Carmelite Hermit of the Trinity

Carmelite hermit of the trinity CHRISTMAS GREETINGS AND Newsletter 2007

“Many will rejoice because of His birth.” (Luke 1:14)

How quickly another year has come and gone! With 2008 on the horizon, we once again share with you, our dear ones, these events of the past year.

During 2007 we extended a welcome to various vocation inquirers during their stays with us at the hermitage. Some have expressed interest in applying to enter. Sister Ruth just recently joined us. Sister Lisa is also with us – pictured here with Sister Joseph Marie. Wisconsin winters and the ancient art of snow shoveling can be quite a chilling experience for one who is used to Hawaiian and southern Virginia climates, but Sister Lisa is up to the challenge!

Spring brought numerous doctor and physical therapy appointments for Sister Joseph Marie after both shoulders were injured from a fall (with resulting fracture, separation, partial tear of the rotator cuff, tendonitis, and bursitis). Since then her shoulders have successfully passed endurance tests during gardening season, furniture-moving escapades and snow removal.

In June, Sister Joseph Marie made her television debut (“and Finale,” Sister hastens to add!) She appeared in a locally produced documentary on “Vowed Women of Faith” in the Milwaukee area, which aired on the public television network in October. It provided a rare opportunity to represent the authentic hermit vocation and counter predominantly negative stereotypes of hermits. Although the segment that aired was considerably condensed, it was nicely presented.

Soon thereafter surgery was done on Sister Joseph Marie’s left hand, with recovery prolonged by a serious infection that developed. In 2006, surgery on Sister’s right hand was performed twice (it didn’t ‘take’ the first time!) – which explains why the newsletter did not go out last year as expected...

In July we learned that Father James was eligible for Veteran’s medical benefits, so it was his turn for a doctor’s stethoscope and microscope! Father continues in residence here, offering us the privilege of daily Mass and Sacraments, and further “laboring in the vineyard” by helping us with outdoor work as well.

In September and October we took on the formidable task of replacing badly disintegrated carpeting throughout the entire building. Professional installers removed and replaced the carpeting and, trusting in the Lord for strength, we provided the muscle power to remove and then restore all room furnishings! Of course clean-up was a substantial task too. We are profoundly grateful to the givers of this gift. We are enjoying much cleaner and healthier air as a result, enabling our guests and ourselves to breathe easier now and for a long time to come! In November several of our appliances gave out, as if in harmony with the course of nature at winter’s onset! Within a few days, a refrigerator-cooler, a clothes washer, and a furnace (on Thanksgiving Day!) ceased operations! Never a dull moment!

In a statement concerning the meaning and value of contemplative life, Pope Benedict XVI thanked God for “the gift of so many persons who, in monasteries and hermitages, are totally dedicated to God in prayer, silence and hiddenness.” He encouraged his listeners to offer contemplatives “spiritual and material support so that they will be able to fulfill their mission of keeping alive in the Church the ardent expectation of Christ’s return.” He noted that places of contemplation, “apparently useless, are, on the contrary, indispensable…. They are beneficial for all, including for those who do not visit them or perhaps do not know they exist.” (11-19-06)

An unknown author wrote these reflections on gratitude:

Be thankful for the difficult times. During those times you grow. Be thankful for your limitations, because they give you opportunities for improvement. Be thankful for each new challenge, because it will build your strength and character… It’s easy to be thankful for the good things. …Fulfillment comes to those who are also thankful for the setbacks.

Thank you to those who, like our Holy Father, value our hermit vocation and consecration. Know, too, that your “spiritual and material support” sustains us. We depend on you as you depend on us.

We conclude for now with a preview of next year’s headline news: Sister Joseph Marie will celebrate her Silver Jubilee of vows as a hermit on May 25, 2008! Praise God!

With our love, prayers, and heartfelt wishes for a truly joyful and greatly blessed Christmas season and an exceptional year,

Your Carmelite Hermit of the Trinity Sisters