In Dinajpur, Bangladesh, the anniversary of her admission to the monastery of the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration was celebrated. Originally from Kerala, she led and grew the community of cloistered nuns. She “pray for peace in the world and for the well-being of all”.
Dinajpur () – Sister Mary Elizabeth, a nun of the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration, celebrated 70 years of religious life a few days ago at the Dinajpur monastery. The Bishop of Dinajpur, Msgr. Sebastian Tudu, some priests and other nuns were present at the ceremony.
The Hna. Mary Elizabeth arrived in Dhaka on August 31, 1952 from Changanacherry, India, to enter the monastery along with four other young women. Her uncle took them by train and by boat and the trip lasted more than a week. She made her final profession on August 2, 1961. Her family is made up of four sisters and two brothers, all elderly and still alive, and one of them, Aroti, is also a religious of the Missionaries of Charity and lives in Jordan.
During the Mass the bishop gave thanks for the consecrated life of Sr. Mary Elizabeth. “Today we thank God that he sent us the Rev. Sr. Mary Elizabeth from India. She left her loved ones and gave her life for this country for the last 70 years. She also performed important tasks for the Catholic Church in Bangladesh. We are very grateful to him,” Msgr. Tudu said.
The Hna. Elizabeth, now 87 years old, told that she entered the monastery in Dhaka, in what was then East Pakistan, and she never returned to her birthplace. But two of her sisters and one of her brothers came to Bangladesh to visit her when she celebrated the golden anniversary of religious life. “In the beginning, she communicated with my family by letter. Now we are in contact with the cell phone, ”she explains.
He affirms that he was very happy with his 70 years of religious life. “I was too busy with prayer and work in the monastery to realize that time was passing. I love the life of the monastery. I pray in front of the Eucharist for peace in the world, for the well-being of people, and that has It has always filled me with peace within myself”, she says smiling.
“I wanted to go to a far country as a missionary. That is why I entered the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration. I gave myself to Jesus Christ because I love him and I have obtained an immense pleasure worshiping him ”, she continues telling her.
Her sisters admire her. “Sr. Mary Elizabeth is our pioneer. She has made a great contribution to our congregation. She has given us the best guidance. She has been our Mother Superior at Mymensingh Monastery for 10 years and Dinajpur Monastery for 9 years,” says Sister Mary Petra, a member of the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration and Mother Superior of the Dinajpur monastery.
“She was the founding mother superior of the Dinajpur monastery. When the number of our congregation was reduced, Sister Mary Elizabeth began to pray to Jesus Christ for religious vocations and Jesus responded to her request. At the Mymensingh monastery we came to be 50 sisters. We did not have enough space for all our nuns. Then we opened a new monastery in Dinajpur with the collaboration of the local bishop”, continues Sister Mary Petra.
He also explains that the life of prayer and the advice of Sr. Elizabeth as the oldest nun continues to be a source of inspiration for the young nuns.
The nuns began their ministry in Dinajpur in 2008. In the last 12 years they have been blessed with five new sisters and three other young women are studying in their house of formation. In Bangladesh, there is another monastery of the Order of Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration in Mymensingh, in the north-central part of the country. The nuns arrived in Bengal in 1933. They pray 24/7 for world peace, for Pope Francis and for all the people who lead the Church.
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