Our Preaching_Vol2 Iss2.qxd - Dominican Sisters of Amityville

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2 Our Preaching Fromthedeskof Virginia Maguire, OP Prioress Dear Friends, As I write this letter to you, I am mindful that it will be my last one since my term as Prioress will end on June 24, 2007. It has always been a privilege for me to communicate to you the happenings of the Congregation and the many ways that you partner with us in mission. I have always been inspired by the way you have supported our retired Sisters and our ministries. You truly engender hope in our lives and make it possible for our Sisters to dream new ways of ministering to the people of God. The new Council is highlighted in this edition. We wish them many blessings in their ministry of leadership over the next six years! I am confident that you will render to them the same wonderful support that you have given to us the past six years. We have been able to support our ministries because of your generosity in our fundraising endeavors. The wonderful story Stained Glass Glory featured in this edition relates to the heritage of our Dominican Family. The Dominican saints depicted on these windows and the other Dominicans throughout the centuries are the shoulders that we stand on today, offering us inspiration and courage to be the Holy Preaching for this time. Celebrating 80 years, 75 years, 70 years, 60 years and 25 years illustrates our jubiliarians’ fidelity in passing on the Dominican charism–The Holy Preaching–now and into the future. Their communal and individual celebrations portray the unfolding mystery of God in their lives, the life of the Congregation and the many lives they have influenced in their varied ministries. Our Dominican Gala raises a substantial amount of money each year to resource our many ministries. This year’s honorees are the Koehler Organization and Sister Aimee Koonmen, OP who is the Executive Director of Bethany House. The money raised at the Gala will go directly to our ministries to enhance the lives of children, adults and the Earth. The overview of the 2007 Events is a tribute to the continuous fine work of our Development Office under the leadership of Eileen Nolan, OP and Pat Chambers Daly. They are supported by a wonderful staff: Ann Marie Ellingham, Carol Hansen, Shalyrie Fields and Amy Lax. Their relationship has forged a partnership with you raising funds to support our mission. We will all miss Sister Eileen in the Development Office. Her passion for our mission left no stone unturned. She was always searching out new ideas to raise funds; these ideas are featured in this edition. Eileen is a great communicator and through this art of communication she has touched your hearts to be involved in fundraising. We wish her well and will be ever grateful for her excellent work in the Development Office. We welcome Pat Chambers Daly as the new Director of Development. Since Pat worked so closely with Eileen, you can expect that same enthusiasm for our mission. As I conclude this letter, I convey my deepest gratitude to each of you for your support and your friendship. I consider it a gift to have made so many wonderful acquaintances. Your support and friendship enriched my life and encouraged me and our Council to support the efforts of our Sisters to engage in new undertakings that empower others and give them hope for the future. You have enriched my life tremendously and were instrumental in bringing hope into my life and the life of the Congregation by giving us the ability to continue in mission, enabling us to serve the most vulnerable in our society. I end my letter with this excerpt from a prayer entitled To Have Hope which describes what you allow us to do in our ministries because you believe in the Dominican Sisters of Amityville. To have hope Is to continue affirming That it is possible to dream a different world, Without hunger, without injustice, Without discrimination. To have hope Is to live. Summer is on the horizon; may it be a time of relaxation for you and your families. Our Sisters remember you in their daily prayers. Prayerfully and gratefully, Virginia Maguire, OP Prioress Vol. 5, No. 2 Summer 2007 The American Congregation of the Holy Cross, Dominican Sisters of Amityville, is a Congregation of more than 500 women religious. Our Motherhouse is in New York but our Sisters minister in eight other states, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. We are a preaching/teaching Congregation always seeking creative ways to minister in the present moment. Excerpt from the Vision Statement of the Dominican Sisters of Amityville We Dominican women religious called to be signs of joy and hope, commit ourselves to incarnating the Gospel, deepening our life of prayer, searching for Truth, discerning the needs of the Church and ministering to the people of God. COUNCIL Virginia Maguire, OP, Prioress Diane Morgan, OP, Assistant Prioress Margaret Mayce, OP, Councilor for Ministry/Study Kathleen McGinn, OP, Councilor for Stewardship/Treasurer Audrey Harsen, OP, Councilor for Health/Retirement Laura Helbig, OP, Councilor for Common Life Luz Selenia Quinones, OP, Provincial of Puerto Rico Our Preaching is a publication of the Dominican Sisters of Amityville. For information on articles in this issue or on any programs or events, please contact the Development Office at (631) 842-6000, ext. 269. Director of Development Eileen M. Nolan, OP, ext. 238 enolanop@amityop.org Development Officer Patricia Chambers Daly, ext. 241 pchambersdaly@amityop.org Development Associate Ann Marie Ellingham, ext. 246 aellingham@amityop.org Our Preaching Editor Carol Hansen, ext. 269 chansen@amityop.org Dominican Sisters of Amityville Development Office 555 Albany Avenue, Amityville, NY 11701 Website: www.amityvilleop.org
Stained-Glass Glory by Fr. John McGowan, C.SS.R. I felt so small sitting in the choir stall in St. Albert’s Chapel at Queen of the Rosary Motherhouse in Amityville. The Dominican Sisters had invited me to preach their yearly weeklong retreat. Everything was spacious: the grounds, the buildings, the long shining corridors, but especially St. Albert’s Chapel. The ceiling seemed to stop at the basement of heaven. The marble floors winked at me from the sunlight pouring through the multicolored stained-glass windows. It was the windows that really dwarfed me. Behind the tabernacle, a wall of blue and white mosaic glass of every shade and hue formed the outline of a colorful glass cross on the sanctuary floor. I sat in the front stall and let the light, the silence, the splendor of the place fill me up. I could see holiness. I could smell it. I could even hear it in the holy silence. I felt so small, so insignificant. What really took hold of me were the six stained-glass windows on the wall across from me. Each window was about eighteen feet tall and held the image of a single figure with a name at its base. There was St. Hyacinth. I wondered who he was and why he was being prominently displayed in gleaming glass in this Motherhouse chapel? I looked at the next window—St. Antonious. Hmm! Who was he? My eyes moved to St. Peter of Verona. Unfamiliar names to me. You would expect stained-glass scenes of the life of Jesus or the mysteries of the rosary. The next one was St. Raymond of Pennafort. I had heard of him, but could not tell anyone a thing about him. As the brilliant light poured through each tall and colorful image, a light finally clicked on within me. Each figure was dressed in a white Dominican habit. They were all Dominican saints! I was facing six stained-glass likenesses of Dominican saints. That was when I began to shrink. We Redemptorists have only four canonized saints and a few blessed. Then I turned around. Behind me were another six magnificent windows with six more Dominican saints. Up front near the sanctuary, was St. Dominic, founder of the Order of Preachers. There he stood holding the book of the Gospel in his hand with a rosary dangling from his fingers. Next to him came St. Catherine of Siena, mystic and doctor of the church. There was St. Albert the Great, teacher, bishop and scientist holding the globe in his hand. If Albert was there, where was his pupil Thomas Aquinas? There he was, standing across the sanctuary floor facing Dominic. I felt as if I was in Heaven’s Hall of Fame. The Dominican Cooperstown. Saints, popes, mystics, preachers came one after another. Some lineup! I gazed fondly at St. Rose of Lima and then Summer 2007 found St. Martin de Porres. I was in the presence of the All Stars of the Ages. And I shrunk even smaller. Twelve All Star saints lined the walls in colorful glass in this beautiful chapel, some dating back to the 13th century. I not only felt small, I felt young as well. We Redemptorists began in 1732. We are infants in the realm of religious orders and congregations. The Dominicans and all their saints and blessed comprised a holy dynasty. The Yankees of heaven. The heroes of halos. The words of Paul’s letter to the Hebrews echoed in the vast chapel: “We are surrounded by this great cloud of witnesses.” There I sat, encircled by the divine dozen. Then the thought struck me. What are you doing preaching a retreat to a religious order of Sisters who belong to the Order of Preachers? How dare you presume to tell these women how to be holy! All I really had to do was invite them to sit in these choir stalls and look at the windows before and behind them. Here were visual aids and living color reminders of their beautiful motto: “Laudare. Benedicere. Praedicare.” Praise. Bless. Preach. Sitting in that chapel was a very humbling and grace-filled experience for me. At lunch that day, I remarked to one of the Sisters, “You have quite a lineup of Dominican saints! Each one is an MVP—a most valuable preacher! We Redemptorists have only four saints and a few blesseds.” “Well, we’ve been at it longer, Father.” Sister was being kind. “We only celebrate the feasts of our saints because if we celebrated our blesseds there would not be enough days in the year. And everyday would be a feast day. We will have to take you to the Holy Rosary Chapel in the other building and show you our blesseds. They are all over there painted in murals. And you’ll have to visit our choir loft. We have more of them up there.” The Motherhouse not only boasted of their saints in stainedglass glory, but also witnessed to their residents—the living saints of the Amityville Motherhouse. These women are still praying, still believing, still ministering in word and action. Most of the Sisters who live at the Motherhouse are in their 80’s and 90’s. One of them is 101 years young. Still praising, still blessing, still preaching. Before I left the Amityville Dominicans, I came to an amazing conclusion. “I know why all you Sisters are of a great age,” I said. “Why, Father?” they asked. “Well, it’s because heaven is so crowded with Dominicans that there’s no room left. So God is keeping you here with all of us to make heaven here on earth.” Laudare. Benedicere. Praedicare. What a wonderful motto! 3
Page 1: Inside Vol. 5, No. 2 Summer 2007 Le
Page 5 and 6: Gala Honorees Announced The Dominic
Page 7 and 8: Dominican Sisters of Amityville Cla
Page 9 and 10: Sister Theresa Anderson, OP Mr. & M
Page 11 and 12: Miss Margaret L. Flanagan Mrs. Marg
Page 13 and 14: Ms. Kathleen McCarthy Ms. Kathleen
Page 15 and 16: Mr. & Mrs. George Smawley Mr. & Mrs

Our Preaching_Vol2 Iss2.qxd - Dominican Sisters of Amityville

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