Decades of quiet prayer in East Buffalo, out of public view, have come to an end with the decision by the Dominican Nuns of the Perpetual Rosary to relocate to SS. Peter and Paul Retreat Center in Newark, Ohio, in the Diocese of Columbus.

"We have a long and happy history of ministry in the Diocese of Buffalo," said Mother Mary Dominic, OP, prioress of the community. "However, for several years now our community has been considering the possibility of relocation from the city to an environment where we might live out the fullness of our Dominican contemplative life. The community began to feel called by the Holy Spirit to move to a place in the United States lacking a contemplative monastery of nuns. We desired to follow Pope Francis's reminder of the importance of the cloistered life as a work of evangelization among the People of God."

Fourteen sisters lived in the Buffalo complex, a large stone facility built in stages during the 1920s and completed in 1929. It sits on about nine acres of land in a residential neighborhood. The Dominican Convent at 335 Doat Street is under contract for sale to the Buffalo Academy of Science Charter School, which plans to open a school at the location.

As part of the sale of their monastery in Buffalo, the Dominican Nuns of the Perpetual Rosary arranged for the transfer of the remains of 69 sisters who were buried in a cemetery on their property, with some interments dating back to the early 1900s.

The remains have been reinterred in a special section of Mount Calvary Cemetery in Cheektowaga designated as Our Lady of the Rosary; Mount Calvary has a long history of serving the Dominican community.
Earlier this year, a petition to transfer the remains was submitted to New York State Supreme Court for the County of Erie. Hon. Frank A. Sedita, III approved the petition in July. The sisters made every effort to inform family members of the late sisters about the transfers. The Erie County Clerk's office and the Erie County Historian were also informed of the transfer of the remains.

The formal blessing and dedication of the sisters' new resting place will take place later this fall.
"While this has been a difficult decision given our attachment to the Diocese of Buffalo and the people of Buffalo, we have become confident that the Holy Spirit is leading us to Ohio," Mother Mary Dominic said.

"We will always be so grateful to the Dominican Sisters for sharing their gift of contemplative life and deep spirituality with us here in Buffalo and Western New York," said Bishop Edward B. Scharfenberger, apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Buffalo. "They embody God's universal call to seek holiness, and to define those sacred spaces within our hearts and minds where we can listen to him and where he can reveal himself in the quiet of our reflection. We wish these devoted and holy women of St. Dominic only good things in their new home, and with the assurance that they will remain in our prayers as we ask them to remember the good people of Buffalo always in their own prayers.
Mother Mary Dominic said the retreat center in Newark will be a temporary home for the sisters who hope to build a monastery in the future.

"Please know that as we relocate to Ohio, the good people of Buffalo and Western New York will always be in our hearts and prayers. Words cannot express the gratitude we feel for their tremendous support and generosity over the years," Mother Mary Dominic said.

In silence, stillness and prayer, the sisters continue to pray for the repose of the souls of these faithful servants of God.
At the invitation of Most Rev. Charles Colton, Bishop of Buffalo at the time, eight nuns came to the diocese on May 24, 1905, from a monastery in Union City, N.J. They were an offshoot of the Dominican Sisters of the perpetual Rosary in Hoboken. The sisters moved into the property of the George Urban Estate on Doat St. and celebrated their centenary in 2005.

In mid-June, the sisters took up temporary accommodation with the Sisters of St. Francis of Penance & Christian Charity in Stella Niagara. "We are very grateful for their generous hospitality," Mother Mary Dominic said. "The Stella Franciscans were so accommodating and made us feel very much at home."
"It is a very special occasion on this, the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, that we welcome the Dominican Nuns of the Perpetual Rosary to our diocese," Bishop Robert J. Brennan, bishop of Columbus said. "The root of Dominican spirituality deeply runs through our diocese, dating back to 1808, when the very first Mass was offered in Ohio by a Dominican missionary in Somerset, Ohio. A house of Dominican nuns is a true blessing for any diocese," Bishop Brennan said. "I am sure the clergy and faithful of the diocese will provide a warm and generous reception, and all will be pleased to contribute to the well-being and support of their community."

The sisters had hoped to arrange a Mass of Thanksgiving and reception for friends and benefactors, but Mother Mary Dominic said because of the pandemic, that simply was not possible.

The charism of the Dominican Nuns of the Perpetual Rosary is to seek God according to the norms of the purely contemplative life. They maintain their withdrawal from the world by enclosure and silence, work, penance, and intercessory prayer for the needs of the people and the salvation of the world. Their hidden life shows that in Christ alone is their true happiness, mysteriously fruitful for the people of God.

As part of the sale of their monastery in Buffalo, the Dominican Nuns of the Perpetual Rosary arranged for the transfer of the remains of 69 sisters who were buried in a cemetery on their property, with some interments dating back to the early 1900s.

The remains have been reinterred in a special section of Mount Calvary Cemetery in Cheektowaga designated as Our Lady of the Rosary; Mount Calvary has a long history of serving the Dominican community.
Earlier this year, a petition to transfer the remains was submitted to New York State Supreme Court for the County of Erie. Hon. Frank A. Sedita, III approved the petition in July. The sisters made every effort to inform family members of the late sisters about the transfers. The Erie County Clerk's office and the Erie County Historian were also informed of the transfer of the remains.

The formal blessing and dedication of the sisters' new resting place will take place later this fall.
In silence, stillness and prayer, the sisters continue to pray for the repose of the souls of these faithful servants of God.