Jesus Christ is born, rejoice!

Dear Religious Family,

We will begin our story of the Advent and Christmas seasons lived in our beloved town, Stykkishólmur, Iceland, with the retreat for children. With the retreat, we began this powerful time of conversion and grace.

One soul in the state of grace is worth more than all the goods of the world, and it is for this reason that Stykkishólmur changed from a simple town in the Northwest of Iceland into one of the most powerful, beautiful and noble kingdoms, because of the grace which the reception of the sacraments brings. The children from the three towns in which we teach catechism, arrived one Saturday morning, and we began the retreat with “Good mornings” about the joy of Catholic Christian life.

After that, we played games and shared lunch altogether. Later, a little talk was presented about Jesus Christ, true God and true man. Later, while we were praying the Rosary, the children had the opportunity to go to confession.

Following confessions, the Holy Mass was celebrated, and some of the children helped as alter servers. All of the children received the Eucharist. They were all very happy, especially for the reception of the sacraments. Many of these children hadn´t approached the sacrament of confession for some years, and the fruits were significant, marked by the joy they manifested afterwards.

  

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Renewal of vows in Iceland

Dear Family,

I want to share with you just a few out of the many graces with which the Lord has blessed us, out here in the land of fire and ice and Vikings and glaciers and wind and snow…

Syngið og gleðjist þér meyjar Krists, hann er brúðgrumi yðar.

“Sing for joy virgins of Christ, for He is your spouse”.

On Saturday September 15th, by the grace of God, I renewed my vows for three years, in preparation for professing the vows of poverty, chastity, obedience and Marian slavery for all of eternity.

It was a feast just like every other feast in which I participated in the United States…but this time, in Stykkishólmur, Iceland!

What does it mean to prepare for the feast of renewal of vows in Stykkishólmur, Iceland?

 First you need a priest to celebrate the Holy Mass and three other sisters to be witnesses. Our IVE priests and sisters came from Hafnafjörður, the town that is next to our capital, Reykjavík . They joined us on Friday evening in order to celebrate the Exaltation of the Cross.

 

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