Current Appeal
Christmas and New Year Greetings from the Benedictine Sisters of Annunciation Monastery!
December 7, 2020
Dear Friends,
We Sisters of Annunciation Monastery are praying for you during this season of waiting. Advent waiting resonates with all of us more than ever this year. As we await the yearly renewal of the coming of a miracle—that our Lord and Savior came to be among us on earth, we live in hope of Christ’s healing, too. In that hope, the words from the Christmas carol, O Holy Night, in which we sing of the weary world rejoicing, we too, join in prayer for you and for our world to come to the day of a healthier world rejoicing.
This pandemic has brought about a kind of waiting and a weariness that we have not experienced before. We wait and we long for normalcy—for a return to the physical closeness we cherish. We pray for miraculous healing of the sick and protection of the vulnerable. We mourn those we have lost. We want to be with our loved ones. While things have changed in significant ways, God remains the same. God is present. God is with us. And in that, our weary souls can rejoice and find hope!
Our monastic community is exploring ways to be present to others during this time. We wonder: How can we use this time of waiting and longing to draw closer to God? How is God speaking to us during this time of uncertainty?
We are connecting with others with technology. Computers and social media allow us to “be” with others virtually when we cannot be together physically. As you can imagine, with the rapid advancements in technology, we must update our computers and equipment to enhance our communication efforts. We are seeing opportunities to minister in ways we haven’t done before. Our sisters are now involved with Zoom meetings and online conferences and retreats. Most of our computers lack the microphones and cameras necessary for these activities.
If you feel called to help support us in this effort to make much-needed updates to our technology, please consider a donation of any size. Thankfully, technology offers a semblance of community when we are not physically together. We can nourish our faith from a distance. We are learning to be adaptable—to be flexible.
As with faith, we place our trust and hope in the things we cannot see. We know there is more to this earthly life and we know that God loves us and has a divine plan for the future. Our weary world will rejoice and a glorious morn will break.
May your heart be filled with the love and peace of Jesus, who brought us salvation on that holy night.
God bless you and those you love with good health and great joy,
Sister Nicole Kunze, Prioress
Benedictine Sisters of Annunciation Monastery
