Community News

Today, the Sisters joyfully celebrated the Golden Jubilee of Sister Eileen Gallagher.  The festive event marked 50 years of Religious Life for Sister Eileen.  Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the celebration was limited to the monastic community.  Fr. Joel Martin, OSB,  joined us as Presider.  Sister Tonette Sperando, Prioress, received…

With a simple yet meaningful ritual, the monastic community recently welcomed Sister Edith Bogue, OSB, into our midst for a Year of Residency with the community.  Sister Edith is a member of St. Scholastica Monastery  in Duluth, MN, and will spend this year in Cullman participating fully in the life…

The chapel is quiet and ready before Mass. Today marks the 89th Anniversary of the Dedication of Sacred Heart Monastery Chapel.  The community celebrated with a festive Mass to mark the occasion.  We share with you below the reflection given by Sr. Tonette Sperando, Prioress, to…

This year’s Oblate Retreat was, in important ways, the same as usual – a good retreat director, a theme that provoked reflection and spiritual growth, and Oblates of our monastery gathered in community.  However the present pandemic required a vastly different approach – an on-line retreat and gathering via Zoom. …

The Retreat Center has now completed its second on-line retreat using Zoom, with three more on-line programs scheduled for this fall. The feedback from participants has been enthusiastic and grateful.  Among the comments: “Sister Mary did a wonderful job connecting us to her and sharing her stories. It really made…

Two of our Sisters represented Alabama in a video recently created by The Sisters of St. Francis of Clinton, Iowa and the Franciscan Peace Center.  The video was created in honor of the International Day of Peace on September 20 and features people from all walks of life and each…

The monastic community recently received a new Postulant as they welcomed Margaret Siffert into their midst.  Margaret will spend the next year taking classes related to monastic life, working within the monastery and the community’s ministries, getting acquainted with the community, and continuing to discern her call. In these photos,…

Sr. Minona Anne D’Souza recently joined the Development Office staff as Development Assistant.  In this role she is assisting Sr. Karen Ann Lortscher, Development Director, in many aspects of office operations, including working with publications, data entry, tracking of gifts and donations, sending acknowledgements to donors, and more. Sr. Minona…

The Summer 2020 issue of Benedictine Update, our biannual newsletter, was placed in the mail to our friends and family in mid-July.  We share with you here a pdf version of the issue.  It has many quotes from our Sisters about this time of quarantine, and wise words from our…

Sister Tonette, Prioress, chaired the meetings. This past week, the Sisters gathered for their annual summer meetings.  These meetings provide us with the opportunity to review shared business, discuss important topics, and simply enjoy being together.  This year, in addition to the usual business of the…