Responding with courage and personal sacrifice to the call of Christ in the Church, our foundresses lived out their desire to become women of prayer, community and service
SSMO Constitutions, Article 1
Dear Friends, Pilgrims of Hope,
Where were you when you learned that white smoke was pouring out of the
chimney of the Sistine Chapel? Were you “glued to the TV” when you heard the
news Habemus papam?
Similar to many of you, I certainly was! After many major events, whether global or personal, we remember where we were as well as we remember our reactions to the news. To many, the news that the first American-born Pope was now the leader of the world-wide Catholic Church was astonishing! Yet he seems to be more of a ‘citizen of the world’ than any pontiff before him.
Let us remember to pray for him daily. Let us also pray for our beloved Archbishop Emeritus John G. Vlazny of Portland. He entered eternal rest on May 23. Rest in peace, good and faithful servant.
Blessings,
Sr. Charlene
Meet our Jubilee Sisters
We are celebrating the Jubilee of several Sisters in 2025.
Sr. Elma Heesacker – 70 years
Sister Elma Heesacker has spent her life quietly and faithfully serving her Sisters and her community. Born in Forest Grove, Oregon, she was the third of 10 children raised by Ernest and Agnes Heesacker.
Sister Elma’s path toward religious life began when she was very young. In the third grade, she met a Sister Cirilla who came to her public school to teach catechism classes. She only visited once, but left a lasting impression. Young Elma affectionately called her “Sister Cinderella.”
Sister Elma embraced the role of serving her Community behind the scenes. She cooked, drove, and served as sacristan, ensuring her Sisters had the support they needed to focus on their educational mission in Catholic schools. She was grateful for the opportunity to live out her calling. “I wanted to serve God by being myself and by loving and serving others,” she said.
Visit Sister Elma Heesacker’s bio page to learn more about her inspiring journey.
Discernment Opportunities
Vocation Events for June
Summer is here and the SSMO Vocation Committee is out in the community.
Check out our events page for specific dates and locations.
If you happen to be where we are, please join us and say “hello.”
Please pray for our safe travels.
Thank you.
Questions:
How important is your prayer life?
Because we have chosen a way of life that says God is most important, prayer is central to our lives.
Think of it as a deep level of communication with God, similar to the kind of communication that happens between any two people who love each other.
Our relationship with God grows and deepens with prayer. Since prayer is important, many priests, sisters, and brothers spend about two hours a day praying. Part of the time we pray with others. We pray other formal prayers like the Liturgy of the Hours. Part of the time we also pray alone, perhaps reading or just being quiet with God. One of the positive effects of prayer, whatever shape it takes, is to keep us aware of God’s loving activity in the people, events, and situations of our daily lives. (Source: “Vision Magazine”)
Visit Five Formation Steps to learn more about the intentional and patient transition into religious life.
Quotations by Historic Religious Sisters
Margaret Anna Cusack – Founder of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace
”My desire is for peace and justice. Not indeed peace at any price…
Nor indeed the justice, which is like the statue in front of Dublin Castle, which turns its back toward the people and its face toward the great.”
Photo by William Murphy from Dublin, Ireland.
Sr. Ann Manganaro,
Sister of Loretto, physician
“Sometimes it is only in retrospect, when you’ve gone through a really hard time, but you see the fruit that has continued to be born in your and in other people’s lives that makes you say ‘YES, God’s grace was working here’ even when I didn’t feel it in the moment.”
-Photo of Sister Anne from LorettoCommunity.org
