Hello everyone!
I am still here in Detroit. Last night I was a guest on Father Dave Dwyer’s “Busted Halo Radio Show” talking about this blog, telling my vocation story, and discussing the Providence Companions in Mission (temporary commitment) program.
This morning I gave a presentation at a parish near to Detroit on “The Counterculture of Community”. The people were really very welcoming and receptive, and a number of of them stayed around afterward to ask questions. While it was all very nice and there were nice connections being made there, I wanted to write about this one question that kind of took me aback. One of the parishoners said to me, “Now that you Sisters really aren’t in Catholic schools anymore, you’ve kind of lost your purpose, haven’t you?”
I had no sense that this person intended to offend in any way. Rather is came across to me as a simple statement that we lost our purpose by leaving Catholic schools. Then someone else said to me that many people today really don’t know what Sisters do these days. I thought … wow…I’ll bet that that’s true. When I look back at my own life, before meeting women religious, I don’t know if I could have said what they did. So, I thought that I would say something about what some of the Sisters in my community do.
The Sisters of Divine Providence sponsor a number of ministries. We have two schools (one pre-K through 12, and one that is K-8) as well as a college. We also have a summer camp, a homeless shelter, a family support center with a childcare program and programs for teens, adults and families, a shelter for victims of domestic abuse, and a shelter on the Mexican border to assist those seeking refuge in the United States. We also sponsor two reteat centers and a house of prayer.
As far as what our Sisters are doing, we are teachers and professors, retreat directors, principals and administrators, nurses, chaplains, campus ministers, social workers, dancers, psychologists and therapists, liturgists and pastoral associates, childcare workers, librarians, lawyers (canonical and secular), physical therapists, activities directors, secretaries, early intervention specialists, artists, and peace and justice coordinators.
I say all of this not to be on the defense, but because I think it’s important that people know that we are out there working in order to participate in the building up of God’s kingdom on earth. I would not like to think that there are people who think we have outlived our purpose …and since the Scripture says that the “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.” (Mt. 9:37), there’s really no one who is working for the sake of the Gospel who can outlive their purpose.
Anyway….just a few thoughts.
Peace to all,
Sr. Judy
Filed under: Reflections
I can’t believe someone actually asked you that! You should’ve asked him how he feels about the habit…I bet he would’ve had an interesting answer
So have Sisters effectively left Catholic schools? I didn’t go to Catholic schools, but I know that my old Sunday school used to be run by nuns, but now it’s all lay people, which makes me wonder where the heck the Sisters went! The convent is all boarded up and everything
Maybe this guy just has a hard time adjusting to change. I don’t think you guys will ever outlive your purpose, because Sisters help other people, and that’s never going to be obsolete.
Dear Annie,
Hi. I guess I was surprised at being asked that, but I would rather people ask than not ask. That way I have a chance to kind of set the record straight.
We really haven’t left Catholic schools, but there are fewer of us teaching in them, and Sisters have branched out into more varied fields.
You are right though…that no one can really outlive their purpose when they are about doing God’s work.
Peace to you Annie, and thanks for writing.
Sr. Judy