Sisters of Bethany

What do you do all day?
On a normal timetable (there are variations), the day starts (for the Sisters not the visitors!) at 6.00 am with an hour’s meditation in chapel.

At 7.00 am is Mattins, the first Office of the day.

This is followed by Mass at 7:45 am, followed by Breakfast at about 8:15 am.

At 9:15 am we have Terce, after which is the Sisters’ Conference where news, events, comings and goings etc, are sorted out. Then we work.

What work we do depends on what each Sister has been assigned to do (it changes periodically). It may be housekeeping, laundry, computer work, organisation, kitchen assistance, shopping, parish work, prison visiting, hospital visiting, spiritual direction, Sunday School, giving Quiet Days, talks to groups/organizations, listening to visitors etc.

At 10:30 am we stop for a coffee break which is taken in silence, if we’re in the House, then back to work, the Noviciate has Instruction.

At 12 noon we have Midday office and the Litany (intercessions), followed by dinner and an informal cup of tea.

Then we have some free-time for a walk, spiritual reading, or errands before work begins formally for the Sisters at 2.00 pm.

At 4.00 pm we stop for tea and recreation, on Saturdays we are often joined by visitors.

At 5.00 pm we have Vespers followed by Meditation and some free-time before supper at 6:30 pm. After supper there is some more free-time to do what needs doing e.g. laying up tables, washing-up, re-setting books, checking readings etc. Some use this time for social activity, correspondence, craft etc.

At 7.45pm we have fifteen minutes silent Night Prayer in Chapel followed immediately by Compline and the Great Silence, which is not broken until after breakfast the following day, unless absolutely necessary.

In total, each Sister has two hours of personal prayer and spiritual reading a day.

We attend conferences, connected with our life and work, which are held in various places (e.g. Norwich, Whitby). We are also involved in chaplaincy duty and children’s work-shops in the Cathedral, and other activities within the local community.

Outside work depends on what a Sister feels called to do and the possibilities available.

How many sisters are there in this community?
There are eleven Sisters in the Order, but eight in the convent at the moment. A Novice was recently Professed in Life Vows.

What’s the age range?
Thirty eight to ninety-eight.
(Although Sisters may join from aged 21)

Do you wear habits and veils?
Yes, we wear both. The habit is simple and blue.

The veils are grey for novices and black for professed Sisters. Postulants wear their own clothes with a small wooden cross. We don’t have wimples. Please see the photo.

Do you get holidays?
Yes. We get four weeks ‘Rest’ a year that can be spent in the convent or elsewhere (with family, friends, associates, or another religious community etc).

Each Sister has a day off each month and a half-day a week, circumstances permitting. Also we don’t do any un-necessary work on Sundays.

Do you ever go out?
Yes. We are not an enclosed community, and even enclosed communities have large grounds and are not locked in!

We try to live the mixed life of prayer and service. So, we do undertake unpaid work in the local community - such as prison visiting, chaplaincy duties etc and also go out visiting, for walks, conferences, necessary shopping, Rest, etc.

Do you get paid?
No, not individually. The Religious Life isn’t something you go into for financial reward. Any work we do is unpaid and voluntary although Sisters may receiving travelling expenses for talks etc. Any income belongs to the community, not to an individual.

We live simply, but have what we need and share what we have (needs are different from wants).

Do you watch television?
Yes. The Sisters do have a community television where we can quietly watch the news or a video in our free time or days off.

However, as we live in a house which is used for Quiet Days and Retreats there are no televisions for the use of visitors.

We keep up with current affairs by newspapers and some sisters have radios.

What’s the convent like?
It’s a large Victorian house with an extension and a small garden. Inside there are carpets, showers, hot water, central heating, comfortable chairs and good food.

There are no iron bars, bare stone floors, arches, cloisters, three legged wooden stools, gruel or buckets!

What’s the area like?
The convent itself is in a conservation area in a quiet street. However, within walking distance there is the sea, parks, gardens, two Cathedrals (Portsmouth is a double diocese), a castle, shopping precincts, churches, museums (military and otherwise) and the interesting and varied architecture of Southsea and Portsmouth. With, of course, HMS Victory and dockyard of the Royal Navy, along with various international and local ferries, and a hovercraft over to the Isle of Wight.

How many Offices do you have?
On a normal timetable we recite five Offices and have a Mass service (Holy Communion) daily.
The Offices are: Mattins, Terce, Midday, Vespers, Compline.
Visitors are welcome to join us .

What book is used for the Offices?
We use our own version which changes according to the season, with traditional chant/music, and various hymns. It also changes for Saints days, festivals and other events.

The book we use for Mass is the same as Portsmouth Anglican Cathedral, which also changes with the season, but readings are from various sources.

Do you sing?
Each Office has a sung hymn.
Parts of Vespers are sung, or all of it may be sung depending on the day i.e. weekend, ordinary, memorial, feast, or solemnity.
Parts of Compline are also sung.
On Sundays and special festivals there is also a sung Mass, with the organ.

Do you take vows for ever?
Yes. After a Noviciate (training period) which can last from two to five years, a Novice Sister can request the Chapter to elect her for Life Profession. If the Chapter agrees, she can take Life Vows in Poverty, Chastity and Obedience within the Society of the Sisters of Bethany, and is then a full member of the Community for the rest of her life.

Unlike most Communities there is no ‘junior stage’ as such (i.e. vows promised for a number of years and renewed if wanted). A Novice goes straight from the Noviciate, which is actually closely integrated with the lives of the fully Professed, into Life Profession. Although, a new fully Professed Sister, does have extra time for study and continuing training for the first three years.

Do you take a vow of silence?
No. The vows are Poverty, Chastity and Obedience.

In obedience to the Rule, we keep silence in certain places in the convent and during certain times, unless talking is necessary (in charity, hospitality, courtesy or questions about a task). We keep silence to aid prayerful work and a peaceful environment. We talk in the times and places designated, and try to avoid unnecessary chatter and noise.

Do you celebrate Christmas?
Yes, and Easter and other Christian festivals. Some are more general and others are specific to our community.

At Christmas we put up decorations and have Christmas dinner, cards, carols and there are some gifts that are given to the community from Associates and friends, for the use of us all. We avoid the commercialism of Christmas and make more of its real meaning as the birth of the Saviour of the world.

Yet, the biggest celebration in Christian community life, is that of Easter.

What’s special \ different about the Sisters of Bethany?
Each community has its own way of living the religious life within the Anglican communion.

We pray every day for Christian Unity (not uniformity) and are committed to developing ecumenical relationships with other Christian Churches locally and internationally, with some interfaith dialogue.

We were founded to provide Retreats for women, the first of it’s kind, in 1866. By the example of Martha and Mary, (of the Biblical house of Bethany) we try to maintain a balance of work and prayer, and offer hospitality as they did. Hospitality is an important part of our work and duty, to those who stay with us within the convent, and to our visitors. The Retreat aspect continues with the provision of quiet days, spiritual direction, prayer support, accommodation (limited space), a ‘listening ear’ or an informal chat, as well as providing a quiet space for small ‘day groups’ to meet.

We strive to maintain the ethos of the truly mixed life of prayer and work in equal measure, as one flows from the other and gains strength from the other.

There is no ‘typical’ Sister of Bethany. We come from very varied backgrounds, joined at different ages, with very different experiences of life and Church before finding our calling here. There isn’t a ‘mould’ that people fit into, they bring their skills and their gifts (if any). Such talent may find a use within community life, or else laid aside, but (as often happens) new skills or talents can be discovered. We are individuals, but also a close family of Sisters within the wider family of other Religious, Church, Christianity and humanity.

Visitors often comment on the peaceful prayerful atmosphere they sense in the house. We are a house of prayer, joy and peace under the guidance of God, striving to maintain harmony and share the peace of the Lord, within ourselves, within the community, and with everyone.

There are more FAQ’s in the ‘Vocations’ section.

Other Questions
These are the answers to some questions you may have. If you have any other questions that we have not answered here, please contact us through e-mail, letter or telephone, and we will do our best to answer it, and/or add it to the web-site.