The Next Step

by Sister Patricia Michael Hauze

As I am coming to the close of my two year novitiate, or time of testing, and begin to take the next step in my journey, that is to begin taking annual vows, I want to begin again by thanking all of you who have kept me in prayer. Without your prayers and support I surely would have stumbled more than I have.

The two years I have spent testing the waters have shown me that I have more strength than I thought possible. All this, of course, is only possible through prayer and trust. I have received my certificate in spiritual direction; my companionship in this area has grown to more than I imagined! With the help and guidance of my own spiritual director, I have taken some on-line courses to enrich my spiritual life, read and studied much more than I would have believed and have been asked to do workshops on prayer and meditation and forums on the religious life and what it means to be a solitary. All of this is secondary to my vow of prayer and my intercessions for you, this community, the church and the world.

So, what happens now? That’s a question I cannot know and most possibly cannot comprehend. I will continue in the practice of spiritual direction. I will continue to study and learn and hopefully digest the meaning of it all. I will continue to serve the community of Trinity, Easton and the Diocese of Bethlehem. I will continue in a life of contemplativeness, solitude and prayer, and I will continue to depend upon the guidance of the Holy One and the support of my community.

Please join me, and if you cannot be physically present, I ask you to hold me in prayer on Wednesday, June 20 at 7:00 p.m. at the Cathedral Church of the Nativity as The Rt. Rev. Paul V. Marshall receives my first annual vows.