Waking up in the middle of the night in a convent in a tiny village in Cameroon, I walked down a dark hallway with hands stretched out to feel for any invisible hard edges. I made it to the chapel door, entered, and knelt in a pew seeing nothing except a flickering sanctuary candle.
My eyes adjusted and images of the chapel furnishings began to appear. Next, to my amazement, human figures on the floor became faintly visible! As I looked closer, I perceived three MOJ Sisters (MOJs) lying prostrate face down in front of the tabernacle deep in prayer!
This experience revealed to me how serious the MOJs are about prayer, an attitude they bring into the religious education of the Masters.
Each morning, the MOJs and students rise at 5:00am and go to chapel to pray Lauds followed by Holy Mass. After classes, all gather again at 5:00pm to pray Vespers followed by the Holy Rosary.
“Lauds” and “Vespers”, part of the Liturgy of the Hours, involve reciting select Psalms and other readings. “Our students pray this way because they must know the Word and commune with the true Word of God, Jesus Christ,” says Rev. Leo Okonkwo about the importance of Scripture based prayer.
Just showing up for prayer is not enough, however. The MOJs have trained the students in chanting the Psalms to enhance the celebration and solemnity of their gathering. “To observe 10 year olds lead the Breviary and chant the psalms is awesome,” Rev. Leo says. “It makes me want to weep, but I control myself.”
The students themselves appreciate their structured yet spirit filled prayers. “When we gather to pray, we sing the chants in a very beautiful way and it makes me imagine being in heaven,” says SS-1 student Chukwuemeka Joy.
As they pray, the Masters grow spiritually as a compliment to their academic and skills learning. Thus, they are receiving the holistic education required to become the Servant Leaders (Mt. 20:26) of the future.