Blog
Welcome to our blog. Here, we will share with you stories of our lives as Sisters of Providence. We invite Providence Associates to write in this space also. We hope you find these posts enjoyable and inspirational.
Father Dan raises a village
It may take a village to raise a child, but it takes Father Dan Hopcus to raise a village at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods. Father Dan (pictured, at left), chaplain for the Sisters of Providence, welcomed sisters and staff members to his…
Saint Mother Theodore Guerin’s original log cabin church nears completion
Do you want to pray? Do you want to experience a little history? Do you want to sit quietly in a peaceful, natural place? The new old cabin at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods might be just the place for you. The Sisters…
Sister Mary Evangelista, Jessye the Cat, and Advent Waiting
A number of years ago, when she was well into her nineties, Sister Mary Evangelista Herber (RIP) told me that she had decided to learn to wait. Her life involved a good deal of waiting, she reported. She had never…
Sister Diane Ris publishes new book about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin
Picture this: A Sister of Providence hovered over a desk in her writing room. A candle swaying delicately through currents of air as the sister works intently on her project. Sound familiar? Saint Mother Theodore Guerin did that when she documented events in…
Sister Dorothy Gartland receives Guerin Outreach Ministries Leadership and Advocacy Award
Congratulations to Sister Dorothy Gartland for receiving the third annual Guerin Outreach Ministries Leadership and Advocacy Award. “If you live long enough and continue to work, somebody will eventually give you an award,” laughed the ever-humble Sister Dorothy upon receiving…
The wisdom of Saint Mother Theodore: Letter to Sister Maria
Letter from Saint Mother Theodore to Sister Maria in Madison, Ind. Nov. 24, 1854 “I am sorry, my dear Sister, that you have yielded again to your caprices. You must make another copy of the pieces of music you destroyed.…
CNN visits Saint Mary-of-the-Woods to research Saint Mother Theodore Guerin
Cable News Network (CNN) producer Jen Christensen visited Saint Mary-of-the-Woods Saturday, Oct. 22, to witness the Sisters of Providence Saint Mother Theodore Guerin Fest and to do research on the Congregation’s foundress. Jen hooked up with a video specialist, Jeff…
The wisdom of Saint Mother Theodore: Letter to Sister Maria
Letter from Saint Mother Theodore to Sister Maria in Madison, Ind. Nov. 11, 1853 “My dear Sister: “Sister Basilide having written to let me know the number of hours that each of you was occupied in teaching, I told her…
The wisdom of Saint Mother Theodore: Letter to Sister Gabriella
Letter from Saint Mother Theodore to Sister Gabriella in Fort Wayne, Ind. Jan. 3, 1853 “My dear Sister: “I have received with true pleasure your good and affectionate wishes. The heart understands the heart. As yours was speaking in your…
The wisdom of Saint Mother Theodore: to the sisters in Madison
Letter from Saint Mother Theodore to the sisters in Madison, Ind. March 21, 1849 “My very dear and beloved Daughters: “Just this moment I hear that the cholera has made its entrance into your dear Madison. I cannot tell you…
Mother Theodore & Taillard
On today’s feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the great animal lover, many people around the world give a special blessing to their pets. You might not know that Mother Theodore herself had a pet, an extraordinary little dog named…
First chapel to be re-created at SMW
No worries if you’re not a history buff. The re-creation of the first log cabin chapel at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods will still be cool. Several years in the making, an authentic replica of the chapel visited by Saint Mother Theodore and…