Is He Calling You?
At the beginning of the New Year, the Church also steps into the “ordinary time” of the Liturgical year. In the Gospel of this first day of this ordinary time, we see our Lord began his ministry and gave his very first homily: “This is the time of fulfillment…
Happy 2020!
At the beginning of the New Year, the Church also steps into the “Ordinary Time” of the Liturgical Year. In the Gospel of this first day of this Ordinary Time, we see our Lord began his ministry and gave his very first homily: “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the Gospel.” (Mark. 1:15)
Jesus was not a lone ranger. No! To help him with the preaching mission, Jesus began calling the first disciples after spending days in prayer and being baptized for the mission. We are told that as Jesus passed by the Sea of Galilee, he called Simon and his brother Andrew. And Peter and Andrew “abandoned their nets and followed him” (Mark 1:18). Going a little further, Jesus called James and John and they “left their father Zebedee in the boat along with the hired men and followed him” (Mark 1:20).
These men were busily engaged in their profession and helping their families at the prosperous trade of fishing. Yet when Jesus called, they immediately left everything and everyone behind to follow him. Why? They certainly were neither poor nor desperate. On the contrary, they seemed to have given up A LOT!
These disciples were able to (immediately) give up all the good things in life because their deepest desire was for God and God alone. When Jesus called them, the disciples sincerely and humbly acknowledged their thirst for God and accepted Jesus’ invitation. By doing so, they allowed God to fill them more than they could ever imagine…His very self. Peter affirmed this happiness later on when Jesus gave his disciples a chance to leave him: “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” (John 6:68)
Is He calling you? Have courage and respond! There are still rooms available and time to register for our Come and See Day this Saturday, January 18th; visit our Upcoming Events page for more information and to register.
Rev. John Marie Bingham, O.P.
Our participants will be given tools to help them discerning vocations, and opportunities to meet the nuns and those who are also discerning their vocations. Our guest speakers are Rev. John Marie Bingham, O.P., vocation director of the Western Dominican Province and Brother Athanasius Thompson, O.P. of the Western Dominican Province.
Please pray for our speakers and the young women who will be coming to our monastery discernment day this Saturday, January 18th and for all those who are called to share more intimately in the preaching mission of Jesus Christ.
Seeking Happiness...Did You Miss It?
On Saturday, October 13th, a group of young women from around the Bay Area (and beyond) gathered here at the monastery for our second Janua Caeli Retreat Day. Father Pius Pietrzyk, OP of the Province of Saint Joseph spoke on our quest for happiness and how we can truly find happiness as we live a life of prayer and virtue, and how to go about it with the demands of life today.
Father Pius Pietrzyk, O.P. of the Province of Saint Joseph.
On Saturday, October 13th, a group of young women from around the Bay Area (and beyond) gathered here at the monastery for our second Janua Caeli Retreat Day. Father Pius Pietrzyk, OP of the Province of Saint Joseph spoke on our quest for happiness and how we can truly find happiness as we live a life of prayer and virtue, and how to go about it with the demands of life today.
Mass, praying the Divine Office with the nuns and times for silent prayer before the Blessed Sacrament filled out the day, as well as opportunities for confession and short one-on-one conferences.
Sister Joseph Marie, O.P. welcoming the Janua Caeli retreatants and introducing Father Pius Pietrzyk, O.P.
As a fun break after lunch, some of the novitiate sisters spent recreation with the retreatants creating a little art and talking.
A big thank you to Father Pius and for our retreatants, and for those that prayed for these young women and all involved in providing the retreat day. May God richly bless you with abundant graces!
If you missed this retreat day, don’t miss the next one! Visit our Retreats at the Monastery page to learn more about our next Janua Caeli and Come-and-See Days, or contact Sister Joseph Marie, O.P.
Before the rush of the holidays, take a retreat day!
It’s already October and the holiday season is right around the corner - what better way to prepare than by taking a day of retreat!
It’s already October and the holiday season is right around the corner - what better way to prepare than by taking a day of retreat! Janua Caeli are days of retreat for single Catholic women between the ages of 18-38 who desire to live more faithfully as Catholic women in today’s culture. Our next Janua Caeli Retreat Day is Saturday, October 13th and our retreat master is Father Pius Pietrzyk, OP. The day of retreat will include talks, Eucharistic Adoration, Mass and the Divine Office prayed with the Dominican nuns, and more!
Father Pius is a friar of the Eastern Dominican Province and serves as Chair of the Pastoral Studies Department and Assistant Professor of Pastoral Studies of Saint Patrick’s Seminary in Menlo Park, California. He holds a BA in English and Philosophy from the University of Arizona and a JD from The Law School at the University of Chicago. In 2002, Father Pius entered the Dominican Order and his studies eventually led him to the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas (the Angelicum) in Rome. In 2016, Fr. Pius was appointed a missionary of mercy by His Holiness, Pope Francis.
Don’t miss this opportunity to join other like-minded young women and grow in your relationship with Jesus through Mary! For more information and to register, visit our website.
Gratitude for a Great Come-and-See Day!
Last Saturday, we hosted our July Come-and-See Day, packed with prayer, information on vocations and the life of a Dominican nun, and more!
Last Saturday, we hosted our July Come-and-See Day, packed with prayer, information on vocations and the life of a Dominican nun, and more! The day began with Mass and Terce (Midmorning Prayer of the Divine Office), then a wonderful talk given by Father Michael Carey, O.P. of the Western Dominican Province, who shared with us his vocation story and steps for discerning God's call in your life.
Other talks were given by Sister Joseph Marie, O.P., our vocations directress and novice mistress, a few of our novitiate sisters, as well as a time of sharing with the community. And the entire day flowed around the continual prayer of the Divine Office and adoration.
Our deepest gratitude to Father Michael Carey and to all those who kept us, and the young women in attendance, in prayer. Please continue to offer your prayers for them (and us!) as they continue seeking God's will for their lives. Deo gratias!
Final Days to Register for July’s Come and See!
We’re finalizing preparations for our Saturday, July 21st Come and See Day and if you’ve ever had questions about how to know what to do to follow God’s will, you won’t want to miss it!
We’re finalizing preparations for our Saturday, July 21st Come and See Day and if you’ve ever had questions about how to know what to do to follow God’s will, you won’t want to miss it! Our guest celebrant and speaker is Father Michael Carey, O.P. of the Western Dominican Province. He is currently an associate professor at St. Patrick’s Seminary in Menlo Park, California and chair of the Moral Theology Department (for those not familiar with the different branches of theology, our faith teaches us our goal [eternal happiness with God in heaven]; moral theology is concerned about the human actions necessary to get us there).
The day of retreat will also include talks, Eucharistic Adoration, Mass and the Divine Office prayed with the Dominican nuns, and more!
Father Michael Carey is a native of Chicago, Illinois. Later, his family moved to Arizona where he graduated from Arizona State University. That same year he entered the Order of Preachers (Dominicans). Continuing his education, he received a law degree from Boalt Hall, University of California, Berkeley, and a Doctor of Sacred Theology degree from the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas (The Angelicum) in Rome. For many years he has done specialized, itinerant preaching throughout the United States and was chaplain to the cloistered Dominican Nuns in Hollywood, California. As well as teaching at colleges and universities through the U.S.
To learn more or to register, contact Sister Joseph Marie, O.P. or visit the Upcoming Events page on our website.
Did you miss it? Recap of Janua Caeli
Our first Janua Caeli Retreat Day was on April 21st and our theme for was Fullness of Grace: How to Receive an Overabundance of God’s Gifts and we received an abundance of graces that day!
Our first Janua Caeli Retreat Day was on April 21st and our theme for was Fullness of Grace: How to Receive an Overabundance of God’s Gifts. Our retreat master was Rev. Quan Tran, priest for the Diocese of Orange in California and founder of Fullness of Grace, a ministry aimed at helping Catholics and other Christians grow in their spiritual life by better understanding supernatural grace, and how to gain an abundance of God's gifts by imitating the qualities of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The day of the retreat included talks, Eucharistic Adoration, Confessions, Benediction, Mass and the Divine Office prayed with the Dominican nuns. Our novitiate sisters also joined the young women in the parlor during afternoon recreation for an art project. Most of the young women had never done much art, but were surprised at their own hidden talents uncovered through the simple watercolor project the sisters showed them and all had fun – it ranked as one of the top three moments of the retreat day.
Here's a bit more of what our retreatants had to say at the end of the day:
"I liked best the helpful information to live out grace in the secular world..."
"Father Tran shared much insight about developing our spiritual life. I liked best the 12 essential dispositions needed to receive the fullness of God's grace."
"God is so good to have inspired you to hold this Janua Caeli Retreat Day. Thank you!"
"A few words to describe this retreat to someone else? Contemplative, informative, unique, peaceful..."
"I really appreciated how we were integrated into the sisters' prayer schedule - a very close second was the recreation time with the sisters. Thank you!"
A big thank you to Father Tran, the young women who attended and to all those whose prayers and support helped make this retreat day possible. And if you missed this Janua Caeli, don't miss the next one in October! Invite a friend and register!