Photographs by Sarah Simonis of Sisters enjoying one another.

Sisters enjoying one another

Photographs by Sarah Simonis of Poor Clares at the Liturgy of the Hours

The Sisters gather for the praying of the Liturgy of the Hours.

Photographs by Sarah Simonis of Poor Clares of Chesterfield, NJ Monastery

Sisters at Private Prayer

Yeonsoo Kim

Yeonsoo Kim is from South Korea and is studying at Holy Cross High School in Delran, NJ. Yeonsoo is a Sophmore and is 16 years old. 

She will return to Korea in the summer and return to the United States for her junior year. Yeosoon is presently staying     with her Aunt Clare and her uncle Larry Miller.

Yeonsoo’s mother’s name is Moonkyung Choi and her Father’s name is JongBae Kim. she has one sister, YoonJi Kim, who is 20 years old.

Yeonsoon is prepararing for college(International Major in Korea.

One of Yeonsoo’s hobbies is watching movies.  She enjoyed  Legally Blonde very much.

Yeonsoo comes to the Monastery for help with her english and she does very well

More thoughts on Psalm 1

Whole Psalm :

As the Book of Canticles is called The Song of

Songs , Psalm 1 could fittingly be called the Psalm of Psalms

Verse 1

The Hebrew word Haish is emphatic for That One

That one among  a thousand who lives for the accomplishment of the end for which God created us. Haish could also mean that man, I chose that one as it also is a good translation

Scripture Sharing for Sunday Readings

Some of the sisters thoughts for the Sunday

Readings

Leviticus 13 v1-2,44-46

It was the job of the priests to decide if a person was clean or unclean.  The priests did not give out medicine or get at the root of the illness.

One of the Sisters said that ritual of the priests in

the Old Testament was similar to our Sacrament of Reconciliation.  We go to the priest and tell our sins but the root of the sin has to

be worked on by us for the under lying cause of sin is deep within our human nature.

Psalm 32 speaks of thanksgiving for healing of sin    and forgiveness. 

There are three forms of sin:
1) rebellion

2) missing the mark; not getting the point

3)crookedness

But in psalm 32 there is forgiveness
1)lifting up of the sinner
2)covering it up by God

3)no longer accounting the sinner as guilty

So the sisters came to the conclusion as usual that without Faith, without the eye of love the world is too evil, for God to be good, for a good God to exists.  But Faith has the power of undoing evil.
Jesus in Sunday’s Gospel breaks all barriers by touching the leper and embacing him and curing him .  Jesus tells the leper to show himself to the priest but not to tell anyone.  The leper tells others of the cure and Jesus becomes popular but not for long.  Fans as usual are fickle.

Meeting with Friar Tom Hartle OFM

Friar Tom, our good friend, spent time with us after the elections and discussed our Franciscan Charism and our future goals.

Please visit our Poor Clare website.

 

Friar Tom Hartle enjoys dinner with Sisters Agnes and Claire Andre

Elections at the Monastery

Bishop John M. Smith presided over the elections of the Chesterfield Poor Clare Monastery on February 8th.

Sister Miriam Varley, OSC (above), was re-elected Abbess. Bishop Smith blesses Sister Miriam for her Office of Abbess.

Our elected Officers (above)
First row: Sisters Donna (3rd officer), Miriam (Abbess), Etta (1st Officer)
Second row : Sisters Mary Frances (Vicaress) Barbara (2nd Officer)

The whole Community with Bishop Smith (above)

Check out our other pictures from around the Monastery on our Monastery Happenings Picasa Web Album.

Our First Snowfall

Poor Clares: 100 Years in the Bordentown/Chesterfield Area

Mother Mary Magdalen Bentivoglio

Countess Annetta Bentivoglio was born of a noble family in Rome, July 29,1834. In 1864 her sister, Constance, entered the Poor Clares of San Lorenzo in Rome and Annetta followed her and was given the name of Mother Mary Magdalen.

In 1875, in obedience to Pope Pius IX, Mother Mary Magdalen and her sister Constance came to America to establish the Poor Clares of the Primitive Rule of St. Clare.

Mother Mary Magdalen founded the Monasteries of Omaha, New Orleans and Evansville.

Mother died at Evansville August 18th, 1905. After her death, the Boston Monastery was founded in 1906. Our Bordentown Monastery was founded from Boston in 1909. today there are about 26 Monasteries in America which follow the the Primitive Rule of Saint Clare.