Abbey of Regina Laudis: First Profession of Sister Christopher

Full all around the seed of his great offspring,
Make him, an instanding image of the sun,
Abraham's truest likeness...

He another Joseph is made by the purity of his ways,
Another Jacob in foreknowing of future things
Is he made by his prescient mind.

Mindful of his family
May he lead us through to remain
Always in the joys of Christ. Amen.

From the Sequence Laeta Dies for the Feast of St. Benedict

On the Feast of St. Benedict, July 11, 2023, Sister Christopher McLarin made her First Profession of Vows to God through the Community of the Abbey of Regina Laudis. Monsignor Robert Tucker celebrated the Mass and was the homilist.

Before entering Regina Laudis Sister Christopher held administrative positions at her Alma Mater, Muhlenberg College in PA, first as Associate Director of Admissions and later as Director of Alumni Relations, She revived the monastic habit on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception in 2016.

During her monastic life Sister Christopher discovered she has a gift for cooking which is greatly appreciated by our community and guests. She generously makes herself available when extra help is needed in the kitchen. Much of her work centers around hospitality. She aids the guest secretary and cares for St. Martin's guest house, overseeing its restoration with the help of our benefactors.

Sister Christopher loves the monastic liturgy and sings on the Novitiate Maria Goretti Schola and is a Cantor. She also helps our sacristan and is a server at Mass. With her characteristic warmth, as an outside Mistress of Ceremonies, she welcomes members of the Congregation and introduces them to the ceremonies in which they will be participating. Nowhere is her sense of humor more evident than in the skits she writes for the monastic community's in-house celebrations.

MOTHER ABBESS LUCIA'S PRAYERS OF THE FAITHFUL AT THE FIRST PROFESSION MASS

In gratitude for the life and surprising call of Sister Christopher McLarin who had the courage to turn her life in a radically different direction, leaving a successful career, a wide circle of relationships and an active Church ministry, to incline the ear of her heart to the quiet wisdom of St. Benedict. May this deep contemplative longing within her grow ever stronger as she now loves into her vows, and may we ask the intercession of St. Benedict for blessings on all who have loved and assisted her throughout this eventual journey: her family, friends, colleagues, physicians, spiritual mentors, especially Bishop Barres and Monsignor Baker, and all the people of Allentown.
Let us pray to the Lord.

May Sister Christopher’s gift for hospitality be a beacon of light and hope to all who come to Regina Laudis, inspiring the Community to follow with joy St. Benedict’s seemingly impossible mandate to welcome each person as we would welcome Christ, and may we ask special blessings on all the benefactors, oblates, and workers who have collaborated with Sister Christopher to insure the continuity of St. Martin’s Guest House; or have contributed to her culinary magic in the daily Five Star monastic kitchen where she feeds the multitudes with joy we can actually taste.
Let us pray to the Lord.

"Blessed are the pure of heart for they shall see God.""
In gratitude for Sister Christopher’s great gift to see the humor in a situation and reflecting it back to us creatively in song or skit. Releasing the pure child-like response latent in all of us, and may she know from this day forward that she truly belongs to this body Regina Laudis through the vows she pronounces in our midst, as together we partake of the one Body and one Spirit of Christ in the bond of peace.
Let us pray to the Lord.

May we remember with joy and gratitude Mother Hildegard George who has lived the vows she made at Regina Laudis 50 years ago with boundless vitality and creativity, both her and at Our Lady of the Rock, may the celebration of her Golden Jubilee be truly golden, filled with hope and new life for that foundation to which she has faithfully given her life through all the vicissitudes of these many years. We wish her love and, as she would often say, much heart.
Let us pray to the Lord.

That through the intercession of St. Benedict, Father of Europe, world leaders today may turn form the path of war to the path of peace.
Let us pray to the Lord.

For Sister Christopher McLarin on the occasion of her First Vows and her family for whom this Mass is offered.
Let us pray to the Lord.