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Last Thursday (21st August) we had the privilege of hosting a very special tree planting, as part of the "St. Oliver 400" celebration of the National Heritage Week. The Oak sapling that was planted had been grown from an acorn taken from one of the Oak trees, which stood on the grounds of the house that St Oliver Plunkett lived in in the 1660s, in Ardpatrick, Co. Louth.

Towards the end of his life, when the disciples of St Anthony, the father of monasticism, asked for a word of advice he replied with three words – always breathe Christ. Breathing and respiration is a double movement – in and out. St Dominic was certainly always breathing Christ. His life, in its nights and its days, was an incessant rhythm of praying and preaching. And even Dominic’s prayer had this rhythmic quality.

Mother of Mercy

One of the oldest prayers to the Virgin Mary is the ancient antiphon titled in Latin Sub Tuum Praesidium. By soom accounts this prayer dates to the third century. The beautiful words, first written in Greek, present the Blessed Mother as one who intercedes for us.

The theme of my reflection is: Reverence

I was very struck by the talks given by Fr. Paul Murray, O.P., to the Dominican Novices in Caleruega, Spain this year ( 2025), and I would like to quote a portion of one of his talks, in which he highlights St. Dominic’s reverence in praying, shown in the Nine Ways of Prayer, in teaching the brethren to be reverent to one another and in the reverence and veneration he shows to the Scriptures themselves.

THE MIRACLES OF ST. DOMINIC
Narrated by SISTER CECILIA

Of the Bread and Wine Miraculously Multiplied and Distributed to the Brethren Through His Prayers

On this fifth day of our novena to St Dominic, we began our Mass with the prayer:
Draw near to your servants, O Lord,
and answer their prayers with unceasing kindness,
that, for those who glory in you as their Creator and guide,
you may restore what you have created
and keep safe what you have restored.

What is impressive about St Dominic? His simplicity, I think.

From ‘Libellus’ written by Bl. Jordan of Saxony we know that St. Dominic
‘In every reasonable purpose which his mind conceived, in accordance with God’s will,he maintained such constancy that he hardly ever consented to change any plan which he had formulated with due deliberation’

St Dominic's Fourth Way of Prayer

After this, St Dominic, standing before the altar or in the chapter Room, would fix his gaze on the crucifix, looking intently at Christ on the Cross and kneeling down over and over again. Sometimes he would spend the whole time from the end of Compline until midnight

The more I immerse myself into the Dominican way of life and grow in knowledge (be it still at an elementary level) of the Order of Preachers, I can’t help but see striking similarities between our Lord Jesus Christ and our holy founder, St. Dominic. Indeed, as William A. Hinnebusch O.P states in his book, Dominican Spirituality (1965); “Everything positive in the Order’s spiritual life traces back to Dominic, just as everything positive in the church traces back to Christ.”

Today is the first day of our Novena to St Dominic, and I have tried to base my reflection on the Mass readings for today, which actually fit quite well.

The Gospel for today (Mt 13:44-46) speaks of the Kingdom of Heaven as a “hidden treasure” or “pearl of great price”. The one who finds it “goes off happy” and “sells everything he owns and buys it.” Dominic was a man who was deeply aware that the Kingdom of Heaven was a priceless treasure, and this filled his life with joy.

We recently had the pleasure of viewing the marvelous exhibition marking the 400th Anniversary of the birth of St Oliver Plunkett. It was fascinating to see so many artefacts from his life and times. We are very grateful to Tomás Hodgins (one of the organisers of the exhibition) for the very informative and enjoyable tour, which he gave us. ...

During the last week of June, we once again embarked on the prayerful journey of writing icons, a sacred tradition that traces its roots back to St. Luke, the first iconographer. As contemplative sisters, icon writing has been an integral part of our prayer and devotion in recent years. This ancient tradition is carried out in many monasteries across the globe, preserving a living connection to centuries of spiritual heritage. These icons, which adorn the walls of homes, churches, and institutions, serve not only as beautiful works of art but also as vivid and constant reminders of God's presence.

Please feel free to download and share copies of this poster (pdf file available here).

O Emmanuel, our King and Lawgiver,
the One whom the peoples await and their Saviour:
O come and save us, Lord our God!

This last of the O Antiphons is the culmination of them all. All the previous themes of the antiphons, wisdom and radiant light, kingly authority, and law, take on flesh in Emmanuel, the Incarnate King who will bring the salvation and liberation that previous antiphons have besought.

O King whom all the peoples desire, you are the corner stone
which makes all one.
O come and save us whom you made from clay.

O King whom all peoples desire – all peoples desire Him because they are made by Him as St Augustine reminds us: “You have made us for Yourself O God and our hearts are restless until we can rest in You.” In our O Antiphon today we cry out to Him to come to save us

O Rising Sun,
you are the splendour of eternal light and the sun of justice.
O come and enlighten those who sit in darkness and the shadow of death.

I chose this antiphon for my reflection because the image of light versus darkness is very powerful and is one to which we can all relate. I felt drawn to this image because the world seems to be a very dark place at present and I feel the need to make my home in the Word of God, so as not to be sucked in to its mindset.

“O Key of David and Sceptre of Israel,
what you open no one else can close again;
what you close no one can open.
O come to lead the captive from prison;
free those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.”

In the time of the prophet Isaiah, the king of Damascus and the king of Israel wanted to draw the king of Judah, Ahaz, into a coalition against Assyria. When he refused, the anti-Assyrian alliance attacked him and Ahaz, frightened, turned to the Assyrian for help. Isaiah opposed the request for help from the king of Assyria and exhorted Ahaz to put his trust only in the Lord.

O Root of Jesse’s stem,
sign of God’s love for all his people:
come to save us without delay!

Advent is a season of tending life and a season of becoming. That God who ’is’, who only is - who has no ‘was’, who has no ‘will be’ - now, in the Incarnation is becoming God is doing something that as God He could not do: He could not change, He could not grow, He could not become. He is the ‘is-ness’ that is the heart of being.

O Adonai, Lord and leader of Israel,
You appeared to Moses in a burning bush
and You gave him the Law on Sinai.
O come,
and save us with Your mighty power.

We don’t often think of Moses as an Advent ‘figure,’ and yet here he is on this night, a week before the birth of Christ, and we are reminded by this night’s magnificat antiphon, that Moses’ first encounter with God was in the midst of fire.

Today we begin the beautiful "O Antiphons", which call on the Lord under various titles and express our desire for His Coming.
Today's antiphon addresses the Lord as Wisdom:
O Wisdom, you come forth from the mouth of the Most High.
You fill the universe

We are pleased to announce that our new Christmas Candles are now available and can be purchased from our online shop.

The story behind our new Birthday Card.

One of our dear Sisters hails from the west of Ireland, not too far from Ballinasloe, Co. Gslway, and until she entered our monastery, lived a life of almost Franciscan love for the beauty of all that surrounded her on the family farm.

A reminder about our upcoming Vocations Discerment Weekend. Please feel free to download and share this poster.