Handmaids of the Precious Blood

Handmaids of the Precious Blood Cloistered contemplative nuns, dedicated to the sanctification of priests through Eucharistic Adoration. A lay person manages this page on behalf of the nuns.

Continue to pray for our Bishops across the United States!
09/06/2026

Continue to pray for our Bishops across the United States!

The unexpected happens and life entirely changes. History is punctuated by events that mark the end and beginning of two...
09/06/2026

The unexpected happens and life entirely changes. History is punctuated by events that mark the end and beginning of two eras in the same instant. 9/11 was such an event. It’s now the twenty-fifth anniversary of those attacks that changed America and the world. Life changed that day. Even for those yet unborn would grow up in a world drastically altered by that fateful morning.

Twenty-five years ago average men and women stepped up to become heroes they hadn’t expected to be only hours earlier. Thousands lost their lives or spouses, parents, children, siblings, friends, and coworkers. Life could never be the same. On that day the President swore that, “We will never forget.” This then is an opportunity to remember, to honor, and to be grateful.

It was a day of loss, but, as in all tragedies, we also gained hero’s; men and women who went against self-preservation to save strangers. Others, trained to protect, serve, and save headed into danger without knowing if it would be their last call to duty. Or, if they lived, worked tirelessly in recovery operations for months not knowing that this would destroy their health for years to come or even take their lives, but kept going in the hope of finding even just one person. People streamed in from all over the country to New York City to help work in the rubble, first for the very few survivors, then even for the remains and artifacts that could bring some small closure and consolation to grieving families. Other brave men and women went overseas to define our freedom and fight against terrorism.

One of the greatest philosophical problems is the existence of evil. There was much evil at work leading up to the attacks on September 11th. Why does an all-good, omnipotent and omnipresent God allow evil? Can such a god even exist in the face of evil? It is a perennial question with one answer, but an answer that each individual must hear in the depths of their soul. We must own the answer, not just understand it intellectually. Evil is sin, the misguided use of free will but God does not will it. He permits it. Yet God is Being Itself, the one from whom all being flows. Thus he is not stumped by evil. We are. God uses all things to bring about good. Since he loves us he gives us free will, without it we cannot love him back and because of this great love he always wills our good. We see this in action most clearly in a tragedy like 9/11. This horror draws us out of ourselves in an outpouring of love for our neighbor. Saint Paul puts it succinctly, where sin [evil] abounds grace abounds all the more. (Cf. Romans 5) It seems often a surprising balm poured out into our wounded humanity in the wake of destruction. Tragedy is not good of itself, but it draws the good out of us, at least potentially.

On September 11th, of all days, we remember and lift up in prayer those who lost their lives: by just being in a targeted building or a weaponized airplane, by choosing to be a first responder rushing to the aid of others. We pray for the survivors, and for the many casualties of the global war on terrorism that followed that horrendous day and who risked and gave their lives abroad or who returned wounded in mind or body. We value their lives and their sacrifices. We remember and pray for the families left behind.

We pray that the God of all consolation will wipe away every tear and that we may not harbor anger and hate in our hearts, but pray for true conversion from evil even as we forgive those who have trespassed against us in perpetuating those assaults of a quarter century ago.

Over the last several weeks we kept sighting a small grey short hair cat hunting around our various buildings. This was ...
08/25/2026

Over the last several weeks we kept sighting a small grey short hair cat hunting around our various buildings. This was welcome as it drove away lizards, chipmunks, and squirrels but also concerning as it looked very young. We left out water and food. The cat was not acting feral at all. It meowed at humans whenever it saw us and did not flee. It was car smart. Cautious but seeking us out now and again. Yet so very thin and malnourished.

After many days without contact we assumed the poor thing had moved on or worse, been a menu item of the coyote, bobcat etc. Then a Sister spotted it lying against a tree stump unmoving. Yet as soon as we approached on foot the cat did not shy away. It simply looked us in the face and meowed. Water and cat food were proffered in the open, right in the road, as it appeared this animal might be dying.

It did not warily approach the food. It weakly approached. Then tasted. Then dove in with relish. We watched. Then, before this entire meal was licked dry out of the dish, the cat moved closer to us, made eye contact then flopped down in the road rolling back and forth even adding some "making biscuits" in the air. That floored us. Allowing it to approach closer it rubbed the bottom of our habits, banged its head against our hands and purred allowing ear rubs and chin scratches. A hearty "thanks for the meal!" indeed. It was really starving. Literally for food and water but also for human touch. This was no stray. No feral. This, hard to believe for such a personable little cat, was a "dump". An unwanted kitten tossed out on a road. When examined later she was found to have burns on her paws, likely from hot asphalt.

We canvassed neighboring farms, posted photos but there were no claims on the cat. We placed her in a carrier and marveled that she slept quietly for hours in the car before arriving at the county shelter (Jefferson County Companion Animal Rescue and Education C.A.R.E.) and could have been held in arms easily. C.A.R.E. Staff were already waiting with a large cage for her with clean blankets, litter, food, water, kibble and emergency hydration nutrients. Within minutes of getting her intake exam and shots she was happily being cradled like a baby and enjoying everyone. She has a lot of recovery to go through but was already relaxing, sensing the day to day fight to survive was finally over. We are so grateful to the staff and volunteers at C.A.R.E. for giving this special kitten a chance to find a forever home. C.A.R.E. has lots of kittens, cats, puppies, and dogs needing foster homes and new forever homes. You can check their website and social media venues for available animals.

For almost eighty years the Handmaids of the Precious Blood have been praying for the Holy Father and have had encounter...
08/25/2026

For almost eighty years the Handmaids of the Precious Blood have been praying for the Holy Father and have had encounters and audiences with several including, Pius XII, Paul VI, John Paul II and Benedict XVI. But personal memories of interactions are not why we pray for our Holy Father: it’s because he is Peter. The Successor of Peter is a rallying point for the Catholic Church; a solid link back to the days of the Incarnation; the rock upon which Jesus Christ built his Church. It is a heavy burden the pope bears for us.

Only by grace could a man sustain this weight. As an Augustinian, Pope Leo is clearly saturated with his founder’s message of orthodoxy, grace and unity, reflected in his papal motto In Illo uno unum (meaning “In the One, we are one”). Almost everything we have read from Pope Leo since his election (a small sampling to be sure) has been well seasoned with quotes from Saint Augustine, and not just the familiar ones from The Confessions. Pope Leo XIV breaths Augustine.

We are all called to pray for our Holy Father and his intentions, in accordance with our vocations. By being faithful in our small prayers and sacrifices, we do great things through the Giver of all good gifts, the Father of lights. In the small part we are called to play, we can do a great deal of good by these small offerings of prayer for the pope. For most of our lives are made up of little deeds done for and out of love.

We hope you continue to join us in prayer for our Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, his bishops and priests, and for unity of the Church and reconciliation with our separated brethren. Let us pray we may bring our hearts in peace to rest in God and so be the light of the world, the salt of the earth and the leaven of life by cooperating with grace and becoming the saints God made us to be.

We poke a little fun at the way computers were supposed to make life easier and instead can seem to get in the way of li...
08/18/2026

We poke a little fun at the way computers were supposed to make life easier and instead can seem to get in the way of living life. They can, if used improperly, become an obstacle. Some people think of Mary the same way, an obstacle to Jesus, when her role is nothing like that at all. Our reflection this week looks a little deeper at this point and our trust in Mary as our Queen Mother to get to Jesus in the best way possible.

Going to Jesus Through Mary

It was Saint Louis de Montfort who articulated well the great importance of going to Jesus through Mary. Of course, recourse to the Mother of God, Queen of Heaven, was not new. And Saint Louis' total dedication to her was not unique, but he did pave a simple way for anyone to move closer to Jesus. Countless souls have gone to Jesus this way, some canonized, and many more whose names have been lost to history.
Unfortunately, this devotion gets misconstrued and is sometimes wrongly called "worship" or "idolatry" of Mary by those outside the Church. While we do love and revere her, we do not worship her. It is a delicate and important distinction. Worship and adoration is due to God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit alone. Yes, we do hold her higher than any other saint, but never equal to or higher than God, for she is always the humble handmaid of the Lord trying to lead her children to her Son.
Mary is prefigured in Bathsheba's appeal to King David on her son Solomon's behalf. A role that changes once Solomon ascends to his throne. He immediately brings her to a throne at his side, where she intercedes for others. Solomon is the King and Bathsheba is the Queen, not his wives or even his favorite wife, but his mother.
In the apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe we see this in a tender way. Saint Juan Diego is sent by Mary to collect the roses that miraculously grew at Tepeyac in the middle of winter. He is to take them to the Bishop as proof of the vision. Before heading off however with this gift for God's representative on earth, Mary, with her own hands, rearranges the roses. Mary does this for us. She arranges our offerings and petitions to present them to her Son in a way we cannot do on our own.
Mary knows our sighs, mournings, and weepings in this vale of tears. She is present to them as Mother. She is present to them as she herself lived through many in her own earthly life. She knows loss and pain and grief, she is our Mother of Sorrows, but she is also Full of Grace. Mary is completely in sync with God and she takes pity on us. She tries to raise us above our miseries and navel gazing to fix our eyes on the only solution to every problem: her Son, Jesus Christ, true God and true Man, who suffered, was crucified, and was buried. On the third day, he rose again from the dead. He ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From there he will come to judge the living and the dead. And this is Mary's function, her position as Queen, lets her lead us to him, with lamps lit to the heavenly wedding feast of the Lamb. Hail Holy Queen!

Summer and Fall are the seasons typically of more Come and See visits. Please keep in your prayers the women who are pre...
08/10/2026

Summer and Fall are the seasons typically of more Come and See visits. Please keep in your prayers the women who are preparing to visit as our guests to help discern if they are called to the religious life and to our life as Handmaids of the Precious Blood.

In 1950, Pope Pius XII declared as a dogma of the Catholic Church that the Blessed Virgin Mary was assumed body and soul...
08/10/2026

In 1950, Pope Pius XII declared as a dogma of the Catholic Church that the Blessed Virgin Mary was assumed body and soul into heaven. It is important to keep in mind that when a dogma is declared it is not just the current Holy Father's opinion; he is speaking as the successor of Saint Peter, exercising the power of binding and losing. Nor is he just making up something new. Dogmas are already held by the Church, but only defined when such a belief is called into serious question, or the Holy Father is petitioned for the good of the faithful to do so.

What does this mean for us poor banished children of Eve though? Everything! By being baptized we become children of the Church, children of Mary, who is the image of the Church in every way. In our Mother we can see all the promises of Jesus fulfilled as she is the perfect disciple. She is our hope. For in her we can see our own destiny: Life everlasting with God; The resurrection of the body.

Saint Paul calls the Holy Spirit the deposit of what is promised. Mary is the bride of the Spirit as through her virginal union the Incarnation was possible. And where the Spirit is so is his bride, where Mary is so there is her Spouse, the Holy Spirit. So in Mary is our life, our sweetness, and our hope.

It was Eve who closed paradise to her children, ironically becoming the mother of the living. But it was Mary who opened the gates of heaven again through her assent to the divine will of God, her freely given assent. (not ascent) She opened the door and as a good mother, she has gone ahead of her children. All the better to aid and exhort them, to bring them to the glory of life everlasting. For from heaven she intercedes for us at the throne of the Godhead. Sorrowing for us when we choose poorly. Rejoicing when we choose rightly. She is our Mother and like any good mother she is doing only as well as her least well child and wants all of her children safely at home with her. With her son, Jesus.

Our Lady is our hope and she is capable of obtaining the grace of conversion we need to attain to heavenly life with her, in God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

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Cor Jesu Monastery/596 Callaway Ridge
New Market, TN
37820

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