All things "in Him, with Him and for Him." Beauty of Advent and Christmas at the Kraków Bernardine

They live behind the walls of the monastery on Poselska Street in Krakow. Although they are mostly not seen, the fruits of their prayers are seen. Especially for PCh24, Albert Drochodzik OSFB's sister tells about the endurance of Advent, the pre-Christmas everyday life and what truly matters...

We're already in the second half of Advent. How did the sisters prepare for this peculiar time? How do the Advent sisters feel?

Advent is for all of us in the Church sometimes a peculiar anticipation of the Lord's coming. First it is time to prepare for His second coming at the end of time. The liturgy of the Church helps us until 16 December. I think this time is besides discovering the presence of God in everyday life, in my here and now. The Lord Jesus told us, "Behold, I am with you all the days until the end of the world." In fact, seeing that He is with us allows us to believe that He will always be with us, that we will get to know Him more and more until we yet meet Him face to face. This is the most beautiful moment, our goal, the longing of all heart. Jesus, our desire, wants to fill us with himself forever. The foretaste of this is the Eucharist, which we can experience all day. She is the top experience that Jesus, God, is with us, infinitely close, in Communion.

Since December 17, we have been preparing to enjoy Christmas. We are accompanied by Mary, who was the first to full accept the coming God. In a sense, her communicative is to repeat itself again, in each and all 1 of us.

These are the 3 moments of Jesus' coming, which the Church speaks of: incarnation and birth, His presence among us present and His final coming in glory.

I think the first step in preparing for Advent is to realize what this time is to me. Then each of us can consider how to usage it well. Thus, we are reasoning of provisions that will aid us actually prepare for the Lord's coming. And that is the basic preparation for Advent time by each of the sisters.

What changes in the organization of the home while waiting for Christmas?

Let me start by saying that our first work is to pray. The Liturgy of the Hours at this time is filled with the spirit of longing and waiting, the joyful anticipation of His coming. 1 of the Advent Brewer hymns encourages us:

At this holy time of waiting
equal the paths of our lives,
The Lord will find us prepared
For your coming.

Similarly, the texts of the liturgy of the Holy Mass change. all morning we participate in rorats, erstwhile we especially experience that Mary is accompanying us while waiting for Christ to come. We come with burning candles, to await the Bridegroom with her, like the wise virgins of the Gospel parable.

From a very reliable source, I know that sisters make delicious cakes, and during Advent, they besides make gingerbreads in the form of angels, stars... So, like in our homes...

Of course, we besides do not deficiency external preparations, akin to most Polish houses. We bake cakes and gingerbreads, decorate them to give them to our friends and benefactors. We compose quite a few Christmas wishes, trying to remember everyone who remembers us. We have many friends. We prepare a show in the church and in our spiritual choir, we dress Christmas trees. We besides cook Christmas and Christmas food. We especially remember the mediocre for whom this time, the beginning of winter, can be very difficult.

I know they get gifts from prisoners... There's quite a few presents in pre-Christmas?

And in a year, we get presents, but of course there's quite a few presents at Christmas. This is due to the fact that we are mostly sustained by the victims of good will, and those around us are not missing. We get packages from families, friends, but besides from many people we don't know, who want to support us in this way. This is very crucial to us, besides due to the fact that thanks to these gestures of goodness we see how crucial our ministry is to others. It's so "thank you" without words. We frequently do not see the fruits of our prayer, but we can guess them by looking at the gifts on our table. What is this? It's all kinds of things. From food items, clothes, books, cleaning supplies, anything that could be useful at home, happened and furniture. Sometimes individual will dress up as Santa Claus to make the community more happy.

What are their favourite customs and traditions, present only behind the bars of the monastery?

During Advent there is simply a manger in our spiritual choir, at first empty, and next to a hay box, with the inscription “spiritual gifts for Our woman for an expedition for Jesus”. all sister all day offering spiritual sacrifices and mortifications can put any hay in a nursery where Mary will shortly put the Baby Jesus. On Christmas Eve, we'll have a baby manger in our refectory. It is simply a beautiful customized that helps us to remember the right motivation for our provisions. Then I can see physically that it is all for the Lord Jesus.

Since 29 November we have been experiencing Nowena to Our woman of the Immaculate, patron saint of the Bernardine Sisters Federation in Poland. From this year on, during the evening service alternatively of the Rosary, we refuse the novena with solemnly sung litany. A direct preparation for Christmas is for us Novelna to Baby Jesus. We experience it from 16th to 24th December with the faithful in our church. It is an Advent retreat.

A peculiar customized is besides the sapence which we experience on December 17. It is simply a minute of stopping, breaking out of the vortex of pre-Christmas duties. On that day we pray for God's wisdom, eat dinner by candlelights, and want each another wisdom.

During Advent we fast more, our meals are more modest. besides the sweets we usually service on Sundays, we get only “from the holidays” during Advent. They are the celebration of Our woman of the Immaculate, the name of our sister Lucia and, of course, Santa Claus. The celebration of the Immaculate Conception is besides preceded by a peculiar day of fasting.

What about visits, telephone calls?

In Advent, as well as in the large Post, we do not receive guests and mostly do not talk on the telephone unless it is necessary. You know, there's a lot to do on the telephone today. We don't talk to household and friends during this time. Again, it's not just an empty custom. This brings us closer to the Lord, helps us to be here and now, to perceive to His voice, to focus on Him, to experience more the longing that Advent is about. But besides to experience his presence more. The exception to this regulation are the furtian sisters who receive telephones and e-mails with intentions on the monastery gate, accepting those who bring intentions to the prayer and intentions of the Holy Mass. It's their job.

What does a sister's home look like at Christmas? Are there Christmas trees in the cells?

We can set up a tiny tree in a cell or a dress. We set more prominent trees in the refectory, where we eat meals, in the spiritual choir, in the corridor and in the capitular, the place where we meet together. The tables are at this time decorated Christmas. Everything around us is to advance the joy that Jesus brings to our life.

During Advent, do you have the sisters' days of focus, nightly adorations?

Yes, we have 1 day of focus at the end of November and a day of penance, the wages for our sins and the planet – 14 December. On that day we fast all day and all day long adore the Eucharistic Jesus. all day we have adoration only during the day and then besides at night. Then, at the time of adoration, as part of the reward of Jesus, we constantly say the Rosary.

How do the sisters celebrate Christmas?

Before supper, we go together to the church, where we take the Koletański Children's figurine. In the procession we take it to the refector, to a manger filled with hay collected during Advent. Before the meal we read the Gospel of Christmas, pray and sing a carol. It is simply a solemn liturgical chant that is performed in the church before the Shepherd on Christmas. This song is simply a fragment of the erstwhile Roman Martyrology. He announces the Christmas of the Lord, placing them in the context of the full past of salvation and events since the creation of the world. We besides sing a carol God is bornWhen we light candles. Of course, we're breaking a wafer. Then we go to the Shepherd together.

Sisters like to sing carols?

We're happy to celebrate at Christmas. We are accompanied by instruments, organs, guitars, and late besides a crank lira. At this time we enjoy the community and put off unnecessary work.

How do sisters prepare for fresh Year?

A peculiar day in our community is 28 December. It is the Youth Day, the day on which we remember the slaughter of innocents – the first martyrs. In our Order it is the feast of the youngest sisters who form in the novitiate. On December 31, we are having a day of focus. The last hr of the year we spent together in prayer, starting at 23. On that day we thank God for the past year, we apologize for our sins and ask for the graces needed by all people in the coming year.

We besides celebrate the Lord’s Revelation. Then we celebrate our goals, and in the time of recreation, we draw 3 queens. The prize for them is the anticipation of ordering the intention of the Holy Mass and tiny gifts. As a summary, our customs have 1 purpose. And that's a capitalized target. It is Jesus, life in Him, with Him, and for Him.

God bless you for your conversation.

Marta Dybińska spoke

See also: