ORA et LABORA

Easter vigil Mother Dilecta steps away from the fire lit for celebrating 'new life' during Easter Vigil	Easter Vigil The nuns share a flame for the lighting of the new fire celebration	Easter vigil All guests are invited to participate in the celebration of Easter, regardless of religious background.
Easter Vigil Mother Dilecta lights the paschal candle and offers a prayer	Easter Vigil Father Scott, the monastery's temporary chaplain, blesses the paschal candle with the flame from the new fire on Easter vigil	Easter Vigil The nuns watch the new fire burn
Easter Vigil Mother Prioress closes her eyes in remembrance and prayer	Inside the chapel during Holy Week Father Scott and the nuns share a good laugh at an evening mass. They strongly maintain that God has a sense of humor	First Holy Communion A young Islander takes her first holy communion at the Monastery chapel. Although raised non-religiously, Melody Marie fell in love with the lives of the saints after Mother Hildegard befriended her and began teaching her catechism.
In the garden Mother Dilecta cuts flowers from her garden to decorate the Chapel	Mother Dilecta in the garden	Mother Delicta in the garden
Mother Felicitas in the herb garden	Making herbal tea Mother Felicitas, 82, was assigned to the herb garden upon entering at Our Lady of the Rock and has since developed an intimate connection with the plants and peaceful garden space she maintains. From the herb harvests she produces teas, spice blends, mustard, and vinegars for selling to help sustain the Monastery.	Pig butchering day The nuns source their meat intake from animals they raise humanely and mostly organically. Watching the butchering, Mother Prioress often forms deep friendships with the animals but is grateful for the nourishment they provide for the monastic community and guests.
Shrine in the Dairy barn	Raw Milk Mother Prioress, at 75, takes turns with another nun milking the Jersey cows twice a day	Raw Milk Mother Prioress bringing the evening's milk to the Dairy room for filtering. Jars of this raw milk are left in coolers on neighbors' porches and driveways by Mother Prioress for their weekly milk delivery.
Dairy barn In their prime, the nuns showcased at the local county fair, often taking home the prize for best hay which they baled themselves	Cotswold sheep in Winter The nuns raise heirloom and rare breed animals such as this English variety of wool sheep	Highland cattle The nuns raise heirloom and rare breed animals like Scottish Highland Cattle
A statue of Mother Mary watches over the garden shed	Our Lady and fallen hummingbird The Mothers are surrounded by life and death with the nature of a farm and have a great respect for all creatures	Mother Prioress shows her cheese Mother Therese, who is also the presiding Prioress of the monastery, has developed a great love for cheese-making and sells her raw Jersey milk cheeses to guests and at the local General store
Mother Caterina in denim work habit	Mother Ruth, 87 Mother Ruth is the oldest nun and has retired her hand as shepherdess but is lively as ever	Day off Mother Delicta enjoys a rootbeer float and goofs around while relaxing in the koi fish pond garden
Subaru nun The Mothers rely heavily on donations like running cars to keep themselves and their farm afloat	Herder Luccina, one of the Jersey cows a week overdue in her pregnancy, follows Mother Dilecta in hopes of receiving more comfort.	Birth Mother Delicta congratulates Claire, one of the Jersey cows, on her successful birthing of a new calf.
Llamas in snow	Monastery Chapel in Winter	Priest, artist The nuns seek a priest who will remain at the Monastery for an extended period of time, but instead, often receive temporary priests who will spend a year or two with them. Father Scott is a monk, priest, and an artist. He valued his time at the monastery where he was able to set up an artist studio in his cabin hermitage in the woods of the Monastery enclosure.
Violinist Mother Felicitas was married with children and taught music theory at Rutgers University before becoming a nun. She still plays violin and leads the community in Gregorian chant.	Llama shearing Mother Hildegard instructs shearers from the shade of a tree	Alpaca shearing A skiddish alpaca endures fifteen minutes of human contact while being strapped to a table for his once-a-year shearing
Community The nuns gather for the annual Shaw Island 4th of July parade. Although cloistered, the Mothers view the 7 mile island as their enclosure rather than the walls around their home	Nun praying in chapel Mother Felicitas sits in a moment of silent memorial and prayer as Mother Ruth resounds the gong commemorating Christ's death and ressurrection	Vespers The nuns gather in the chapel to chant the psalms for the evening hour of Vespers
Vespers The nuns gather in the chapel to chant the psalms for the evening hour of Vespers	Vespers The nuns enter and leave the chapel bowing to the altar and the tabernacle that holds the Eucharist. Guests are separated by a once traditional bamboo "grill" that separates the Mothers as cloistered nuns.	Mother Dilecta in the chapel
Mother Hildegard grocery shopping "off Island"

THE DAILY LIFE OF

SEVEN BENEDICTINE NUNS

Our Lady of the Rock is a contemplative monastery comprised of seven Benedictine nuns, living their vocation of prayer and work (ora et labora) in the middle of Washington state's Salish Sea on Shaw Island. Through the guidance of the ancient rule of St. Benedict, they embrace traditional methods of monastic living and farming, including donning the full habit, raising their own meat and produce, providing constant hospitality for guests of all backgrounds, and praying the Divine office in Gregorian chant. Viewing the seven miles of the island as their enclosure rather than the walls surrounding their cells, these "semi-cloistered" Mothers are well-known and enjoyed neighbors among the island residents as well as a famed tourist attraction within the frequently traveled San Juan Islands.

Their lifestyle is one of great commitment to the land and the sacrificing of self for the harmony of communal life and prayerful intimacy with their God. Having not received a new nun in fifteen years, the monastery's sustainability and longevity on Shaw is threatened by the lack of women willing to commit to the demands and isolation of such a life. The nuns' ages currently range from their late sixties to late eighties and trips off island to see the doctor are becoming a more frequent aspect of their monastic schedule. Though despite their increasing age and diminishing health and energy, the Mothers have a tremendous amount of faith that "God will take care of this place" and continue to invest in building and sharing their wealth of knowledge with the individuals that seek them out, hoping to instill the wisdom of old with the future generations.

Easter vigil

Mother Dilecta steps away from the fire lit for celebrating 'new life' during Easter Vigil

Easter Vigil

The nuns share a flame for the lighting of the new fire celebration

Easter vigil

All guests are invited to participate in the celebration of Easter, regardless of religious background.

Easter Vigil

Mother Dilecta lights the paschal candle and offers a prayer

Easter Vigil

Father Scott, the monastery's temporary chaplain, blesses the paschal candle with the flame from the new fire on Easter vigil

Easter Vigil

The nuns watch the new fire burn

Easter Vigil

Mother Prioress closes her eyes in remembrance and prayer

Inside the chapel during Holy Week

Father Scott and the nuns share a good laugh at an evening mass. They strongly maintain that God has a sense of humor

First Holy Communion

A young Islander takes her first holy communion at the Monastery chapel. Although raised non-religiously, Melody Marie fell in love with the lives of the saints after Mother Hildegard befriended her and began teaching her catechism.

In the garden

Mother Dilecta cuts flowers from her garden to decorate the Chapel

Mother Dilecta in the garden

Mother Delicta in the garden

Mother Felicitas in the herb garden

Making herbal tea

Pig butchering day

The nuns source their meat intake from animals they raise humanely and mostly organically. Watching the butchering, Mother Prioress often forms deep friendships with the animals but is grateful for the nourishment they provide for the monastic community and guests.

Shrine in the Dairy barn

Raw Milk

Mother Prioress, at 75, takes turns with another nun milking the Jersey cows twice a day

Raw Milk

Mother Prioress bringing the evening's milk to the Dairy room for filtering. Jars of this raw milk are left in coolers on neighbors' porches and driveways by Mother Prioress for their weekly milk delivery.

Dairy barn

In their prime, the nuns showcased at the local county fair, often taking home the prize for best hay which they baled themselves

Cotswold sheep in Winter

The nuns raise heirloom and rare breed animals such as this English variety of wool sheep

Highland cattle

The nuns raise heirloom and rare breed animals like Scottish Highland Cattle

A statue of Mother Mary watches over the garden shed

Our Lady and fallen hummingbird

The Mothers are surrounded by life and death with the nature of a farm and have a great respect for all creatures

Mother Prioress shows her cheese

Mother Therese, who is also the presiding Prioress of the monastery, has developed a great love for cheese-making and sells her raw Jersey milk cheeses to guests and at the local General store

Mother Caterina in denim work habit

Mother Ruth, 87

Mother Ruth is the oldest nun and has retired her hand as shepherdess but is lively as ever

Day off

Mother Delicta enjoys a rootbeer float and goofs around while relaxing in the koi fish pond garden

Subaru nun

The Mothers rely heavily on donations like running cars to keep themselves and their farm afloat

Herder

Luccina, one of the Jersey cows a week overdue in her pregnancy, follows Mother Dilecta in hopes of receiving more comfort.

Birth

Mother Delicta congratulates Claire, one of the Jersey cows, on her successful birthing of a new calf.

Llamas in snow

Monastery Chapel in Winter

Priest, artist

Violinist

Mother Felicitas was married with children and taught music theory at Rutgers University before becoming a nun. She still plays violin and leads the community in Gregorian chant.

Llama shearing

Mother Hildegard instructs shearers from the shade of a tree

Alpaca shearing

A skiddish alpaca endures fifteen minutes of human contact while being strapped to a table for his once-a-year shearing

Community

The nuns gather for the annual Shaw Island 4th of July parade. Although cloistered, the Mothers view the 7 mile island as their enclosure rather than the walls around their home

Nun praying in chapel

Mother Felicitas sits in a moment of silent memorial and prayer as Mother Ruth resounds the gong commemorating Christ's death and ressurrection

Vespers

The nuns gather in the chapel to chant the psalms for the evening hour of Vespers

Vespers

The nuns gather in the chapel to chant the psalms for the evening hour of Vespers

Vespers

The nuns enter and leave the chapel bowing to the altar and the tabernacle that holds the Eucharist. Guests are separated by a once traditional bamboo "grill" that separates the Mothers as cloistered nuns.

Mother Dilecta in the chapel

Mother Hildegard grocery shopping "off Island"

ORA ET LABORA

THE DAILY LIFE OF

SEVEN BENEDICTINE NUNS