Sisters Of St. Benedict Center, Slaves Of The Immaculate Heart Of Mary

[brendan1104]

Saint Benedict Center = approved

Edited March 2, 2008 by Era Might

[EJames2]

[quote name='Sr. Mary Catharine' post='1471834' date='Mar 1 2008, 10:21 AM']Both communities (they are separate but work together) are in good standing with the Diocese of Worcester and enjoy the personal support of the Bishop. Yes, he was there for Confirmations. His idea, BTW.[/quote]
thank-you Sister, but, if they are Both under the RC Bishop, and 'approved' as you say..why were all the links here removed??

[Sr Mary Catharine OP]

[quote name='EJames2' post='1472104' date='Mar 1 2008, 10:19 PM']thank-you Sister, but, if they are Both under the RC Bishop, and 'approved' as you say..why were all the links here removed??[/quote]

I emailed the moderator and assured him that they were OK. THere is a lot of controversy about them from the past and a lot of mis information on the internet about them. In justice to the communities it's only right that the information be set straight. That would be like holding it against the Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Church that they were sedevacantists in the past.


I was part of the community when they were regularized through the personal interest of a guy named Cardinal Ratzinger!

[Era Might]

Removal of links does not necessarily imply anything about the order. Links are sometimes removed as a precaution when there are questions about the order's status in the Church and/or fidelity to Church teaching. The moderators rely on people who know about these orders to answer those questions.

[Freudentaumel]

[quote name='Era Might' post='1472161' date='Mar 2 2008, 07:38 AM']The moderators rely on people who know about these orders to answer those questions.[/quote]
It seems those people know better than the local bishop and the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

[Era Might]

I did not see anything on their website from the local Bishop or the Holy See regarding their status. Those who have information about their status can discuss it in this thread or contact a moderator, but links are removed until that is clarified. This is done so that all orders promoted in the Vocation Station are known to be faithful. However, discussion of the order can still take place without links.

[brendan1104]

Era, the Sisters who this thread is dedicated to are the indult center for the local Diocese, and saintbenedict.com community is visited by the local ordinary bishop who does confirmations. Proof enough?

[quote name='Era Might' post='1472171' date='Mar 2 2008, 12:27 AM']I did not see anything on their website from the local Bishop or the Holy See regarding their status. Those who have information about their status can discuss it in this thread or contact a moderator, but links are removed until that is clarified. This is done so that all orders promoted in the Vocation Station are known to be faithful. However, discussion of the order can still take place without links.[/quote]

[Freudentaumel]

[quote name='Era Might' post='1472171' date='Mar 2 2008, 08:27 AM']I did not see anything on their website from the local Bishop or the Holy See regarding their status. Those who have information about their status can discuss it in this thread or contact a moderator, but links are removed until that is clarified. This is done so that all orders promoted in the Vocation Station are known to be faithful. However, discussion of the order can still take place without links.[/quote]
[url="http://198.87.234.92/vicar/ReligiousCommunities/tabid/478/Default.aspx"]Here[/url] is the religious vocations website of the Diocese of Worcester, which lists the Slaves of the Immaculate Heart of Mary as an approved religious community for women.

Also, if you go to the website that may not be linked (which is linked by the Diocese of Worcester in the link above), and click on "Multimedia - Slideshows" and then "Slideshow Archives", you can view a slideshow of the Bishop's visit (confirmation) in 2007 and listen to his sermon. If you go to the archives of 2005, you can see his visit before.
If you go to "Schedules - Newsletter Archives" and then "Fall 2004" you can see the visit by Bishop Rifan. The most recent newsletter is also about the confirmations by Bishop McManus.

[Era Might]

Thank you for the diocesan reference.

[By His Grace Alone]

[quote name='Era Might' post='1472171' date='Mar 2 2008, 02:27 AM']I did not see anything on their website from the local Bishop or the Holy See regarding their status. Those who have information about their status can discuss it in this thread or contact a moderator, but links are removed until that is clarified. This is done so that all orders promoted in the Vocation Station are known to be faithful. However, discussion of the order can still take place without links.[/quote]

So, the word of Sister Mary Catherine, who is the Novice Mistress at the Dominican Monastery in Summit, NJ is not good enough? Even after she noted on this forum that she was educated by them AND was a Novice in that order? Even after she pointed out that they were regularized with the direct influence of the now POPE???!!

[Era Might]

If anyone has any other comments and/or questions about the previous removal of links, please contact myself or another moderator, rather than post them here. If you want to discuss the original topic of this thread, please continue.

[HollyDolly]

I'm sure the community is an approved community of the Church and by the bishop.
Whatever happend is in the past.Yes,I found the sisters on the net one time and they do have a school.
Isn't there a group called Sisters of Mary,Mother of the Saviour that are sedvanists or whatever you call it?
Or am i wrong? Help me out here Sister Mary Catherine and Gemma.

We shouldn't put down the sisters for what happend in the past,and the work they and these other communities do must be of some value to Jesus Our Lord and that those not in line with the Holy Father will through our prayers
and those of Our Lady and the saints,come back to Holy Mother Church.

[HollyDolly]

Hey i was thinking of the Daughters of Mary,Mother of Our Saviour who are associated with the Society of St.Pius V.

[gloriagurl]

[quote name='HollyDolly' post='1479175' date='Mar 18 2008, 11:28 AM'] I'm sure the community is an approved community of the Church and by the bishop.
Whatever happend is in the past.Yes,I found the sisters on the net one time and they do have a school.
Isn't there a group called Sisters of Mary,Mother of the Saviour that are sedvanists or whatever you call it?
Or am i wrong? Help me out here Sister Mary Catherine and Gemma.

We shouldn't put down the sisters for what happend in the past,and the work they and these other communities do must be of some value to Jesus Our Lord and that those not in line with the Holy Father will through our prayers
and those of Our Lady and the saints,come back to Holy Mother Church.[/quote]


Well I'm not Sr. Mary Catherine or Gemma, but I can tell you that the name of the community - no longer sedevacantist - is Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Church. They were formerly assosicated with the Religious Congregation of Mary Immaculate, Queen (CMRI)which is a sedevacantist group.

If you are interested in a web site for the new community of sisters, let me know. A good friend sent it to me. It has the information about their establishment and the "story" of their exit from the sedevacantist group.

There is something else I've been wanting to say since almost the first time I read a post (not necessarily here) on this group. And I think Holly has opened the door above by saying that we "should not put down...."

First please let me be EXTREMELY clear. I do not agree with nor promote, in any way, the sedevacantist position as it relates to (and of course opposes) the teaching of the "sitting" Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church. I believe that Pope Benedict XVI is the true Vicar of Christ on earth and I believed the same about each of the Popes which are questioned by the sedevacantists. The sedevacantist position is not my position. So please do not misconstrue what I am about to say.

A little over a year ago, I had the privilege of having lunch with 2 members (one priest, one nun) of CMRI. Two more lovely people I have never met in my life. In fact, when my mother passed away this past October, the priest from CMRI was more comforting, kinder, gentler and certainly more God, Jesus, Mary and heaven focused than the pastor of my own parish, who completely and utterly "blew off" my request to have a priest come to the Nursing Home where my mother died saying "there's nothing we can do for her now". I wondered when it was, as Catholics, we stopped praying for the dead. I wondered when attending to the dead and comforting those who mourn ceased to be a works of mercy. Maybe my pastor thinks prayer is nothing. Maybe he doesn't believe in praying for the dead...after all, he's a post Vatican II priest and may wonder himself...do we still "do that stuff"???? I suppose it never crossed his mind that I might need my priest/pastor to do something for me(or my family), in that difficult time. In comparison, the CMRI priest, a man I had met only once and only for about 2 hours, contacted me the day my mother died and followed up several times as well - and for anyone who thinks he just wants to "convert me" he never mentioned his "position" or in any way tried to persuade me to leave the Church - he simply got in touch to offer his care for my soul...which as we know is the function of a priest.

The point I'm trying to make is that these people are not demons. They have real feelings, real faith (however our positions differ, however misguided faith may be, their faith is real and sincere) and they possess an immense passion for Christ. Would that the typical post-Vatican II parish possess even a modicum of their passion. When the group of sisters left the CMRI's all I heard/read from a variety of Catholic sites were big whooping "YEAH'S".....mine among them, until the Holy Spirit (through the heart of a trusted friend) revealed my lack of charity.......and certainly we always rejoice at the return of any prodigal....but for heaven's sake - there were people left behind who were sad, confused and shaken. In no Catholic chat room, in no faithful Catholic forum did anyone offer a prayer. No one even considered the possibility that there might be PEOPLE, God's own sons and daughters whom He cherishes, for whom He died, for whom He searches and longs, now left behind their sisters in a great deal of pain.

Being right isn't "everything" in secular life; it's especially not "everything" in the spiritual life. I pray every day for the 2 people I met. I give thanks for their kindness and their desire to please Christ. I also pray for their eyes to be fully open and for Christ to give them the relationship with His Church that HE wants them to have. I pray for the sisters who left the congregation, I'm grateful for their courage to grow and be humble, and I pray for those who were left behind....that Jesus will minister to them, that their sadness, pain and confusion won't blind them to Him.

In my considerable experience, it doesn't take much of a "twist" to distort a fine point of theology or practice, especially for simple folks....all that may be needed is the right time, the right place, the right hurt, the right resentment, the right weakness, a particular confusion on some fine point of Church Teaching, and BAM...off we go into "untruth"......the evil one is quite willing to provide for such events and heaven is well acquainted with his penchant toward trickery and deceit and his delight in confounding and separating the sons and daughters of the Most High God.....and so I pray, I pray for all who are deceived and all who are not deceived...I pray especially for those of us who focus on being "right" in their beliefs, traditions, positions, theologies and spiritualities...that they may instead be righteous and that the devil may not overtake us with pride but rather that we may always say..."weak as I am, there but for the grace of God, go I.

Pax

[Guest Perpetualove]

Gloriagurl....
What a wonderful, well thought out, beautifully written post! Thank you! I am grateful for your willingness to share your thoughts and opinions and humbled by your spirit. This is just what I needed for Holy Week...actually, I need it every day. Thank you!
Perpetualove