Pray with the Church During Quarantine

Hello dear sisters in Christ,

I pray you are staying healthy and safe during these uncertain times.  Although churches across the US and the world are closing their doors, many priests and religious are live streaming their Masses and prayers to the faithful.  Prayer is an integral part of vocation discernment so even though we may not be able to visit Our Blessed Lord physically, we should still spend time with Him in prayer and meditation at home.

A couple of wonderful communities are sharing their daily hours of prayer with us over live streams.

PC: Benedictines of Mary

The Benedictines of Mary, Queen of Apostles: Live Stream the Divine Office and Latin Mass

The Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles: Live stream Morning Prayer, English Mass, and Evening Prayer

May you keep very close to Our Blessed Lord during these trying times.  Remember He is with you always and that He has a plan for everything.  Let us offer our sacrifices and penances for the salvation of souls and the end of the Coronavirus.

God love you,

Sarah

Serving with the Sisters

Hello sisters,

In October, I was blessed to be able to volunteer with the Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles for their annual Fall Boutique!  I just wanted to drop some pictures here and share a little bit about my time with the sisters.  It was very nice to be able to spend time working and praying with the sisters that I have grown up visiting for 10 years!

Cookies, cookies, and more cookies!!! We made, baked, and boxed so many cookies for the Carmel Kitchen bake sale!

Visiting a Catholic cemetery for the feast of All Soul's Day.

The Carmelite Sisters' marker with a statue of St. Therese. 💕

The grave of the co-foundress of the Carmelite Sisters of Los Angeles.

Ave Maria...  The statue at the end of the hall of my dorm wing.

I love getting up early when I'm at the retreat house because I get to pray with the sisters!  Evening prayer is beautiful too because you rest in prayer after a busy day. 

Ite ad Joseph!  A beautiful statue in the retreat house office.

I was privileged to run an errand with a sister to visit a friend of the community to collect succulents for a project.

It was quite a new experience and I had fun.  I didn't realize how beautiful succulents could be.

Sampling the cherry pie made for the Carmel Kitchen.  It was delicious!!

"Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place my trust in You!"

"The more you honor Me, the more I will bless you."

There were lots of beautiful items for sale at the boutique that were made by friends of the sisters.

This week was full of blessings and long days of work and prayer.  Even though I was very tired after each day, I was so happy and peaceful.  A week of volunteering with the sisters teaches you humility as you work for the good of others and the salvation of souls.

Have you volunteered with a community of sisters?  What did you do?  Please tell me in the comments below!  God love you!!