Pray With Us
By Sister Joan Pikiell, SSND "Joy" and "Lent" are not words you often hear together. Their pairing might seem as mismatched as peanut butter and mayonnaise! Yet, this Lent has brought me three profound moments of joy.
The opening words of our Ash Wednesday liturgical readings call us all to lament: “Return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning. Rend your hearts, not your garments and return to the Lord your God.”
Now that it's Lent again, my thoughts turn to a long-standing tradition in my home parish, St. Joseph Monastery in Baltimore. It was customary in the parish for a large group of parishioners, crossing generations, to produce a Passion Play. "Veronica’s Veil" was staged on each Sunday during Lent.
In Memoriam
Sister Lorraine "Ronnie" Burns was a Buffalonian, deeply committed to her friends, family, and SSND. After teaching in Baltimore, New Jersey, Connecticut, New York, and Africa, it was in Rochester, NY that she founded the Notre Dame Learning Center. As was said by a colleague, ‘Lorraine’s service...
Elizabeth Marie Mathis was professed in 1952, given the name Donita, and began teaching primary grades. In 1975, she decided to become a nurse and served as an RN in the Chicago Area, retiring in 2015. Sister Donita is remembered as a gentle person with a beautiful smile… a calming, quiet...
Sister Val grew up on a farm one mile south of Denzil, Saskatchewan. She went on to work in religious education in Ontario, Saskatchewan and ministered to Indigenous communities in Keewatin-Le Pas, Manitoba. Later, In 2000, she served as Provincial Councilor for the Canadian Province. We...
"Prayer is true heavenly food and nourishment for the soul, which will starve without it. It is a remedy for the sick who desire to recover again, joy for the afflicted, strength for the weak, medicine for sinners, delight for the just, mutual support for the entire church.”
-BLESSED THERESA GERHARDINGER
