Sister Sue-Gabriel, Foundation Sister, known in my professional life as Revd. Dr Susan Gabriel Talbot, after a portfolio career spanning the different but related disciplines of teaching, BBC radio 4 research and presentation for Woman’s Hour and the Religious Department as well as research at Manchester Victoria University, I’m now hoping for a new phase of different creative work. This ranges from a non-fiction work on some unusual dream-visionary experiences that point towards the possibility of the human soul, “The Rainbow Bridge,’’ available on Amazon at the end of September, to children’s stories, the characters of which are waiting in the wings for their change of a life.
I became involved in this endeavour of a new form of the Religious Life, drawn to the challenge of a call to ‘an uncommon attention to the things of God’ and a way to follow a form of the Religious Life within ordinary, everyday realities….to embody in our day by day experience, somehow, no matter what we face, something of the Christmas promise of Emmanuel, God with us…no matter our circumstances….
Claire-Aimée Sherman: A former secondary school teacher and business owner, I am married to David and we have two adult children and four grandchildren.
I was drawn to the Sisterhood at a time of transition in my life as I was bringing my teaching career to an end and launching into new ventures, including being licensed as a Lay Reader in the Church of England.
From a very young age I have had a sense of desiring to know God more and have actively pursued ways of deepening my relationship with him. I found out about the Sisterhood via a flier that Sue-Gabriel gave my husband at the end of a retreat in 2004. Responding to a flier is something I would never normally do, but I felt very drawn to the Sisterhood and the Rule of Life it offers. Exploring a call to take vows was an obvious and very welcome ‘next step’.
I took first vows in 2006 and made a long-term commitment in 2016. Being a Gabriel Sister is part of my DNA and continues to have a profound impact on every aspect of my life.
Maureen-Eunyce Brathwaite: Born in London to Bajan parents, I was fortunate enough to spend my early school days in Barbados. We were members of the local Moravian church and school. My early memories are of the rituals of this denomination, the all white dresses of the confirmed members taking communion on the third Sunday, the encouragement to read, memorise and recite texts even as young children.
Once back in England, we joined a local Anglican Church and sang in the choir for many years whilst attending a nearby Baptist Sunday School. I feel most fortunate to have had some exposure to the different influences which I feel made me seek a deeper connection God and to the call to be a Gabriel Sister. The call to be open to the uncommon things of God has resonated most with me.
I took my long-term vows in March 2026. I am married with one adult son. I am a trained classical singer and voice teacher. My first contact with the Gabriel Sisters was as a mentor for the Gettalife Project, the Gabriel Sisters' charitable work until Spring 2026. I live in the East Midlands.
Belinda-Marguerite-Mechtild: I am married to Stuart, and our family are very supportive of my commitment to the Gabriel Sisters. I am now ‘mostly’ retired from my profession as a psychotherapist, looking forward to developing opportunities for mission with ‘people on the margins’, and new faith connections at home and abroad.
I have had experiences good and bad of many communities of faith and it was not until I was in my early 40’s that I found a good Christian community in a parish Church setting where I was able to develop my interest in theology, became a Reader and church warden and completed a degree in Practical Theology. The demands of a Parish in difficulties eventually took its toll and led to an imbalance between the time spent in practical administration of a Church and inner spiritual life.
The Gabriel Sisters offered me a spiritual commitment that redressed the imbalance, with a firm foothold in everyday life, with all its blessings and challenges, and the opportunity that the Gabriel Sisters offer in answering the calling to transformation through prayer and service.
I took first vows in June 2023, and the monastic ideal represents for me a deep commitment to the development of the spiritual life and to life decisions flowing out of this commitment. Joining with the Gabriel Sisters in a common Rule of Life holds me to account for my spiritual development, as well as being accountable to others through our vows and relationships to keep to a life of prayer, worship and service according to our shared ideal.