BENEDICTINE OF MARY QUEEN OF APOSTLES
Benedictine of Mary, Queen of Apostles – Sister Gemma Marie of St. Bede, O.S.B. Benedictinae Mariae Regine Apostolorum “In Corde Mariae” – “In the Heart of Mary”
Foundresses: Sister Wilhelmina of the Most Holy Rosary Lancaster (an African-American) † she died in 2019 and her body was found to be incorrupt in May, 2022 – a miracle! † Sister Therese McNamara (now, Mother Cecilia)
Places: Scranton, Pennsylvania originally; Gower, Missouri presently (80 mi. from Kansas City)
Year: 1995 A.D. (Pennsylvania); 2006 A.D. (Missouri)
Her Charism: This nun belongs to a traditional Latin Congregation and lives in apostolic charity and quiet seclusion at Ephesus in imitation of the Blessed Virgin. She is united at the Foot of the Cross with Our Lady who receives the mercy and grace, that blood and water which Our Lord’s Heart cannot contain, for His priests in the person of St. John the Evangelist. This is the reason for her being. Consecrated to Our Lady, she is a vessel in her hands; She fills it only to pour it out again. With the sacred contents, she nourishes and strengthens priests in their spiritual life, washes them from the contagion of the world, and quenches their thirst after preaching the Word. Being sent to to be a clear and singular manifestation of God’s mercy and His life to all nations, this nun offers prayers and sacrifices and aspires to be a successor of the Apostles in our times and a “light shining in the darkness” – a behind-the-scenes source of encouragement, assistance, and support to all priests, Mary’s spiritual sons. Her monastery is the “vestibule of Heaven.” As a recording artist, this Sister sings her life and lives her song, imitating the choirs of angels in Heaven in their incessant praise – nourished by silence, solitude and Lectio Divina.