Novena to St Dominic 2015 - Day 4

St Dominic and the Rosary

Today we reflect on our Dominican tradition of devotion to the Holy Rosary and we quote from a letter (September 1985) by Fr Damian Byrne OP when he was Master of the Order.

The Dominican legend of the Rosary - "The barren land"

The order was born into a barren land: dichotomized humanity, with flesh warring against the spirit, with woman downgraded and life itself despised, was unable to accept the reality of the Word made flesh, dwelling in the midst of us. There was only one answer, and it was summed up in the simple words: "Hail... the Lord is with you... you will conceive in your womb, and bear a son..." (Luke 1: 28-31).

Whatever critical historians may have to say about the Legend of the Rosary, it bears witness to the charismatic gift entrusted by the Church to the Order of Preachers, a gift which we must exercise by reason of profession, by our legislation and by the constant exhortation of the See of Rome.

The Legend, as such, is worth recalling in these days of renewed insistence on our preaching ministry: After much fruitless labour, tradition has it that the Mother of God appeared to Dominic in the forest of Bouconne near Toulouse: "Wonder not that until now you have had such little fruit from your labours. You have spent them on a barren soil, not yet watered with the dew of divine grace. When God willed to renew the face of the earth he began by sending down the fertilizing dew of the Angelic Salutation. Preach my Rosary composed of one hundred and fifty Aves, and you will obtain an abundant harvest."

True devotion to Mary

It places Mary in her true ecclesial context - waiting herself in the barren land with the broken, the wounded and the little people of God. The heavenly Ave comes first on her, for in truth the Hail Mary is not so much an ascending prayer as a downward divine blessing poured out on all flesh. Mary stands in the desert on behalf of all humanity, so that it may blossom once more like the rose. The word addressed to Mary is addressed to all: "Rejoice, the Lord is with you." Here, we all draw waters from the springs of salvation, as the fertilizing rain of the Ave renews our land.

A school of prayer

There is a healthy plurality about the Prayer of the Rosary, for its long and varied history has produced many approaches: it has its rich Marian tradition, as witnessed at thousands of Marian shrines, in processions and in rituals where Mary is crowned as Queen. It has too, its Christological orientation as a "compendium of the Scriptures;" it is a powerful vocal prayer and it is a many levelled way of contemplative prayer. It can be prayed in a group or alone. In a word, the Rosary is a School of prayer, providing for body, soul and spirit.

A method of preaching

St. Dominic is above all the "Man of the Book." Art may show him without the beads, but never without the Scriptures. The well known fresco of "Christ mocked" in San Marco is a classic illustration. It contains the main elements of Rosary preaching:

1.The Central theme of the Lordship of Jesus, the subject of our contemplation and of our preaching. This is the suffering, yet triumphant Jesus of "now", with power still going out from his glorious wounds to heal his people.

2. Mary, the first and supreme contemplative who is already exquisitely occupied in pondering these things in her heart and at the same time inviting Dominic to keep her company.

3. St. Dominic, standing for ourselves, pondering the word in the Scriptures and preparing to preach it to others. Fra Angelico portrays him exactly as Our Lady requested five hundred years later at Fatima when she said: "Keep me company meditating on these mysteries of the Rosary."

An instrument of healing

Early preachers of the Rosary were concerned not merely with preaching a devotional

exercise. They were mindful of the Acts of the Apostles: "Grant to your servants to speak your word with boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus." (Acts 4: 29, 30). Among the classic texts of their preaching was the story of the woman with the issue of blood. She touched the Lord and experienced power go out from him. Healing was a very real part of the Rosary apostolate of former times. The Preacher would hold up the beads, and invite his hearers to touch the Lord in faith, as they reverently called on the name of Jesus in each Ave. "The beads", they would say, "are like the tassel of his robe. Reach out and clutch them in faith and you will be made well."

The Spanish apostle of New Granada, St. Louis Bertrand, gives a graphic account of the miracles performed through his own use of the beads which he was accustomed to place around the neck of the sick person. After his return to Valencia he gave a Rosary to a friend and told him to preserve it with reverence, "because in the Indies, this Rosary cured the sick, converted sinners, and I think, also raised the dead to life."

In these days of the new flourishing of the ministry of healing, it would be remiss of us Dominicans to fail in the healing dimension of the Rosary which is an integral part of our tradition.

It may be timely to recall a remarkable letter addressed to a former Master of the Order by Pope Pius XI. On 7th March, 1934, he wrote: "It may justly be said that the Rosary of Mary is, as it were, the principle and foundation on which the very Order of St. Dominic rests for the perfecting of the lives of its members, and obtaining the salvation of others."

Novena to St Dominic 2015 - Day 3

In the Fundamental Constitution of the Order we find the phase “following in the footsteps of the Saviour, speaking among themselves or their neighbours, either with God or about God.”  In the Process of Canonisation the Brethren indicated that this was wholly characteristic of Dominic their founder – frequently repeating that he “only spoke to God or about God.”

Yet this formula is not a creation of Dominic – he borrowed it from the founder of the Order of Grandmont, St Stephen of Thiers: The virtuous man should always speak of God or with God; for in his prayer he speaks with God and with his neighbour of God”

This sentence makes clear how the synthesis of the two aspects of Dominican life operate together, and transcend all dualism.  Our life will have all the more unity, when our activity is rooted and flows from our union with God.

St Dominic was a person who was undivided in himself, because he was open to all.  He was open to all because the one love that is the source of all - the form of all and the end of all - is one in him and in all.  He was capable of experiencing the truth that we are completely rooted and grounded in God’s love.

The following quotation from Love and Living by Thomas Merton is relevant here: “Christianity is a religion of the Word.  The Word is Love, but we sometimes forget that the Word emerges first of all from silence.  When there is no silence, then the one Word which God speaks, is not truly heard as Love. Then only ‘words’ are heard. ‘Words’ are not Love, for they are many and Love is One.  The one Word which God speaks is Himself.”

This silence of St Dominic which he proposes that we should imitate, is like that of the Virgin Mary: silence of the heart allows us to unceasingly hold in our minds and in our hearts the mystery of salvation.

Novena to St Dominic 2015 - Day 2

On this second day of our Novena in honour of St. Dominic, I cannot help calling to mind one of the great outstanding qualities of St. Dominic, namely, that of his zeal.  The dictionary describes it as ’an  intense enthusiasm for a cause’, and those belonging to the family of St. Dominic are only too well  aware how well this description fits his intense enthusiasm for the salvation of souls.

So much so that he spent his nights and much of his day in prayer, pleading for their salvation, even to the point of offering himself to be cut in pieces to be placed at the gates of hell to save poor sinners.  This reminds us of the words of Jesus in St. John’s Gospel (Ch.2) ‘Zeal for your house devours me’.

Oh, how zealously St. Dominic laboured to bring Christ’s mercy and healing to the people of his time – surely in our day he longs even more  to reach out to our needy sisters and brothers, which he does, through the ministry of his many sons and daughters in every part of the world - for those caught up in drug and alcohol addictions, in sexual abuse, slave trading, human trafficking, abortion of innocent babies in the womb and suicide to mention only some of the desperate needs that plague our world in this new millennium. 

It was to bring the compassion and healing of Jesus to such needy peoples that St. Dominic founded his Order -  specifically for their salvation.  We read in the Book of Numbers (Ch.25)  ‘the Lord said to Moses: ‘Phinehas the priest, has turned my wrath away from the children of Israel my people, because he was the only one among them to have the same zeal as I have…’.  How appropriately these consoling words can be applied to St. Dominic and hopefully also to his children in his Order.

Each member of St. Dominic’s family is called to imitate this same zeal for the salvation of souls – those of us in the cloistered life are called to devote ourselves without hindrance to praying and pleading with God for the salvation of all peoples – called to be devoured by the same zeal as Dominic - and by frequent contact with the furnace of love as he was, we too are set on fire with ardour for the spreading of God’s Kingdom on earth and the salvation of souls.

Novena to St Dominic - 2015 - Day 1

 

 

Jesus said to His disciples: “The kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea that brings in a haul of all kinds.” Mt 13:47

The opening words of the Gospel reading we heard today at Mass seemed to me to be a very fitting description of the Order of Preachers – and providential, that we have been given these words at the beginning of our novena to St Dominic.

In its almost 800 years of life, the Order of Preachers has proven itself to be like the dragnet Jesus spoke about – attracting to itself people of all kinds, rich in diversity; of every shape and size; from every corner of the earth – and each one has found in it a home; a place where they feel welcome and to which they belong; and a place where they have discovered they can be free to be themselves; a place of mercy where they have found acceptance and love – the beginning, perhaps, of eternity?

We know that St Dominic was inspired primarily from the hours he spent in contemplation at the foot of Christ’s Cross; that his sole prayer for himself was that he be given the gift of perfect charity.  The shape of the Cross is the shape of the greatest commandments we have been given by the Lord Jesus: that we love God with all our heart and soul; with all our mind and strength; and that we love our neighbour as ourselves.  When Jesus had His arms outstretched on the Cross, His embrace of humanity was without limit; without condition and with the capacity to enfold in His mercy everyone who went to Him and sought Him there … and everyone entrusted Him theough the faith of others, as was the paralytic who was let down though the roof of the house where Jesus had been teaching and preaching.

In reflecting on St Dominic and on the shape of the Cross on which hung the Saviour of the world: the Cross which was so dear to St Dominic – it seemed to me that the gift we have been given as Dominicans, the grace of the Holy Spirit Who has been breathing His life into the Order since its beginnings in 1206 – and Who has been guiding and directing the children of St Dominic in a most dynamic period of the world’s history: the gift of unbroken unity with which we have been blessed, is a fruit of St Dominic’s whole-hearted docility to God. 

His vision for the Order he founded was – maybe? – that it take as its pattern the shape of the Cross: in all things – in its common life; its fidelity to the liturgy and prayer, especially the Eucharist; in its study and its preaching – in all these things, we should direct our gaze upwards, on God  And, in experiencing the Lord’s boundless love and infinite mercy – that we might open wide our arms so as to be able to embrace, with Christ crucified, all of our brothers and sisters in the Order and in all the world.

We pray then, as we look forward to the year of mercy and the Jubilee of the Order – through the intercession of St Dominic – that when the dragnet is full and the fishermen have hauled it ashore, that it may be that the baskets are filled to overflowing, and none may be found to be ‘no use’ and thus thrown away.

May the Lord be gracious and bless us with His mercy, may His face shine on us and on the whole world that we may be saved.

Last minute Preparations

 

As Saturday the 4th of July fast approaches our community are all engaged in last minute preparations - today three of us were invited to speak on Radio Maria. 

 

We are very conscious that the March for Life is also taking place in Dublin on the same day.  The Pro Life cause is one which is very dear to our hearts and we will be praying for the protection of human life from conception to the grave during our Eucharistic Adoration and will offer our Rosary for this intention.  In addition a special candle will be burned for the same intention.

 

For those who are coming by public transport from Dublin or Dundalk we suggest that you take Matthews bus which travels every hour - if you ask to get off at the garage on the North Road in Drogheda we can arrange to meet you - but be sure to let us know beforehand.   A bus arrives both from Dublin and Dundalk at 12.30.

 

We invite you all to join us in praying for a fine day and every blessing on all who attend.

 

 

 

Rise of the Roses Tour

 

We are happy to announce that the 'Rise of the Roses' team will be visiting our Monastery on

Saturday the 4th July.
1p.m. - 6.30 p.m.

Come and join us to celebrate and discover the beauty of the calling to consecrated life - the Dominican Nuns and the Franciscan Sisters of the Renewal will share with you their charisms and vocation stories.

1 p.m. - Arrival - informal meeting and refreshments available especially for those who have travelled a distance.

1.30 p.m - Introduction to the Afternoon of prayer, sharing, singing and relaxing with tea and refreshments - there will be a Eucharistic Hour and Rosary and we will end with sung Vespers (Evening Prayer).

We have limited overnight accommodation here in our retreat house for those who come from a distance - please  contact Sr Niamh early.

(A poster for the event is available to download here)

All are welcome - but under 18s need to be accompanied by an adult

Many of our readers may not yet have heard about the 'Rise of the Roses' - a group of young women (married and single) who describe themselves as being "passionate about our home country, its people, culture and its rich Christian heritage.  We want to show that the fire of faith still burns brightly in the country despite the tidal wave of secularism that threatens to overwhelm the nation."

They hope to visit 10 convents all around Ireland between mid June and the 15th of August.

Their aim is: "at each convent we will invite young people to join us as we meet the sisters, learn about their way of life and their love for God, sing, have a 'wee tea party', hold an hour of Eucharistic Adoration and plant a rose.  We will carry the Cross of Christ to each convent and will be supported by a promise of prayers from people all around the world."

To learn more about the 'Rise of the Roses' visit their web site

We look forward to welcoming the 'Rise of the Roses' team in our Monastery on Saturday the 4th July.

Light a “Siena Candle” for your Intentions

 Light a “Siena Candle” for your Intentions

Would you like to have a candle burning before the Blessed Sacrament for a family member or friend doing Examinations at this time? Or for another special Intention for someone?

Their names can be printed on one of our handcrafted candles and the candle lit before the Blessed Sacrament during our daily Adoration on the day of their exams (or other important events).

 

Some of our candles, waiting for their 'date'

There are two types of candles:

·       ‘Small’ = This candle costs €4 and burns for 1 day

Square Shape: W 5cm * H 7cm

·       ‘Large’ = This candle costs €6 and burns for 2 days

            Cylinder Shape: D 6cm * H 11cm 



The Candles can be ordered by email sienacards@eircom.net , or by phone 041 - 9838524. When ordering please provide the name to be printed on the candle (First Name only) and the date on which you would like the candle to be lit.

Some candles burning before the Blessed Sacrament.