Eight Sisters of St. Scholastica Monastery attended the 26th annual Monastic Institute in Collegeville, Minnesota, this year. Sister Donna Schroeder, Sister Mary Catherine, Sister Agnes Fleck, Sister Mary Susan DeWitt, and Sister Mary Josephine Torborg accompanied Sister Luce Marie Dionne, Sister Mary Carla, and Sister Gretchen Johnston, three of St. Scholastica Monastery’s current women in formation, to St. John’s School of Theology Seminary for the gathering. The Institute is sponsored and organized by Saint John’s School of Theology Seminary and Saint John’s Abbey.
The Monastic Institute’s goal is to foster reflection and conversation on matters of concern to monastic communities and other intentional communities, both Christian and non-Christian. The focus this year was Bible and Prayer in Benedictine Spirituality and the sessions explored key elements of monastic spiritual practices based on the Bible. “The engagement with God’s Word in prayer, study, and meditation lies at the heart of Benedictine spirtuality.” Several of the Sisters said they were especially touched by the talks on God’s presence in the Word, in life’s quiet moments, in relationships, and in our good intentions and responses. A few of the Sisters will share some of their insights with our readers in upcoming blogs. The blogs by Sister Luce Marie and Sister Mary Carla have been published already and remain available for reading in the blog archives.
