The evening times., 1899-08-10
A CONVENT 70 Be BUILT.
a New Home for the Sisters of the
Perpetual Alteration.
A Report That Mrs. Thomas F. Ryan.
of New York, Has Purchased From
Square Feet on Land on Which
the Proposed Structure LIS to Stand.

Members of the Tabernacle Society, OF
Baltimore, are much interested in the news
that Mrs. Thomas F. Ryan, of New York,
has purchased from St. Paul's parish,
thi scity, 10000 feet of ground on which
will be erected convent and chapel for
the Sisters of the Perpetual Alteration. AS
soon as the plans for the building arrive
from Rome work on it will be begun.
Mrs. Ryan is the daughter of the late
John s. Barry and niece of the late Rob-
ert Casey Barry, Of Baltimore. She lived
there previous to her marriage in that city.
Her husband, Mr.. Thomas F. Ryan, is the
well-known New York capitalist, who is
also largely interested in Southern rail-
roads. Mrs. Ryan will not only contribute
the amount necessary for the convent
building in Washington, but will endow
the convent, SO that its support will not be
a burden upon the Sisters in charge.
The Sisters who are TO form the nucleus
in this country of the order of the Sisters
of the Perpetual Alteration of the Blessed
Sacrament will come from Brussels.
Three choir and two lay Sisters will be
sent to take charge of the house, which
will be the mother Of the house of the
order. The coming of the Sisters will in
bernacle Society, recently incorporated un-
der the title Association of the Perpetual
Alteration and Work of Poor Churches"
The society will have its work rooms in
the convent, but the management of the
work will be intrusted to ladies of the
world, as al present The Sisters will,
however, assist in the active direction OF
these associations.
Besides their duties in connection with
~trr1 81 ,1at 1.a,.
prepare children for their first communion.
They do not nurse the sick, but they pre-
pare the dying TO receive the last rites Of
the church. Their novitiate lasts for two
years, at the close of which they make
perpetual VOWS Of poverty, chastity. and
obedience. Prayer reading and pious rec
Teation succeed each other in the course
of the day. Some of the Sisters are al
lowed TO go out and TO receive visitors, as
the affairs of the convent demand it, but
nothing is allowed to prevent any disturb
ance of the inner religious life of the
convent. Nights of alteration before the
Blessed Sacrament are arranged accord
ing to circumstances in different houses.
The habit OF the Sisters varies slightly
from that worn by other religious orders,
In that the veil is fashioned like that worn
by widows. Houses of the order have been
established at Brussels, Watermael. Client,
and Liege, in Belgium; at Rotterdam. at
London. and one at Rome, which is the
centre OF the arch association.
The order was founded by Anna de
Meeus, the daughter of noble family in
Belgium. During her school days in the
Convent of the Sacred Heart, in Paris, her
attention was called to the poverty of some
of the country churches, and the resolu-
tion was made of forming an association
among her friends in her own land for the
purpose of furnishing these village
churches with the vestments necessary for
the proper conduct of the service The
resolution was forgotten until it was viv-
| idly recalled by the story Of a poor cure OF
| the poverty of his church and altar.
After various discouragements ten per-
sons became sufficiently interested in the
| undertaking to form themselves into an
| association, which should have for its OBJ
| ject the making OF yestments for churches
| which were unable because of their power
| ty TO secure them otherwise. The first
meeting was held al the Convent of the
Sisters of Notre Dame and the first dona-
tion made in 1S4S.
In Noyemmer of the next year the work
was affiliated TO the Archfraternity of the
Nocturnal Alteration in Rome, and the
name of The Association of Perpetual
Alteration Of the Blessed Sacrament and
of Work of Poor Churches" was taken.
The growth of the societies caused Mile.
| De Meeus to perceive the necessity of a
religious institute TO give permanence to
the work already begun. In 1853 the re-
| ligious order was founded. the different
communities of the religious serving as
| centres for the supervision of the work
of the societies of the laity.
One of the rules Of the Association of
| Perpetual Alteration is that only one So
ciety shall be established in each diocese.
AN exception was made in the case of the
Diocese of Maryland, because of the large
membership of the two societies in Wash
ington and Baltimore. Two Independent
| societies were then organized. The Per-
petual Alteration Society of Baltimore,
known as The Tabernacle Society" was
affiliated with the mother society in Rome