Tomorrow is September 11. Where were you 24 years ago, on 9/11? I suspect that all of us recall exactly where we were on September 11, 2001. That day of horror and tragedy is seared into our hearts and into our memory.
Now… where were you on September 10, 2001? Do you remember that day?
Well, many of us were right here—in this sacred space—for the blessing and dedication of our beautiful Chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary. How many of you were here on that joy-filled day? Do you remember it?
Our Sisters and Associates, who had worked so long and hard to make this space possible, were ecstatic! Glorious music rang out from the brand-new organ for the Mass with Cardinal Egan who performed the ancient and meaningful rituals: the anointing of the altar and walls with Chrism oil, the burning of incense, the covering of the altar with the cloth and the lighting of the altar candles, the placing of the blessed relics in the altar, the sprinkling of holy water on the walls and on the gathered assembly.
Everyone was filled with gratitude for this wonderful space to our community. It had been a dream for so long! At last… our Siena Hall Sisters could be present with the community for the celebration of Eucharist. Do you remember how so many of the residents of Siena Hall had to sit in the hallway upstairs while Mass was offered in the small infirmary chapel? They could not see the altar or the priest, and often could not even hear the prayers.
Look around you: The Chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary… aren’t we blessed!
This morning’s reading from Paul’s letter to the Colossians: “… seek what is above. … Think of what is above, not of what is on earth [3:1-2].” Our beautiful Chapel helps us to do that every time we enter it! And, when I reflected on today’s gospel—Luke’s version of the Beatitudes [6:20-26]: Blessed are those who are poor, or hungry, or mourning, or being excluded or insulted for Jesus’ sake…, I realized that the blessing of this Chapel is different. It is pure gift. We are blessed, but not as a reward, not because we have suffered. No, we have this beautiful worship space because of God’s goodness to us, God’s providing for us in abundance—just as God has done for 150 years.
We don’t have the gift and privilege of celebrating here today because we did something to earn it; we are not here because we deserve this beautiful chapel. No, plain and simple, we are here because God loves us—and gave us with the means and talents and ability to plan for and raise the necessary funds from so many generous benefactors to create a space worthy for the raising of hearts and minds and voices in prayer: a place to pray and celebrate together.
That’s why we mark this anniversary— to remind ourselves how blessed we are … and to say “thank you.”
Were you here on September 10, 2001? No matter. You are here today—and the blessing and sacredness we experience here today is just as real as it was for those who gathered here 24 years ago—if we are willing to make ourselves attentive to it, if we consciously open our eyes and ears and hearts perceive it.
In some ways, the room is more blessed today because of the lives of the hundreds of Sisters and Associates who have prayed here over the past 24 years, who have encountered Jesus here, who have wept tears of joy and tears of sorrow here; more blessed because of our communion with our beloved Sisters who have been buried from this Chapel, pointing the way to God by their faithful lives of goodness, compassion, and service as they sought to live the beatitudes. We are blessed!
Today is a day we set aside to appreciate what we have been given here. And today, once again, we are blessed with the opportunity to enter into the mystery of the Eucharist—the most profound gift we experience in this sacred space.
Let us give thanks as we now move to the consecrated altar for the Liturgy of the Eucharist. Let us remember all our Sisters and Associates who have prayed here. And let us mark this anniversary by becoming more and more aware of the gift that God has given us in this Chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary. We are blessed!
Perhaps we might even be able to remember that joyful September 10 date as clearly as we do the heart-rending date of September 11. We are so blessed!
– Sister Margaret Palliser, OP
With expertise in Theology, Music, Education, and Liturgy, Sister Margaret shares her gifts through the Office of Dominican Life.