“You encounter God when you encounter beauty.”
While a Dominican Sister of Mary may have stolen those words from my brain, they are oh-so-true, aren’t they? From the first moment I met these Dominicans, three words came to mind: beauty, joy and faithfulness.
Those same words could certainly describe the beautiful weekend at the Sister’s housewarming celebration and blessing. Both Bishop Vasquez and Bishop Mulvey, Diocese of Corpus Christi, accompanied by numerous priests, other religious and the four foundresses of the order were on hand to celebrate.
On Saturday, the sisters made their arrival in the Diocese of Austin unmistakable.
The roots have been laid; the temporary mission convent is built and it is beautiful. It resides on a stunning 60-acre piece of land near Georgetown. With $13-million and counting raised for the Priory project (the building that is projected to house and form 120 sisters), you can bet you’re going to be seeing a bit more black and white around Central Texas.
Can I get a YEE-HAW?
Four years ago when the first eight Dominican Sisters arrived, I was the one on the sidewalk outside their north Austin convent jumping for joy. Not only had our family been praying for a real presence of sisters in Central Texas for over a decade, I selfishly hoped one (or more!) of them would be teaching my children in Catholic schools. Sometimes God’s answer to prayer is just so much more amazing than you dreamed it could be.
But, it’s not just those of us in the three Catholic schools they serve that benefit from their presence. We all do. Last year, the Sisters hosted an Advent retreat for mothers, a Lenten luncheon and a Mother’s Day retreat for mothers and daughters. You see them at Mass, youth retreats, discernment weekends and more. They are here to serve, teach our children, be an example to our daughters and a reminder to us mothers that the seed of a religious vocation takes time to grow.
As a convert to the faith, the idea of nuns and religious life was completely foreign to me. These Sisters have shown me how great joy for your vocation draws people closer to Christ. As Sisters, they have modeled patience, love, joy and acceptance and it’s made me a better wife, mother and friend. Indeed, I have encountered God because of their beauty.
Get your cowboy boots on and do a dance, y’all. The Ann Arbor Dominicans really have arrived.
To donate online to the expansion, visit the Sisters website and add “Texas Priory” in the notes.
