Sisters gather, pray, renew vows with bishop

I have found myself realizing that now more than ever, my hunger for an ever-growing personal relationship with God is the center of who I am and want to be.”

Sister Cathy Vetter CCVI

Pope praises religious for courageous witness serving the marginalized

Catholic News Service

Vatican City

Pope Leo XIV praised consecrated men and women for going to the world’s peripheries and refusing to abandon their people, even in the midst of conflict.

“They remain, often stripped of all security, as a living reminder — more eloquent than words — of the inviolable sacredness of life in its most vulnerable conditions,” he said Feb. 2 in his homily for Candlemas — the feast of the Presentation of the Lord.

The day also marked the Catholic Church’s celebration of World Day for Consecrated Life.

“Even where weapons roar and arrogance, self-interest and violence seem to prevail,” he said.

Pope Leo, who joined the Order of St. Augustine as a young man and served as a missionary in Peru for decades, reflected on the mission of religious men and women in the Church and in the world.

“Dear brothers and sisters, the Church asks you to be prophets — messengers who announce the presence of the Lord and prepare the way for him,” he said in his homily.

“You are called to this mission above all through the sacrificial offering of your lives, rooted in prayer and in a readiness to be consumed by charity,” he said.

“You are called to testify that the young, the elderly, the poor, the sick and the imprisoned hold a sacred place above all else on God’s altar and in his heart,” he said, and to show how each of the least is “an inviolable sanctuary of God’s presence, before whom we must bend our knee, in order to encounter him, adore him and give him glory.”

Pope praises religious for courageous witness serving the marginalized

Catholic News Service

Vatican City

Pope Leo XIV praised consecrated men and women for going to the world’s peripheries and refusing to abandon their people, even in the midst of conflict.

“They remain, often stripped of all security, as a living reminder — more eloquent than words — of the inviolable sacredness of life in its most vulnerable conditions,” he said Feb. 2 in his homily for Candlemas — the feast of the Presentation of the Lord.

The day also marked the Catholic Church’s celebration of World Day for Consecrated Life.

“Even where weapons roar and arrogance, self-interest and violence seem to prevail,” he said.

Pope Leo, who joined the Order of St. Augustine as a young man and served as a missionary in Peru for decades, reflected on the mission of religious men and women in the Church and in the world.

“Dear brothers and sisters, the Church asks you to be prophets — messengers who announce the presence of the Lord and prepare the way for him,” he said in his homily.

“You are called to this mission above all through the sacrificial offering of your lives, rooted in prayer and in a readiness to be consumed by charity,” he said.

“You are called to testify that the young, the elderly, the poor, the sick and the imprisoned hold a sacred place above all else on God’s altar and in his heart,” he said, and to show how each of the least is “an inviolable sanctuary of God’s presence, before whom we must bend our knee, in order to encounter him, adore him and give him glory.”

There was no mistaking the joy that filled Bishop Ralph B. O’Donnell’s residence on the World Day of Consecrated Life.

Religious sisters from throughout the diocese enjoyed an afternoon of fellowship and a meal with the bishop, followed by prayer and the renewal of their vows.

“I am extremely grateful for each and every one of you, and I continue to pray for you,” Bishop O’Donnell told them.

The World Day of Consecrated Life, celebrated in the United States this year on Sunday, Feb. 1, was a special day for the entire Church to pray for and thank all those who have accepted God’s specific calling to Consecrated Life.

Laughter filled the bishop’s library and dining room as the sisters, many who live and serve far apart from one another, reveled in each other’s company.

Bishop O’Donnell shared memories of the religious sisters who had taught him in grade school, high school and during his seminary formation.

“That does not fade”

After lunch, the sisters gathered with the bishop in the library to pray together and renew their vows.

Sister Suzanne Walker of the Dominican Sisters of Sparkill read from a reflection titled “A Joy to Serve.”

It articulates the authentic joy that flows from serving people who have no way to repay that kindness.

“Our world often calculates worth based on what we can give or gain, but Jesus calls us to a radical generosity that seeks no return except the joy of serving,” the reflection states.

Jesus knew that joy, having given himself completely, especially to people who are ignored, broken, forgotten or recognized for being sinful.

“If we want joy that does not fade, we must go where Jesus goes — to the margins, to those who can give us nothing in return. It is there we find not only our neighbor, but Christ himself,” Sr. Suzanne read. “And in serving them, we do not lose ourselves — we find ourselves. We find joy.”

The sisters then silently reflected on two questions: “Who is Jesus inviting you to serve?” and “Where is joy waiting for you?”

The sisters and bishop responded with a litany on their calling: to serve with joy; to be a bearer of Christ’s light and love; to bring hope, compassion and mercy to all they encounter; to walk as Jesus walked among the poor, forgotten, needy, marginalized, immigrants, strangers, lonely and excluded; to speak for the voiceless; to serve all with no exceptions; and to give courageous witness to the dignity of every person in daily activities, prayers, decisions and actions.

“Sacred stories”

Sister Susan Renner of the School Sisters of Notre Dame guided her fellow sisters through a meditative reflection.

“As a prelude to our renewal of vows, I invite us to take a few moments to sit quietly and go within our hearts and memories, to reflect our sacred stories,” she said.

Sr. Susan called upon her fellow sisters to remember vividly the time they realized that God was calling them to Religious Life.

From there, she led them to the day each of them answered that call and entered their religious congregation.

“What drew you to this particular congregation?” Sr. Susan asked. “What about it gave you a feeling of home, and that it was where you belonged?”

She then called on them to consider what happened in the years of formation that they began upon entering Religious Life.

“What experiences were especially meaningful?” she asked. “How did you grow in your prayer and relationship with God?”

She encouraged them to recall the day they pronounced first vows.

“Enter into the scene,” she advised. “Recall how you felt. What gave you the courage to say yes to living the vows in community?”

She then led them forward to the day they professed final vows.

“Were you nervous, excited, at peace?” she inquired. “Allow yourself to feel again the emotions in your heart and the thoughts you experienced.

“Be mindful of the gravity of the decision you are making, and feel again how you felt uttering the word ‘forever,’” she said.

Then, in anticipation of renewing their vows once again, Sr. Susan asked her fellow sisters to consider the joyful and painful experiences that have been a part of their lives.

“Reflect on how God has walked with you through the years,” she said. “Take notice of your relationship with God today. Call to mind the people you have met, befriended and served.”

She concluded by asking them to consider: “What gives you the strength to proclaim your ‘yes’ to God once again?”

Sister Bernita Wasinger of the School Sisters of Notre Dame invited the members of each religious congregation to renew their vows.

“Like Mary, we have each been chosen by name, by God, and have proclaimed our ‘yes’ to God,” she said. “... We vowed in faith and trust to love and serve God forever.”

After renewing their vows, they sang together the “Magnficat,” the Blessed Mother’s expression of joy and gratitude recorded in the Second Chapter of Luke.

Their closing prayer was a section of Pope Leo XIV’s address from the day he became pope: “All of us are in God’s hands. So, let us move forward, without fear, together, hand in hand with God and with one another.

“Christ goes before us,” they continued. “The world needs his light. Humanity needs God as the bridge that can lead us to him and his love.”

“God has a plan”

Sr. Susan said she enjoyed putting the guided meditation together, as it drew her back to important moments in her own life.

“All the stories!” she said.

Later, several sisters shared their answer to the question, “What gives you the strength to proclaim your ‘yes’ to God once again?”

• “Each moment of the day, God shows his love for me and gives me the strength to say ‘yes’ to his call,” said Sister Ruth Ann Klauser of the School Sisters of Notre Dame.

He does so by “allowing me to wake up each morning to the beauty of creation, by the people he sends me to cross my path each day, by the small surprises he sends my way, and at the end of my day to be always grateful for his invitation to journey each day with Him as a School Sister of Notre Dame,” she said.

• Sr. Suzanne said she has the strength to continue to proclaim her “yes” to God because she truly believes that “our God has a plan to help all people know Him better.”

“I believe that I am a part of that plan, and I strive to continually listen and learn to follow the path to do my small part to bring this plan to completion,” she said.

• Sister Mary Ann Carey of the School Sisters of Notre Dame said she receives strength to proclaim her daily “yes” to God from her trust and belief “that the God who loves me will never abandon me.”

“This gives me the courage and freedom to serve God’s people wherever and in whatever way the Holy Spirit calls me to serve,” she said.

• Sister Cathy Vetter of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word said that after her decades of commitment as a religious sister, her relationship with God has grown and deepened and is truly the basis of her life today.

“I have found myself realizing that now more than ever, my hunger for an ever-growing personal relationship with God is the center of who I am and want to be,” she said.

• Sr. Bernita said she’s incredibly blessed in her ministry and life.

“God is good!” she stated.

She sometimes thinks of herself as a broken pencil, “and God uses me anyway.”

“I want to do all I do for God’s honor and glory,” she said.

• Sister Mary Ruth Wand of the School Sisters of Notre Dame pointed to an excerpt from Psalm 108: “My heart is ready, O God; I will sing your praise. Awake, my soul; I will awake the dawn. I will thank you among the peoples...”

“The joy of the Lord for me comes through the people with whom and for whom I minister,” said Sr. Mary Ruth. “They energize me! There is newness of God’s love in the daily events of life.”

• Sr. Kathleen Wegman of the School Sisters of Notre Dame, the bishop’s delegate for religious sisters in the diocese, said she always welcomes the opportunity to renew her vows with other SSNDs.

She also maintains the practice of renewing her vows each night before going to bed.

“This practice keeps me focused and strengthens my resolve to be faithful to the God who is so faithful to me,” she said.

“Prophetic witness”

The theme for this year’s World Day of Consecrated Life observance was: “Consecrated Persons: Prophetic Witnesses of Peace in a Wounded World.”

Pope St. John Paul II in 1997 instituted this day of prayer for women and men in Consecrated Life.

The celebration is attached to the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple on Feb. 2.

Bishop O’Donnell said it was a privilege to celebrate with the sisters.

Speaking on behalf of all the men and women they had served through their ministries he gave a thorough: “Thank you!”

He assured them that God would reward them for their sacrifices and acts of patience, kindness and generosity.

“Always remember, especially in the times that are difficult, that God’s generosity will not be outdone,” he said.