On Bended Knee

Home sweet home!

2016-06-16T20:00:00.001-07:00

With happy hearts we landed safely in Spokane, happy to be home, and happier still to have completed our pilgrimage of love and reparation for Our Lady. As Fr. Benedict said as we left Portugal, may the graces of the journey enable us all to live Our Lady's message more fervently, and to lead souls to Jesus through her!

Thanks to Brother Sebastian and the younger sisters who met us

at the airport and drove us home!

The Journey home...

2016-06-16T12:48:00.001-07:00

Bright and early (2:55am!) we headed to the airport. Our kind guide had arranged for the hotel to pack us a breakfast. At the airport we said our goodbyes and were on our way. The security here is so much simpler than in the US…or, maybe it’s just that it was 4 AM!

Since we said our prayers at the Lisbon airport, and had a tight transfer in Amsterdam, we were unable to post anything until now. It is good to be back in the USA! One more flight, and we should land in Spokane at 4 pm.

Happy to be almost home.

Still being apostles of Our Lady!

So many graces to be thankful for!! Looking forward to seeing our Sisters and friends at home soon.

One more thing...

2016-06-15T13:03:00.003-07:00

While we were in Braga on Tuesday, Reverend Mother and a few of the Sisters met with a young local family. They are friends of Mr. John Bole, and he put us in contact with them. Both the husband and wife are teachers. They took the 4 Sisters to dinner in a restaurant that was in an old monastery! The food was great and the Sisters enjoyed an opporunity to meet and visit with a Catholic family from Portugal.

Our Final Day

2016-06-15T11:05:00.001-07:00

Today is our final day. After Mass and breakfast we started the long drive toward Lisbon. We stopped at Bathala Monastery along the way. This was a Dominican Monastery … we’ve seen Franciscan, Carmelite, Cistercian, Templar, Dorothean and Augustinian monasteries on this trip!

The magnificent entrance.

The ceiling

Tombs like this are all around one of the rooms... this is one of the queens.

More of those beautiful Gothic cloisters!

The Portuguese tomb of the unknown soldier is in the monastery.

Also a damaged cross which they rescued during WW1.

Look a the detail of the craftmanship!

Outside the monastery is a monument to Blessed Nuno; he was a nobleman, soldier and friend of the king, who helped win an important battle against the Spanish. After the war his young wife died and so he entered the monastery. He was very humble and pious, and soon became known for his sanctity. After his death he was eventually canonized.

Before reaching our hotel, our wonderful guide Helena surprised us with a stop at a Poor Clare Convent… it was formerly the orphanage where Jacinta Marto stayed before going to the hospital in Lisbon where she died. Our Lady appeared to Jacinta here … we saw the chair where she sat! … and it was there she talked about modesty and fashions that would offend God, about treating priests with respect, and the need to pray for them. We were able to kneel and pray by her bed, and from the balcony where she would attend Mass, since she was too ill to go down to the chapel. This was such a special way to end our trip…and a wonderful surprise from our guide (and Our Lady!)

Jacinta's room and the chair where Our Lady sat.

Sr. Rita told us about Jacinta's stay there.

Jacinta's dress

The balcony above the chapel.

From here we went back to the hotel for dinner and to pack. We leave for the airport at 3:00 AM!!

Thank you

2016-06-14T13:04:00.000-07:00

Though we cannot reply individually to those who have left messages on the blog, we wanted to say that it is fun to receive them, and that we are grateful. Be assured of our many prayers for you all. We look forward to sharing more about the trip with those we will see when we get home. God bless you!

In the footsteps of Sr. Lucia

2016-06-14T11:29:00.001-07:00

This morning we headed north across the border into Spain, visiting first the Dorothean Convent in Tui. Sr. Lucia lived there for 17 years, and it was there that she had the famous apparition of Our Lady of Fatima over the altar, with the Holy Trinity. The chapel no longer looks the same, but the sisters there were very welcoming. We prayed and sang for awhile, and one of the sisters told us about Sr. Lucia’s life there.

Then we drove to the convent of Pontevedra, where Sr. Lucia lived for 3 years. Her room there has been made into a chapel, which we visited, as well as the actual chapel which has a large, beautiful statue of Our Lady which has been seen to cry real tears. We also went to the courtyard where the little Boy Jesus appeared to Lucia while she was a postulant. The small wall shrine there was made possible by donations from Americans! It was in this convent that Lucia received the revelation of the First Saturday devotion. After more prayers and singing and time for quiet prayer, we took a group picture and then had to go.

This beautiful statue greeted us as we entered the convent.

Praying in Sr. Lucia's room where Our Lady appeared to her ... now a little chapel.

Also Lucia's room ... the painting on the wall depicts the apparition.

The courtyard where Jesus appeared to Sr. Lucia as little boy...with the little niche statue from Americans!

A picture of Sr. Lucia when she was living at the convent.

The lady in the tan cost is our tour guide, Helena. She is an amazingly kind and knowledgeable woman, and we love her! The other woman to the left of her is the caretaker of the convent, since no sisters live there anymore.

It was pouring rain as we walked the several blocks to our bus ... but nothing could dampen our spirits! It was fun to see the reactions and expressions on faces as the 24 of us went single file through the streets in the rain!

We also made a short visit to the nearby parish church which was one of the stops on the pilgrimage route to Compostella. It was beautiful, but no pictures were allowed! Then we headed back to Braga, visiting the cathedral there before returning to our hotel at Bom Jesus. The cathedral had an amazing double organ, painted wooden ceilings, and statues of the apostles and doctors lining the walls. There were beautiful altars and statues, and a unique area with tombs of the bishops of Braga. It was the first church we visited where there was not an opportunity to sing.

See the pipes from the two massive orns?

Such a cute Infant of Prague!

Bishop's tombs

Sr. Michael Marie points out St. Michael saving the souls in purgatory!

As we returned to Bom Jesus we took the tram ride up the hill. That was fun! The tram is over 100 years old and is operated with hydro power.

Afterwards a number of us were able to walk down the stairs of the shrine (all 360+ of them!) and many also walked back up...another opportunity for reparation!

This place is a massive monument of Faith!

Little chapels like these are all along the path and have scenes from Passion within.

And beautiful statues and shrines inside the church at top provide perfect places fo quiet prayer

Farewell to Fatima

2016-06-13T14:32:00.001-07:00

Today was the first cloudy day and we even had periods of rain and drizzle…but the cooler temperatures were a nice change and there wasn’t enough rain to be a problem. Several of the sisters got up early to walk to Valinhos and make meditation there. A few others went back to the Cova da Iria to pray there … everyone finding a way to say a personal goodbye to Our Lady of Fatima. We sang Farewell to Fatima as the bus drove away, waving our white napkins!

The first stop of the day was at the Carmelite Convent in Coimbra where Sr. Lucia moved in 1948 and lived until she died. There are still a small number of nuns there, and as they are cloistered we were only allowed to see the chapel. Very prayerful! We sang the hymn to Our Lady of Mt. Carmel… Sr. Mary Petra always knows just what to sing!

Also in Coimbra we visited the former Poor Clare Convent where St. Isabella (Elizabeth) of Portugal’s body lies in a reliquary above the main altar. She is incorrupt, but you cannot actually see her in the casket. There is also a lovely statue outside. Sr. Mary Isabella, we all thought of and prayed for you here!

Next was Holy Cross Monastery – a beautiful church and former monastery of the Augustinians. St. Anthony lived here, which made it particularly special to be visiting on his feastday … Sr. Mary Antoinette loved that!

Again ... quaint streets!

St. Anthony dressed as an Augustinian ... something you don't often see!

This reliquary contains relics of the five Franciscan martyrs that impressed St. Anthony and made him want to be a Franciscan.

Sr. Mary Antoinette is enjoying walking the cloister where her patron saint walked .... and on his feastday, too!

We went to Coimbra University next … one of the oldest and most famous universities in the world. It was founded by the king, husband of St. Elizabeth, and it was here, too, that St. Anthony received his doctoral degree (before he became a Franciscan). We were able to see the amazing library, the chapel in honor of St. Michael, the rooms used for disputation and defense of the doctoral theses of students, and more.

These gorgeous tiles cover all the roads of Portugal! The fancier one was outside the university, but the others are EVERYWHERE!

Coimbra University buildings.

One room had large, old liturgical books on display and our guide was amazed when we were able to read and sing the chant notation! It was the Vexilla Regis.

The St. Michael chapel.

The organ!

Outside the library...no photos were allowed inside (too bad...it was amazing!)

The disputation room.

Chanting the Vexilla Regis

Then it was time to board the bus and head north several hours, to the city of Braga, which is near the Spanish boarder. We visited the beautiful church of Sameiro, with some of the most amazing statues! And not only did we sing here, some of the Sisters even were allowed to play the organ!

The grounds here are beautiful ... including this little Lourdes Grotto.

The front of the church.

The view over the city!

Every statue in here was gorgeous!

Just a short distance away was the shrine of Bom Jesus…an amazing Portuguese shrine that is so different than most others we have visited. It is a place of pilgrimage and special devotion to the Passion of Jesus. No pictures will do it all justice ... but we'll share a few and maybe you can look it up more on your own.

The small plaza just outside the main church at the top of the hill.

Such a beautiful statue of Our Lady!

One of the beautiful caves ... there are flower gardens, caves, and even lakes on the grounds of this shrine

Will have to load more pictures from here tomorrow!

Sunday out and about...

2016-06-12T10:32:00.003-07:00

Today we ventured out from Fatima to visit a Cistercian monastery in nearby Alcobaca. Like the other monasteries we’ve visited, it was truly impressive, though sad that there are no longer vocations to fill it. Maybe because we felt at home in a religious house or maybe just because we were all happy, we managed to find a hymn or song to sing in just about every room. Our tour guide is getting used to that by now!

The beautiful blue and white Portuguese tiles are everywhere. Often the images

tell the story of the church or town.

Walking through the Romanesque style cloisters.

Showing the tour guide how religious walk two by two!

The cloisters are some of the most beautiful parts of every monastery.

Wonder how we could get some of these at the Mount?!😉

This was the chapter room with huge statues of Cistercian saints.

The next stop was a fishing town called Nazare. The waves from the ocean here are the highest in the world! The city is on the top of a huge hill and the view is magnificent. We learned a little history of the place… including two stories about Our Lady. In one, the monks hid a statue of Our Lady during the time of the Moorish invasions and it was only discovered hundreds of years later. At that time a beautiful church was built to house the statue and ever since, the people have a real and tender devotion to her. We saw the ancient statue, and sang several hymns to Our Lady there. Needless to say all these opportunities for singing together are going to be special memories of the pilgrimage!

The view of the ocean from the city above.

The chapel built to house the statue they found ... she is high above the main altar.

We went up behind the altar and were able to see and venerate the statue.

Later, a nobleman was hunting a deer and did not realize it was going to charge over the precipice. The deer went over but the man called upon Our Lady of Nazare and his horse was saved from going over. He built a large cross and small chapel on the site in thanksgiving.

A painting in the large church shows the story.

Entering the small chapel ... too dark inside for pictures.

We ate lunch here and some of the sisters met a kind owner of a snack shop who sold them their food at a discount and told them much about himself and his family. He was a Catholic with ties to the fishing industry, but also had lived in Canada and Detroit, so spoke excellent English. We brought the other sisters in and sang for him before leaving.

The next stop was the quaint medieval town of Obidos. When Queen Isabel of Portugal first saw it she so liked it that the King gave it to her as a wedding gift. Future kings did the same. We visited the main church in honor of Our Lady, walked the beautiful streets, and climbed the walls of the castle ruins, and then headed back to Fatima for more time at the shrine and dinner, etc.

The streets are so narrow... but lovely!

The city walls are still partially standing, and give a great view.... but be careful!

No railings or safety measures of any kind....

Inside one of 11 chapels in the town ...see all the tile?

Quiet time in chapel is always part of the visit!

Saturday evening

2016-06-12T09:29:00.000-07:00

We had an issue with the WiFi, so couldn't post last night. To catch you up...

In the afternoon we had an opportunity to make the Stations of the Cross in the area around the Cabeco. It was amazing how many other groups were there doing the same thing. The 100^th anniversary of the Angel’s Apparition has brought many people to Fatima. It is good to see their devotion.

In the evening we made a special holy hour together at the feet of Our Lady in the cappellina. The inner doors are opened after the public rosary and people can circle the statue and altar on their knees until the gate is closed again at midnight. We were eager to make this act of penance and reparation together for Our Lady and the many intentions of our pilgrimage.

Afterwards we had time for private prayer, followed by a rosary together, and hymns. In the quiet of the night and so close to Our Lady it was very special! Sometime after 1:30 AM there were 24 tired but happy nuns making their way to the hotel a few blocks away.

The Fatima children

2016-06-11T07:33:00.000-07:00

Today we visited the homes of the three Fatima children. No one lives in them now, but they are preserved for visitors to see. What a wonderfully simple life they led!

The Marto home.

This is the room where Francisco died.

Jacinta's room.

Sheep outside Lucia's home.

The home of Lucia.

The well behind Lucia's home is where the angel appeared the second time. We prayed the prayers he taught the children and sang to St. Michael.

Moving on to the Cabeco

From here we went to the Cabeco where the angel appeared the other times. We prayed a rosary walking along the path. Many other pilgrims were praying and singing as well ... it was a joy to see all the groups from different countries, here for the 100th anniversary of the angel's apparitions. Many stopped to say hello... groups from Spain, Germany, Portugal, and even Africa!

When we got to Valinhos...where Our Lady appeared on August 19 ... we took a group picture.

This group of Spanish pilgrims danced the flamenco for us, and we sang the

Spanish Ave Maria for them!

Here again at the feet of Our Lady we laid our petitions (and yours!) ... offering prayers and hymns in her honor. One other group of pilgrims even joined us for a song!

Then we boarded the bus and drove to the parish church of Fatima, seeing where the children were baptized, and where they were originally buried. Many of their relatives are still buried there, as well as some of the priests associated with the Fatima story.

Baptismal font where the 3 children were baptized...plaques on the wall give the dates.

It is such an amazing experience to walk where the children spent their days, and where an angel of heaven and Our Lady appeared! It makes you feel small ... and remembering Our Lady's words fills the heart with HOPE amidst all the sorrows and evils of our world.

A beautiful dawn

2016-06-10T22:40:00.003-07:00

The holy hours through the night were blessed and peaceful... Deo gratias! We could kneel and pray right at Our Lady's feet ... beseeching her blessing and guidance for all the intentions from so many souls which we have come to lay before her.

It is a custom for pilgrims to Fatima to approach the shrine along a walkway on their knees,

as an act of reparation and penance. We were happy to offer her that act of penance for the

conversion of sinners.

Fatima at last!

2016-06-10T15:22:00.000-07:00

We arrived in Fatima with a bit of time before dinner, and so most of us headed straight to the shrine. There were huge crowds today as it was a Portuguese holiday and there had been a children's procession. We were saddened at the modernization, and the lack of silence. The basilica was packed but there was much talking and moving around and the organ was being played so loudly that it was difficult to pray. Outside in the plaza around the cappellina (the little chapel built at the place of the holm oak tree where Our Lady appeared) was much the same. We resolved to make extra acts of reparation ... returning after dinner for a private rosary procession and agreeing to make holy hours through the night... two sisters at a time at the shrine.

Our guide explained the general location of things in and around the shrine.

The tombs of Jacinta and Lucia in the basilica.

The tomb of Francisco.

This was as close as we could get to Our Lady today ... but we sang and prayed to her there!

Our rosary procession!

On the road to Fatima

2016-06-10T15:20:00.001-07:00

Today was a day full of graces and special places. After Mass and breakfast we left Lisbon and headed towards Fatima. Our first stop was in Santarem, to visit the church of the Eucharistic miracle. Here, a consecrated Host was stolen in the 1200s. It bled and shed a great light, causing the woman who had stolen it to repent and tell the priest. The Host was returned to the church and is now kept in a special reliquary above the main altar. Each of us was able to climb a small set of stairs in the sacristy to venerate the Host. No photos were allowed inside, but here are some we took outside ...

This is a postcard picture of the miraculous Host. We sang many hymns to Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament since we had the chapel to ourselves!

We walked through the streets because They were too narrow for our bus to navigate.

The next stop was the town of Tomar .... there was time to explore the town, seeing several churches ... and to enjoy lunch in a lovely park.

The church of Our Lady ... a large number of Knights Templar buried here.

But the highlight of the town was the Convent of Christ ... a monastery built for the Knights Templar When they were disbanded and reformed under a new name and order.

It will be impossible to share the immensity and grandeur of the place ... needless to say it was amazing for us to be here.

The beautiful chapel was probably the highlight of the convent ... we sang many hymns here! It was a joy to make the chapel ring with the praises of our God and His Mother.

The sanctuary...octagonal in shape.

We tried to record one song and will post it here... unfortunately it won't play back.

We also took seats in their refectory ... makes our dining room look small!

And of course we sang here, too ... Needless to say this was a hard place to leave! Eventually we boarded the bus and headed to Fatima. We'll give that its own separate post.

A little Lisbon historry

2016-06-09T13:29:00.000-07:00

After a much more comfortable Mass in the hotel conference room and a nice breakfast, we boarded our bus for a survey of Lisbon. We saw the Monument of the Navigators and the Tower of Belem ... Portugal was much involved in the Age of Exploration.

There is a wold map in stone at the base of the monument.

Entering the tower ... it has a chapel at the top and a dungeon below!

We also visited the beautiful former Jeronimo Monastery (St. Jerome) ... the building is not only a magnificent piece of architecture, but also a grand tribute to religious life itself! How amazing it must have been when filled with monks in the service of God!

Beautiful cloister walks!

The impressive exterior

We drove to a nearby town named Sintra, where the Portuguese Kings used to live ... visiting the royal palace as well as the castle on the hill.

We made the stop at the western -most point of Europe ... VERY windy there!

On the return to our hotel we stopped at St. Roch Church ... a magnificent building of the Jesuits. There is an upright English martyr buried under the pulpit, honoring his preaching against the Protestants; also a magnificent side chapel all mosaics ... it was designed and built in Rome, Then disassembled and shipped to Lisbon !!

We returned to the hotel for dinner ... and for some, a game or two of pinochle, of course!

Lisbon at last!

2016-06-08T13:08:00.001-07:00

Thank you angels ... we arrived safely in Lisbon! Minor crosses like spilled water bottles in book bags or missed announcements ... or even lost luggage (yes, one nun's luggage did not arrive!)... make sure we do not forget this is a pilgrimage of reparation and not a sight seeing tour.

After meeting our tour guide we visited the church built over the site of St. Anthony's birth and also the cathedral of Lisbon where he was baptized.

All our bags ... but one.

The church of St. Anthony...built over the place of his birth.

The crypt...

Sr. Mary Antoinette at St. Anthony's birth place!

The tour guide explains about the cathedral.

We chanted the Salve Regina here ... beautiful acoustics!

Then we had Mass ... all squished together in a little hotel room!

Tomorrow we get the conference room.

Amsterdam!

2016-06-08T01:38:00.000-07:00

After a fiat at the LAX airport ... no room available for Fr. Benedict to offer Mass ... we had lunch and then boarded our flight overseas. Just now landed in Amsterdam and ... believe it or not you can go OUTSIDE while you wait !!! Delightful! We have a couple of hours here, so the card players got going ...

We learned from the flight attendant that much of southern Holland is Catholic ... interesting!

So pretty here!

City of the Angels!

2016-06-07T11:08:00.000-07:00

We arrived safely in Los Angeles ... such a big airport! The angels are making things go smoothly!

Who would have thought we'd find a restaurant named "The Habit"!

Waiting for the shuttle.

We met a nice Catholic family on board. The little girl had just made her first Holy Communion, and her brother told the mom he might be a priest! The sisters told them about Our Lady of Fatima before we went our separate ways.

Up the escalator to security again... perfect joy!

It all begins!

2016-06-07T05:24:00.000-07:00

Here we are at the Spokane airport bright and early!

Check in went smoothly...thanks be to God. Boarding soon!

An Impossible Dream Come True!

2016-05-20T11:01:00.000-07:00

One day, the Sisters were talking and thought how wonderful it would be if we could honor Our Blessed Mother in a special way...

It was a wonderful idea.... but seemed like an impossible dream.

Sigh...

But we resolved to pray about it, as we do for all our special intentions

"That we can pay off the stained glass window restoration .... for the lady who wrote asking for prayers.... for the kind man who gave us $15.... for more vocations to our Congregation .... and for our special intention... but only if it is God's Will."

And then one day, the phone rang...

It was a benefactor. He wanted to do something SPECIAL for the Sisters with perpetual vows, to recognize their years of dedicated labor. "Reverend Mother," he said, "I want to send the Sisters on a trip. Something they will enjoy..."

It was the answer to our prayers! The Impossible Dream was going to become a reality! The Sisters were going to be able to go to Fatima for the 100th anniversary of Our Lady's Apparitions there!

Thank you, Blessed Mother! Our dream seemed impossible, but you found a way!