"In Nairobi, cloistered Carmelites give themselves to God in prayer"

By Barb Fraze
Catholic News Service

Photo: Sister Bernadette is among 16 sisters in a contemplative community at Mount Carmel Convent in Nairobi. (CNS/Nancy Wiechec)

NAIROBI, Kenya (CNS) -- For several of the cloistered Carmelite Sisters at Mount Carmel Convent, their life of prayer began in their families, when they were children.

"My dad taught me to pray for others," said Sister Bernadette, one of the younger sisters. She said her father told her he knew sisters who prayed for everyone, and she asked if they could pray for her, too. She said she began corresponding with the sisters and was drawn to their life of prayer.

Sister Constanza, who professed her final vows in January, said she attended Mass each morning because she did not live far from the local church. Each evening, her family gathered to pray the rosary and other evening prayers.

"I decided to give myself to the Lord for myself and for the salvation of souls," and the best way seemed to be contemplative life, she said.

In an interview with Catholic News Service Feb. 16, several of the sisters talked about the path that led them to nearly continuous prayer each day.

"I never dreamed of becoming a nun," said Sister Monica, who now serves as novice mistress for the order. In college, she met some Catholic students who began praying the rosary together, then attending daily Mass. One of the students wanted to become a Franciscan priest, and as he talked more about the saints, her interest grew.

She said she was filled with "a desire to belong to Christ."

Sister Regina, a young nun who works with aspirants, said her family prayed the rosary and intercessions every day.

"I came from a praying family," she said with a smile. She said she felt called to pray, "especially for priests."

Not all of the sisters are from Kenya. Sister Agnes, from India, said a friend of her sister was becoming a Carmelite, and "somehow that mystique of Carmel drew me very strongly."

The cloister was founded by Carmelites from Dublin in the mid-20th century. When the archbishop of Nairobi visited Cleveland, he asked the Carmelites there for help, and seven nuns and three postulants flew to Kenya in 1951.

The three postulants -- Margaret, Jean and Annamae -- remain, now as some of the oldest members of the order.

Sister Margaret, originally from Pittsburgh, said when she was a teenager, she had visited the Carmelites in Cleveland, and they invited her to go with them to Kenya. They "took a chance" and took her along, she said. Since then, she has only traveled home to be with her mother when she died.

She and Sister Agnes spoke of how much the area around the cloister has changed. Today, it has been built up and surrounded by affluent homes. When they arrived, they were the only building on the hill, and they could see Mounts Kenya and Kilimanjaro in different directions. Now the city is too built up to see far, they said.

The two were there during the eight-year Mau Mau Uprising that started in 1952, and the Mau Mau, a tribal group, had a hideout in the valley. Sister Agnes said one of the local priests talked to the Mau Mau, who promised never to trouble the sisters, because they were holy.

Today, when young women apply to join the order, the sisters require that they finish high school and begin some other course work, Sister Monica said.

"It gives them time to mature a bit," she said.

Sister Regina, who works with the aspirants, said she checks to see if candidates are "determined to live the life."

"Does she feel called because she has other things she is afraid to face or does she feel called because God is calling her?" she said.

An aspirant will join the sisters for three months to see if a contemplative life is something she really wants. The day begins with the prayers of the morning office at 5:20 and ends around 10 or 10:30 p.m. Other than a couple of hours of recreation, the day is spent in prayer. While the sisters work -- sewing vestments and altar linens, printing greeting cards and making Communion hosts -- they meditate. Meals, cooked by the sisters, are eaten in silence while one nun reads -- to nourish the soul.

The sisters pray for their own intentions -- pregnant women and mothers, priests, events in the world -- as well as intentions of those who ask, including Muslims, Hindus and Protestants.

Sister Bernadette said they prayed for Americans before the 2008 elections "because we have our American sisters."

"It's not just like we are here for Kenya," added Sister Regina.

"Carmelites Renew Promise to Pray for Priests"

HAIFA, Israel, SEPT. 10, 2009 (Zenit.org).- The Carmelite community of Haifa is renewing its commitment to priests: "to offer our humble supplication that you may be holy.

"The cloistered religious have made this renewal in a letter marking the Year for Priests, under way through next June.

The letter is directed to priests around the world.

"In our vocation as Carmelite Nuns, daughters of our Mother Saint Teresa of Avila , our essential mission is prayer; especially prayer for the holiness of priests," the religious affirmed. "Therefore, the invitation of our Holy Father to place your ministry, during this year, at the center of our concern, challenges us deeply."

The Haifa Carmelites point to a guideline from St. Teresa: "Be occupied in prayer for those who are defenders of the Church and for preachers and learned men who protect her from attack." (Way of Perfection 1:2)

And they send their encouragement and gratitude to various types of priests: elderly and young, those afflicted by suffering or trials, etc.

"Dear brothers, we find no words that can truly express our gratitude to each one of you," the Carmelites wrote. "To each and every one of you, we say with simplicity of heart: You can count on the silent prayer and the hidden offering of your sisters!"

Full text of Carmelite letter: www.carmelholyland.org/english/inactualite6.htm

"Fairwell to Paulina Hiegert"

The post below is from "The America Needs Fatima Blog" and was originally posted on December 31, 2008:

"Today members of the America Needs Fatima office in Kansas said a fond farewell to a dedicated veteran employee, Miss Paulina Hiegert.

Her departure is bitter sweet for us. You see, she is leaving our office to enter the Carmelite Convent of Jesus, Mary and Joseph in Valparaiso, Nebraska. Just about one year ago her older sister left our office also to join the same convent. We certainly will miss Paulina and all of her dedication to the cause of Our Lady. We will now rely upon her prayers for the success of our apostolate.

Paulina is the fourth member of our office to have entered a convent. Two entered Benedictine convents and Paulina will be the second to enter the Carmelite convent after her sister.

The example of these young ladies is indicative of the dedication that our employees have for the Catholic Church and for the cause of Our Lady.

We wish Paulina well and offer her our prayers that her vocation will bear much fruit."

School Run by Carmelite Sisters Bombed in Pakistan

From the Assyrian National News Agency

Peshawar (AINA) -- Terrorists bombed a Catholic girls school on October 7. The Convent Girls' School Sangota, run by the Sri Lankan Apostolic Carmelite Sisters, was completely demolished. An unknown number of militants entered the school late in the evening and ordered the attendants to leave the building, which was later destroyed by the explosion. No one has claimed responsibility for the bombing.

No one was injured in the bombing because the school was closed a few days prior because of threats. The school was threatened by the Taliban last year and ordered to shutdown.

In the past two years in Pakistan's restive North West Frontier Province, the Taliban have attacked more than 150 girls schools.


A slightly different version from The Christian Post:

A Catholic-run girls’ school in North-West Frontier Province was bombed Tuesday by Pakistani Taliban.

The Convent Girls’ School was bombed by local Taliban and the school building was destroyed, according to the Catholic Church’s National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP).

No one was killed or hurt because the school, run by Sri Lankan Apostolic Carmelite Sisters, was closed at the time due to threats. The sisters had also vacated the convent.

“We have very grave and deep concerns about the current instability and violence in Pakistan,” said Alexa Papadouris, advocacy director at U.K.-based Christian Solidarity Worldwide, in a statement Wednesday. “We wish to offer our sincere condolences to the victims of terrorism.”

In the past two years, more than 150 girls’ schools have been attacked in the North-West Frontier Province by Pakistani Taliban, the NCJP claims.

Bomb threats are also regularly occurring in Pakistan’s major cities, including Islamabad and Lahore. On Tuesday, three bombs were detonated among fruit juice shops in a shopping area in Ghari Shau, Lahore.

CSW’s sources in Pakistan describe the general situation as on the verge of becoming “a war zone.”

“These are absolutely senseless attacks aimed simply at spreading fear and terror into the hearts and minds of people,” said Group Captain (Rtd) Cecil Chaudhry, executive secretary of the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance. “The victims are ordinary people, many from poor backgrounds. We appeal to the international community for support for the people of Pakistan at this time.”

Muslims make up about 97 percent of Pakistan’s population, while Hindus make up 1.5 percent, and Christians, 1.7 percent.

With the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in Pakistan, which is nearby Afghanistan, Jammu and Kashmir, the plights of Christians have only increased and the freedom of religious minorities has steadily been attacked.

Last September, a group of Islamic militants in North West Frontier and Punjab provinces threatened Christians "to either convert to Islam, leave the country or face death."

“We call on the international community to take the crisis in Pakistan extremely seriously, and to work with the new Government of Pakistan to bring an end to terrorism in the country,” Papadouris urged.

Three Sisters that are also Carmelite Sisters

"Sisters in spirit"

Separation hasn't dimmed the sibling relationship

The Advertiser
By Judy Bastien

The daughters of Joseph John and Margaret Seelaus have all been in the same place at the same time on only a few occasions during the past 60 years. That's because three of them are also Daughters of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.

Srs. Anne, Miriam and Vilma all belong to the community known as the Discalced Carmelites - meaning without shoes - a cloistered order.

Sr. Anne resides at the Carmelite monastery on Carmel Drive, Sister Miriam at the monastery in Covington and Sister Vilma, in Rhode Island.

Members of their order spend their time behind the walls of the cloister, with almost no direct contact with the outside world. On the rare occasions when visitors are permitted beyond the front office, they nuns speak to them from through the iron grille of the gate that encloses the cloister.

The Discalced Carmelites' mission is to spend each day in contemplation, praying for the well-being of others. The nuns offer their prayers in response to countless e-mails, letters and phone calls requesting their help.

For the first time in years, all three sisters have been reunited, if only for a few days to celebrate Sr. Miriam's 50th anniversary as a Carmelite, her golden jubilee. With special permission, they shared their story in a face-to-face interview.

Although they have had minimal contact with each other over the decades, the sisters still finish each others' sentences and talk over each other, as sisters do, the smiles rarely leaving their faces.

How do siblings whose lives are devoted to quiet contemplation of the spiritual spend their time together?

"Mostly gabbing," Sr. Anne said.

"Recalling memories," said Sr. Vilma, finishing the thought, "things like that. Looking at pictures of some of our growing-up years."

"And sharing community experiences," Sr. Anne concluded, "things that are going on in the (religious) community."

The three are part of a family of eight children born to a father of Austrian descent who spoke German to his children as they were growing up in Philadelphia, and a mother who came to this country as a child from Budapest, Hungary.

Sr. Anne, the eldest of the three, professed her vows in 1945.

Sr. Vilma, the youngest of the three, entered the order next, a few years later. She was perhaps the least likely of the sisters to become a nun.

"They told me I'd never make it," she said, laughing.

"When she was a little girl," Sr. Miriam said, "I remember one of our cousins - we were toddlers - Sr. Vilma talked a lot, and he used to call her 'sprech' machine,' which is German for ..." She hesitated a moment.

"Talk machine," Sr. Vilma said.

Sr. Miriam, between the two in age, entered the order last.

"She was a slow poke," said Sr. Anne, triggering another round of the sisters' frequent laughter.

"I said I'd never be a nun," Sr. Miriam said, " and then, God came along and he called me and I couldn't say no. And I'm so happy."

Apart from the sense of peace that seems to surround the women, they are all far from the stereotype of the cloistered nun who shuns the world. All three have outgoing personalities, firm, friendly handshakes and a shared sense of humor behind their serene gazes.

...

It may be unusual, especially today, for so many siblings to enter the religious life, it seemed just a natural outcome of their upbringing to the Seelaus sisters.

"First of all, it was God's call," said Sister Miriam.

"It was a very happy Christian home," said Sister Anne. "They encouraged our piety, you might say. Our father said his night prayers with us, took us to night benediction on Sunday afternoons and things like that. We had religious pictures at home, as usual.

"I think they were just good parents."

"Reflections on Receiving the Holy Habit"

The post below is from the Carmelite Sisters blog - the Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles.

By: Sister Mary Louise, O.C.D.

Wedding dresses, graduation gowns, first communion clothing, prom gowns, these are all familiar these types of clothing as are the special celebrations for which they are worn. They help mark significant moments in life. Worn for a few hours, they are then packed away as precious reminders of an event that has passed. Last Sunday, March 16, three young women were clothed in beautiful garments as a way of marking a certain moment in their lives. The difference was that after a few hours these "gowns" were not packed away. But early Monday morning the young women again put them on.. and again Tuesday morning... and Wednesday...and they will continue to wear them for the rest of their lives. This is because we are not talking about satin and silk but the holy habit of Carmel.

What is the significance of the clothing that we as Carmelites wear? What does it mean to be clothed in the garment of our Immaculate Mother? The answer was clear in the Sacred Heart Chapel on Palm Sunday: conversion. But it wasn't so much that a message was preached, as that a conviction shared in a radical way by each sister was expressed verbally. It was a tangible experience of the presence of sisters who have persevered to the end in the life long struggle of conversion, of sisters with whom we have made it through another day, as well as sisters with arms outstretched eager to begin a life of continual striving for the perfection of charity. They have been approved to make their first vows and in a few months they will commit themselves to our way of life. Now their outward appearance matches the interior reality. Because as we greeted and congratulated the three brides-to-be, the radiant smiles on their faces bore witness to the treasure we have in our community: union in Christ. It was truly their special day, but I think each of us and all of us together took yet one more step closer to our Divine Bridegroom, led by the guiding hand of His Mother, the Queen and Beauty of Carmel. We congratulate Sister Maralisa, Sister Julianna, and Sister Marie Rachel. We congratulate you and we love you, our dear sisters!

"Nuns to leave cloister to see pope at stadium"

From The Washington Times
April 13, 2008

By Sterling Meyers

Mother Virginia Marie will make a rare exception to her solemn ritual of rising every morning before the sun to pray in her hut inside the quiet monastery in which she lives.

On Thursday, she and 11 other Discalced Carmelite nuns who live in the Carmel of Port Tobacco monastery in La Plata will board a charter bus with excited parishioners to Nationals Park to celebrate Mass with Pope Benedict XVI and 45,000 others.

"We're apprehensive about being way up in the stadium and not being able to see him except for a little white speck on the field," said Mother Virginia Marie, 73. "But it's the Holy Father's first visit to America, and we're really excited to be a part of it."

Susan Gibbs, spokeswoman for the Archdiocese of Washington, said, however, "Every seat is a great seat at the stadium. ... You'll be able to see the Capitol over the Holy Father's shoulder."
She also said the archdiocese wanted to include as many people as possible in the Mass but also wanted to give "special attention to the religious clergy because they do so much for so little."

The cloistered nuns in the Carmelite Order, like the group at Carmel of Port Tobacco, center their lives on prayer for others.

Catholics often go to these secluded nuns for prayer, but for the women to leave their monastery to attend a Mass is rare. The group's list of recent excursions includes seeing Pope John Paul II in Baltimore in 1995 and celebrating Mass in 2000 in what is now the Verizon Center.

"We spend our days divided between prayer and work to maintain ourselves," Mother Virginia Marie said.

The group of 12 nuns — including one postulant, or candidate for the life of faith — came from Brazil, Japan, the Philippines and across the U.S. to live a life of contemplation in Maryland. They're alone for much of the day, except for meals, Mass and recreation time in the evening, which is spent "chatting with one another, doing craft work around a table and making items to sell at the gift shop," said Mother Virginia Marie.

The nuns said the pope's visit will alter their prayer ritual but not stop it.

"We'll try to squeeze out parts of that day where we'll try to keep up with our prayers during the day," said Sister Miriam John, 60. "We'll do the best we can — maybe up in the stands or wherever we are seated."

Sister John, an Ohio native, converted to Catholicism during her senior year of high school.

"It will certainly be a great grace and privilege" to see the pontiff, she said, adding that "it would be nice to meet him face-to-face."

Mother Mary Joseph, 81, met John Paul in Rome after her tenure as prioress at the southern Maryland monastery, Sister John said.

The current prioress, Mother Virginia Marie, said that her 16-by-20-foot hut and the other hermitages and buildings are on the site of the first monastery in the U.S., which was established in 1790 and inhabited until 1831.

The land was sold and farmed for about 100 years until a group of laypeople purchased the original property in 1933. The monastery was refounded in 1976, and Mother Virginia Marie and Mother Mary Joseph came six years later to help the community of nuns to grow.

"The contemplative life is as vital to the spiritual life of the church as the human heart is to the body," Mother Virginia Marie said.

She also said her group of nuns prays for people who "don't have time to pray for themselves."

Although the nuns will transplant themselves soon to a different world just 30 miles from their monastery — to a baseball stadium filled with thousands celebrating Mass with the pope — day-to-day, they would rather be "enclosed."

"The heart was made to function in an interior, hidden way," Mother Virginia Marie said.

Daughter Enters Carmel

As part of my daily routine I scan the internet for vocations articles and stories. This morning I came acros the post below. It took some doing to find the original source: the St. Thomas Aquinas College Alumni Website. In the process I have come to find out that at least 8 of the Benedictine Monks at Clear Creek Monastery in Tulsa, OK are graduates of St. Thomas Aquinas, and that at least two recent graduates have entered the Carmel of Jesus, Mary and Joseph in Valparaiso, Nebraska. Remarkable. Not only that but the school has had at least 25 graduates in the last 25 years go on to ordination to the Holy Priesthood.

What I post below is a letter from a graduates parents to her felow alumni about Kelly's entrance day. For those discerning cloistered religious life this may be a helpful read, for everyone else, I hope you will find it as fascinating as I did.

From the Thomas Aquinas College Alumni Internet Site:


On Ascension Thursday, May 17th, Kelly, Jeff and I and her aunt and uncle (Godparents) attended the Solemn High Tridentine Mass at the beautiful chapel of the Carmel of Jesus, Mary and Joseph Monastery in Valparaiso. The monastery is about 25 minutes north of Lincoln, Nebraska. During the Homily, the Monsignor gave special mention of Kelly’s forthcoming entrance. After Mass, 2 mothers of young postulant/novices who introduced themselves and offered to help us with the entrance process greeted us. These angel women were such a blessing! They gently guided us through the whole entrance and gave us much-needed pointers about where to stand and such for the best views. We were also told that we had only about 10 minutes to give hugs and say goodbye. (A short time, but I think it’s better than a prolonged goodbye—sort of analogous to ripping a band-aid off quickly to lessen the pain). We took a few final pictures, then went into the “Turn Room” to say goodbye. There were many hugs, kisses and tears from us and such a wide smile on Kelly’s face—she had been waiting so long for this day!

After our goodbyes, Monsignor rang the bell at the Turn and told the sister at the Turn that Kelly was ready. Then he and the Deacon gave Kelly a blessing and the door to the speakroom and cloister entrance was unlocked. Kelly went through the open door and waited at the closed Cloister door to enter. The first door was left open so that we could see Kelly being greeted by Mother Teresa. We were told that Mother Teresa, Mother Agnes (prioress of the novices) and the other 19 nuns would be lined up on both sides behind the door with lighted candles to greet Kelly. After what seemed like a very long time, Mother Teresa opened the door and Kelly knelt down and kissed the ground and the cross that Mother Teresa was holding. Kelly then walked through the door and into her new life.

She then went with the nuns into the Choir (the partitioned area on the right side of the Altar in the Chapel) and knelt at the Communion rail, while the nuns took their places in their Choir stalls. There are 10 stalls on the right and 10 stalls on the left side of the Choir and two stalls at the back—one for Mother Teresa and one for Mother Agnes. Since the Carmel is bursting at the seams, Kelly has the last stall in the Choir. We knelt at the Chapel Communion rail so as to get a good view of Kelly and the nuns in the Choir. Kelly then recited her Consecration and after that the nuns sang a beautiful hymn in Latin (or it could have been the Magnificat that they sang, I’m a bit fuzzy on those details right now, there was so much to absorb and we were very emotional). We saw Kelly cry during the recitation of the Consecration. When we asked her about it later, she said that they were tears of joy because she was so happy to be finally entering.

Then we went back to the speakroom to meet with all the nuns while Kelly got dressed in her postulant habit that the nuns had made for her. (She sent her measurements to them a few months back.) We were greeted by 21 of the happiest and most joy-filled women we have ever met. Some were very outspoken, some shy, but they all had on big smiles! There are currently 22 nuns (including Kelly), 10 of whom are either postulants or novices. Kelly is the “baby” right now, but not for long, because 2 more are set to enter in the next couple of months. A Carmel is generally limited to 21 nuns, so we think pretty soon a group of them will branch off and start a new Carmel somewhere else.

There was much good-natured ribbing, joking and laughing among the nuns and with us and that helped so much to dispel our tearfulness. I can’t remember all of their names, but I believe it is Sister Bridget who entered 6 months ago and graduated from TAC 2 years ago. She wanted to hear all about how the Chapel building at TAC was going and we promised we would send pictures of it when it was completed. One of the young Sisters came to the Carmel all the way from Australia, several are from small families like Kelly (2 are only children), and one even is a convert and her family is still non-Catholic. She said that the most her sister could say to her on the day of her entrance was “I’m sad that you are joining, but I’m happy for you that you are happy.” So, as hard as it was for us to let go of Kelly, we appreciate that for others it can be even more difficult, especially if they don’t understand or appreciate the cloistered contemplative vocation. Another older nun was so excited that we were from California, since that was where she was from. She was very quick-witted and many of the jokes and banter came from her (especially since she is from Southern California and Mother Agnes is from Northern California—the rumor that Northern California feels a rivalry toward and superior to Southern California is apparently alive and well). Sister Amy and Sister Juana Teresa were the two daughters of the mothers who came to the Mass to help us through the entrance process. We told them how friendly and helpful their mothers were to us.

After about 15 minutes our Kelly came in all dressed in her postulant habit. Her veil wasn’t tied tightly enough, so it kept trying to come off, but she looked so very beautiful and she was absolutely glowing! We honestly had never seen her as happy as she was at that moment. We visited with all of them for a few minutes longer, then they retreated for the Divine Office and we had Kelly to ourselves for a nice, long 1.5 hour visit before she joined her Sisters for lunch and picture taking (We had sent our camera through the Turn along with Kelly’s suitcase just before her entrance so that we could have a picture of Kelly in the Cloister.)

Lunch, which if you are curious, Kelly told us was veggie burgers, fruit, chips, punch and chocolate bars for dessert (Didn’t think nuns ate like that? Well, neither did we!). It was probably a bit different from their usual fare since they were celebrating a Feast Day and Kelly’s entrance. Then a nap for Kelly before we were due back for a final visit at 3p.m. By the time of our afternoon visit, everyone was exhausted and emotionally drained. Kelly told us that she actually slept after lunch, probably due to the fact that she had only been averaging 2 hours of sleep per night since graduation in an effort to get everything ready before her entrance. But she was still so very happy and grateful and full of love. She asked us to be sure to email you all and let you know that she sends you her love and prayers. Trust me on the prayers part—the prayer list she went in with was pages long!

It’s been very emotional for us since she entered—I’ve been used to talking to her every day and for the first few days I drove Jeff nuts because I kept looking at my cell phone—willing it to ring, I guess. We got our May letter in to her already, written 4 days after her entrance.

In closing, know that you have a serious prayer warrior on your side—she’s praying for each of you every day and probably all of the Sisters are as well. We know that they are praying for us and they have assured us that God is showering us with His graces. We’ve been feeling them, too; we both feel that we are enveloped in His sheltering arms as we go through this period of adjustment to a life without having our amazing, beautiful and loving daughter close by our sides.
In approximately 6-8 months, January or so, Kelly will have her Clothing. During Clothing she will receive the novice habit and be given her new name. As a postulant, she is called Sister Kelly, but that will change when she becomes a novice. We think that they take her suggestions for her new name into consideration, but Mother Teresa and Mother Agnes make the final decision. We’ll write to you all about it since we will be traveling to the Monastery for her Clothing.

"5 Questions: Sister Jeanne Haley"

5 Questions: Sister Jeanne Haley
Administrator of St. Patrick's Residence

From The Naperville Sun
March 17, 2008

"We're not just these holy nuns who give and give and give. We do, but we get so much in return," says Sister Jeanne Haley, administrator at St. Patrick's Residence in Naperville, at right, about her life as a Carmelite Sister for the Aged and Infirm. Here, she visits with resident Katherine Ferianc, seated, and Ferianc's daughter, Ellie Augustine of La Grange, March 10 in Naperville.
Danielle Gardner / Staff photographer

Growing up, Sister Jeanne Haley never thought of herself as nun material.

As a teenager she sometimes got into mischief. But she never forgot the pleasure she felt during the summer she volunteered at Sacred Heart Manor, a home for the elderly in Chicago run by the Carmelite Sisters. She was 14 at the time and her admiration for the joyful society of the nuns ultimately led her to the religious vocation she has cherished for 38 years.


For the last decade, Haley has been administrator at St. Patrick's Residence in Naperville, a non-profit, 210-bed nursing and rehabilitation facility served by the Carmelite Sisters for the Aged and Infirm. Her goal is to make St. Pat's not only comfortable and homey for its residents, but also an integrated part of the Naperville community. St. Patrick's is represented at various city activities including Naper Days' annual Bed Races.

Haley was born in Oak Park, the third of six children. The family lived with her grandmother, who helped her parents care for the children, including younger sister Jeanne, who was developmentally disabled.

It was that sister's name that Haley took when she joined the Carmelites in 1970.

Through the years, Haley also has taken care of elders in Carmelite homes in New York City, Philadelphia and Davenport, Iowa. While serving the latter, she graduated from Scott Community College with a degree in nursing.

Haley had always wanted to be a nurse since reading Sue Barton books by Helen Dore Boylston as a young girl. Helping care for her younger sister also intensified her passion for the profession.
Haley's other interests include playing cards, puzzles and spending time with family.

1. What made you decide to become a nun?

I was 19 years old and I believed in what the sisters did. I'm not going to say God tapped me on the shoulder. He didn't. But I felt drawn to become a part of what their mission was. I dated in high school. I went to my senior prom. I wasn't all my life sitting saying 'oh yes, I want to be a nun.' But I felt called to it. ... Through all these years, the vocation just becomes stronger. I can remember as a postulant sometimes not believing I was this fortunate to be able to be part of this community - to be able to have my wish of caring for the elderly, of being a nurse and then putting it together, being a part of a community that did the things I wanted to do and had such a beautiful prayer life.

2. What are some of your other interests?

I like to bowl. I love the White Sox ... I don't care if the Sox are winning or losing, I just love to go to the games ... It's fun to get out to the ball park, to get the fresh air, to yell and scream. We have more laughs. We have a great big sign that says 'Nuns love the White Sox' and its got a picture of a nun with a baseball bat. We get our pictures taken with half the world. We've had old altar boys send us up hot dogs one year. We danced on the dugout with the mascot. We need to do it because we are human and we need to have fun. But it's also important for us to get out there and show people that religious can have fun.

3. What is your personal philosophy?

Trust in God and realize that it's not all about you. I think that's the only way we can live our lives. So if you think everything is about us and how we are going to handle things and what we are going to do and what we are going to achieve, we're going to be exhausted and not accomplish anything. But if we can understand that God put all these people in our lives making our lives better and to make what we do better, then it can be a joy. I don't always live by that rule as well as I should.

4. How would you describe yourself?

I would say I am someone that loves to be a part of a mission, someone that loves to be blessed to be in the community I'm in and someone who tries to be joyful and thankful to the Lord every day.

5. What are some of your personal goals?

I'm still striving to gain the balance of being an administrator and still staying who I am. I think I'm always striving to be the religious that I want to be and be joyful in doing it.

God's "Housewife"

From an article in the Archdiocese of Miami's "Floriday Catholic":

God's "Housewife"
Colombian native becomes first Miamian to enter cloistered order of
Discalced Carmelites
By ANA RODRIGUEZ-SOTO - HIALEAH

ANA RODRIGUEZ-SOTO FC
Sister Anita enters the chapel where she will profess temporary vows to the Discalced Carmelite Sisters, a contemplative order.


At a time when vocations to the religious life are rare, Ana Carolina Bernal felt called to the rarest — to become a cloistered nun.

From now on, Bernal will be known as Sister Anita del Corazón Misericordioso (Sister Anita of the Merciful Heart).

She will live with 8 other Discalced Carmelite Sisters in the Monastery of the Most Holy Trinity on the grounds of Immaculate Conception Parish in Hialeah.

She will spend all of her days in prayer, leaving the convent only on rare occasions, and greeting visitors, including her family, through a grille.

“It is a life with God. It is a total surrender,” said the 28-year-old Colombia native, who is the first local vocation for the order.

If Bernal’s vocation is rare, it seems even more so considering her background. The youngest of three children, and the only girl, she came to the United States at age 9 and graduated from Coral Gables Senior High School before earning a psychology degree from Florida International University.

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Behind the partition that separates the Discalced Carmelites from the world, Sister Anita professes temporal vows to her superior, Mother Alba Mery de Jesus.

While in college, she began attending prayer groups and taking courses with the Siervos de Cristo Vivo (Servants of the Living Christ), a lay association founded by the late Father Emiliano Tardif. Little by little, she became more and more involved in the life of the church.
“I was very attracted to the Blessed Sacrament, to the Eucharist,” Sister Anita said.

‘It is a life with God. It is a total surrender.’
Sister Anita del Corazón Misericordioso

Then she found out about the existence of the cloistered Carmelites and stopped by for a visit. She says she did not think much of them at first, but “a restlessness inside me urged me to return.”

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Sister Anita reflects after receiving the symbols of her profession -- a crown of flowers symbolizing her espousal to Christ, a book containing the rules and constitution of the Discalced Carmelites, and a crucifix.

She started attending classes they offered every Saturday, and “felt God calling me more.”

In 2004, the Carmelites invited her to experience their lifestyle for three months.

“She stayed,” said her brother, Jose Bernal, a realtor in Raleigh, N.C., which is where their parents also live.

“I kind of suspected” she had a vocation, Bernal said, but like his parents, he was surprised his sister had been called to a life of prayer and contemplation.

“We were surprised because in this day and age it is so difficult for a young professional to enter a cloistered convent,” said Lucila Bernal, Sister Anita’s mom.

“She looks happy. No one has seen her bored yet,” said her aunt, Cecilia Aranzazu, who along with Sister Anita’s parents, brother and other relatives was present Dec. 12 for her profession of vows.

She already has spent one year as a postulant and two as a novice with the Discalced Carmelites. These first, or temporal, vows are for another three years, after which she can make her perpetual profession.

“I felt that I had to love God with all my heart. I had to be everything for him,” Sister Anita said of her vocation.

She compared the life of cloistered nuns to that of active religious by saying, “They dedicate themselves to the people. We dedicate ourselves exclusively to God. We’re like the housewives of God.”

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Sister Anita stands behind the grille that now separates her from the world. She is committed to spending the rest of her life in constant prayer as a member of the contemplative order of Discalced Carmelites.


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Separated by a grille, Sister Anita chats with relatives after her profession of vows.

FIND OUT MORE

The Discalced Carmelite Sisters arrived in Miami from their native Mexico in October 2001 at the invitation of Archbishop John C. Favalora.

He asked them to pray especially for the needs of the people of the archdiocese, for more vocations to the priesthood and religious life, and for the success of local pro-life efforts.

Currently housed at the former Mercy Convent on the grounds of Immaculate Conception Parish in Hialeah, the sisters are planning to move to a larger facility, the former Rader Memorial United Methodist Church in Miami Shores, as soon as it is refurbished to meet their needs — and as soon as they have raised the $2.5 million needed to pay for the refurbishing.

In addition to newly-professed Sister Anita del Corazón Misericordioso, the Discalced Carmelites have another young woman, a native of Nicaragua, entering as a postulant in January.

The group’s current superior, Mother Alba Mery de Jesús, attributes the vocations to “the mercy of the Lord. We do not promote ourselves, but somehow each one of us managed to get here.”

Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles

Fr. Richsteig highlighted the Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles on a recent post and wrote that they were one of his favorite communities. I visited their websites and was certainly impressed! The community seems to be thriving, they are traditionally habited, and of course they look very joyful. If you get a chance take a look. I'll be adding their vocations link to my sidebar for women's religious.

Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles hompage.

Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles vocations homepage.

UPDATE: Someone posted a comment with a link to a slideshow of one of the sisters making final vows. Quite worth the time to watch. Check it out here.

Beautiful Article in the Washington Post about Carmelite Nuns

Pictures are not from the article.

Walking With a Joyful Spirit

By Michael E. Ruane
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, December 25, 2007

In the dark of the early morning, a Roman Catholic nun in a brown tunic and black veil stepped from her cabin and walked to a nearby bell tower.

She rang two bells, calling her sisters to Christmas Eve prayer. Across the complex, other nuns emerged from their hermitages in the woods and gathered in a small chapel. From there, the 10 women embarked on a procession along pathways lit by the full moon, singing as they walked:

Sisters, Arise! Away with your sadness,

With love your hearts adorn;

All the Earth is full of gladness

Slumber not this happy morn.

The celebration of Christmas at Charles County's historic Carmelite monastery early yesterday began in cloistered quiet, behind a tall plank fence off a back road, two miles from Crain Highway and the glitz and malls and madness of the outside world.

It was marked with boughs of evergreen and holly cut from the woods, and arranged in the prayer corners of the sisters' wooden dwellings. It was celebrated with the song of women who have given their lives to prayer and seclusion. And it was observed with a reverence for the central theme of Christianity: that with the birth of Jesus, God became man.

It's "astonishing," one said. Why would God do that?

As the Washington region awoke yesterday to a final day of shopping, travel and preparation, the Carmelites rose before dawn to bring to a close the season of Advent, ending the period of joyful longing, as they put it.

Heaven's treasure let us crave, they sang as they walked through their 65-acre compound.

Him for whom our souls are yearning

Who comes all to bless and save.

The monastery, outside La Plata, traces its history to 1790. The sisters live in a fenced-in area within the complex. They often work alone in their small, one-story individual hermitages, which contain a bedroom, bathroom, workroom and back porch. They work as artists and seamstresses. One is a weaver. They make crafts for their gift shop, which has no clerk and runs on the honor system, and they also do clerical work to help support themselves.

The nuns gather as a group to eat and pray and rarely venture beyond the fence, let alone the compound. The goal is separation from the outside world.

The prioress, Mother Virginia Marie, 73, is the only one who regularly goes outside the enclosed area within the monastery. The grounds also have a public chapel and landscaped visitor area, just beyond the fence.

"It's wholly symbolic, our separation from the world," said Mother Virginia, who was Jane O'Connor of Tulsa before she joined the Carmelite order at age 17. "We've chosen this. We're not in prison."

The aim "is to do more intently what we have chosen to do," she said in an interview last week. "So that we don't have distractions. So we can pray better. So that we can concentrate on the Lord.


"It's a life totally dedicated to God," she said. "And we can do it best when we are free from many things. . . . Silence and solitude are very conducive to prayer, and prayer is what our life is all about."

The nuns come from many walks of life. One had been a Washington lawyer, Mother Virginia said. Another worked as a physical therapist, another a federal government employee.

"I had everything life could offer," said Sister Marie Bernardina, who grew up in Bowie and worked for the government before she came to the monastery 17 years ago. "I had money. I had friends. . . . I had a car. I had boyfriends. I just wasn't happy. I had a good job. I had no debts. I just was searching for more meaning in my life."

She is 42 now. Others in the monastery range in age from 27 to 80. There are 11 in all. They come from Japan, Puerto Rico, the Philippines and across the continental United States.

Their hands look slightly gnarled from work. And they are proud of their traditional clothing, or habits, which many nuns no longer wear.

They have a car, a TV -- which Mother Virginia said is seldom watched -- and a Web site.

And they celebrate a secluded and intense kind of Christmas.

"I don't think I could ever have Christmas out there again," said Sister Clare Joseph, 45, the former physical therapist from Missouri who came to the monastery eight years ago. "It's very solemn here. We kind of curtail our contact with people [prior to Christmas]. We don't write as much. We don't receive as much mail, phone calls.

"When we do have to go out, like for dentists or that sort of thing, I find it to be just a madhouse. And I can't wait to get back here," she said.

"I love Advent. It's a time to really deepen my relationship with God," she said last week as she sat behind the decorative metal bars in the monastery's reception room, clad in her habit and a gray cardigan.

Sister Marie Bernardina said: "Advent is really a time of longing. It's a longing for something more: What is our life all about? Where are we going as a human being when we die? What is the purpose of our life?

"All these things . . . float to the surface of our consciousness when we're preparing for Christmas," she said. "It awakens our longing for Christ. . . . It's a time of joyful waiting."

In the Christmas Eve procession, which Mother Virginia described yesterday, the group visited each nun's cabin. Each door was opened as a sign of welcome to Mary and Joseph, symbolized with small statues carried by the sisters. In the New Testament story, the traveling couple seek lodging in vain and Jesus is born in a stable.

"It might sound kind of goofy to people out there," said Sister Clare Joseph. "But it's symbolic of Christ coming to me. . . . It's a real beautiful thing."

The sisters visited other sites in the complex, singing as they went, then retuned to the chapel to pray. There would be more prayer and song as the day went on, and Mass scheduled for midnight.

Today, they said, they will gather for breakfast, exchange gifts and celebrate around their tree.

But all far removed from Christmas in the outside world.

"I feel we've gone way astray" on Christmas, Sister Clare Joseph said. "There's such consumerism in our society. Consumerism leads to . . . individualism, teaches our kids [to] demand and 'have to have this,' and 'I have to have this latest electronic,' and it's just a total rat race on where the thoughts are."

"I just want to tell people, 'Don't you realize God became a man? Do you realize how astonishing that is?' " she said. "I don't think people even think about that. . . . They're so intent on decorating their homes, and buying the latest, and giving more and better and prettier gifts, and then, on the flip side, wanting more and better and prettier gifts."

"And God became man!" she said. "Why? . . . Because He loves us so much. And I think that that is totally not in most people's purview at all . . . in our society."

Yesterday, as they ended their procession on the moonlit Christmas Eve morning, they sang:

Be with us in sleep and waking

Jesus, Mary, Joseph be

Ours in life and ours when dying

Ours for all eternity.

Religious communities notice more young women open to religious life

Rachel and Stephanie who both entered the Sisters of Life this fall. Rachel's older sister is already in the Sisters of Life, and Stephanie is quoted in the article below. Picture was taken just before the Sisters of Life had professions of vows.

By Andrea Slivka
Catholic News ServiceWASHINGTON (CNS)

Girls often dream of saying "I do" at the altar to their future spouse.Katrina Gredona hopes she'll be saying those words to Jesus as a religious sister."When I look at a community of religious women, I see women who contribute fruitfully to the church and to the world in a very special way and in a very essential way, and I think that's exciting," said Gredona, a student at Seton Hall University in New Jersey.

Ten years ago, Gredona's interest in religious life would have been unique in comparison with the majority of other Catholic girls, as reports indicated a decline in the number of religious sisters in the United States. But recently campus ministers and the vocations directors of some women's religious communities have been noticing a new trend of more young women looking into religious life.

Many vocation directors, in interviews with Catholic News Service and in responses to a survey by Vision Vocation Guide, reported a notable increase in the number of women contacting them for information. A small number of communities reported a stable increase in young entrants.At the same time, more campus ministries are helping young women learn about discernment and religious life.

The cloistered Dominican Monastery of Our Lady of the Rosary in Summit, N.J., is one community with a significant increase in interest in the order. Founded in 1919, the community has had 15 aspirants spend time with the sisters in the past three years to discern whether to enter the community.That number is much higher than in previous years, when the community would be lucky to have one aspirant each year, said Sister Mary Catharine of Jesus, novice mistress."

The Lord is giving these young women the grace to respond to him and he is so powerful and irresistible that they want to say yes to him," she said. "Given our culture, the fact that so many women are feeling that God is calling them to this life and that they want to respond is nothing short of a miracle."Of the 15 aspirants, more than half entered the Dominican or other communities and two continue to discern whether they are called to the Dominican community.

Sister Mary Scholastica Lee, vocations director for the Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles, said the change is more than just an increase in numbers -- she has noticed more commitment by young women to follow through on their initial interest in her community."

This year, the desire for religious life seems more deeply rooted," she said.In a recent survey sent to 165 communities' vocations directors, 71 percent said more people inquired about their community recently. Nineteen percent said they have had more candidates preparing to enter in the past three years than in previous years. However, 41 percent said they currently have no women in formation.

The survey was conducted by Vision Vocation Guide, a magazine for those discerning vocations to the religious life and priesthood, and 80 percent of respondents were for women's communities.

Secular news organizations have recently highlighted rapidly growing communities, such as the Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist in Ann Arbor, Mich., the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecelia in Nashville, Tenn., and the Sisters of Life in New York, that have up to 15 young women entering each year.

But other communities recently have had a steady inflow of three to seven young postulants, according to Michael Wick, executive director for the Institute on Religious Life in Libertyville, Ill.

Those communities include the Religious Sisters of Mercy of Alma, Mich., founded in 1970; the Sisters St. Francis of the Martyr St. George in Illinois, founded in 1869; the Carmelite Sisters of the Divine Heart of Jesus, based in St. Louis and founded in 1891; and the Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration in Missouri, founded in 1874.

Sister Mary Gabriel, vocations director for the Sisters of Life, said the girls she talks with want more than what the society and culture have to offer and are drawn to the freedom they find in religious life through living the vocation to which they are called.

"It's not a kickback to the '50s. It's so different. Young women have seen it all," she said.In answer to questions sent to them by CNS, young women shared the reasons they're open to and discerning religious life."

I think it's my responsibility as a faithful young person to seriously discern whether or not God is calling me into direct service of the church through religious life," said Lindsay Wilcox, a student at Boston College.

"I am considering religious life because God has placed that inclination on my heart -- to totally give my life back to him, who laid down his life for me," said Stephanie Ray, who is preparing to enter the Sisters of Life. (OK this is pretty cool, my former student, dear friend, and Godmother to our son is quoted in this article!)

The late Pope John Paul II plays a large role in the new trend, according to several vocation directors and campus ministers interviewed by CNS.

At World Youth Days, the pope challenged young people to live their Catholic faith in a radical way and to not be afraid to seek out God's will for their lives, said Sister Mary Emily Knapp, vocations director for the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia in Nashville. Many of the sisters have told her they first started thinking about vocations at a World Youth Day.

The congregation has 228 sisters, the highest number in its history. In early August, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican secretary of state, cited the community as an example of the vitality of the Catholic Church in the United States. The cardinal was in Nashville to attend the Knights of Columbus annual national convention.

Another reason for the increase in the interest in religious life, according to vocation directors and young sisters, is more campus ministries nurturing and promoting vocations.Sister Mary Gabriel said not long ago it was a "rarity and oddity" to be a college student discerning a vocation. But now she sees girls coming from campus ministries, particularly at public schools, that have eucharistic adoration, Scripture study and daily Mass.

"If you put these together, it's a recipe for falling in love with the Lord," she said.At the University of Illinois, campus minister Sister Sarah Roy, a young Sister of St. Francis of the Immaculate Conception, said religious vocations weren't talked about much when she attended the university. Now the campus ministry makes the option more visible, and she sees how the students themselves are more willing to consider it.

Likewise, a discernment group at Boston University provides young women with the opportunity to discuss religious life, visit nearby communities and participate in retreats at the end of each semester.Sister Olga Yaqob, an Iraqi who is a member of the Missionaries of the Virgin Mary who leads the group, said the overall purpose is to help the girls become familiar with the will of God and prepare them to respond with a "yes" to whichever vocation they are called by God.

Other contributing factors to the increase, according to those interviewed, include:

-- Web sites making information on discernment and religious communities easily accessible.

-- Dioceses working with religious communities to promote vocations.

-- More general interest in spirituality among a growing number of young adults.

It's uncertain still whether the current increase in interest will lead to a significant increase in the number of those entering, according to Holy Cross Brother Paul Bednarczyk, executive director of the National Religious Vocation Conference, an organization in Chicago serving vocation directors.

"It's still too soon to say; however, this is very good news," he said.