Mymensingh: cloistered nuns pray 24 hours a day for the end of the pandemic

The Poor Clares are asking God to provide consolation to the sick, doctors, nurses, volunteers and all those fighting the virus. They also offer fasts and sacrifices. The isolation in which people find themselves is similar to the Sisters’ normal life of seclusion. People of different religions pray in unison for the end of the epidemic.

Mymensingh (AsiaNews) – When entering the monastery, some 120 km north of Dhaka, one is immersed in silence, except for some sweet and sad chanting coming from the chapel.

The resident Sisters are engaged in a continuous prayer, 24 hours a day, for the world to overcome the COVID-19 pandemic, this according to Mother Mary Rose, Superior of the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration of the Eucharist.

“We pray with tears; we raise our hands to Heaven,” she explained. “We have seen many people in Italy, Spain, France, the United States and many other countries struggling with the coronavirus. Through prayer, we beg Jesus Christ to save the world from this deadly disease.”

In Bangladesh, the Poor Clares have two monasteries, one in Mymensingh, and one in Dinajpur in the north, with 34 sisters. When Pope Francis visited the country in 2017, they donated 50,000 hosts for the Mass celebrated by the pontiff.

Mother Mary Rose stresses that they pray for all those infected with the virus, as well as the doctors, nurses, volunteers and all those who serve patients. "We also pray for scientists,” she said, “so that they can soon find a vaccine for COVID-19.”

In addition to prayers, the nuns offer fasting and sacrifices and believe that the epidemic crisis can be solved soon. “God is testing us,” believes Mother Mary Rose. “People have gone far from God, doing lots of sins. Now we need to convert.”

On a positive note, “People of different faiths are praying to the Creator and staying at home just like we do every day. I believe that God will listen to our combined prayers and bring us consolation soon.”

Mother Mary Rose noted that religious vocations are down. In the past two years, only one candidate entered the monastery. The Diocese of Mymensingh has about 80,000 members, mostly ethnic Garo.