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Cloistered Nuns Hopeful Their Prayers Will Be Answered

FARMINGTON HILLS (WWJ) - The Monastery of the Blessed Sacrament is home to 32 cloistered Dominican nuns in Farmington Hills.

The nuns pray all day for people in Metro Detroit and across the World.

Each week hundreds of people call or visit the Monastery and ask the sisters to pray for someone they love. Now the sisters are hoping you can answer their prayers.

They have lived in their home since they moved from Detroit in 1964. Sister Mary Peter, a cloistered nun here for 23 years says the building is not up to code and has no insulation.

"Our sky light is leaking, sister put buckets under it last week and our boiler, this past winter we held it together with chewing gum," she said.

Sister Mary says their utilities bills are as high as $12,000 per month. Sisters' Mary of the Sacred Heart and Sister Nuhrah said they are in the midst of a fundraiser to help fix their building so they can live there another 50 years.

The amount needed to fix everything that is wrong at the Monastery is about $11 million. They're planning to raise the money in phases and fix the building one problem at a time.

The sisters are financially independent from the Archdiocese of Detroit. They pay for their groceries and daily expenses thanks to sales from the gift shop.

The cloistered Dominican nuns pray the entire day. They only speak two hours each day.

Sister Mary of the Sacred Heart says she is a child bride of Jesus, joining the cloistered sisters when she was 17 years old. Sister Mary Peter was a teaching nun prior to joining the cloistered nuns 23 years ago. Sister Nuhrah has been cloistered for the past 30 years.

"We don't text or use a cell phone to make a call unless it's a medical emergency. We don't watch television, only religious DVD's. We do use a computer because we do have to stay in touch with the world so we know what to pray for," Sister Nuhrah said.

All three nuns have a fabulous sense of humor and say it is their vocation to pray for everyone.

Anyone interested in donating can pay online at: www.opnuns-fh.org or send in a donation to: 29575 Middlebelt Road, Farmington Hills, Michigan 48334. To make a prayer request or to talk to staff call 248.626.8253.

 

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