Year of Women Religious

          Last year on February 25 Bishop Roger Foys inaugurated the Year of Women Religious in the Diocese of Covington. A large group from St. Walburg Monastery, as members of the choir or participants in the Eucharist, shared the occasion with many others. The video of community histories and stories at the reception afterward made for a memorable occasion. As the Year of Women Religious closes on February 2, 2013, I want to share my experiences and appreciation of some of the events of this year. Prayer cards for the year and articles in the diocesan paper about aspects of religious life kept the event in the forefront.

            On July 20 we attended a cookout, sponsored by Bishop Foys, at the Ryland Lakes Country Club. There were a delicious picnic brunch, music, games and scenic rides around the property.

            On August 25 the Sisters of Divine Providence held an open house celebrating the year as well as their foundation day in the United States. It included a picnic enjoyed by many sisters and friends, tours of the property and wetlands and a thanksgiving prayer service.  We also got to see the progress of their new headquarters, adjacent to the infirmary and to celebrate with them the sale of the motherhouse building to the Diocese of Covington for a retreat center.

            On October 5 the sixth graders of Blessed Sacrament School hosted a tea party with lively conversations, treats and a unique bingo game. Handmade decorated pads were souvenirs.

            On October 14 all the mother houses held open houses to celebrate the Year of Women Religious. Here at St. Walburg Monastery there were presentations on the Liturgy of the Hours, sisters’ ministries and the Oblate program. Tours and refreshments were part of Benedictine hospitality that day. Some of the sisters attended other open houses.

            On December 8 the new chapel, Mary Seat of Wisdom, at Thomas More College was dedicated. Although the event was not part of the Year of Women Religious, Bishop Foys’ remarks gave tribute to the religious orders instrumental in the beginnings of Villa Madonna/Thomas More College.

            In the evening of this same day the Youth Group of St. Timothy Parish honored the sisters with a festive gathering. Representatives from five communities spoke of their founding and present ministries. Women religious, parents, youth ministers, pastor and teenagers all conversed together. Everyone enjoyed a “Souper Bowl,” an assembly of soups of unbelievable variety made by families of the parish.

            The Year of Women Religious will ring out on Feb. 2 and we thank Bishop for his decision to proclaim 2012 as the Year of Women Religious in the Covington Diocese.   

      Sr. Andrea Collopy, OSB

Between St. Scholastica and St. Walburg

               February is a month of celebrations for the women of St. Walburg Monastery. On February 10 we celebrate the Feast of St. Scholastica, the patron of all Benedictine women and on February 25 we celebrate the Feast of St. Walburg, the patron of our monastery. These feastdays, fifteen days apart, give us the opportunity to reflect upon the long and ancient heritage of Benedictine women praying and seeking God together.

               What we know about Scholastica we know from St. Gregory the Great’s Dialogues, Book 2, The Life and Miracles of St. Benedict. Scholastica is not mentioned in the Dialogues until she is introduced in Chapter 33.  Gregory tells us she was devoted to God from her youth and that she would visit her brother once a year in a place that belonged to his abbey, not far from the gate of the monastery. The story entitled “Of a Miracle Wrought by His Sister, Scholastica” can be found at http://www.osb.org/gen/scholastica.html. Gregory’s point in this story is the contrast between Benedict’s emphasis on the Rule and Scholastica’s emphasis on love and  relationship. I recently found a quote from Anthony de Mello that also underscores the point. “Obedience keeps the rules. Love knows when to break them.”   

               Walburg about whom we know more was born in 710 and died in 779.  She also had a brother, two of them in fact, with good Saxon names of Willibald and Winnibald. She went to the Benedictine Abbey of Wimborne (England) as a child and became a member of that monastery. Boniface asked the abbess of Wimborne for nuns to establish monasteries in Germany. In 750 Walburg and other nuns embarked. Legend has it that a terrible storm rose up terrifying the crew and its passengers. Walburg knelt, prayed and the storm abated

Walburg joined Boniface, to whom she was related, and her two brothers and established a monastery at Tabuberbischofsheim where she became skilled in medicine. Winnibald, established a double monastery at Heidenheim and asked Walburg to take charge of the nuns while he took charge of the monks. When Winnibald died in 761, Walburg was appointed abbess, responsible for the welfare of both monks and nuns. She is known for her deep prayer life, charity, spirit of hospitality and courage, as well as miracles of healing. She died in 779, and in the late 800’s her relics were taken to Eichstätt, Germany. Sisters from the monastery in Eichstatt came to the United States in 1852 and we here at St. Walburg Monastery were founded by Sr. Alexia Lechner who had entered the monastery at Eichstatt, came to America in 1853 and to Covington, Kentucky in 1859.

 For more than a thousand years, a mysterious moisture has collected every year on St. Walburg’s relics in Eichstätt. This fluid is known as “Walburg’s Oil” and is collected at the Abbey and given to pilgrims there. Healings attributed to St. Walburg’s intercession continue to be reported up to the present day.

In art Scholastica is usually represented with a dove, sometimes  with a book representing the Rule, and in paintings and engravings with rain the background as above right. Walburg is usually shown with a crown (representing her noble birth), a croizer (representing her office of abbess) and a vial of healing oil.

This year we will be celebrating the feast of St. Walburg on Feb. 24. We are anticipating the feast because Feb. 25 is the opening celebration of the Year of Women Religious in the Diocese of Covington. Scholastica’s example of prayer and love and Walburg’s example of prayer, courage and healing will inspire us throughout the coming year.

Sr. Deborah Harmeling

Year of Women Religious in the Diocese of Covington

     Several weeks ago Bishop Roger Foys of the Diocese of Covington, announced a Year of Women Religious (February 2, 2012-February 2, 2013). Good News! The diocese has welcomed women religious for over 150 years. Currently there are five houses (institutes) of women religious: The Passionist Nuns, The Sisters of the Congregation of Divine Providence,The Sisters of Notre Dame, The Sisters of St. Joseph the Worker, and us, The Benedictine Sisters of St.Walburg Monastery. There are quite a few other sisters who live in and serve the people of the diocese: The Carmelite Sisters of the Aged and Infirm who run Carmel Manor and The Sisters of the Good Shepherd. Over the years many other communities of women religious were here and left behind institutions and buildings that are still serve our people, such as the Franciscan Sisters of the Poor who opened St. Elizabeth Hospital and the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, whose former Academy building provides affordable housing for the elderly. We come and stay and we come and go—at all times being faithful to our particular call, charism and mission. 

    As different religious institutes we follow different rules and have different charisms. We Benedictines follow the 6^th century Rule of St. Benedict and his mandate to seek God in community, prayer (liturgy of the hours and lectio) and work. What all women religious have in common is our baptismal consecration that finds its fullness in our complete consecration to God through profession of vows. During this coming year we hope to find ways to communicate to this diocese our gratitude for their generous support, stories that reveal the meaning and lifestyle of each institute and plant the seeds of a vocation in many women. Join Bishop Foys and each religious institute in this diocese and help us accomplish our hope for the future. Help us get out the word that the Church needs women religious. Sr. Mary Catherine Wenstrup, OSB