than our Sister Baker. When I opened my curtain at 7AM to look out on the world, I could see right across the courtyard into the brightly lit bakery. She already had dough on the table and the 'proofing' room filling up with breads special for the feasts: the round loaves of sweet, soft agape bread and the rings of cinnamon laced sweet bread.

After morning prayer, the sisters in charge of environment (candles and cloths) began to take down the purple in the Peace Chapel. Since we will be praying the Upper Chapel (Bishop Marty Chapel) through all of Triduum and through the Easter Octave, the sisters might not set out the new candles and cloths just yet...but we will be preparing the Upper Chapel this afternoon. Holy Thursday's environment needs to include clean space in the sacristy to place all the goods of the Sanctuary after the altar is stripped as well as adding new environment to the smaller St. Joseph Chapel (for our care center sisters) where the reserved Sacrament will be taken tonight. Helping to prepare our Chapel for these sacred celebrations allows me to move from the busyness of my school days to the centering on our celebrations of Christ's passion, death, and resurrection during this Triduum.

This afternoon also includes some community fun. The sisters in our care center dye the Easter eggs for the whole Monastery! Those of us who can join them in this colorful community collaboration have some good old family fun. It is interesting to see which sisters favor which colors and the artists that come out of each one of us. I also love to hear the stories the sisters tell of their childhood memories of Easter egg coloring at home or how they celebrated earlier in community life.

However, I am most excited for...our silence...I know, you're shocked. I really am looking forward to our time of deep quiet and reflection that begins with the transfer of the Sacrament at the end of our Holy Thursday Mass and continues through Good Friday and only comes to an end after Lauds on Holy Saturday. The whole Monastery is focused on this deep awareness of God in our midst. My students and the faculty both seemed a bit surprised at this quiet that I was excited to be joining. One of the Junior boys joked that he didn't think his mom or sister could go a few hours much less a whole day and a half without talking. I told him that he might be surprised at how much those same folk might love a bit of silence in their day...he didn't believe me.

Blessings,