On Wednesday, June 22, 2016, our community began a new chapter in our monastic history. Sr. John Mary Read (a.k.a. Sponsa Christi   to our vocation blog readers) was elected Mother Superior!   (Don’t worry. She will continue her blog posts!)

Mother John Mary came to us from Elberfeld, IN in 1995, and was a postulant during the construction years of our Crisp Road monastery. We have many humorous memories of that young postulant with long curly hair helping us pick up bricks that we Nuns deemed too good to throw away, or driving our 45-mile-an-hour old truck home from the construction site, her clothing spotted with various colors of paint just like all the rest of the famous “polka-dotted Nuns”. We are sure that throughout her “testing by paint” ordeal as a Passionist postulant, she never dreamed that in the plan of the Father, one day she would be called to lead our community as superior. But so it happened.

Throughout these 20 years here at our relocated monastery, Sister has been instrumental in working with prospective candidates to our life.  Hopefully, her vocation work can continue.  Since Mother John Mary is one of only two Sisters who fill a huge generation gap in our community, her election represents a new generation assuming leadership into our future.  As we begin this new chapter in the history of our monastery, we are so grateful to God that we have younger Nuns who give promise of our community continuing on into the future while continuing to attract more vocations.

In the meantime, we are having many laughs as we all adjust to “Mother” Catherine Marie being “Sister” Catherine Marie again; and “Sister” John Mary now being “Mother” John Mary. Throughout the day we hear, “Mother…err, I mean Sister….” And “Sister…err, I mean Mother.” We will soon get it right, especially if our new superior does not take a notion to give us a penance of a rosary for every time we use the wrong title!! Or, on second thought, that might help us make the adjustment faster!!! :)

Please keep Mother and all our Nuns in your special prayers! And keep up those vocations prayers too!! Watch for our upcoming issue of “From the Foot of the Cross” for a complete story. Oh! and pray for the other Sisters elected to serve the community for another three years:

Vicar - Sr. Catherine Marie Novice Directress - Sr. Mary Veronica First Councilor - Sr. Mary Agnes Second Councilor - Sr. Mary Veronica Third Councilor - Sr. Mary Magdalen