Mother Theodore used to tell that when she saw the place they were coming to (Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Indiana), her strength failed her, and it was with difficulty she was able…
Read moreLetter 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…
Read moreThis article is reprinted from the fall 2011 issue of HOPE. “You just get up and go and keep living. … It’s the best thing to do!” “There’s only one…
Read moreSister Betty Hopf’s new book is only a little larger than the palm of a hand. It’s about as thick as a fast-food hamburger. It retails for $4.95. It can…
Read morePortions of a letter to Sister Gabriella of Fort Wayne, Ind. (Sister Gabriella O’Neill was Mother Theodore’s first postulant of 1841. She was born in 1804 and died in 1875.…
Read moreThis article is reprinted from the fall 2010 issue of HOPE. We can guess that some long-time Catholics, feeling great fondness in their hearts for the women religious who have…
Read moreThis article is reprinted from the fall 2009 issue of HOPE. Editor’s note: In the previous article, “The new cosmology: an evolving universe,” Sister Jeanne Knoerle provides an overview of…
Read moreThis article is reprinted from the fall 2009 issue of HOPE. How do you picture God? Pray to God? Understand God? Most of us move from childhood to adulthood thinking…
Read moreHow do you picture God? Pray to God? Understand God? Throughout the centuries, theologians have tried to help us grasp the idea of God. As our knowledge of the world…
Read moreJust as the little community was settling in, a devastating fire destroyed all of their provisions for the winter ahead. They lost 150 bushels of wheat and 150 bushels of oats, hay and corn shocks to feed the animals. The barn also contained bacon, suet and extra beds. It was once again a time of throwing themselves with complete abandon into the hands of Providence.
Read moreWhen asked to give her impressions of Mother Theodore, Susanna Alvey, who grew up as a neighbor in the then-thriving village of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, responded, “Her success was due more…
Read moreSpirituality, the fundamental, underlying way in which a person relates to God, to other people and to oneself, is not merely an attitude toward God, an acceptable way to worship…
Read more“The God of Providence carries the entire mystery of the divine, ever trustworthy, never failing. The God of Providence offers all the possibilities for ourselves and the world, including both what God wants to happen and what God is willing to let happen because God honors the gift of human freedom. The choices are ours — truly free, but ever grounded in the grace of God, the Holy Mystery of Providence, about which there is ever more to be discovered.” – Sister Ruth Eileen Dwyer