A Silver Jubilee

On the Feast of the Stigmata of  St. Francis we celebrated the 25th Jubilee of Sr. M. Mikela.  We give thanks for her vocation!  You can check out more pictures on the website.  Please continue to keep her in your prayers!

Welcome Lauren!

Lauren entered our community on September 8th!  We welcome her with great joy!

Hi! My name is Lauren. I am 20 years old and from Northern Kentucky (15 minutes from Cincinnati, OH). I have a younger brother who is a senior in high school. I enjoy running, taking walks, and reading. Before entering, I attended Marian University in Indianapolis, Indiana for two years. It was during my two years in college that I really began to discern religious life. I first met the Sisters on the October 2010 Veni Si Amas (Come, If You Love) Retreat. The weekend with the Lord, as well as the joy-filled Sisters, left me wanting more. I visited a month later, and by then the convent already felt like home, and the Sisters felt like family. The Lord used my time spent in front of the Blessed Sacrament (both in adoration and Mass) to draw me closer to His Most Sacred Heart. In Revelation 3:20 the Lord says, “Behold I stand at the door [of your heart] and knock.” The Lord ever so lovingly has been knocking upon my heart, calling me to become His bride. He calls us out of our ordinary into His extra-ordinary. I chose in faith to give my “yes” to the Lord, and I would invite you to do the same. The Lord has showered me with graces, and further called me to serve Him by teaching kindergarten and first grade religion at St. Mary’s School in Alton, IL. My advice to you would be to spend time with the Lord (frequenting the sacraments), and pay attention to where you feel most at peace. Even though other emotions may arise, peace should always remain. May God Bless You!

A New Name

Greetings from the newest members of the Novitiate! On August 15, 2011 three young women were received into our community as Sisters of St. Francis of the Martyr St. George and I am blessed to have been one of them! While our community received us, we in turn received our religious names, habit and veil. I often go back to the moment on the 15th when Bishop Paprocki handed me my habit and announced that I would “henceforth be known as Sister Teresa Maria.” Walking in for the first time in my habit to our Sisters singing “Here I am Lord” is a memory that will forever bring a smile to my face and to my heart.

As I mentioned earlier, my name is Sister Teresa Maria, I am 22 years old and I am a proud Wisconsinite! I grew up in a small town in Southwest Wisconsin called Cashton with my two younger sisters Kateri and Clare and our parents. I tease my family that I entered the convent so I could have a saint’s name like my sisters! I took my name after Mother Teresa and our Blessed Mother. I have loved Mother Teresa ever since I was a little girl and I credit her for leading me to a deeper love for Our Lady, and together they took my hands and guided me to the vocation Christ had in store for me. My admiration for Mother Teresa can be summed up in the simple way she gave her whole heart to Jesus and because of her love for Him was able to love the world in some of the ugliest situations.

Her courage and motivation to love and serve the world came from her intimate union with Christ. As canonical novices we spend this year deepening our own union with Him. We are strengthening our interior life with Christ so that after profession we will have what we need to spread His merciful love wherever He sends us. God bless you!

From Seeds to Harvest

Unless a grain of wheat falls unto the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. John 12:24

  

If you have ever planted something from a seed you have experienced a miracle of transformation. Seeds are a funny thing; many are no bigger than flicks of dirt and if carelessly dropped, they may never be retrieved. That is, until many weeks later, this random plant begins to sprout from the earth. Seeds are also very passive. If one studies them it would soon be concluded that they are indeed dead. They are hard and lifeless. And yet, we know from experience, when placed in the proper conditions, these very seeds will become thriving, proliferous plants.

Our Lord teaches us a lot about our relationship with him through analogies with seeds and plants. Our faith is based on something we do “not see, and yet believe.” Faith is a gift we must constantly nurture so that we may reap “a hundred fold.” There are three essential elements that nurture seeds, which can also be applied to nurturing our souls.

The first is soil, just as seeds need rich, fertile soil, so do our souls. The compost that becomes fertile isn’t always pleasant to look at and even may be a bit smelly, but these are the sacrifices that we make to enrich our lives. Water is the next essential element; “Those who sow in tears will reap rejoicing.” Our Lord transforms our sacrifices with the moisture of our own tears that we may grow to our fullest potential. The third major element for growth is the sun. Nothing would expand without the sun’s warmth filling it. Yet the sun too can be very scorching, too much and it will wither its recipient; although this action also separates the weaklings from the hardy plants.

He also tells us if “you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.” Have you ever seen a mustard seed? It really does look like a very, very small speck of dirt. Any yet, if our faith is only this, nothing will be impossible for us.

As our summer is now turning into fall, it is vital to reap all that has been given to us over these last months for our growth. And remember when the winter months roll in, and the seeds of your faith may become hard and seemingly lifeless, plant them again in the rich soil of our Lord’s love and experience the miracle of transformation.

-Sister M. Ignatia, FSGM

Come Join the Sisters!

Back by popular demand, you are invited to join the Sisters for an afternoon of prayer and reflection. Mark your calendars for Saturday, September 24th! Check out the flyer for more details!