Loving to the End

What would you do if you knew today would be your last?  That during the night, one of your closest friends would betray you to others who would see that you suffered a cruel and painful death?  Would you gather with your friends for one final farewell?  Would you have one more adventure, one more thrill?  Would you throw up your hands, cry out to God?  Would you try to seek out your betrayer before you were betrayed?  What would you do? 

“When Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end” (John 13:1).  Stop and ponder those words: Jesus knew His time had come and so with His last moments, “He loved [his own] to the end”.  We are included in this as we too are Jesus' own.  He loved us to the end.  

In this last night on earth, Jesus gathered his closest friends and they didn’t look at photos or talk about “the good old days…”  Jesus loved to the end, to the totality of self-giving.  On this night, Jesus poured water into a basin and washed His disciples’ feet; on the cross He will finish pouring out His life, emptying Himself completely in love.  As Pope Benedict XVI writes in “Jesus of Nazareth: Holy Week”:

Unlike Adam, who had tried to grasp divinity for himself, Christ moves in the opposite direction, coming down from His divinity into humanity, taking the form of a servant and becoming obedient even to death on a cross – all this is rendered visible in a single gesture.  Jesus represents the whole of His saving ministry in one symbolic act.  He divests Himself of his divine splendor; He, as it were, kneels down before us; he washes and dries our soiled feet, in order to make us fit to sit at the table for God’s wedding feast.

When we read in the Book of Revelation the paradoxical statement that the redeemed have “washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Rev. 7:14), the meaning is that Jesus’ love “to the end” is what cleanses us, washes us.  The gesture of washing feet expresses precisely this: it is the servant-love of Jesus that draws us out of our pride and makes us fit for God, makes us “clean.”

And we are all represented among the disciples: Thomas, the doubter and a bit of a cynic…John, ever devoted and the one who reclined closest to Jesus heart…impetuous Peter, who always seems to mean well, but who would also betray Jesus with his denials later that night…Philip who voiced the desire of them all to see the Father, yet also reveals they still didn’t quite “get it”…and Judas, a close friend, yet one who was planning to betray Jesus for a bit of extra cash.  We are all there in the Upper Room, gathered with Jesus that night.  And He washes our feet.

Not only that, He also leaves a legacy, one beyond price and description.  He tells them, how much he has longed to share this meal with them.  Not wanting to leave us alone, sheep among wolves, He institutes the Eucharist and gives to mere humans the Real Presence of His body, blood, soul and divinity.  Real food, real drink to strengthen us on our spiritual journey to our heavenly home with Him.  Tonight, we remember in a special and particular way this gift of His Real Presence.  And after, as the disciples left the Upper Room and went with Jesus to the Garden of Gethsemane to be present with Him during His night of agony, He offers us the opportunity to travel with Him to the altars of repose, to sit with Him and “keep watch for one hour.”

Let us not miss this opportunity, this special invitation from Jesus, our Beloved Lord.  As He washes our feet, the affections of our soul, with His grace and love, let us comfort and console Him by accepting the gift of His Presence and the abundance he greatly desires to give us.  Let us offer ourselves to Him by just being with Him this night and allowing Him to transform our hearts and minds.  No matter our past, no matter our present circumstances, no matter what we think might come in the future, let us look to Him right now in this moment of grace with the real hope that we might be drawn ever more closely to Him as He is raised up on the cross of Good Friday.

Something to ponder...

"When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives."
- Matthew 26:30; Mark 14:26

What did Jesus and His disciples sing?  Most likely, in keeping with Jewish tradition, it would have been at least part of the Hallel Psalms (Psalms 113-18 and 136).  These are hymns and prayers sang by the Jewish people at Passover giving thanks to God for liberating them from slavery in the land of Egypt; but they also speak of the "stone rejected by builders" and pray for God's deliverance in the present.  Past and present come together in these psalms and they are given a new fullness and universal meaning in Jesus.  Spend some time today reading and praying with at least part of these Psalms: imagine Jesus singing them with His disciples, that you are there with them, or imagine that they are present with you where you are now; ask Jesus for the grace to hear Him speak to you through the words of these Psalms in a new way.

Preparing For the Light: Join Us for the Triduum

Throughout the 40 days of Lent, the Church has repeatedly echoed the invitation of Jesus: Repent!  The kingdom of God is at hand…  We have fasted and prayed, done acts of penance and works of mercy, and often have failed in some way in those we had intended to do.  But even these failures are gifts of God grace, when we offer them to Him, He uses them to draw us more deeply into Himself and our knowledge of Him and His mercy. 

Soon, we'll be entering into Holy Week and the Triduum.  The Triduum is a liturgical season in and of itself, the three days of the year marked profoundly by the passion and death of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  The days are marked with special liturgies, full of silence, lamentation and sorrow.  Through these liturgies the Church looks on the face of Jesus and sees the reality of sin, and also sees her hope and deliverance through His offering of love.

In the monastery, the last days before Easter, the Holy Triduum, are spent as days of retreat as much as possible – all but the most essential work stops as the sisters are given more time to complete their tasks for the Triduum and Easter preparation, such as reviewing and practicing the liturgies, cleaning, decorating and cooking for Easter, but most importantly, spending extra time in prayer and meditation.  You are invited to join us in prayer and reflection, in the celebration of the liturgies and in time of silent prayer in our chapel.

Most people are familiar with the afternoon and evening liturgies of the Triduum: Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday, the Liturgy of the Lord’s Passion on Good Friday, and, of course, the Easter Vigil Mass the night before Easter Sunday.  But there is also another powerful time of liturgical prayer during the early morning of these three days: Tenebrae.

Tenebrae is traditionally prayed in complete darkness, with the only light coming from a hearse holding burning candles.  As the hour of prayer proceeds, at various times, the candles are extinguished, representing the disciples abandoning our Lord.  Chantresses intone passages from the Lamentations of Jeremiah, which describe the sins of Jerusalem (representative of the Jewish people, and also of the Church) and entreat her to return to the Lord, her God.

Eventually only the center, or Christ candle, remains burning, until near the end of Tenebrae when its flame is also removed after the chanting of the Benedictus.  Then, in Dominican tradition, two chantresses stand at the front of the choir, two more chantresses stand in the middle of the choir and all face the altar as the chantresses and choir pray for Christ’s mercy.

Each day of the Triduum has slightly different entreaties; those recorded in this clip are from Holy Thursday.

May God’s grace pour out on us all during these holy days of Triduum as we prepare for His Resurrection and the triumph we share with Him over the captivity and death of sin.

If you would like to see the full schedule, check out our Upcoming Events.

2018 Holy Week and Easter Sunday at the Monastery

You're invited to join us for the celebration!

Our First Janua Caeli Retreat Day!

I will allure her and lead her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her heart...

Do you (or someone you know) desire to take a step away from the noise and busyness of the world, experience deeper prayer and relationships with others of faith, and learn more about living the Catholic faith as a young, single woman in today’s culture?  Then Janua Caeli is for you! 

The theme for our Saturday, April 21st Janua Caeli Retreat Day is Fullness of Grace: How to Receive an Overabundance of God’s Gifts.  The day of retreat will include talks, Eucharistic Adoration, Mass and the Divine Office prayed with the Dominican nuns, and more!

Our retreat master is 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.  To learn more about Father Tran and the Fullness of Grace ministry, visit www.fullnessofgrace.org.

Janua Caeli are days of retreat for single Catholic women between the ages of 18-38 who are not actively discerning a vocation, but desiring to learn more about and grow as Catholic women in today’s culture.  For more information about this and our other events, or to register, visit our Upcoming Events.

Happy [Asian] New Year!

Last Saturday we celebrated the lunar New Year with our Asian sisters (and brothers!).  In Asian culture, the New Year is similar to Thanksgiving Day for Americans.  It is a ten-day celebration filled with food, games and gifts, honoring the past year and all our loved ones who have gone before us, as well as a time to look forward to fresh beginnings and what the coming year might bring.  Our community has sisters from Indonesia, Vietnam, Taiwan, and the Philippines, but we were all excited to celebrate with them!

We had a special dish laid out for breakfast this morning after Office – Bánh Chưng, a cake of sticky rice filled with mung bean paste and pork.  To go with it, we had coffee brought back from Vietnam for us from one of our Vietnamese brothers. 

For dinner, we had Bánh Xèo, or as some of us call it, “sizzle dish”.  It’s a kind of Vietnamese crepe that includes pork and shrimp.  The crepe is then cut into strips and rolled in a lettuce leaf with shredded carrots, fresh cilantro and slightly sweet, salty, spicy thin sauce.  For dessert, we enjoyed Chè Khoai Môn, a warm pudding made with tapioca pearls, taro root and coconut milk.

But our big celebration was after Vespers, when we enjoyed a supper party in our community room.  We were treated to a dish our community has not had before – Bún Bò Huế, a spicy noodle soup from the central region of Vietnam.  Of course, a traditional Vietnamese toast, conversation, games and sharing were the highlight of the festivities.

And this is one of the wonderful, beautiful things about community life.  To share and learn from one another and the diversity that we each bring into the monastery is a joy and our unity is enriched by it, like the multi-facets of a gemstone that makes the whole sparkle so that it radiates the light that much more brilliantly.  One of the traditions for the New Year is to honor the past and those to whom we are indebted for our lives, to ask forgiveness for our failings, and to humbly request health and blessing for the coming year.  We now share with you our community’s prayer for this Asian New Year.

Almighty God, holy Trinity and undivided Unity, we give thanks to you for your power and tender providence, your justice and compassion, your discipline and love.  We are grateful for the gift of life you have bestowed upon us and sustained in us this past year to this day.  Trusting only in your infinite mercy, we humbly pray for forgiveness of our sins, the grace to follow you with greater humility, obedience and unity, and the gift of final perseverance in this life that we may enjoy eternal happiness with you and all the saints and angels in the life to come.

We give thanks for our parents, grandparents all our ancestors, and our Dominican Sisters and Brothers who have gone before us, natural and spiritual, and for their lives, sacrifices, teachings and example.  We ask for forgiveness of any ingratitude and lack of honor we may have shown them.  For those who are deceased, we ask Lord that you look with favor upon them and grant them eternal rest.  For those who are yet living, we pray, Lord, that you bless and protect them with your loving providence, that they may continue to grow in light and wisdom until such day when you call them to their eternal home.

We give thanks for our brothers and sisters, natural and spiritual, and for their encouragement and companionship on life’s journey.  We ask forgiveness for any lack of kindness or respect toward them on our part.  Through your grace, Lord, as we grow closer to you, may we also grow in unity of mind and heart with each other.

We give thanks, Lord, for our benefactors and friends, for their generosity and trust.  We ask forgiveness for any lack of gratitude on our part for the blessing of their presence in our lives.  Look with favor upon them, Lord, and keep them close to You in the coming year.

We give thanks, Lord, in faith and hope for those to enter our Order and in particular our community, as younger sisters and brothers.  We pray that you would set our hearts on fire with love for You and for them, that as we receive from you mercy, joy and consolation, we would share generously with them; fill this house to overflowing with holy and fervent vocations, we pray, for the glory of your all holy Name and for the salvation of souls.

We make our request to You through your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever.  Amen.