Dominican Sisters of Saint Cecilia LAUDARE, BENEDICERE, PRAEDICARE

“TO PRAISE, TO BLESS, TO PREACH”

August 8, 2014

Dear Friends, A blessed feast of Saint Dominic! Each day in the Litany to Saint Dominic and each night in the “O Lumen” antiphon, we invoke our founder’s help under various titles—Light of the Church, Rose of Patience, Teacher of Truth, Ivory of Chastity… One of his most notable traits,

though, is his joy: it was the fruit of his union with God, the wellspring of his apostolic zeal,

and the attractive force which drew others to the Gospel message. Through his prayers and example, may we all share in this joy and share this joy with others.

In Christ, The Dominican Sisters

of St. Cecilia

Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia

801 Dominican Drive Nashville, TN 37228

www.nashvilledominican.org vocation@op-tn.org

“…I speak of him, as the labourer,

Whom Christ in His own garden chose to be

His help-mate. Messenger he seem’d, and friend

Fast-knit to Christ; and the first love he show’d,

Was after the first counsel that Christ gave.”

In Canto XII of Dante’s Paradiso,

St. Bonaventure sings the praises of

St. Dominic in these words.

Click below for full canto.

“On the way they began to have misgivings as to the road, for the place of meeting was some miles off; so they made enquiries of a man whom they met, believing him to be a Catholic, whereas in reality he was a heretic. The man said that he would not merely show them the way, but would himself conduct them to the spot. Then leading them to a wood he spitefully set them astray, dragging them through thorns and brambles so that their feet and ankles became covered with blood. All this the servant of God bore with unruffled patience, breaking forth joyfully at times into the divine praises, and exhorting the others to do the same. 'Be of good cheer, dearest brethren,' he would say, ‘put all your trust in God, for our sins have now been all wiped out in our blood, and the victory will surely be ours.' The heretic, seeing his marvelous endurance, and the joyful forbearance of the whole company, and feeling touched by his words, became changed in heart, confessed his cruel deceit, and abjured his errors before them.” From Lives of the Brethren, pg. 74

Recommended Reading

Click above to order

The New Wine of Dominican Spirituality:

A Drink Called Happiness by Father Paul Murray, OP

In this book Paul Murray O.P. shows that there is indeed such a thing as ‘Dominican spirituality’. It is not about special ways of praying. It is about being alive in God and for others. … Murray shows us the profound humanity of the early friars and sisters. They were down to earth and vital. This is a spirituality that is rooted in our lives, in our fundamental desires, in our pain and joy, in our humanity.

--from the Preface by Father Timothy Radcliff, O.P.

“St. Dominic was called ‘vir evangelicus’. The one passion of his life was to preach a truth he could not keep to himself. And he preached it by word

and by example. But also—to a remarkable degree—he preached it by

joy. ‘[H]is face was always radiant,’ we are told, and ‘by his cheerfulness he easily won the love of everybody.’

…Cecilia [an early Dominican nun} tells us that ‘{A] kind of radiance shone from his forehead and between his eyebrows, which drew everyone to venerate and

love him. He always appeared cheerful

and happy.’” (page 50)

DOMINIC CONVERTS A HERETIC BY HIS JOYFUL PATIENCE

Bishop David Choby was the principal celebrant for the Mass for the Golden

Jubilee celebration of Sister Ignatius and Sister Philip Joseph held on the Solemnity

of Corpus Christi. Present for the Mass and reception were Cardinal Edwin F. O'Brien,

Msgr. Rev. Owen Campion, Sisters from the All Saints’ Sisters of the Poor in

Catonsville, Maryland, and many family members and friends. Msgr. John B.

McArthur of the Diocese of Memphis gave the homily.

Golden Jubilee

Silver Jubilee

On July 5, Sister Mary Andrew, Sister Mary Dominic, Sister Mary

Clare, Sister Theresa Joseph, Sister Catherine Joseph, Sister

Mary Michael, Sister Immaculata, Sister Mary Thomas, and Sister

Patrick Stephen celebrated their 25th anniversary of religious

profession. Bishop David Choby presided at the Mass and Father

Albert Trudel, O.P., preached the homily. Many family members and friends of the sisters were able to

join the community for the celebration.

Click here for a link to “Our First, Most Cherished Freedom,” the USCCB’s statement on religious liberty.

Fortnight for Freedom Freedom

During the two-week observance of the Fortnight for Freedom, the Sisters joined other Americans in praying and sacrificing for the cause of religious liberty in our country and around the world. In the Novitiate, Sisters prayed the Divine Mercy chaplet daily, held an all-night prayer vigil on the feast of the Sacred Heart, and prayed the patriotic Rosary with intentions for each state and branch of government. Sisters in the Washington area were able to attend opening Masses and other Fortnight for Freedom events at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC, and the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption in Baltimore, MD.

Fourth of July

The observance of Independence Day at the Motherhouse began with a flag-raising ceremony, the pledge of allegiance, patriotic hymns, and prayers for our country.

Each year, the Fourth of July provides an opportunity to express our love for our country and to strengthen the bonds that unite us. This year’s festivities included games of various kinds—both indoors and out—and, of course, the annual Professed versus Novitiate volleyball game.