Rejoice! Fifty Years of Bridal Fidelity
Gee...I feel as though every time I post I must first apologize for being truant or something! :) Summer is a busier time for me. Hopefully, a month from now will bring regular blog posts again...
Anyhow...let's get on with the story...
When I last left off with you it was the day after our public celebration of Sr. Mary Elizabeth's Golden Jubilee, that is, fifty years of vowed Passionist life!
In honor of Sister's Golden Jubilee we gave her a large crucifix for our altar. This gift she got to open early along with a nice gold vase. You can see below that we used these during her Jubilee Mass.
Priests - Msgr Bernard Powers, Fr. Ray Clark, Fr. Joe Mills and Fr. John Schork CP (Passionist). Servers in back - seminarian Jarrod Kaelin and Dwayne Roby. Greg Mills also served but is not in this photo.
Her celebration was glorious in many ways...the Holy Mass, prayers, flowers, reception, photos of Sisters life, food, friends and family.
Here is Sister with her only surviving sibling Marguerite.
Two posters were made for the occasion. The one above shows pictures of Sister and her family, etc. from early childhood up to her Silver Jubilee (25 years of vowed life)
This poster includes photos of Sister during the last 25 years.
August 22 will bring us a private celebration here in the monastery...good food again, gifts, song, joy and perhaps a skit!
The cover of Sister's Mass program booklet.
The following message from the heart of our Jubilarian was featured in the front cover of the Mass booklet.
From Janssens’ painting of our Suffering Redeemer on the front cover, we see Jesus looking out at us and over the whole world. From the cross, He saw all generations from beginning to end, and the loving thirst in His Heart burned to save each and every human person. This made our Divine Savior send out from the cross His agonizing cry: “I thirst”.
The sacrifices and sufferings we embrace in union with Jesus become our language of love, to satisfy His “thirst”.
The charism of our founder, St. Paul of the Cross, was to keep alive in the hearts of God’s people the grateful memory of Christ’s redeeming love and thirst for every soul. In solitude, silence and prayer within the life of our cloistered community, I strive to let the Holy Spirit renew the Passion within me.
Daily I strive to live our Passionist vows in the atmosphere of Christ’s sacrificial love, offering myself with Jesus to the Heavenly Father for the salvation and sanctification of all.
As I celebrate the wonder of Christ’s love to which I have committed myself by vow, I invite all of you to honor Him with me each day by offering this prayer:
Lord Jesus, by Your suffering and death, You made it possible for us to be holy and to share in the eternal joy of Your resurrection. With trust and confidence we look upon You on Your cross and strive to unite ourselves with You in the passion of our daily lives.
Look down upon us and draw us close to You. Give us, we beg You, a share of Your courage in times of adversity and anxiety. Strengthen us in our struggle against physical and spiritual evil. In our efforts to imitate You in Your Passion, help us to look upon those around us with loving care and concern.
We pray that those who have turned away from You may be drawn back to You through the merits You gained for us on Calvary, so that all of us might live in never-ending peace with You forever. Amen.
