Tarnobrzeg, just a few miles southwest of Wielowieś. (Photo from Panoramio.com)

This is the continuation of the story of the life of the Mother Maria Kolumba, foundress of the Dominican Sisters of the Immaculate Conception. In our previous installment, Sister Kolumba, who was not even yet professed, received the approval of Most Rev. Adam Jasiński, the bishop of Przemyśl, to found a Third Order of Sisters in Wielowieś.

Father Leszczyński, the enthusiastic helper of Sister Kolumba, began to arrange for the use of a wooden church building in Wielowieś which had been a school of two rooms, as a temporary convent until a permanent one could be built. The project gained the support of local clergy, who helped in various ways. A donation of 5.6 acres of land opposite the church was made, along with a promise of construction material.

Sister Kolumba prayed for good aspirants. There were four candidates already, one of whom spent long years at the home of the pius Białecki family, having known Maria Kolumba since her birth.

At about that time, Sister Kolumba left for Nancy, France, where she had begun her life as a Dominican Sister, to take perpetual vows and receive from those superiors the authority to establish the Third Order of St. Dominic in Poland.

No obstacles from superiors

Her biographer writes, “in that she encountered no obstacles as the superiors knew that only for the Lord’s glory did she undertake such a difficult task, being so young – 23 years old only.”

As part of her trip to France, Sister Kolumba visited her benefactor, Countess Gabryela Tarnowska in Cracow, who later wrote about her: “I got to know Sister Kolumba. It is difficult to bear more properly one’s own name. A real dove; inside and outside white, depth of the eyes in which the dark blueness of the sky is reflected and the treasures are revealed.”

When she returned from Nancy, Father Leszczyński welcomed Sister Kolumba and her aspirants in Wielowieś, being aware that his long-awaited dream was being realized by the Lord. He could finally have active Dominican Sisters in his parish so the children and many abandoned sick people could receive help.

After Mass one Sunday, with the parishioners gathered round, the pastor led the Sisters into the restored school building now turned into a convent, which had been decorated with statues and other religious objects.

The blessings would continue. Her benefactor, Countess Tarnowska, put into the hands of Sister Kolumba “her savings.” Then, Sister Kolumba and Aniela Paulin, one of her aspirants, went to the nearby manors to get to know their neighbors. The results were astounding. Writes her biographer,

“Some of the gentlemen among the citizens who were against the cloister changed their mind after only one conversation with Mother Kolumba, concluding that the Convent established by her is a useful institution and that she is an extraordinary creature, this Mother Kolumba!”

Taken from Chapter IV-V, pgs. 22-24 of the Life of the Reverend Mother Róża Kolumba Białecka, by Sr. Benwenuta Pasławska, Order of St. Dominic’s Sisters, Cracow, Poland, translated into English in 2007.

Click for Google map of Tarnobrzeg area.

Wielowieś and Przemyśl are in the southeastern part of present-day Poland. (Adapted from Google map)

This is the continuation of the story of the life of the Mother Maria Kolumba, foundress of the Dominican Sisters of the Immaculate Conception. In our previous installment, Sister Kolumba received the encouragement of the Master General of the Dominican Order to found a Dominican convent in Poland. She also met Father Julian Leszczyński, who was looking for Dominican sisters for his parish in Wielowieś, in southeast Poland.

Father Leszczyński, who had dabbled with drawings of Dominican sisters as a child, was very happy when Sister Kolumba sent him Statutes of the Third Order in Polish, along with the news of the blessing about her plans of Most Rev. Adam Jasiński, the new bishop of Przemyśl.

The bishop placed the project under the supervision and guidance of Fr. Leszczyński, and advised Mother Kolumba to privately open a novitiate for new candidates without waiting for the approval of the Austrian government or the Diocese. The plan was to find their place in the Dominican Constitution, submit their plans to the Dominican Chapter meeting, then obtain approval first of the Bishop, and finally of the government.

Plaque at the Church of St. Gertrude and St. Michael the Archangel, Wielowieś. On the plaque is the history of the building of the church, and the name Kolumba Róża Bialecka appears in the middle.

“Pleasant Moments of My Life”

Having received her letter, Fr. Jasiński wrote, “I consider one of the most pleasant moments of my life this one when I received the letter of Sister along with the Statutes.” He asked that Sister Kolumba and her mother come to Wielowieś. They came on Sept. 23, 1860, and surveyed the village to find a place to found the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Dominic.

Following the tradition in this part of the world of the nobility helping religious communities, Countess Gabryela Tarnowska, a widow and an owner of properties in Dzików to which Wielowieś belonged administratively, gave a promise, along with her son, to provide her protection. She came with her son, Count Jan Tarnowski, to a rectory in Wielowieś declaring her and her son’s readiness to both give up their land so that a cloister could be erected there and to offer construction material from the forests.

Her biographer writes,

Oh, how grateful Sister Maria Kolumba was towards the Lord when the Most Reverend Father Leszczyński passed her information that Divine Providence obviously protected the commenced work! How happy was the [Dominican Master General] Most Reverend Father General Jandel on hearing the news on the beginnings from her! He was so eager to behold in our country active Dominican Sisters as his heart was burning with zealousness to spread God’s glory.

Taken from Chapter IV, pgs. 21-22 of the Life of the Reverend Mother Róża Kolumba Białecka, by Sr. Benwenuta Pasławska, Order of St. Dominic’s Sisters, Cracow, Poland, translated into English in 2007.

Click for Google map of Poland.

Solemn jubilee of 150 years of service.

On August 8, 2011, our Congregation celebrated a very important day. One hundred and fifty years ago, on August 8 of 1861, on the feast of St. Dominic, the very first class of the novitiate started, marking the beginning of the existence of our Community. Since that day, many young women have chosen to serve God in our Community, following the example of St. Dominic, St. Catherine of Siena, and the Venerable Servant of God, Mother Kolumba Bialecka.

The year of the solemn jubilee of 150 years will end on August 8, 2012. Throughout the year, sisters in every house of our Community celebrate this joyful event. On January 21, the jubilee Mass was celebrated in our home in Milwaukee, WI, to thank God for the anniversary. The invited celebrant, Archbishop Jerome Listecki, reminded us of the meaning and importance of thankfulness. God gives us His grace freely, according to His will, even though we do not deserve it. The only way we may repay God for His goodness is to love Him, especially through serving others.

Archbishop Listecki Blessed the New Addition

Archbishop Jerome Listecki blessing the new addition of our St. Ann Home. After the Mass, the Archbishop blessed the new addition to the St. Ann Rest Home, where Sisters have been taking care of the elderly for more than 65 years. Similar celebrations of the jubilee will take place in our other convents: in March in the provincial house in Justice, IL, and in April in Calgary, Canada. (See more photos below.)
The Archbishop bestows his blessing on the dining area.	God gives us His grace freely even though we do not deserve it, the Archbishop told us.
Many young women have chosen to serve God in our Community, following the example of Dominican saints, including the Venerable Servant of God and our foundress, Mother Kolumba Bialecka.

Good spiritual counsel and thoughtful parents go far in helping a young person discern a calling to religious life or the priesthood, Pope Benedict XVI said at his Jan. 15 Sunday Angelus address.

“I would like to emphasize the critical role of spiritual guidance in the journey of faith and, in particular, in response to the vocation of special consecration for the service of God and his people,” the Pope said.

A “Big Brother” Important

“God’s call to follow Jesus more closely, giving up forming their own family to dedicate themselves to the great family of the Church, is normally done through the testimony and proposal from a ‘big brother,’ usually a priest.”

Also instrumental in the process, the Holy Father said, were parents, “who by their genuine faith and joyful married love, show children that it is beautiful and possible to build all your life on the love of God.”

The Pope spoke from his apartment high above St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican, and reflected how, in the reading of that day, the Gospel tells that John the Baptist identified Jesus as “the Lamb of God” on the banks of the River Jordan. Thus he acted in the “role of mediator,” leading two of his disciples to discern that they must now follow Christ.

Another mediator, as shown in the first reading of the day’s Mass, is the high priest Eli who advises Samuel that it is God, and not he who is calling him in the night. Samuel takes his advice and, on the fourth occasion of being called, replies, “Speak Lord, for your servant is listening.”

The Pope concluded his comments by entrusting all educators, “especially priests and parents,” to the Virgin Mary as they help young people discern their vocation in life.

Read the complete article in the National Catholic Register.

Read also on this website, Formation With the Dominican Sisters.

A new video by the Dominican Sisters features an encouraging quote of Pope Benedict XVI. Here is the text of the video:

Video script: “By embracing the Lord’s call to follow Him in chastity, poverty and obedience, you have begun a journey of radical discipleship which will make you ‘signs of contradiction’ (cf. Luke 2:34) to many of your contemporaries. Model your lives daily on the Lord’s own loving self-oblation in obedience to the will of the Father. You will then discover the freedom and joy which can draw others to the Love which lies beyond all other loves as their source and their ultimate fulfillment.

“Never forget that celibacy for the sake of the Kingdom means embracing a life completely devoted to love, a love that enables you to commit yourselves fully to God’s service and to be totally present to your brothers and sisters, especially those in need. (Pope Benedict XVI, July 19, 2008) Read entire address at the Sydney Cathedral at World Youth Day, at Catholic Culture.”

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Join the Dominican Sisters of the Immaculate Conception! See our Formation page.

“Dear young people, let me now ask you a question. What will you leave to the next generation?

“Are you building your lives on firm foundations, building something that will endure? Are you living your lives in a way that opens up space for the Spirit in the midst of a world that wants to forget God, or even rejects Him in the name of a falsely-conceived freedom?

“How are you using the gifts you have been given, the “power” which the Holy Spirit is even now prepared to release within you? What legacy will you leave to young people yet to come? What difference will you make?”

(Pope Benedict XVI’s closing Mass at World Youth Day, Sydney, Australia, July 19, 2008. Read full homily at Zenit.)

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Read about our formation process (new window).

The following is the voice-over for our new video of three quotes of Pope Benedict XVI about the consecrated life.

1) “Dear young people, if the Lord calls you to live more intimately at His service, respond generously. You may be certain: life dedicated to God is never spent in vain.”  (To young people in Italy, Sept. 8, 2007. Read entire address at Catholic Culture.)

2) “Today, as in all ages, there is no lack of generous souls ready to give up everyone and everything to embrace Christ and His Gospel, consecrating their existence to His service within communities characterized by enthusiasm, generosity and joy.” (Reflection on Consecrated Life, Feb. 17, 2008. Read entire address on Catholic Culture.)

3) “When we give ourselves to Christ, we receive a hundredfold in return. Yes, open wide the doors to Christ and you will find true life.” (Talk at World Youth Day, April 24, 2005. Read address on World Youth Day for Pilgrims.)

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Sr. Maria Vianney makes her first profession recently.

Take our “Seven Quick Questions” survey to see if you have a vocation as a Dominican Sister!

A Christmas present! Watch our new video and hear the words of Pope Benedict XVI to youth about the courageous way to follow Christ exclusively.

Video script: “Just as two thousand years ago Jesus called people to follow Him, today too young men and women are setting out at His call, attracted by Him and moved by a desire to devote their lives to serving the Church and helping others. They have the courage to follow Christ, and they want to be His witnesses…. following Christ means taking on ever more fully His mind and His way of life.” (Pope Benedict XVI, September 8, 2007)

Discover that God also speaks to your heart, and that His plans are full of peace and purpose. Take our “Seven Quick Questions” survey to see if you have a vocation as a Dominican Sister.

What are the steps to becoming a sister? Aspirancy, postulancy, and then profession. A new video nearly five minutes long, by the Dominican Sisters of the Immaculate Conception, shows the steps in becoming a Sister through photos accompanied by the beautiful music of the Hayden and Faure choir and orchestra, which performed at St. Odilo Church in Berwyn, IL. Click at right to see the video.

What Kind of Life?

Do you wonder, “To what kind of life is God calling me?” or “How can I know God’s will?” or “Am I being called to religious life?”

These are questions that many single persons ask themselves, and struggle with. Jesus Christ desires that all of His followers live life to the full. He said, “I have come that they might have life, and have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). To hear God’s voice, we first must listen. To listen, we must be silent, and to practice the art of prayer.

Take our “7 Quick Questions” survey (opens in a new window) and see whether you might have a religious vocation.

"... the help of their intercession."

In the same way that the universal Church celebrates the feast of All Saints on Nov. 1, and All Souls the day after, the Order of Preachers, or Dominicans, have their own similar feast days.

November 7 — All Saints Of The Order Of Preachers

The Dominican Constitution states that today we faithfully remember,

those who have gone before us in the family of Saint Dominic and who offer us the example of their way of life, their company in the communion of saints, and help of their intercession. By this celebration may we be moved to imitate them and be strengthened in the spirit of our vocation.

(Liber constitutionum et Ordinationum Ordinis Fratrum Preadicatorum, nn. 16, 67. See General Chapter 2004.)

November 8 — Anniversary Of the Deceased Brothers And Sisters Of The Order

The practice of the universal Church has associated the feast of All Saints with that of All Souls, emphasizing the fundamental truth of the communion of saints. According to the custom of our Order after celebrating the feast of All Saints of the Order of Preachers we too remember our brothers and sisters who have gone before us with the sign of faith and pray that they might enjoy eternal rest with the Lord.

(From Supplement to the Liturgy of the Hours for the Order of Preachers, a draft translation)