Living with Christ

[OLAM Dad]

Pham,

We got a letter from Sister Lauren today. It's always nice to receive her letters. In it she has some reflections on living the religious life that I thought I would share with you all.

Many of you are discerning the religious life. Through Sr. Lauren I'd like to try and give you a glimpse of what the life is like.

This letter was not written for anybody but her family in mind. Nevertheless, I thought some of her comments might be edifying here on the Vocation Station for those of you discerning a religious vocation or for those of us who live vicariously through those that do.

Here are some excerpts...

[quote]I have been incredibly busy.  I try to fill in as much of my free time as possible with visits (short, long, and everything in between!) to the Most Blessed Sacrament .  Daily the reality of what it means to live under the [u]same roof[/u] as The Holy Eucharist becomes more and more impressed upon me, and it's indescribable!  I know that if it had hit me all at once I probably would have died of happiness .  But I love the view from my cell.  Laying in bed at night I can see one of our stained glass windows of the angels, and I know that the monstrance is so close to that window.  So I am situated in a very fortunate predicament:  My day is spent [u]praying [/u]in the upper church with Jesus, [u]working [/u]in the lower church with Him (I'm down there for hours every day) and [u]sleeping [/u]under His gaze and under His roof!  It's such a happy situation.  [/quote]

Edited April 4, 2006 by OLAM Dad

[morostheos]

How beautiful! Thanks for sharing!

[benedictaj]

that sounds beeeeautiful. : Thank you Michael!

She sounds very happy!

[TeresaAvila]

OH thank you so much for sharing, I am so happy for her, and all of you, what a beautiful soul she is!

God Bless You!

[Laurentina1975]

Thanks OLAM Dad!

[Guest phatdaddy]

Thanks Micheal,

Thank you for sharing these personal and reflective comments from Sr. Lauren. It is extremely edifying, even to us old guys. Sr. Lauren is blessed by God and so are you and your whole family. This is a tribute to your dedication as a father and husband and a spiritual guide. Well done my friend. :applause:

It's all about Jesus,
Ray

[magnificat]

Awesome insight. Thanks for sharing that!

[puellapaschalis]

Living in the same building, under the same roof, as Christ dwelling in the Tabernacle is, I find, an extraordinarily compelling and powerful concept. When I was an undergraduate and in the Chapel Choir, we used to sing the hymn [i]My song is love unknown[/i] very often, partly because our Choirmaster loved it to pieces, especially the last verse:
[quote]Here might I stay and sing,
No story so divine;
Never was love, dear King,
Never was grief like Thine.
This is my Friend,
In whose sweet praise
I all my days
Could gladly spend.[/quote]
It was one of his favourite exhortations to us that it was this verse (specifically the last four lines) that really made him want to persue a career - a very vocational career - in cathedral music.

Each time I've stayed at a convent where the guest house is connected to the church I've loved the fact that no matter what time of the day or night, I could creep downstairs and spend time with the Blessed Sacrament. To live, [i]forever[/i], and [i]in the same house[/i] as Christ...it can't get any better. How can people want to bolt out of church each Sunday before the recessional hymn has finished?

All right, I'm probably not normal in this desire I thank God for it, actually; if everyone was overcome by a desire to be in the same house as the Sacrament then lots of important stuff wouldn't get done. So Deo gratias that this longing has been planted in my heart, in Sr. Lauren's heart, and in the hearts of countless others around the globe and throughout time to always live in the Real Presence.

Love and prayers,

PP

[Guest phatdaddy]

PP,

All I can say is wow! beautiflly spoken. I am so grateful and blessed to be a part of this Phamily of saints. I wish I could say more but the words just won't come. God Bless you.
Mr. Ray

[OLAM Dad]

Puella,

I agree with Mr. Ray. That was beautiful.

Michael

[puellapaschalis]

Gentlemen,

you're both very kind

(we need to have a bashful curtsey smiley on here!)

PP

[Brandimg]

That is beautiful beyond words. Thank you dearly for sharing

[OLAM Dad]

[quote name='Brandimg' date='Apr 4 2006, 02:43 PM']That is beautiful beyond words. Thank you dearly for sharing
[right][snapback]935468[/snapback][/right]
[/quote]
Thanks, Brandimg.

to Phatmass.

[Guest phatdaddy]

Brandimg to the Phamily

[magnificat]

[quote name='puellapaschalis' date='Apr 4 2006, 10:24 AM']Each time I've stayed at a convent where the guest house is connected to the church I've loved the fact that no matter what time of the day or night, I could creep downstairs and spend time with the Blessed Sacrament. To live, [i]forever[/i], and [i]in the same house[/i] as Christ...it can't get any better. How can people want to bolt out of church each Sunday before the recessional hymn has finished?

All right, I'm probably not normal in this desire
[right][snapback]935178[/snapback][/right]
[/quote]
hehe...not that abnormal...although I guess most of us on this board are abnormal by society's view...but i'm cool with that
I agree...I love the fact that the chapel is just steps away! And as one of the sisters told me, "Around here, you never have to worry about Jesus getting lonely!"

[HisChild]

[quote name='magnificat' date='Apr 4 2006, 03:23 PM']
"Around here, you never have to worry about Jesus getting lonely!"
[right][snapback]935562[/snapback][/right]
[/quote]

Amen!

[zunshynn]

That's so beautiful! Thank you for sharing her thoughts! Living in the same house as Jesus... my gosh... what more could anyone want!? And to think that he is all alone in so many tabernacles across the world.

We shall change that.

[Brandimg]

Thank you for the kind welcome. I appreciate it [img]http://www.onerock.com/board/style_emoticons/default/flowers.gif[/img]

To live [i]with[/i] Jesus. It makes the heart grow warm just thinking about it. What a great gift He gives us in the Blessed Sacrament! And to be able to [i]visit Him[/i].

[be_thou_my_vision]

And live IN Him... Jesus is so cool!

[HisChild]

[quote] Sr Lauren states:  Daily the reality of what it means to live under the same roof as The Holy Eucharist becomes more and more impressed upon me, and it's indescribable!  I know that if it had hit me all at once I probably would have died of happiness[/quote] .

I'm wondering how that is going to impress upon my heart. As you know, I've been in religious life before, and have had daily holy hours with the community, but to know that I have an hour each day where I'll be praying in front of our exposed Lord and then again, a night time hour. This is so vastly different. I feel so called to it, but the impact of it all hasn't hit yet.