the source and summit of the day. Liturgical prayer is nourished by personal prayer. Lectio Divina, the prayerful and meditative reading of scripture, opens the sisters to the Word of God and allows it to act in their lives. Considerable time each day is allocated to Lectio Divina and other forms of personal prayer. Structures Government The historical development of the Bernardine Order resulted in it having a central government, based at the mother house at the Monastery of Notre Dame de La Plaine, St André-lez-Lille. The prioress general is responsible for the overall administration of the order, aided by a general council of four other sisters, the secretary general and the bursar general. Together they look at important issues arising in the order. Each community has a local prioress who is responsible for the day-to-day running of her own community; she is assisted by a local council. A general chapter of the order takes place every six years at which the prioress general and her council are elected. The chapter consists of the prioresses of all communities, the general council, the secretary general and the bursar general and elected delegates of the monasteries. The chapter also debates important issues. It holds the supreme authority of the order; in between chapters, this authority is delegated to the prioress general and her council. The monasteries are not autonomous, and sometimes sisters move between communities according to need. Formation Formation of new candidates takes place in their own country. After a period of enquiring, a candidate can be admitted as a postulant. The postulancy lasts between six months and two years. She then becomes a novice, for a further eighteen months to two years. During these stages, the person is initiated into the life and traditions of the order and with the help of the novice mistress, seeks to discern if this is what God is calling her to. The novice may then make a commitment as a vowed sister (profession) for a period of time between three and nine years. She is known as a junior professed. At the end of the period of temporary profession, the junior professed then makes solemn profession, committing herself to follow God in the Bernardine Cistercian way of life until death. Current monasteries There are currently eight Bernardine monasteries: Monastery of Notre-Dame-de-la-Plaine (Mother House) Saint-André-lez-Lille, France Monastery of Notre-Dame-des-Petites-Roches, Saint-Bernard-du-Touvet, Isère, France Monastery of Stella