Mother Hilaria from the Convent of the Holy New Martyr Grand Duchess Elizabeth Convnet of Minsk, Belarus, visited our monastery more than a week ago.  

Mother Hilaria in her talk described how the convent lives and functions.  It is amazing the social work that they carry on, for the poor, the sick, prisoners, and all kinds of people who cannot live without support.  In this they try to emulate their patron saint, the Venerable Martyr Grand Duchess Elizabeth. 

The convent has both traditional nuns with obediences and daily cycle of services.  They pray for people all over the world.  They also have lay sisters who take care of the needy in several asylums.  Their workshops are known for their handiwork and its high quality.  There are over one hundred nuns and about the same number of lay sisters. 

After Mother Hilaria’s very informative talk, there was a question and answer time with refreshments served.