November 27, 2013

By Mary Lou Kilian
Editor

Watertown – The Sisters Adorers of the Precious Blood, their friends and family gathered for a celebration of the past and the future Nov. 17 at St. Patrick’s Church.

Bishop Terry R. LaValley presided at a jubilee Mass marking the 50th anniversary of the arrival of the order in the Diocese of Ogdensburg.

During the liturgy, he led a Ceremony of the Reception of the Habit for a new novice in the community. In his homily, Bishop LaValley outlined some of the history of the Precious Blood Sisters in Watertown. “Back in 1963, Msgr. Robert McCarthy made an inquiry with the Mother Superior of the Precious Blood Monastery in Manchester, New Hampshire, urging that a foundation of the Sisters Adorers of the Precious Blood be established in the Diocese of Ogdensburg,” the bishop said. “He purchased a home, here in Watertown, and had it completely refurbished to house the incoming cloistered community. That’s the beginning of a faith story that has enriched the Church profoundly,” he said.

Witness of cloistered life
“Your prayer and the witness of your consecrated, cloistered life are more necessary than ever as you continue to inspire in us a true longing for holiness, a deep desire for conversion and personal renewal: aims that we’ve held deep in our hearts, particularly during this Year of Faith,” he told the Precious Blood Sisters.

“I’m sure that all those who enter through the doors of your monastery today experience the same serenity and joy that I do, each and every time, I am so graciously welcomed into your home,”  he said.

“As your Constitution reminds you, your love for Mary Immaculate is an integral part of your vocation as Sisters Adorers of the Precious Blood,” Bishop LaValley continued. “Mary Immaculate, Mother of the Church, embraced God’s will heartily and devoted herself to the Person and work of her Divine Son, thereby serving the mystery of Redemption.

“It is from Mary’s Immaculate Conception that the Blood of Jesus begins its saving course, and flowing through the Sacraments, brings light and salvation to all the People of God,” he said. “The Most Precious Blood that was shed to set us free pours outward onto every Catholic altar and runs through our veins for the salvation of the world.  

“The principal mission of the Sisters Adorers the Precious Blood is to give glory to the Father, through the worship of His Son in the mystery of His precious Blood, and to honor Mary, immaculate in her conception,” the bishop said. So, from the lips of Mary and the pen of St. Luke, we join in that prayer of Magnificence:  ‘My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,’” he said.

Reception of the habit.
At the conclusion of his homily, Bishop LaValley noted that “when we were finalizing the scheduling of today’s celebration, Sister Marilyn (McGillan, the superior) wrote me:  ‘I can’t think of a more wonderful blessing upon our fifty years than to add another Adorer to our Institute,’ so today Sister Mary Pham will receive the Holy Habit of the Sister Adorers of the Precious Blood. 

“Sister, what a precious gift you are to the Church,” he said. “We congratulate you as you join this very special community whom we treasure.”

During the reception ceremony, Sister Mary asked to be received as a member of the community and promised to observe the Constitution of the Sisters Adorers of the Precious Blood.

Bishop LaValley blessed the habit, the cincture and the veil before Sister Mary left the sanctuary to change her clothes.

She returned to receive a lighted candle and a new name – Sister Mary Catherine.

Sister Mary Catherine joins another novice in the community, Sister Linh Terese Nguyen.

The other Precious Blood Sisters at the Watertown monastery are Sisters Marilyn McGillan, Martha Emery, Rosemary Rossi and Elizabeth Washburn.

Photo by Justin Sorensen
The six Precious Blood Sisters who currently form the contemplative community in Watertown are shown just before they join the procession for the 50th anniversary Mass held Nov. 17 at St. Patrick’s Church in Watertown. From left are Sister Marilyn McGillan, superior, Sister Rosemary Rossi, Sister Elizabeth Washburn,Sister Martha Emery, assistant superior; Sister Linh Terese Nguyen, a novice; and Sister Mary Catherine Pham, who received the habit as a novice during the Mass.

Photo by Justin Sorensen
A highlight of the Nov. 17 jubilee Mass marking the 50th anniversary of the foundation of the Precious Blood Monastery in Watertown was the reception of the habit for a new novice in the community. Above, Bishop LaValley, who presided at the liturgy,  gives a hug to Sister Mary Catherine Pham after she changed  into her habit. At left are Deacon Kevin Mastellon of St. Patrick’s Church in Watertown where the Mass was celebrated and Precious Blood Sister Marilyn McGillan, superior of the Watertown congregation.