Carmelites may leave Schenectady cloister

An article in the May 1 issue of the Times Union, stating that the Discalced Carmelite sisters who live in the Monastery of St. Teresa of Jesus in Schenectady are leaving the Albany Diocese, was premature, according to Mother John of the Cross, OCD, the monastery's prioress.

Mother John told The Evangelist that the ten sisters in the cloistered monastery have been "in a discernment process" about moving for two years, but nothing definite has been decided.

Another community of Discalced Carmelites located in Pittsford, near Rochester, has just six sisters, so they have offered to merge with the Schenectady Carmelites.

Bishop Howard J. Hubbard has given his permission for the merger, said Mother John, but papers also have to be sent to Rome for approval by the Vatican. As a result, a move would not be made until October at the earliest.

The prioress said that if the sisters do leave the Albany Diocese, it will be "with a heavy heart. We have been in the Diocese since 1923."

The sisters range in age from 46 to 90; Mother John noted that two younger sisters are expected to join the order soon. "That would be promising," she said.

The Pittsford property encompasses 58 acres, including 25 acres of wetlands, but Mother John said some acreage farthest from the sisters' quarters may be sold to a housing developer.

The cloistered sisters have no contact with the outside world except for medical care, and their order has strict rules that outsiders are not allowed to look onto their grounds.

If the move goes through, the Schenectady monastery may be bought by Rev. Peter Young and turned into a rehabilitation center for alcoholics and drug addicts.

Father Young runs Peter Young Housing, Industries and Treatment, Inc. (PYHIT), which helps addicts and former prisoners get treatment and job training. He is applying for state funding to purchase the monastery.

(To read an article about the cloister that appeared in The Evangelist in 1998, go to www.evangelist.org and search for "walls of stone.")

(5/5/05)