For several years now, the Corpus Christi service of the parish community in Coesfeld has been held in the garden of Kloster Annenthal.
This year, we used the occasion to celebrate our 175th anniversary.
In bright sunshine, people of all ages came to our garden, which was prepared by sisters and volunteers from the parish with a covered altar and benches. With Fr Jörg Hagemann and Fr Thaddäus, many altar servers and some banner bearers solemnly entered.
In his welcome address, Fr Hagemann paid tribute to the presence of the sisters in Coesfeld and congratulated us on our 175th birthday.
During the service, the sisters served as lectors and communion distributors. Sr M. Paula Wessel, the provincial superior, gave a vivid account of our history in the sermon: the foundation in Coesfeld in 1850 by Elisabeth Kühling and Hilligonde Wolbring, the rapid growth and expansion of the community, the expulsion due to the Kulturkampf, which in retrospect turned out to be a blessing due to the worldwide expansion of the congregation, the return of the sisters to the Lower Rhine and to Coesfeld in 1950, as well as the international expansion to the present day. Sr M. Paula concluded with a word that the two founders could say to us today, based on a quote from Sr M. Sujita in her address at the Great Procession with the Coesfeld Cross:
“Stay rooted in the heart of God, set your feet in the reality of the world, and trust in the power of prayer in front of the Coesfeld Cross. Share your bread and so you can be sure: God is with us, even in disasters—great and small.”
The collection was for the missionary tasks of our sisters worldwide.
At the end of the service, the priest presented the sisters with a three-part cake in the shape of a 1, 7 and 5.
The parish community was invited to stay and share grilled sausages, drinks, and an ice cream food truck.
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