The Sisters of Greyfriars Convent: Life as a Nun in Moray
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TUCKED away on Elgin's Abbey Street is Greyfriars Convent, home to the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia.
Four Sisters – Sr. Imelda Ann DuPuis, Sr. Mary Gianna Klein, Sr. Angela Marie Russell and Sr. Bernadette Marie Donze – have served at the convent for a combined 23 years and have breathed new life into the religious community of Elgin.
The Dominican Sisters, whose motherhouse is in Nashville, Tennessee, have been in Elgin for varying durations and are currently celebrating their 10th year living in Scotland.
Local Superior, Sr. Mary Gianna Klein, who has been in Moray for six years, said: “It feels like I’ve been here a while because it feels like home.
"I remember it took a while to adjust to a new culture, but what a blessing we find it to be here in Elgin and to have established so many relationships."
The convent itself dates back to 1479, when it was built for monks from the Order of Friars Minor for charitable works in the Elgin area.
After the Reformation in the early to mid 1500s, the building mostly fell ruin until 1898, where the third Marquis of Bute, John Crichton-Stuart rebuilt it, and allowed the Sisters of Mercy to use it as convent.
In 1944, his heir donated the convent to the sisters with the provision that, if they should leave, the property would pass into the hands of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Aberdeen.
The convent was vacated in 2010 and lay empty until the Dominican Sisters moved in in 2013.
The Sisters are supported by the Diocese of Aberdeen as well as the Menking Family of Kilcoy Castle. As a deeply evangelistic family, they donate to the Diocese to ensure that the sisters are supported and are able to carry out worship and community work.
All of the sisters of the Dominican Sisters of St Cecilia undergo training to become a teacher. Sr. Mary Gianna said: “Each community has a certain charism, our charism is teaching. All of us go to school to be trained as teachers, unless you were already trained as a teacher.”
This training allows the sisters to provide religious instruction to children – including from neighbouring St Sylvester's – both during and outside of school. There are no Catholic secondary schools in Moray, but teenagers in the local area can join the youth group run by the Sisters to remain attached to their religion. Some children will receive teachings at the convent until they leave to university.
“If they start with us at age of three and then go onto age 18, that’s a really long time to journey with people," Sister Mary Gianna added. "After 18, many still stay involved because they love it. You get to know the families really well.”
Sister Mary Gianna would love to see religious life grow in Scotland.
“Maybe one day the Lord will call a young woman from Scotland or even from our youth group to enter our community,” she said.
"We have had someone from the Newcastle area, that’s the closest we’ve gotten to someone from here.”
The journey to becoming a sister is one of patience and self-acceptance.
It starts off with one year of postulancy and then two years of novitiate before you make your first vows. Those vows may be renewed after three years for a further two years. Sisters make final vows after a total of seven years in the convent.
Each sister at Greyfriars Convent had a unique journey to becoming a fully-fledged sister.
“I have been living here for 10 years now,” said Sr. Imelda Ann DuPuis. “When I was first coming to Scotland I was told that it is one of the most secular countries in the world.
“Perhaps this is true, but at the same time I have met many people who want to have a relationship with God.
“Ministering in Scotland these past 10 years, I have been able to accompany people of all ages as they get to know Jesus Christ and develop a relationship with God.”
Sr. Bernadette Marie Donze has been in Elgin for a year and she never thought she would end up serving God so far from home.
“When I entered our community in Nashville 14 years ago, I never dreamed that I would be asked to serve across the ocean!” she said. “God’s plans are not our own but they are better than we can ever imagine.
“I have only been in Elgin for a year, but I feel very much at home with the people we are privileged to serve daily.”
Sr. Angela Marie Russell added: "When I felt God inviting me to give myself to him in religious life, I discovered that God wanted to fulfil all the desires of my heart more than I ever could if I attempted to build my own life.
"Since he had a dream for my life, he placed all those desires within me because he wanted to fulfil them. Following God has been a joy in discovering who I am and what adventures God always has in store."
The Dominican Sisters express their appreciation for the warm welcome they have received whilst in Elgin.
Sr. Mary Gianna said: “We want to express our gratitude for the community and for the way we have been received.
“There is a rich heritage of faith in these lands so we are building upon a foundation that has already been laid.”
