Cenacle Prayer Cards Return!

August 3, 2022
There is an appointed time for everything,
and a time for every affair under the heavens.
A time to give birth, and a time to die;
…a time to tear down, and a time to build. …
A time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to cast away.
…A time to rend, and a time to sew …
Ecclesiastes 3:1-7


Dear Friends,

 

We are all familiar with these fluctuations in life so poignantly illustrated in Ecclesiastes.  Those of you who have been following us know that we, the Cenacle Sisters, have deeply felt the impact of any one of these movements over the past three years.  You know that our life has been radically changed affecting our physical structures, our ministry, and our community life.  This process of transformation calls us to be open and curious, beginners on all counts, listening to the Spirit, to you, and the events of our lives.  We know the one part of our life that is stable, and now intensified, is the ground of our being – our life of prayer – which intricately enfolds you and your intentions.

 

As we were in the throes of this inescapable challenge, exacerbated by the pandemic, we notified you in January of 2021, that after much discernment and prayer, we were closing our beloved prayer card ministry.  Unbeknownst to many, undergirding this decision was the sincere hope for redirecting our energies toward the emergence of a new possibility; we seriously explored ways we might be able to convert this ministry into a complete on-line ministry.  We kept listening and imagining a system for our prayer card ministry that would be contemporary and sustainable.

 

Amazingly, when we let go of trying to do it ourselves, space opened up for something creative and fresh.  We heard you.  We prayed.  We were surprised by the Spirit.  A serendipitous meeting occurred among our Office for Ministry and Mission Advancement, Devco Foil Printing (the company that has manufactured our cards for the past three decades), and Deluxe Corporation, an on-line card provider.  After several engaging and energizing meetings, this innovative team submitted a win-win proposal to our Leadership Team.  In turn, the Team presented this proposal to our sisters at our June Province Gathering.  After hearing about it first-hand, and taking time for prayer, reflection, and conversations, a vote was taken:  Shall we re-ignite our passion for our prayer card ministry through this Deluxe-Devco-Cenacle collaboration to produce prayer cards?  The response was unanimous: “Yes!”

 

When we launch this fall, in time for Christmas, you will see many familiar cards, although fewer, as we aim to streamline the selection.  Our intent is to start small and grow into this new format of a time-tested ministry.  This unexpected joy, this happy announcement of a resurrected Cenacle Ministry of Prayer Cards was inconceivable in the winter of 2021; but, through your persistence and prayers, we all see that it is a time to build, a time to sew, a time to rejoice and give thanks for God’s fidelity and desire to continue to use us for God’s divine good pleasure in our world today.  We thank you for staying with us throughout this mystifying journey.  We look forward to welcoming your requests and walking more closely with you, again, throughout the steppingstones of your life.  More information on the website and date for ordering cards are forthcoming.  Please continue to stay tuned to cenaclesisters.org/prayercards.

 

Your sister in Christ,

Pamela Falkowski, r.c.

Province Leader