Mother of God Monastery
110  28th Ave. SE ~  Watertown,  SD  57201
Phone: 605-882-6600  Fax: 605-882-6658
monastery@dailypost.com

HISTORY

The Mother of God Monastery community has a rich heritage going way back to the beginnings of the Benedictine order.  In 6th century Italy, St. Benedict of Nursia wrote his Rule about community living and founded several monasteries of men and women.

In 1864, Mother Gertrude Leupi established a Benedictine monastery for women in Switzerland named Maria Richenbach.  Ten years later, five of these Sisters moved to Maryville, Missouri, to minister to German immigrants in the "new country."  Soon after, Bishop Martin Marty, first bishop of Dakota Territory, invited some of them to come to Dakota and help educate the Native Americans.  In 1874, these Sisters settled at Zell, SD, where they built their first monastery on a claim of land, as did many pioneer families.  Their next move was to Yankton, SD, in the 1880's to begin a new foundation which they named Sacred Heart Monastery. 

The Sisters of Sacred Heart Monastery of Yankton planted new roots of Benedictine life when, in 1961, they founded a new community in Pierre, SD, Mother of God Monastery.  Here the Sisters moved into a wing built onto Saint Mary's Hospital, which the Yankton Sisters had operated since 1899.

In 1967, the Sisters moved again, this time to Watertown, SD, where they built their permanent monastery on Carpenter Hill, two miles south of town. 

Originally, the Sisters served primarily in elementary and secondary Catholic schools in North and South Dakota, as well as in several hospitals.  Presently, they work mostly in parish ministries, pastoral care at hospitals and care facilities and in a variety of other ministries, depending on the identified need and the individual skills of the Sisters.  A few of them still work in elementary schools and health care facilities.

An important aspect of the Benedictine life is praying in common the Liturgy of the Hours, which is the official prayer of the Church.  Private prayer, spiritual reading (lectio) and the celebration of the Eucharist are also important elements of the Sister's daily schedule.

The main focus for Benedictines is to nurture a balanced community life of prayer and service, "praising God with one heart and one voice."