Dominican Nuns Celebrate 800 Years

I have had a long love affair with my local order of Dominican Nuns. My mother is a third-order Dominican and as a child I spent a great deal of time at this monastery located in nearby West Springfield, MA. It is the most peaceful place I know. I don't get there very often these days but when I do, I am still impressed by the quiet that exists there, all the more noticeable in light of the noise of our world.

I was alerted to the 800th anniversary of the Dominican Nuns by an article in my local Diocesan newspaper The Catholic Observer. Unfortunately the article is not available on-line, but it did prompt me to look up the sisters' website:
http://www.op-stjoseph.org/nuns/ws/index.htm

It is interesting to view the photos and read about the sisters' lives and history. Unlike many active orders of religious, vocations to the cloistered contemplative life are increasing. That life is certainly not for everyone and it is not meant as an escape from the world but rather a special way of ministering to it. We need people in our world who dedicate themselves solely to prayer. If this is a way of life that you are considering, I invite you to explore that calling more fully.