By Sister Mary Immaculate, VHM

When Cardinal Simeon de Marquemont asked St. Francis de Sales his reason for founding the Order of the Visitation, he replied, “To give to the church daughters of prayer … women worthy to adore God in spirit and in truth. Leaving to the great orders already established in the church to honor our Lord by striking virtues, I desire my daughters to have no other pretension than to glorify God by their littleness.”

“The order has been founded to honor the Blessed Mother of God in the joyful and hidden mystery of the Visitation. The sisters are dedicated to this mystery … that they may be united with her in the fervor of her praise the radiance of her charity, and her zeal for the salvation of the world.” (From “The Rule of the Visitation”)

In the year 1610, St. Frances de Sales gave to the Sisters of the Visitation, rules which later St. Pius X described as “admirable for their wisdom, discretion and sweetness.” These rules put the emphasis on love, great love for God, and gentleness toward the neighbor, offering to them as their model the meekness and humility of the Heart of Jesus.

The happy choice of this Sacred Heart was ratified by heaven, when Christ appeared to a religious of the Visitation, St. Margaret Mary, and gave, through her and the order, His Sacred Heart to the Church.

Thus, was fulfilled the prophesy of St. Francis de Sales, Bishop and Doctor of the Church, “The Sisters of the Visitation who will be so fortunate as to observe these rules, may truly be called ‘Daughters of the Heart of Jesus.’”

The Visitation sisters here in Atlanta were founded by Mother Francis de Sales, the former Margaret Cassidy of Macon, Georgia. In 1910, there was no monastery in Georgia, so she entered the first American House in Georgetown, Washington, D.C. She was among the sisters who founded the Monastery of the Visitation in Toledo, Ohio.

In 1954, she, with nine sisters from Toledo, was welcomed to Atlanta by Archbishop Gerald P. O’Hara and Bishop Francis E. Hyland, to establish the first community of contemplative nuns in Georgia. The monastery is on Ponce de Leon Avenue in Druid Hills.

As the present location of the monastery does not allow sufficient space for retreatants to share in their life of prayer, or space necessary for expansion, the sisters are presently engaged in erecting in Gwinnett County a monastery that will be known as “Maryfield Visitation Monastery.”

Since Vatican II young women who are interested in the contemplative life are cordially invited to enter the cloister, follow the everyday schedule of the nuns and learn for themselves what the contemplative life is about. They may spend a weekend, or live within the monastery up to three months, while seeking to know if they have a contemplative vocation.

What is the apostolate of the contemplative? It is withdrawal and prayer. The mission field of the contemplative is the whole world.

“Daughters of the Church, they are present in Christ to all men. With the same love which makes them love and serve God, they are profoundly associated with the work of Redemption.

“Silent, but authentic disciples, they bear witness to the kingdom to come testifying to the presence in the heart of the world of this new and eternal life acquired for us by the Redemption of Christ.” (Vatican II)

The day begins with an hour of meditation and prayer, followed by the liturgy. The sisters are engaged in various occupations throughout the day, for, like the rest of humanity, they have to earn a living. They bake hosts which are used at Mass in many of the Catholic churches throughout the archdiocese.

Their work is by no means limited to this. Almost every talent can find a place in the monastic life: they are stenographers, secretaries, bookkeepers, cooks, dressmakers, artists and musicians. All make their contribution to the full life of the community. They have their own garden and orchard in Maryfield.

However, one who is looking for the spectacular, will look in vain within a Visitation Monastery. For these are women who live lives of obedience and simplicity: prayer, sacrifice and joy. Above all, they perpetuate the life of Jesus and Mary at Nazareth.