A place to call home

Two years after breaking the ground for the Motherhouse of the Sisters of the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity (SOLT), the project is completed – today, Bishop Mulvey dedicated the chapel and blessed the building. Many friends and benefactors of the SOLT, Rosemarie, the sister of the SOLT founder Fr. James Flanagan, as well as the building companies were present at the ribbon cutting ceremony, which marked the official inauguration of the new facility in Violet. The sisters will move in in about two weeks.
 
The Bishop congratulated the SOLT on their achievement. “Everybody needs a place to call home.” This Motherhouse would be the home for the sisters from different countries and continents. He wished this house would be a center like a heart, “a place of love, a place of home, a place of forgiveness.” He mentioned one passage from Pope Francis’ new encyclical Dilexit Nos on the Sacred Heart of Jesus – that we should have two attitudes toward Jesus, adoration and friendship. “If we think we cannot be friends with Jesus, we should look into Scripture where Jesus said, ‘I have called you friends’ (Jn 15:15).”
 
Friends grow closer when they communicate with each other, and Jesus communicates with us through His Word. He hoped this place would be “a chapel of friendship, a place to reconnect with the voice of God.”
 
As everything can become a habit and a routine, prayer and daily mass are not excluded from that. “To hear Him, to adore Him in the Eucharist—the most powerful sacrament—should be the center of our life.” Consecrating the altar and the walls of the chapel made this chapel a sacred place.
 
The Bishop blessed the altar, which was made by Brother Adam, and anointed it with chrism oil. He also anointed the walls of the new chapel. A bowl of incense was placed on the altar, and its fragrance filled the whole chapel. With this ceremony, the altar was consecrated, and the Bishop and the SOLT priests celebrated the first Eucharist.
 
After the mass, the Bishop blessed the whole building before everyone gathered outside for the ribbon-cutting ceremony. Laurel Sharpe, the Motherhouse Campaign Director, thanked everyone who helped make this dream come true. General Sister Servant Sr. Aloysius addressed the benefactors, workers, consecrated and lay members of the SOLT who were part of this journey. After cutting the ribbon, the guests took tours of the house and celebrated this important day.