On May 8th, we had the joy of the blessing of the renovated rooms in the hosting zone of our Carmel monastery. These rooms are intended for guests and retreatants, our volunteer friends and our families too.
The renovation work was completed some time ago, but we had to wait for the favourable time. And the favourable time came on May 8th! It was the time of salvation, since all of us - Christians in the Holy Land – were in Easter season since the previous Sunday.
It was also significant to be able to bless the rooms and sprinkle them in this Easter season, a time of the Victory of Life over death, a time when Jesus never ceases to bring Peace to his apostles, who are still a little frightened. We asked the Lord to extend his blessing to all those who will come to stay in these rooms, to all the inhabitants of our neighbourhood, and to the benefactors who enabled these works.
After a long wait due to the war, we had the joy of welcoming the architect and engineer who were supervising the project, together with the site manager. It was a joy to see them together again and to give thanks through this blessing for the nobility of their work and to ask that God's blessing be extended to their families and to the West Bank they come from. They offered us a statue of Jesus of Light carved by a Bethlehem cabinet-maker: two rays of Light emerge from his Heart. Providence guided their choice, since this Carmel monastery is under the patronage of the Sacred Heart!
Above the garden gate, you will see a statue of Mary, now illuminated by light. There, we sang the Regina caeli to close this time of blessing together, under the maternal gaze of the Virgin. Now it's time for you to set off again for the Holy Land, and to come and enjoy the peace of these rooms, which have been renovated, blessed and are open to welcome you! And you too can pray to Mary under her gentle halo of light.
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