“‘I have chosen you from the world,’ says the Lord, ‘to go out and bear fruit that will last.’” – John 15:16
CROWN POINT – “Today’s a day to celebrate your call, that first call,” Bishop Robert J. McClory reminded more than a dozen religious sisters serving the Diocese of Gary who gathered on Oct. 25 for the annual Religious Sisters’ Jubilee Mass and Luncheon hosted at St. Matthias.
“I was asked (on July 27) to preach at the First Profession Mass for the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, which included my niece, and not having much experience with such an event, I asked for advice,” admitted the bishop in his homily, explaining that Sister Petra, vice president of mission for several Franciscan Alliance hospitals, passed along what she was told when a young nun – “Never forget why you came here, never forget why you are here.”
“For those in consecrated life, you are responding to a love that has been bestowed upon you,” added Bishop McClory, who noted that religious sisters “can describe your lives in practical terms – now I’m assigned here, I opened that retreat house, I taught there – but we are human beings, not human doings,” and their success is not in what they do, but in “responding to a love that God put in (your) heart. (You) are a beloved daughter of the Loving God, and that makes all the difference.
“We thank the Lord for the love he has put into us,” he added.
Admitting there is a tension “between what we do and what we are” in religious life, the bishop said that while “called to do good and avoid evil,” all human beings are “fallen men and women (who) know we will sin … (wondering if we) can ever find my way to heaven.”
However, the bishop explained, “St. Paul reminds us that in Christ Jesus, we know that he gave his life over to us, to forgive our sins. Jesus is here to give us his mercy, so that whole sin thing is taken care of … if we (ever) thought it was about us, it’s not us and our perfect behavior, but about the mercy of God.
“It is all about the love of Jesus in our hearts and our response to that … living lives of ministry, service, love and caring. Thank you for all you do.”
“Anytime religious sisters in a particular diocese can get together it is advantageous,” said Sister Michele Dvorak of the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ, one of 13 nuns to renew their vows during the Mass. “We get to know one another and celebrate together and with the bishop.”
Agreeing was Sister Loretta Schleper, P.H.J.C., of Sojourner Truth House in Gary. “We can celebrate with Sisters from other congregations and get to know each other better,” she said.
Sister Angela Mellady, a member of the Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration, told the bishop that “having people ask us to pray for them is such a blessing” when he asked what brings them joy, while Sister Rachel Dinet, P.H.J.C., said she deeply appreciates “having people pray for us.”
The jubilee Mass, said Sister Gloria Jean Kozlowski of the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Third Order of St. Francis, is important simply “because the Mass is the center of our lives and the fullest expression of our faith, where it is reinforced that we are all one.”
Presented with certificates and gifts recognizing their milestone jubilee years were: Sister Maria Jyoti, M.C. – 25 years; Sister Celine John, M.C. – 30 years; Sister Angela Mellady, O.S.F. – 40 years; Sister Julie Marie Oxley, O.S.F. – 40 years; Sister M. Rachel Dinet, O.S.F. – 60 years; Sister Gloria Jean Kozlowski, S.S.J.-T.O.S.F. – 60 years; Sister Annemarie Kampwerth, P.H.J.C. – 60 years; and Sister Angeline Benz, S.F.C.C. – 65 years.
Caption: Bishop Robert J. McClory (center) stands with jubilarian religious (left to right) Sister Maria Jyoti, M.C., Sister Angela Mellady, O.S.F., Sister Julie Marie Oxley, O.S.F., Sister M. Rachel Dinet, O.S.F., Sister Angeline Benz, S.F.C.C., and Sister Gloria Jean Kozlowski, S.S.J.-T.O.S.F. as nuns working in the diocese are gathered at the Eucharistic Liturgy in Thanksgiving for Women Religious on Oct. 25 at St. Matthias parish. Sisters celebrating milestone anniversaries of religious life were presented with certificates and gifts before breaking bread together for lunch. (Anthony D. Alonzo photo)