The Cloister
The enclosure is a defining element of our vocation as cloistered‑contemplative women, and for many it is the aspect of our life that is hardest to understand. To those looking in from the outside, it may seem restrictive or outdated. Yet for us, enclosure is not a barrier but a sacred space that safeguards the very heart of our calling.
We certainly recognize that God is present everywhere, that prayer can rise from a mountaintop, a city street, a hospital room, or a kitchen sink. God’s presence is not confined by walls. Yet the physical signs of enclosure, the grilles, the walls, the locked doors, hold meaning not because of their material form, but because of the interior reality they protect. They create a zone of seclusion essential for our contemplative mission, offering the space and silence needed to seek God with an undivided heart.
The cloister is not mere withdrawal; it is a setting apart. It is the sacred environment that allows us to live for God, with God, and ultimately in God alone. Within this space of solitude and silence, the soul is freer to listen, to adore, and to rest in the mystery of divine love. Enclosure becomes the outward expression of an inward commitment: to belong wholly to God in love that is total, exclusive, and lifelong.
Contrary to misconceptions, enclosure does not distance us from humanity. Rather, it brings us closer to every human being in a profound and spiritual way. When we dwell with the God who is Love, our hearts become more spacious, more compassionate, more tender toward the world’s suffering. In communion with Christ, our prayer crosses every border and touches every need, even those we will never see or hear about.
Paradoxically, stepping apart from the world allows us to embrace the world more completely. Freed from distractions and unnecessary
attachments, we carry the burdens, sorrows, and hopes of all people into God’s presence. Our life hidden in the cloister becomes a powerful form of spiritual service, a quiet but constant offering for the Church and for every soul.
“Our enclosure is not an escape but a mission field of the heart, a place where the world is held before God in love, where the cries of humanity become our own, and where every prayer rises as an act of intercession for those who cannot always pray for themselves.”