Sacred Heart Monastery - Lisle

Illinois, USA

Nestled into the rolling hills west of Chicago you will find 29 Benedictine women living the monastic life under the rule of St. Benedict and a Prioress, Sister Judith Ann Heble, O.S.B.

Benedictinism was founded in Rome over 15 centuries ago by St. Benedict and his twin sister St. Scholastica. The first Benedictine Sisters came to America from Bavaria in 1852. Today there are approximately 60 independent monasteries of women in the USA, Bahamas, Canada and Mexico. Mother Mary Nepomucene Jaeger established this community in 1895 and by 1912 the community erected this beautiful monastery in the scenic surroundings of Lisle.

The chapel housed a small pipe organ until 2007 when a large building program was initiated to build Villa St. Benedict (a residence for seniors) and to update the chapel to make it more accessible to persons with disabilities. The community also used this opportunity to update the lighting, electrical, heating, and sound systems in the chapel to insure its central place in the lives of all those living on the Sacred Heart Campus. In order to provide space for wheelchair-bound residents, the pipe organ had to be removed from the balcony and there was no other space available for re-installation.

Given the above set of circumstances, the community sought out the best-sounding digital organ to be a replacement for the pipe sound they were familiar with. The Rodgers 927 was built in a custom cherry finish to match the new chairs, and the 12 channel audio system fills the worship space with quality sounds for worship and celebrations.