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“May all of us know peace, healing and the deep strength of our common faith,” prayed Sister Anne Wambach, prioress, as the community gathered for the celebration of the Sacrament of Anointing within the setting of the community’s evening prayer...
About the Benedictine Sisters of Erie
Corporate Commitment
A corporate commitment is a vision or goal that we agree to promote as a community and as individuals no matter where we are or in how many diverse ministries we might be engaged. The corporate commitment of the Benedictine Sisters of Erie is:
As Benedictine Sisters of Erie we commit ourselves to be a healing presence and prophetic witness for peace by working for sustainability and justice, especially for women and children.Charism Statement
A charism is a particular way in which people respond to God's call. A community’s charism embodies the way the members carry out their mission and ministries. The Benedictine charism is:
The Benedictine way is to seek God in the communal life and to respond in prayer and ministry.Common Life
Community
Life as a Benedictine Sister of Erie is centered in community, following the Rule of St. Benedict under the guidance of the Prioress. We are vowed in the Catholic tradition promising with perpetual vows: stability, fidelity to the monastic way of life and obedience. A commitment to the common good and respect for each other support us in our search for God and nurture the bonds of community.
Prayer and Liturgy
As Benedictine women, prayer is central to our monastic life. The community gathers three times a day for the Liturgy of the Hours, the basis of our communal prayer. The festive marking of Sunday, along with the great feasts and seasons of the liturgical year, includes the celebration of Eucharist as well. Daily lectio divina, occasional reconciliation services, and various annual events complete the community’s liturgical life.
Ongoing Formation
How does one keep fresh and alive the energy and joy of responding to one’s call to monastic life? The community’s commitment to continuing education – to our On-going Formation Program – is one way. This program is implemented through a series of regularly scheduled community meetings. The meetings focus on areas that will aid in our growth and development as human persons and monastic women in church and society.
Ministry
Ministry is an integral part of monastic life. Inspired by the Gospel and the Rule of Benedict we respond to the needs of God’s people. We steward the gifts, talents and skills that have been given to us and extend them through service. Community and non-community ministries alike provide the opportunity for meaningful work that is consistent with our monastic commitment to glorify God in all things.
Community Life
Update #3 from Sister Dianne Sabol
I invited the Mayor to come to St. Benedict Community Center to see our Adapted Sports Program. He arrived early which gave me the opportunity to share the 20-year history of this ministry with him. I reminded him that the Benedictine Sisters...
Community Retreat Begins
Formation in a monastery is a lifelong process that takes place in the very center of the community’s life. With that in mind, an annual retreat is arranged for by the Director of Ongoing Monastic Formation, Sister Stephanie Schmidt.
The...
Ordinary Time: The Wisdom of Routine
Pentecost has been celebrated. The Spirit is alive within us. The Liturgical Year returns to Ordinary Time.
"But the truth is that there is nothing ordinary—if by ordinary we mean inferior or less important—about a period such as this at...
Come, Spirit, Come
The Easter Season comes to an end. The Church celebrates Pentecost and honors the coming of the Spirit. Pentecost immerses us into the implications of what it means to be Christian. As Sister Joan Chittister says: “It is at this point in the...
The Benedictine Sisters of Erie trace their beginnings to the Benedictine nuns at St. Walburg Abbey in Eichstätt, Bavaria, Germany, founded in 1035. Sisters from there first came to St. Marys, PA in 1852 to educate the children of the newly arrived German immigrants.