Daughters of Virtue
A group of young women and sisters from the Northern New Jersey ecclesias inspired us to start a sisters’ group. They called their group “The Virtuous Women.” They developed a mission statement and created matching t-shirts. They met once a month for several hours to...
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Young sisters in New England create service group
A group of young women and sisters from the Northern New Jersey ecclesias inspired us to start a sisters’ group. They called their group “The Virtuous Women.” They developed a mission statement and created matching t-shirts. They met once a month for several hours to pray, share a meal, lead a devotion or class and end with a focused discussion and fellowship.
A sister from Virtuous Women brought news of these happenings to the young sisters in New England. We loved the idea so much that we started another group, called DOVE: Daughters Of VirtuE. Jesus instructed his disciples to be “innocent as doves.” The first meeting was on November 14, 2009, at the Worcester Ecclesial Hall. Ten members were in attendance. We followed the same format as the Virtuous Women group and really thrived in our new found friendships and responsibilities. We came up with our own mission statement, as follows:
We practiced outreach by distributing a gift basket assembled for Abby’s House, a well-known women and children’s shelter in Worcester. We also copied another idea from another ecclesia and decided to host a tea party for fellowship. It was a huge hit and we have been doing them annually (sometimes bi-annually) ever since.
Sis. Kelly MacAdams wrote a poem for the first tea and was strongly encouraged to keep doing so. Following is one of those poems.
Kelly MacAdams
(Worcester, MA)
Tea by the Sea
Dove Tea Poem #6
Our thankful hearts, considering the substance of our hope,
Search out the height and depth and width of Faith within its scope.
For without Faith, there’s no soul with whom God can be pleased;
But we who seek in diligence, His promises believe.
We stagger not but, strong in Faith, give glory to our Lord,
Persuaded that His promises He’s able to perform.
Yet sometimes, in our frailty, in our deeds and thoughts we think,
We lose our focus, miss the mark and in the water sink.
The waves crash down upon us and they toss us all around,
Leaving us with no more breath and praying for dry ground.
It’s then our Savior heeds our call and offers us his hand
And on a calm sea talks with us, as if upon the land.
The ”good we would” too often fails to be the good we do;
Forgive us for our weaknesses! In mercy see us through.
Help us, Lord, to follow you and strengthen what remains!
The days are dark and evil and too many lose the way.
The sober question posed is one we often contemplate:
“When the Son of Man returns to earth, will he find those of faith?”
The stars have called to witness, and the sand upon the shore,
The blessing and the richness of your people evermore.
A trumpet blast, the dead will rise, our bodies will be changed!
A people humbled, reconciled to be a people reigned
By He whose right it truly is to sit on David’s throne;
By mercy and by righteousness, to be called His own.
Until that day our hope is turned toward the glory we can see,
Our Faith will overcome the world and be our victory!