Providence Spirituality
“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
The Joy of Vatican II
(originally published in the winter 2013 issue of HOPE magazine) By Peg Benson Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli might justifiably be accused of being impulsive. He announced his intention to convene the Second Vatican Council on Jan. 25, 1959, as he waved…
Always count your blessings …
Sometime after my mom retired, she “got into” ceramics. She and her friends went to classes taught by a woman in my mom’s neighborhood. For the most part, they applied glazes to clay pieces of various shapes and sizes. Many…
“It’s those gates”
A musing on what happens when you enter the gates at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods. It happened again. This time it was during the orientation of our newest candidates to become associates of the Sisters of Providence. There were about 50 of…
Why I love Mother Theodore
I’m not the kind of person who idolizes others, since nobody’s perfect; so I’ve acquired a habit of giving people I admire honorary status as one of my relatives. (You can love Great-Grandma without agreeing with everything she says at…
The power of this place
Why do people go to shrines and make pilgrimages? What happens to them while in the presence of a saint or sacred person? When I have asked several people why they came — why come to this shrine of Saint…
“The Sisters are always there”
Given the magnitude of the issues facing the Leadership Conference of Women Religious during its recent annual assembly Aug. 7-10 … Given the amazing presence and presentation of keynote speaker Barbara Marx Hubbard… Given the inspiring presidential address offered to…
Experiencing a deep and authentic unity
The following reflection is from the Sisters of Providence General Council: Sister Denise Wilkinson, Sister Lisa Stallings, Sister Jenny Howard, Sister Dawn Tomaszewski, and Sister Mary Beth Klingel. The April 2012 announcement of the Vatican’s doctrinal assessment of the Leadership…
From The Shrine of Saint Mother Theodore Guerin
The Sisters of Providence regularly receive prayer requests, as well as requests for relics and other Saint Mother Theodore Guerin information. Below is a list of some recent correspondence Sister Jan Craven has had with those in contact with The…
Don’t take yourself too seriously
Recently I’ve dipped my toes in the waters of social media, having followed several Twitter feeds for the past couple of weeks. My original aim was to track the progress of the Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College Madrigals and alumnae as they…
A Priceless Gift
This article is reprinted from the summer 2012 issue of HOPE. Two years ago when I visited another congregation of women religious, I was struck by a quote of their foundress which seemed to appear every place I turned. The…
7 Saint Mother Theodore Guerin Quotes
The Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods are blessed to have a foundress who loved to record her thoughts and prayers. The following is a handful of Saint Mother Theodore Guerin quotes. 1. “I have already exceeded the amount of…
CNN story again features Sisters of Providence, Saint Mother Theodore Guerin
Whoever said our Provident God works in mysterious ways certainly was a wise observer. What made Andrew Domini channel surf during a television commercial only to find on CNN the documentary about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin’s path to sainthood? What…