Motherhouse Musings

December 2017 In December the Sisters of St. Joseph of St. Augustine prepare for the Christmas holidays in keeping with the Advent season. We put up a manger scene in the second floor front window of the Motherhouse in place of our usual St. Joseph and the child Jesus statue. We have an Advent wreath in the chapel that is lit during Mass and the Liturgy of the Hours. Closer to Christmas we put up a nativity scene in the chapel also. We pray together a Christmas Novena that starts on Dec. 16th, nine days before Christmas. In the dining room we have our Christmas tree to the left of the fireplace.  On Christmas Eve we exchange gifts and on Christmas day we have dinner together with several  guests.  As consecrated women Religious, we celebrate with joy the birth of Jesus Christ and especially recognize the role played in the Nativity by both Mary and our patron, St. Joseph.  Last Sunday we had a special Open House of the newly r...

Thanksgiving E ach November for the past several years I have helped coordinate a Thanksgiving dinner for the sisters at the Motherhouse. We usually invite other sisters in the area to join us and the numbers vary from as few as 17 to as many 25. The last couple of years I have roasted two smaller turkeys instead of one larger turkey as they are easier to lift in and out of the oven. Other sisters sign up to prepare other foods such as dressing, green beans, gravy, rolls, etc. It is a true community meal as most of us have had a hand in the preparation and all help with the clean up afterwards.  One of the sisters who has a gift for decorating sets the tables and adorns the fireplace mantle and sideboards with festive decorations. We bring out special plates and glasses for the occasion.  As a national holiday Thanksgiving is a good reminder of what our Sunday Eucharist should be - a time when we give thanks to God for the gift of Jesus Christ as our Bre...

October 2017 As one of the few congregations of Catholic consecrated women religious with a Motherhouse in Florida, we Sisters of St. Joseph of St. Augustine, Florida are somewhat of a rarity in 21st Century Western culture. There are getting to be fewer and fewer women responding to the call to consecrated religious life in developed nations. What is consecrated life as a woman religious in the Catholic Church? I like theologian Sandra Schneider's description of Catholic religious life as "...the exclusive life-long God-quest centered in a particular kind of love of Jesus which calls some people to a life of consecrated celibacy lived in community and mission." ( Finding the Treasure , p. 364) Whereas Catholic clergy are identified by their sacramental ministry of service to the Church, Catholic consecrated religious are identified more by their public profession of the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity and obedience and by their congregation...

         The walls of the Motherhouse are made out of coquina rock that was quarried on St. Anastasia Island. The early sisters actually helped break up the large stones being used. The walls are between 12 and 18 inches thick. Originally the house was a simple French Romanesque architecture with wooden porches. The original colors were white walls with red roofs. Today the Motherhouse is an ivory or cream color with burgundy/red roofs and the porches are concrete.                     The entire building is only about 15,000 square feet, but it appears more massive due to its U-shaped design. Additionally, the building is proportioned to full scale on the first floor, 7/8s scale on the second floor, and 3/4s on the third floor. This is a concept used throughout Disneyworld to give buildings a look of stability and greater height. The design expresses t...

Yesterday I shared a little about the Motherhouse of the Sisters of St. Joseph of St. Augustine, Florida. You can learn more about our congregation by visiting our webpage at www.ssjfl.org. We have served the Church in Florida since we arrived in 1866 at Picolata Landing on the St. John's River. Last year we celebrated our 150th anniversary of that landing on September 2, 1866. We came to St. Augustine from France at the invitation of Bisop Augustin Verot, the first bishop of St, Augustine, to educate the newly freed slaves and their children following the Civil War.

       The Motherhouse of a congregation of Catholic consecrated women Religious is the house where the general superior or leader of the congregation resides. In the past the leader was called Mother General, or Reverend Mother, hence the name Motherhouse. The Motherhouse is also usually the first house established by a congregation and also headquarters the offices of the congregation.        For the Sisters of St. Joseph of St. Augustine, Florida, the Motherhouse has been at 241 St. George Street in the Old Town section of the city since it was finished in 1876, with construction beginning in 1874.       When tourists walk by the Motherhouse they often think it is a museum and ask if there are tours. They are not aware of the fact that many sisters live inside and it is their home, and, no,  there are no tours at this time. Some tourists think it is a church since there is a cross on ...