Dominican Nuns of Mount Thabor welcome all prayer requests
Robert Delaney of The Michigan Catholic
Published June 23, 2006
Detroit – Sr. Mary Martin, OP, says she believes "many young women are attracted to the contemplative life" of a cloistered nun.
Not that "many" would ever make such a commitment, but she expressed confidence about the future of the Dominican Nuns of Mount Thabor, a cloistered monastery in Ortonville.
"We have a lot of inquiries, and we have three definite candidates. I think we're doing well," says Sr. Mary Martin, subprioress of the monastery.
A small community of seven professed nuns, the Mount Thabor monastery was founded in 1973 by sisters who came to Michigan from the Blue Chapel Monastery in Union City, N.J.
Two geodesic domes – a large one and a smaller one – were built on their 20-acre property. "We were very, very poor, and they were so inexpensive," Sr. Mary Martin recalls.
Over the years, the sisters have built onto those original structures, and their current project is a chapel for the public, so visitors can come for Mass or the Divine Office. Completion is expected this fall.
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Sr. Mary Agnes, OP, sews at the Mount Thabor Monastery in Ortonville. | The sisters support themselves by making ladies' pocketbooks, habits for Dominican friars and scapulars for Third-Order laity, and by doing alterations of clothing. They also take on computer work.
The nuns welcome prayer requests from the public. "We respond to every request, and they're coming in constantly," Sr. Mary Martin says.
For more information about the Dominican Nuns of Mount Thabor, call (248) 627-4355, or go to their Internet site, www.op.org/mtthabor.
 The Dominican nuns of the Mount Thabor Monastery are (seated, from left) Srs. Mary Martin, Anne Mary and Maria Maez, and (standing, from left) Srs. Mary Catherine, Mary Dominic, Marianna and Mary Agnes. |
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