Merry Christmas, Blessed Epiphany!

Merry Christmas and Blessed Epiphany to you all! The grass may be green outside our chapel, but it’s definitely Christmas inside and in our hearts. We want to share some of our joy with you through the hymn that we sing at Compline every night until the Baptism of the Lord. If you’d like to sing along, the lyrics are below.

 
 
 

+ Lyrics

Of the Father's love begotten
'ere the worlds began to be,
He is Alpha and Omega,
He the Source, the ending He,
of the things that are, that have been,
and that future years shall see,
evermore and evermore.

This is He whom seers in old time
chanted of with one accord,
whom the voices of the prophets
promised in their faithful word;
now He shines, the long-expected;
let creation praise its Lord,
evermore and evermore.

Christ, to thee, with God the Father,
and, O Holy Ghost, to thee,
hymn and chant and high thanksgiving
and unwearied praises be,
honor, glory, and dominion
and eternal victory,
evermore and evermore!

 

Wherever you are, wherever this Christmas season finds you, please be assured of our prayers for you and your loved ones throughout this season and in the upcoming year.

God bless,
your sisters at Queen of Peace Monastery

P.S. If you haven’t already viewed it, our community’s most recent newsletter went “live” in mid-December and is available in English and French:

Sr. Marie Thomas LawrieChristmas, liturgy
Entrance of...Teresa the Hydroelectric turbine

On St. Teresa of Avila’s feast day (October 15), we finally welcomed a long-anticipated newcomer to our monastery…the turbine for our micro-hydroelectric project! We nicknamed the machine Teresa, in honour of that dynamic Spanish saint. The turbine had actually arrived a few weeks ago, but had to wait for the framing, concrete pouring and final touches before being lifted into place in St. Anne’s (our name for the hydroelectric building). The day of the big lift, the community trooped down to the edge of Pilchuk Creek at 8:00 a.m. to wait for the arrival of the crane truck that would perform the lift. Meanwhile, our workman Ron and volunteers par excellence Peter and John were busy finalizing the rigging and giving the new concrete floor one final sweep. When the crane arrived, we held our breath, prayed fervently and cheered as the turbine was maneuvered into position on its steel and concrete frame. The positioning had to be precise, down to the millimetre! When all was bolted into place, our prioress Sr. Claire and chaplain Fr. Pierre LeBlond led a prayer of blessing, and each person present took a turn sprinkling the turbine with holy water.

This is a one of the last big steps in the micro-hydroelectric project, which has taken volunteers, sisters and workers countless hours of labour to bring to this point. Much of the initial work had been performed by hand to reduce the impact on the surrounding forest, and it is truly lovely to see these final big pieces coming into place. We’re looking forward to the completion of the project in the next few months, and to seeing it generate clean, renewable energy for generations to come.

 
 
 
 
Sr. Marie Thomas Lawrie
Vestition of Sister Imelda Marie of the Resurrection

Today, on the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, Denise received the habit of the Order of Preachers and became Sister Imelda Marie of the Resurrection!

The clothing ceremony took place in our Chapter hall, which is at the heart of our common life as Dominicans. In our community, the ceremony begins with with singing the Veni Creator Spiritus. After that, the candidate prostrates herself in the form of a cross. "What do you seek?" the prioress asks. "God's Mercy and yours," the candidate responds. After a short Scripture reading and talk by Sr. Claire, our prioress, the new sister is clothed in the holy habit of St. Dominic.

To symbolize that we receive our vocation as a gratuitous gift of God’s love, the new novice doesn't dress herself in the habit. Instead, she entrusts herself entirely to the novice mistress and prioress as they literally pull the habit over her head, tie a belt around her waist, and place the white novice veil on her head. At the end of the ceremony, we reach the moment all the sisters have been waiting for—the revealing of the sister's new religious name, which is always kept secret from the community until this minute.

Blessed Imelda Lambertini is a Dominican saint who was born in Italy in 1322. At a very young age, she loved to pray, especially at Mass. When she was nine years old, she asked her mother to go live with a nearby monastery of Dominican nuns, where she continued to deepen in her love for Jesus. At that time, children weren’t ordinarily allowed to receive their First Communion at her age; but Imelda repeatedly begged the sisters to be allowed to receive the Eucharist. After a miraculous apparition after Mass on the Vigil of the Ascension, the sisters relented. Bl. Imelda received her First Communion, and passed away while making her thanksgiving, apparently out of sheer joy. You can read more about her life here.

We thank God for the gift of Sr. Imelda Marie’s life and vocation. Please pray for her perseverance and joy in the Lord as she begins her two-year novitiate!

 
 
Sr. Marie Thomas Lawrie