April 8, 2025 • 27 mins
SPONSOR: Briefcase Marketing
Guests: Women's Religious Archives Collaborative
Sr. Susan Durkin, OSU, Executive Director
Sarah Lubelski, Lead Archivist
Catholic Sisters have shaped American society through education, healthcare, and social services since 1727, yet their stories remain largely untold outside their communities. The Women's Religious Archives Collaborative aims to change that by creating a state-of-the-art heritage center in Cleveland's historic Central neighborhood.
• Women Religious Archives Collaborative breaking ground May 2025 in Cleveland
• 41 congregations across US and Canada contributing their historical collections.
• 32,000-square-foot facility will include climate-controlled vaults and exhibition space.
• Project highlights sisters' contributions through education, healthcare, and social services.
• Archive preserves everything from photographs and documents to personal artifacts.
• Stories include the sister who roller-skated through "five-mile highway" convent hallways.
• Distinction explained between sisters (apostolic) and nuns (monastic/cloistered)
• Cleveland uniquely home to 17 motherhouses at one point in diocesan history.
• Facility expected to open December 2026 as research destination and educational center.
• Project celebrates the sisters' quiet, transformative impact on countless lives and communities.
Learn more at archivescollaborative.org and follow the project on Facebook and Instagram to stay updated on this important preservation effort. Special thanks to Margaret Eigsti, Managing Director for her assistance with this episode.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
On today's Question of Faith.
What's up with Catholic Sisters?
Hi everybody, this is Questionof Faith.
I'm Deacon Mike Hayes.
I'm the Director of Young AdultMinistry here in the Diocese of
Cleveland.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
And I'm Fr Damian Ferenc, the Vicar for
Evangelization.
Speaker 3 (00:17):
And I'm Sr Susan Durkin, an Ursuline Sister of
Cleveland and Executive Directorof the Women Religious Archives
.
Speaker 4 (00:23):
Collaborative I'm Sarah Lubelski, the Lead
Archivist for the Women'sReligious Archives,
collaborative.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
So that's what's up with Catholic Sisters is.
There's this huge archivalproject that's going on.
I just think this is thecoolest thing ever, right.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
Yeah, tell us about it.
Yeah, what the heck is going onwith this archive?
Speaker 1 (00:40):
Yeah, what the heck is the Women's Religious
Archives.
Collaborative.
Speaker 3 (00:42):
Well, we're really excited to break ground here in
Cleveland sometime in May of2025.
To date, we have 41congregations across the United
States and Canada that want tobring their historical and
currently being made collectionshere to Cleveland in a space
that will not only be open forresearch but for dialogue, for
(01:05):
presentations, for an exhibit,so that future generations
current and future generationscan learn about the vocation of
Catholic Sisters but also thetremendous body of work that
Catholic Sisters have beenengaged in since they came to
the United States in 1727.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Now, Sarah, you're the archivist, so this is just a
basic question.
I wanted to ask you how doessomebody become an archivist?
Speaker 4 (01:31):
So I started with an English degree and, as you, know
you can do anything with anEnglish degree.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
Yes, you can.
Speaker 4 (01:37):
So after I got my undergraduate degree I went to
graduate school for libraries.
I had always had an interest inlibraries, ever since I was in
grade school.
I went to graduate school forlibraries.
I had always had an interest inlibraries ever since I was in
grade school.
I volunteered after schoolstamping the books and, you know
, up into college I wasinterested in history but a
terrible history student becauseI can't remember dates.
So this was a way to kind offind stories and tell stories
(02:00):
that maybe had never been toldbefore.
Speaker 1 (02:02):
Very nice, cool, all right.
So what are some of the typesof materials that are going to
be held at the archives?
Speaker 4 (02:10):
So we will have things in every single kind of
format you can imagine.
We'll have photographs, movingpictures, moving images, audio,
oral histories, any way you canrecord information.
We'll have that kind of formatrepresented in these collections
.
But mostly it will be paper,lots of paper documents.
You know people would write inold ledgers, and so we'll have
(02:30):
that right up until digitalfiles today.
Speaker 1 (02:33):
Right, and what are some stories that are going to
live there as well?
Speaker 4 (02:36):
So we have lots of stories of the foundings of
congregations what broughtsisters to America and to their
particular diocese that theyserved in.
Also the stories about theaddress, the needs that they
address through their ministries, and the individual stories of
sisters and the work that theydid, their contributions, nice.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
Sister, you said that you're going to break ground
soon.
Where is that particular groundand what is the structure going
to look like?
Speaker 3 (03:00):
Well, we're really excited because when we were
trying to find a space that wecould build this facility, all
of our partners said, we want toplace this in an area that
needs investment and also aplace where sisters have
traditionally served, and sowe're very excited that we were
able to purchase some propertyfrom the Sisters of Charity of
St Augustine, and so we will belocated down by the old St
(03:23):
Vincent Charity Hospital on thecorner of East 22nd and
Community College Avenue.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
Very cool.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
So it's really nice because we can make an
investment in that historiccentral neighborhood and be in a
place where the Sisters ofCharity of St Augustine have
served since 1865, which isreally exciting.
The building itself is going tobe a two-story facility, which
is really exciting.
The building itself is going tobe a two-story facility.
A portion of the building,which will be about 32,000
(03:52):
square feet, will have a vaultthat will be temperature and
humidification controlled forall of these documents that
Sarah referenced.
But the front part of thebuilding is really going to be
the public space.
We'll have a multi-purpose roomwhere people can come and hear
about the research and thesetremendous stories of the
sisters.
We'll have spaces forconferences, but the real jewel
in our facility is going to bean exhibit space.
So if anybody that's listeningwas at the Maltz Museum in 2010
(04:18):
for the Women in Spirit.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
I was there.
Speaker 3 (04:20):
Great for the Women in Spirit exhibition there.
It's going to be like that it'sgoing to reference the
contributions of sisters.
It's going to talk about thelife of sisters, the vows we
take, the different types ofreligious life, the ministries,
how we live together.
You know, it's going to reallybe almost a nice vocational
(04:41):
piece for future generations toreally learn about the value of
this life and how we connect ourfaith with our service.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
There was high quality production and
presentation.
There's something that youwould see at the Rock and Roll
Hall of Fame or the ClevelandInstitute or the Cleveland Art
Museum, and that's the kind ofthing that you're doing here.
Speaker 3 (05:01):
So, absolutely, we're really excited.
We're working with a localcommunications firm, impact, and
they are helping us to bringtogether this information in a
way that is relatable, that hasa lot of digital components to
it and that we can have somepermanent displays, but really
they'll be rotating displays too, based on different subject
area or things that come up,because we really want this to
(05:24):
be an education destination,particularly for school groups
to come in, young children,families, but also researchers,
high schoolers doing term papersor college students that are
doing certain work on adissertation or some sort of a
master's degree.
And then we also have the ideasaround preservation, historical
(05:47):
preservation, digitization, allof those things that will be a
draw for a very rigorous internprogram and just like some
robust conversations around howdo we look at this evolution,
that the problems continue.
You know that we face as asociety, but as a church, how
have we addressed those and howwill we continue to do that?
(06:08):
So this space of inspiration, Ithink, is clearly a need that
we have today in our society.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
Yeah, Sister, how did you get involved in this
project?
Is this something you wereasked to do?
Was this personal interest ofyours, or you know how did it
come to land on you to be theexecutive director of this, or
how did?
Speaker 3 (06:24):
it come to land on you to be the executive director
of this.
While I was congregationalleader for the Ursuline Sisters,
we had downsized and moved intoa new facility for our sisters.
In that process we had tofigure out what we were going to
do with our archives, whichcontain the artifacts of Dorothy
Kazel, one of the martyrs in ElSalvador in the 80s, and so
(06:45):
that's going to be a veryimportant story to continue to
tell.
So in that process I said youknow, what we have is a
temporary solution.
What is going to be a permanentsolution for this?
And so it began as just kind ofa local and a regional project.
But then the need became verymuch apparent to us, which is
when it expanded to go acrossthe United States, and so
(07:07):
there's high interest from thesisters themselves, variety of
congregations, sizecongregations, ministries that
people have done.
It's going to be a very uniquespace and the only independent
one being built in the UnitedStates right now.
Speaker 2 (07:20):
I love that.
Not only will this.
What are you calling it?
A center, or what are youcalling?
It A heritage center, aheritage center, is not only
going to be in the Diocese ofCleveland, but it's going to be
in the city proper.
As one who is a resident downhere, it's another reason to
visit the city, and I'm thinkingfor these grade schools visit
there in the morning and thenmaybe come down for noon mass at
the cathedral and have a veryCatholic day.
(07:42):
It could be cool.
Speaker 3 (07:47):
That's great.
See, that's what we're doing.
It's really about acollaborative project.
It isn't one congregation orone entity that owns it.
We're coming together in acollaborative way, which I
believe is another witness, andwe have several collaborative
partners.
We're very excited BishopMolesik has been so welcoming of
this project to be here in thediocese.
We're partnered with the publiclibrary here, the main branch,
the Rock and Roll Hall of Fameand Archives, western Reserve
(08:09):
Historical Society, otherinstitutions that have like
missions as ours.
So we're really trying tocollaborate on multiple levels
with people.
So really excited about that.
And our location, being centralas we are, allows for east side
, west side anybody to come andvisit us very easily, right off
the freeway, close to theairport.
Speaker 1 (08:30):
As you talk to other women's religious about this,
what's their reactions been Like?
Has there been something that'sreally touched your heart?
When you talk to someone aboutthis and said, yeah, hey, we're
doing this whole project aboutour history, you know what came
up when you talked to them aboutthese things.
Speaker 3 (08:44):
Sisters are really excited.
I really believe that we'relooking for ways that we can
continue to expand our educationmission, and it's really about
how we can keep saying there'svalue to this life, there's
value to faith-driven service.
There's more to life than justmoney.
It's really about, like, how dowe serve the other, and
(09:04):
Catholic sisters have been verygood about balancing that piece,
and so I think the sisters seeit not just as a place for
storing our historical story,but the story continues to be
built today.
I mean, we're not goinganywhere.
It's just how do we lift thebushel basket and shed the light
.
I think is what we're trying todo in this facility.
(09:26):
So they're very excited, to thepoint where the sisters
themselves have leveraged a lotof their own financial resources
in order to make this buildinga reality.
Nice.
Speaker 1 (09:37):
And so, sari, I'm sure you're plotting out the
exhibit space now, and so what'sgoing to be included in the
exhibit space?
Speaker 4 (09:43):
you're plotting out the exhibit space now and so
what's going to be included inthe exhibit space.
So I think that you know,historically, sisters and their
contributions have been sort ofreally under-researched and been
hidden, as Sister Susan said.
So this will really be anopportunity for us to explore
some of those stories, so muchlike the Women in Spirit exhibit
that toured.
It'll be a chance to show, likethe different contributions
that women have had.
So and even like just very kindof things that might be kind of
(10:07):
considered mundane but likewhat it was like to live in a
convent, what it was like tolive in one of those huge
convents.
That was maybe like we had onegroup that said that they had a
mile of a hallway called fivemile highway hallway and so she
had a pair of roller skates thatshe would roller skate up and
down the hallway to get from oneend of the building to the
other, so she could do all ofher ministries.
(10:27):
And I just cannot wait for theroller skates to be on display.
Speaker 1 (10:30):
I was just going to say I hope you have the roller
skates.
Speaker 4 (10:33):
Well, the archivist was talking to me.
She's like they want to get ridof the roller skates I said, do
not get lot of wonderfulstories that are going to be
shared, and you know deepstories of faith and passionate
service that these women havecontributed.
Speaker 2 (10:49):
I was in New York City for my birthday.
I go every year and I love theCloisters which is an extension
of the Metropolitan Museum ofArt, and right up there I knew
it was there, but I'd nevervisited until this last time is
the Shrine of Mother Cabrini,and I'm wondering will there be
anything from Mother Cabrini orElizabeth Ann Seton, or will
(11:11):
there be any saint or a relicthat you know that might be part
of this collection?
Have you determined any of thatyet, or is that too far down
the line?
Speaker 4 (11:19):
A lot of congregations have a lot of
artifacts and things that theyare trying to figure out what to
do with.
So part of our mission is tohelp them tell their own story
in the geographic space wherethey are.
So, for instance, we havecollections that are coming from
South Dakota, so we want themto be able to tell the story of
the Sisters of the Presentationor the Benedictines in South
Dakota.
But we also want them to beable to tell their story in
(11:41):
Cleveland so that a researchercan come and say how did someone
provide health care on theprairie in the early days of the
United States and how does thatcompare to providing health
care in downtown Cleveland inthe same time period?
So kind of looking at all of thedifferent nuances of how
Sisters served as part of thatand really, truthfully speaking,
artifacts are a very small partof that story, but something
(12:03):
that will be part of our exhibitspace.
Speaker 2 (12:05):
Sister Jane Nesmith, who's a sister of the Blessed
Sacrament she directs the BlackCatholic Ministries office is a
spiritual daughter of StCatherine Drexel, and I know her
community did some downsizing.
They moved from where they wereand they moved Catherine's body
to the Cathedral ofPhiladelphia.
Now more people have access toit and I'm thinking there is a
(12:28):
buzz, although you say it'ssilent and quiet and a secret.
There's certainly interest inthis sort of thing.
Speaker 4 (12:33):
For sure, and I think that this is really an
opportunity to give somevisibility to these collections
that have never been seen before.
I mean, you really have to knowthat they exist in order to be
able to research them, and ifyou don't know they exist, then
the stories don't get told.
Speaker 1 (12:46):
Right, and so is there one thing that you found
out so far that maybe you didn'tknow, that you thought was like
this is really cool.
I've never heard this before.
Speaker 4 (12:53):
Stories like that all the time, and so I really think
that for me it's as anon-Catholic.
I had never really met a sisterbefore I had started working in
Catholic Sister Archives, sofor me the big surprise has
always been I kind of viewed itas being like a retreat from the
world.
But nothing could be furtherfrom the truth.
I mean, as a sister, you're outin the world constantly, you're
(13:14):
making connections, you'recollaborating, and I think that
the groups in Cleveland havedone that particularly well,
just opening their doorshospitably to immigrants and
other orders of sisters asthey've come to Cleveland.
It's really been a wonderfulstory.
Speaker 2 (13:28):
Sister, could you make the distinction, because
maybe some of our listenersdon't know it the distinction
between a sister and a nun,because those terms are used
interchangeably, but there'sactually a distinction to be
made.
Speaker 3 (13:37):
No, yes, it's based on the vows, and so those that
have the vow of stability,mostly like it, would be a
monastic or a cloisteredcommunity, they are known as
nuns.
For those that have a moreapostolic bent, then we are
coined as sisters, and thatreally is a Rome has, you know,
(13:59):
kind of made that distinguish,you know has distinguished that
term for us.
Speaker 2 (14:02):
So Ursulines, notre Dame, csjs, my incarnate word,
sisters.
We're all sisters and then,like the poor Claire's would be,
they're sisters, so-and-so, butthey're also nuns.
That's helpful and a lot ofpeople say, oh okay, that makes
sense.
Speaker 3 (14:16):
I just want to touch back a little bit too on what
Sarah said about Cleveland.
We really do have a uniquesituation here that most people
across the country do not have.
At one point in our history inCleveland there were 17
motherhouses here that's almostunheard of and then over time
(14:37):
there were about 28congregations in a period of
time when immigration was veryhigh back in the early days.
And then, as time went on, thestatistics really tell us that
there's over 100 congregationsthat have made some sort of
contribution just to theCleveland Diocese alone.
They might not have stayedthere may have been a couple of
sisters here that have done aspecific ministry but I think it
really tells a tale of how thesisters have such a great spirit
(15:01):
.
It doesn't matter if you're anUrsuline or a congregation of St
Joseph or a Poor Claire.
We all know each other, and sothere's a real camaraderie and a
way of wanting to work togetheron certain things that we all
want to see the betterment ofour society, but also like a
strengthening of our faith.
Speaker 1 (15:20):
Cool, nice.
So when is this all going tohappen?
Like, when are you hoping toopen up the doors?
Speaker 3 (15:27):
Well, we're hoping to open the doors.
If all proceeds according toplan, you know, and you always
wait on cities and permits we'rehoping that the facility itself
will open for us to beginworking in there in December of
2026.
It'll take, you know, about 15months for construction.
So if we can open in 2026, getthe collections in, get the
(15:50):
exhibit space up and running andthen we can start inviting the
public in and all permits go theway they you hope they go.
Right, but you know what?
I have thousands of sistersright now we do praying for this
effort, so I can't imagine that.
You know we're not going tostay on time and, of course,
under budget.
Speaker 2 (16:07):
Yeah, exactly.
I wonder if any sisters taughtat Trinity High School when
Mayor Bibb was there, because ifthey did, you could have one of
those sisters you know.
Call the mayor and say, hey,I'm praying for you.
Speaker 3 (16:17):
The Sisters of St Joseph.
Third Order of St Francis thatdid found Marymount, now Trinity
.
Third Order of St Francis thatdid found Marymount, now Trinity
.
They are partners in this sowe're very happy to have their
collection and they had acollection in Stevens Point,
wisconsin, and also here inCleveland, so they have a very
broad network that they have,you know, served over time,
(16:38):
which a lot of people don't know.
Speaker 1 (16:40):
Yeah, speaking of things that people don't know,
sister, what's one thing thatyou think everybody should know
about Catholic Sisters thatmaybe they don't, here in
Cleveland, I mean?
Speaker 3 (16:48):
I think Catholic Sisters have been involved in
almost every facet of our lifehere in our city, you know it's
either education, it's healthcare, it's the social service
agencies we run hospice care,elder care so so many people,
whether they're Catholic or not,have been touched by a Catholic
sister, and so I think thatthat contribution that sisters
(17:11):
do very quietly is somethingthat a lot of people aren't
always is aware of just thetotal amount of impact that
we've had over 175 years becauseCatholic sisters have been a
part of the diocese now for 175years.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
Can I tell mine Sure, when I was working, I
previously worked with theCongregation of St Joseph and
one of my jobs in their archiveswas cataloging the books, and
so as I was cataloging bookswritten by their sisters, I
found my phonics workbook that Iremembered from second grade
and it was written by one of thecongregation of St Joseph's
(17:46):
Sisters and it has like a greenplaid cover and I remember it
vividly from my school daysbecause it was one of the first
workbooks I ever had and, as anEnglish major, that made a big
impression.
I'll bet yeah.
Speaker 2 (17:57):
Now, sister, when you were speaking you mentioned
hospice and that made me thinkthat the foundress of the modern
hospice was actually RoseHawthorne, whose dad was
Nathaniel Hawthorne, the guy whowrote the Scarlet Letter.
And I know this because theHawthorne Dominican sisters used
to have a home here inCleveland, actually in Parma,
(18:18):
and I know that because my momspent the last year of her life
there and the care of thosesisters and the nun who took
care of my mother is still alive, sister Mary Kevin Clutterbuck,
op.
I think she's like 97 or 98,and she's retired happily in
Hawthorne, new York.
But yeah, I mean they do theirwork very well, quietly, without
much fanfare, but boy, theyhelped build this diocese and
(18:41):
make it what it is.
Speaker 3 (18:42):
So another thing to be proud of as a the other thing
that comes to my mind, too, isit's a former very successful
city leader here in Cleveland atone point had approached me and
said you know what I give tothe sisters because the sisters
(19:04):
taught me to read.
If I did not know how to read, Inever would have been the
success that I am today.
They were the formationalpeople in my life.
They were there.
His family had had somehardships early on, and so the
sisters were always the oneconstant in his life, and so
from that point on he said I oweeverything to the sisters.
And so I think that sentimentis out there for so many people
(19:28):
who have found their niche andfound their place in our world
and have continued to go on todo good things as a result of
their contact with so many ofthe sisters across the country.
Speaker 1 (19:38):
Where can we find you online?
Are there things to look atalready that you're putting up
online at this point?
We have a great website.
Speaker 3 (19:44):
We invite you to visit us.
So that's archives with an Scollaborativeorg, and we also
have a Facebook page, so pleasefollow us on facebook and
instagram, so we hope you'llfollow us on those as well.
Speaker 2 (19:57):
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Sister, I know you said thatyou go to church here in
Cleveland.
What parish do you attend?
Speaker 3 (22:06):
I attend Blessed Trinity Parish.
Speaker 1 (22:08):
And what's great about Blessed Trinity?
Speaker 3 (22:10):
Oh, it's a great group of people that are there.
It was a school that I taughtat when it was Ascension Parish,
and so it's.
It was the last school that Itaught at when I was an
elementary school teacher, soyou know, have warm feelings
about it.
Father Doug is a great pastorand then when I'm not going
there, I attend St Brendan'sbecause that's my.
That was the parish where Igrew up.
(22:30):
So Father Tom Wust, a great guyand just happy.
Speaker 1 (22:34):
That's where I did my second year of formation was at
St Brendan's in North Olmstead.
It's a great place.
Speaker 2 (22:39):
I remember St Brendan's has.
I think they have big beautifulwooden doors and there's like
Celtic designs in there.
Speaker 3 (22:45):
Yes, there are St Brendan the Navigator.
Speaker 2 (22:47):
And back in the day, when I was in the seminary and I
had Father Fortuna for myliturgy class, we did our Easter
vigil reenactment atAnnunciation Parish back in the
day.
So I remember being there.
It's been a while, but yeah,both great places.
Speaker 1 (23:05):
Nice, it's Palm Sunday.
Can you believe it?
I can.
Your beard makes it look likeit's Palm.
Speaker 2 (23:13):
Sunday it's feeling good, baby.
I'm glad I have it, becauseit's what 40 degrees out or 35
degrees out on opening day, yeahreally yeah, exactly.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
So let's take a look at the readings for this week.
At the procession with thepalms, I enjoyed reading this
today.
It said so.
Those who had been sent offfound everything just as he had
told them.
And as they were unty the colt,his owner said to them why are
you untying the colt?
And they answered the masterhas need of it.
So they brought it to Jesus,threw their cloaks over the colt
and helped Jesus to mount.
As he rode along, people werespreading their cloaks on the
(23:43):
road.
I just love picturing that, youknow, seeing him coming in, you
know, on a colt, as opposed toon some big, huge fancy horse.
He comes in on a donkey,basically, and shows sort of the
simplicity that he is adifferent kind of king than what
someone would expect to see.
Speaker 2 (24:03):
Any thoughts on the readings this weekend?
Speaker 3 (24:07):
I like this piece about when they're arguing
amongst themselves which canhappen in a communal setting
about who is greater, and it'sreally.
I am among you as the one whoserves, and I think that, for me
, is reflective of who we shouldbe and what Jesus is asking of
us.
It's really about how do we?
Our faith is about seeing thestranger, seeing that there are
(24:30):
no strangers, seeing the personbefore us that we're here, we're
meant to serve.
We're here to bring the kingdomof God here, right here and now
.
And it's not about fame, it'snot about wealth and I think
that for me, is a big part ofhow I see my vocation as a
Catholic sister but also whowe're meant to be.
Speaker 4 (24:50):
Nice.
Going along with that, I reallylike the line where it says
Jesus took his place at thetable with the apostles and that
kind of reminds me of ourproject, because we're asking
people to see themselves in thelives of the sisters, see how
the sisters serve them andreally reflect on what the role
of spirituality has been in youreveryday life and how you serve
(25:13):
your God or the people aroundyou and community.
Speaker 2 (25:17):
And we haven't mentioned it yet, but today is
April 8th.
It's the one year anniversaryof the solar eclipse Totality
three.
I love the eclipse so much.
Speaker 1 (25:29):
You cannot stop talking about this, no, I
already.
Speaker 2 (25:31):
I sent all my friends a text today with pictures from
it.
We've been going back and forth, but what I loved about the
eclipse so much was it was atheological day for me, because
it was totality, completeness.
And John 3, 16,.
God so loved the world that hegave us his only son not a part
or not most, but all of him.
And then Jesus, in theEucharist and on the cross,
(25:53):
gives this is my body, given foryou, not a little bit of it or
not most of it, but all of it.
And that so God's love for usis complete, emptying of self,
and what he wants back from usis the complete gift of ourself,
again in service and love andacts of charity and acts of
justice.
And so this is it Like the Lordgives us the model for how to
(26:14):
make ourselves a gift and thenwe return ourselves as a gift
back.
So you know, it comes back tothe eclipse often for me, it's
true, anyway or it comes back tocanonic love often, and the
eclipse reminded me of that.
Speaker 1 (26:26):
That's a better way of putting it Well, sister,
susan Durkin and Sarah Lubelski,thanks for your complete gift,
not only being here today, butthe gift that you're going to
give this entire diocese withthe gift of this Women Religious
Archives Collaborative that'scoming up soon.
Speaker 3 (26:39):
It's our privilege to be able to do this and just so
grateful for the invitation tojoin you today.
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (26:46):
Absolutely, thank you .
So we'll have this and a wholelot more next time here on
question of faith.
On today's Question of Faith.
What's up with Catholic Sisters?
Hi everybody, this is Questionof Faith.
I'm Deacon Mike Hayes.
I'm the Director of Young AdultMinistry here in the Diocese of
Cleveland.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
And I'm Fr Damian Ferenc, the Vicar for
Evangelization.
Speaker 3 (00:17):
And I'm Sr Susan Durkin, an Ursuline Sister of
Cleveland and Executive Directorof the Women Religious Archives
.
Speaker 4 (00:23):
Collaborative I'm Sarah Lubelski, the Lead
Archivist for the Women'sReligious Archives,
collaborative.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
So that's what's up with Catholic Sisters is.
There's this huge archivalproject that's going on.
I just think this is thecoolest thing ever, right.
Speaker 2 (00:37):
Yeah, tell us about it.
Yeah, what the heck is going onwith this archive?
Speaker 1 (00:40):
Yeah, what the heck is the Women's Religious
Archives.
Collaborative.
Speaker 3 (00:42):
Well, we're really excited to break ground here in
Cleveland sometime in May of2025.
To date, we have 41congregations across the United
States and Canada that want tobring their historical and
currently being made collectionshere to Cleveland in a space
that will not only be open forresearch but for dialogue, for
(01:05):
presentations, for an exhibit,so that future generations
current and future generationscan learn about the vocation of
Catholic Sisters but also thetremendous body of work that
Catholic Sisters have beenengaged in since they came to
the United States in 1727.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Now, Sarah, you're the archivist, so this is just a
basic question.
I wanted to ask you how doessomebody become an archivist?
Speaker 4 (01:31):
So I started with an English degree and, as you, know
you can do anything with anEnglish degree.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
Yes, you can.
Speaker 4 (01:37):
So after I got my undergraduate degree I went to
graduate school for libraries.
I had always had an interest inlibraries, ever since I was in
grade school.
I went to graduate school forlibraries.
I had always had an interest inlibraries ever since I was in
grade school.
I volunteered after schoolstamping the books and, you know
, up into college I wasinterested in history but a
terrible history student becauseI can't remember dates.
So this was a way to kind offind stories and tell stories
(02:00):
that maybe had never been toldbefore.
Speaker 1 (02:02):
Very nice, cool, all right.
So what are some of the typesof materials that are going to
be held at the archives?
Speaker 4 (02:10):
So we will have things in every single kind of
format you can imagine.
We'll have photographs, movingpictures, moving images, audio,
oral histories, any way you canrecord information.
We'll have that kind of formatrepresented in these collections
.
But mostly it will be paper,lots of paper documents.
You know people would write inold ledgers, and so we'll have
(02:30):
that right up until digitalfiles today.
Speaker 1 (02:33):
Right, and what are some stories that are going to
live there as well?
Speaker 4 (02:36):
So we have lots of stories of the foundings of
congregations what broughtsisters to America and to their
particular diocese that theyserved in.
Also the stories about theaddress, the needs that they
address through their ministries, and the individual stories of
sisters and the work that theydid, their contributions, nice.
Speaker 2 (02:52):
Sister, you said that you're going to break ground
soon.
Where is that particular groundand what is the structure going
to look like?
Speaker 3 (03:00):
Well, we're really excited because when we were
trying to find a space that wecould build this facility, all
of our partners said, we want toplace this in an area that
needs investment and also aplace where sisters have
traditionally served, and sowe're very excited that we were
able to purchase some propertyfrom the Sisters of Charity of
St Augustine, and so we will belocated down by the old St
(03:23):
Vincent Charity Hospital on thecorner of East 22nd and
Community College Avenue.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
Very cool.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
So it's really nice because we can make an
investment in that historiccentral neighborhood and be in a
place where the Sisters ofCharity of St Augustine have
served since 1865, which isreally exciting.
The building itself is going tobe a two-story facility, which
is really exciting.
The building itself is going tobe a two-story facility.
A portion of the building,which will be about 32,000
(03:52):
square feet, will have a vaultthat will be temperature and
humidification controlled forall of these documents that
Sarah referenced.
But the front part of thebuilding is really going to be
the public space.
We'll have a multi-purpose roomwhere people can come and hear
about the research and thesetremendous stories of the
sisters.
We'll have spaces forconferences, but the real jewel
in our facility is going to bean exhibit space.
So if anybody that's listeningwas at the Maltz Museum in 2010
(04:18):
for the Women in Spirit.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
I was there.
Speaker 3 (04:20):
Great for the Women in Spirit exhibition there.
It's going to be like that it'sgoing to reference the
contributions of sisters.
It's going to talk about thelife of sisters, the vows we
take, the different types ofreligious life, the ministries,
how we live together.
You know, it's going to reallybe almost a nice vocational
(04:41):
piece for future generations toreally learn about the value of
this life and how we connect ourfaith with our service.
Speaker 2 (04:49):
There was high quality production and
presentation.
There's something that youwould see at the Rock and Roll
Hall of Fame or the ClevelandInstitute or the Cleveland Art
Museum, and that's the kind ofthing that you're doing here.
Speaker 3 (05:01):
So, absolutely, we're really excited.
We're working with a localcommunications firm, impact, and
they are helping us to bringtogether this information in a
way that is relatable, that hasa lot of digital components to
it and that we can have somepermanent displays, but really
they'll be rotating displays too, based on different subject
area or things that come up,because we really want this to
(05:24):
be an education destination,particularly for school groups
to come in, young children,families, but also researchers,
high schoolers doing term papersor college students that are
doing certain work on adissertation or some sort of a
master's degree.
And then we also have the ideasaround preservation, historical
(05:47):
preservation, digitization, allof those things that will be a
draw for a very rigorous internprogram and just like some
robust conversations around howdo we look at this evolution,
that the problems continue.
You know that we face as asociety, but as a church, how
have we addressed those and howwill we continue to do that?
(06:08):
So this space of inspiration, Ithink, is clearly a need that
we have today in our society.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
Yeah, Sister, how did you get involved in this
project?
Is this something you wereasked to do?
Was this personal interest ofyours, or you know how did it
come to land on you to be theexecutive director of this, or
how did?
Speaker 3 (06:24):
it come to land on you to be the executive director
of this.
While I was congregationalleader for the Ursuline Sisters,
we had downsized and moved intoa new facility for our sisters.
In that process we had tofigure out what we were going to
do with our archives, whichcontain the artifacts of Dorothy
Kazel, one of the martyrs in ElSalvador in the 80s, and so
(06:45):
that's going to be a veryimportant story to continue to
tell.
So in that process I said youknow, what we have is a
temporary solution.
What is going to be a permanentsolution for this?
And so it began as just kind ofa local and a regional project.
But then the need became verymuch apparent to us, which is
when it expanded to go acrossthe United States, and so
(07:07):
there's high interest from thesisters themselves, variety of
congregations, sizecongregations, ministries that
people have done.
It's going to be a very uniquespace and the only independent
one being built in the UnitedStates right now.
Speaker 2 (07:20):
I love that.
Not only will this.
What are you calling it?
A center, or what are youcalling?
It A heritage center, aheritage center, is not only
going to be in the Diocese ofCleveland, but it's going to be
in the city proper.
As one who is a resident downhere, it's another reason to
visit the city, and I'm thinkingfor these grade schools visit
there in the morning and thenmaybe come down for noon mass at
the cathedral and have a veryCatholic day.
(07:42):
It could be cool.
Speaker 3 (07:47):
That's great.
See, that's what we're doing.
It's really about acollaborative project.
It isn't one congregation orone entity that owns it.
We're coming together in acollaborative way, which I
believe is another witness, andwe have several collaborative
partners.
We're very excited BishopMolesik has been so welcoming of
this project to be here in thediocese.
We're partnered with the publiclibrary here, the main branch,
the Rock and Roll Hall of Fameand Archives, western Reserve
(08:09):
Historical Society, otherinstitutions that have like
missions as ours.
So we're really trying tocollaborate on multiple levels
with people.
So really excited about that.
And our location, being centralas we are, allows for east side
, west side anybody to come andvisit us very easily, right off
the freeway, close to theairport.
Speaker 1 (08:30):
As you talk to other women's religious about this,
what's their reactions been Like?
Has there been something that'sreally touched your heart?
When you talk to someone aboutthis and said, yeah, hey, we're
doing this whole project aboutour history, you know what came
up when you talked to them aboutthese things.
Speaker 3 (08:44):
Sisters are really excited.
I really believe that we'relooking for ways that we can
continue to expand our educationmission, and it's really about
how we can keep saying there'svalue to this life, there's
value to faith-driven service.
There's more to life than justmoney.
It's really about, like, how dowe serve the other, and
(09:04):
Catholic sisters have been verygood about balancing that piece,
and so I think the sisters seeit not just as a place for
storing our historical story,but the story continues to be
built today.
I mean, we're not goinganywhere.
It's just how do we lift thebushel basket and shed the light
.
I think is what we're trying todo in this facility.
(09:26):
So they're very excited, to thepoint where the sisters
themselves have leveraged a lotof their own financial resources
in order to make this buildinga reality.
Nice.
Speaker 1 (09:37):
And so, sari, I'm sure you're plotting out the
exhibit space now, and so what'sgoing to be included in the
exhibit space?
Speaker 4 (09:43):
you're plotting out the exhibit space now and so
what's going to be included inthe exhibit space.
So I think that you know,historically, sisters and their
contributions have been sort ofreally under-researched and been
hidden, as Sister Susan said.
So this will really be anopportunity for us to explore
some of those stories, so muchlike the Women in Spirit exhibit
that toured.
It'll be a chance to show, likethe different contributions
that women have had.
So and even like just very kindof things that might be kind of
(10:07):
considered mundane but likewhat it was like to live in a
convent, what it was like tolive in one of those huge
convents.
That was maybe like we had onegroup that said that they had a
mile of a hallway called fivemile highway hallway and so she
had a pair of roller skates thatshe would roller skate up and
down the hallway to get from oneend of the building to the
other, so she could do all ofher ministries.
(10:27):
And I just cannot wait for theroller skates to be on display.
Speaker 1 (10:30):
I was just going to say I hope you have the roller
skates.
Speaker 4 (10:33):
Well, the archivist was talking to me.
She's like they want to get ridof the roller skates I said, do
not get lot of wonderfulstories that are going to be
shared, and you know deepstories of faith and passionate
service that these women havecontributed.
Speaker 2 (10:49):
I was in New York City for my birthday.
I go every year and I love theCloisters which is an extension
of the Metropolitan Museum ofArt, and right up there I knew
it was there, but I'd nevervisited until this last time is
the Shrine of Mother Cabrini,and I'm wondering will there be
anything from Mother Cabrini orElizabeth Ann Seton, or will
(11:11):
there be any saint or a relicthat you know that might be part
of this collection?
Have you determined any of thatyet, or is that too far down
the line?
Speaker 4 (11:19):
A lot of congregations have a lot of
artifacts and things that theyare trying to figure out what to
do with.
So part of our mission is tohelp them tell their own story
in the geographic space wherethey are.
So, for instance, we havecollections that are coming from
South Dakota, so we want themto be able to tell the story of
the Sisters of the Presentationor the Benedictines in South
Dakota.
But we also want them to beable to tell their story in
(11:41):
Cleveland so that a researchercan come and say how did someone
provide health care on theprairie in the early days of the
United States and how does thatcompare to providing health
care in downtown Cleveland inthe same time period?
So kind of looking at all of thedifferent nuances of how
Sisters served as part of thatand really, truthfully speaking,
artifacts are a very small partof that story, but something
(12:03):
that will be part of our exhibitspace.
Speaker 2 (12:05):
Sister Jane Nesmith, who's a sister of the Blessed
Sacrament she directs the BlackCatholic Ministries office is a
spiritual daughter of StCatherine Drexel, and I know her
community did some downsizing.
They moved from where they wereand they moved Catherine's body
to the Cathedral ofPhiladelphia.
Now more people have access toit and I'm thinking there is a
(12:28):
buzz, although you say it'ssilent and quiet and a secret.
There's certainly interest inthis sort of thing.
Speaker 4 (12:33):
For sure, and I think that this is really an
opportunity to give somevisibility to these collections
that have never been seen before.
I mean, you really have to knowthat they exist in order to be
able to research them, and ifyou don't know they exist, then
the stories don't get told.
Speaker 1 (12:46):
Right, and so is there one thing that you found
out so far that maybe you didn'tknow, that you thought was like
this is really cool.
I've never heard this before.
Speaker 4 (12:53):
Stories like that all the time, and so I really think
that for me it's as anon-Catholic.
I had never really met a sisterbefore I had started working in
Catholic Sister Archives, sofor me the big surprise has
always been I kind of viewed itas being like a retreat from the
world.
But nothing could be furtherfrom the truth.
I mean, as a sister, you're outin the world constantly, you're
(13:14):
making connections, you'recollaborating, and I think that
the groups in Cleveland havedone that particularly well,
just opening their doorshospitably to immigrants and
other orders of sisters asthey've come to Cleveland.
It's really been a wonderfulstory.
Speaker 2 (13:28):
Sister, could you make the distinction, because
maybe some of our listenersdon't know it the distinction
between a sister and a nun,because those terms are used
interchangeably, but there'sactually a distinction to be
made.
Speaker 3 (13:37):
No, yes, it's based on the vows, and so those that
have the vow of stability,mostly like it, would be a
monastic or a cloisteredcommunity, they are known as
nuns.
For those that have a moreapostolic bent, then we are
coined as sisters, and thatreally is a Rome has, you know,
(13:59):
kind of made that distinguish,you know has distinguished that
term for us.
Speaker 2 (14:02):
So Ursulines, notre Dame, csjs, my incarnate word,
sisters.
We're all sisters and then,like the poor Claire's would be,
they're sisters, so-and-so, butthey're also nuns.
That's helpful and a lot ofpeople say, oh okay, that makes
sense.
Speaker 3 (14:16):
I just want to touch back a little bit too on what
Sarah said about Cleveland.
We really do have a uniquesituation here that most people
across the country do not have.
At one point in our history inCleveland there were 17
motherhouses here that's almostunheard of and then over time
(14:37):
there were about 28congregations in a period of
time when immigration was veryhigh back in the early days.
And then, as time went on, thestatistics really tell us that
there's over 100 congregationsthat have made some sort of
contribution just to theCleveland Diocese alone.
They might not have stayedthere may have been a couple of
sisters here that have done aspecific ministry but I think it
really tells a tale of how thesisters have such a great spirit
(15:01):
.
It doesn't matter if you're anUrsuline or a congregation of St
Joseph or a Poor Claire.
We all know each other, and sothere's a real camaraderie and a
way of wanting to work togetheron certain things that we all
want to see the betterment ofour society, but also like a
strengthening of our faith.
Speaker 1 (15:20):
Cool, nice.
So when is this all going tohappen?
Like, when are you hoping toopen up the doors?
Speaker 3 (15:27):
Well, we're hoping to open the doors.
If all proceeds according toplan, you know, and you always
wait on cities and permits we'rehoping that the facility itself
will open for us to beginworking in there in December of
2026.
It'll take, you know, about 15months for construction.
So if we can open in 2026, getthe collections in, get the
(15:50):
exhibit space up and running andthen we can start inviting the
public in and all permits go theway they you hope they go.
Right, but you know what?
I have thousands of sistersright now we do praying for this
effort, so I can't imagine that.
You know we're not going tostay on time and, of course,
under budget.
Speaker 2 (16:07):
Yeah, exactly.
I wonder if any sisters taughtat Trinity High School when
Mayor Bibb was there, because ifthey did, you could have one of
those sisters you know.
Call the mayor and say, hey,I'm praying for you.
Speaker 3 (16:17):
The Sisters of St Joseph.
Third Order of St Francis thatdid found Marymount, now Trinity
.
Third Order of St Francis thatdid found Marymount, now Trinity
.
They are partners in this sowe're very happy to have their
collection and they had acollection in Stevens Point,
wisconsin, and also here inCleveland, so they have a very
broad network that they have,you know, served over time,
(16:38):
which a lot of people don't know.
Speaker 1 (16:40):
Yeah, speaking of things that people don't know,
sister, what's one thing thatyou think everybody should know
about Catholic Sisters thatmaybe they don't, here in
Cleveland, I mean?
Speaker 3 (16:48):
I think Catholic Sisters have been involved in
almost every facet of our lifehere in our city, you know it's
either education, it's healthcare, it's the social service
agencies we run hospice care,elder care so so many people,
whether they're Catholic or not,have been touched by a Catholic
sister, and so I think thatthat contribution that sisters
(17:11):
do very quietly is somethingthat a lot of people aren't
always is aware of just thetotal amount of impact that
we've had over 175 years becauseCatholic sisters have been a
part of the diocese now for 175years.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
Can I tell mine Sure, when I was working, I
previously worked with theCongregation of St Joseph and
one of my jobs in their archiveswas cataloging the books, and
so as I was cataloging bookswritten by their sisters, I
found my phonics workbook that Iremembered from second grade
and it was written by one of thecongregation of St Joseph's
(17:46):
Sisters and it has like a greenplaid cover and I remember it
vividly from my school daysbecause it was one of the first
workbooks I ever had and, as anEnglish major, that made a big
impression.
I'll bet yeah.
Speaker 2 (17:57):
Now, sister, when you were speaking you mentioned
hospice and that made me thinkthat the foundress of the modern
hospice was actually RoseHawthorne, whose dad was
Nathaniel Hawthorne, the guy whowrote the Scarlet Letter.
And I know this because theHawthorne Dominican sisters used
to have a home here inCleveland, actually in Parma,
(18:18):
and I know that because my momspent the last year of her life
there and the care of thosesisters and the nun who took
care of my mother is still alive, sister Mary Kevin Clutterbuck,
op.
I think she's like 97 or 98,and she's retired happily in
Hawthorne, new York.
But yeah, I mean they do theirwork very well, quietly, without
much fanfare, but boy, theyhelped build this diocese and
(18:41):
make it what it is.
Speaker 3 (18:42):
So another thing to be proud of as a the other thing
that comes to my mind, too, isit's a former very successful
city leader here in Cleveland atone point had approached me and
said you know what I give tothe sisters because the sisters
(19:04):
taught me to read.
If I did not know how to read, Inever would have been the
success that I am today.
They were the formationalpeople in my life.
They were there.
His family had had somehardships early on, and so the
sisters were always the oneconstant in his life, and so
from that point on he said I oweeverything to the sisters.
And so I think that sentimentis out there for so many people
(19:28):
who have found their niche andfound their place in our world
and have continued to go on todo good things as a result of
their contact with so many ofthe sisters across the country.
Speaker 1 (19:38):
Where can we find you online?
Are there things to look atalready that you're putting up
online at this point?
We have a great website.
Speaker 3 (19:44):
We invite you to visit us.
So that's archives with an Scollaborativeorg, and we also
have a Facebook page, so pleasefollow us on facebook and
instagram, so we hope you'llfollow us on those as well.
Speaker 2 (19:57):
awesome well, I was just thinking, talking about
websites father, confession'sgood for the soul.
Speaker 1 (20:03):
So you know, put your stole on for a second.
So last week on this program Iwas remiss in putting our
scripts out for our sponsor,briefcase marketing.
So the good news here is Italked to our buddy Dan first,
told him that we'd give him amake good one week past his
contract and then he renewed hiscontract for the rest of the
year.
So that's how good of a guy Danfirst is at Briefcase Marketing
(20:25):
.
Do you folks know aboutBriefcase Marketing at all?
Speaker 3 (20:28):
I don't, but I'm really excited to hear about
them.
Speaker 1 (20:30):
Yeah, so what they'll do is they'll make sure that
your website doesn't have likescattered messaging or you know,
look old, or anything like that.
Speaker 2 (20:40):
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church or church-based ministrythat inspires action and
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Speaker 1 (20:47):
They will clarify your message to attract the
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They'll streamline your websiteto convert visitors into
customers, donors, volunteers,parishioners, whatever you need.
They'll create consistency tobuild trust and deepen
relationships across everymarketing platform that's your
email, your ads, your socialmedia as well.
Speaker 2 (21:02):
And Sister and Sarah, you may say well, I don't
believe you two.
Well, if you need proof,Briefcase Marketing gets great
Google reviews.
They've done superb work withour friends at Theology of the
Body, Cleveland and St JohnCancius Parish in Tremont, and
we'll even put samples of thatwork in our show notes to make
it easier for you to check themout, and he just did Womankind's
website.
(21:24):
Yeah, and it looks amazing.
Speaker 1 (21:26):
I was just looking at it this morning, so I'll put
that up there as well.
Excellent, With a clear messageand a compelling website.
Briefcase marketing will helpyou get more donors giving you
your mission, more volunteersready to serve, more people
sharing your message and beingan advocate for you.
Speaker 2 (21:39):
So visit their website.
That's briefcasemarketing.
We've got their link in theshow notes or text 308-627-1262.
And our pal, our very mercifulpal, Dan Furst, will take good
care of you at BriefcaseMarketing.
Speaker 1 (21:56):
Dan is not an idiot, but I am.
So there we go.
Sister, I know you said thatyou go to church here in
Cleveland.
What parish do you attend?
Speaker 3 (22:06):
I attend Blessed Trinity Parish.
Speaker 1 (22:08):
And what's great about Blessed Trinity?
Speaker 3 (22:10):
Oh, it's a great group of people that are there.
It was a school that I taughtat when it was Ascension Parish,
and so it's.
It was the last school that Itaught at when I was an
elementary school teacher, soyou know, have warm feelings
about it.
Father Doug is a great pastorand then when I'm not going
there, I attend St Brendan'sbecause that's my.
That was the parish where Igrew up.
(22:30):
So Father Tom Wust, a great guyand just happy.
Speaker 1 (22:34):
That's where I did my second year of formation was at
St Brendan's in North Olmstead.
It's a great place.
Speaker 2 (22:39):
I remember St Brendan's has.
I think they have big beautifulwooden doors and there's like
Celtic designs in there.
Speaker 3 (22:45):
Yes, there are St Brendan the Navigator.
Speaker 2 (22:47):
And back in the day, when I was in the seminary and I
had Father Fortuna for myliturgy class, we did our Easter
vigil reenactment atAnnunciation Parish back in the
day.
So I remember being there.
It's been a while, but yeah,both great places.
Speaker 1 (23:05):
Nice, it's Palm Sunday.
Can you believe it?
I can.
Your beard makes it look likeit's Palm.
Speaker 2 (23:13):
Sunday it's feeling good, baby.
I'm glad I have it, becauseit's what 40 degrees out or 35
degrees out on opening day, yeahreally yeah, exactly.
Speaker 1 (23:21):
So let's take a look at the readings for this week.
At the procession with thepalms, I enjoyed reading this
today.
It said so.
Those who had been sent offfound everything just as he had
told them.
And as they were unty the colt,his owner said to them why are
you untying the colt?
And they answered the masterhas need of it.
So they brought it to Jesus,threw their cloaks over the colt
and helped Jesus to mount.
As he rode along, people werespreading their cloaks on the
(23:43):
road.
I just love picturing that, youknow, seeing him coming in, you
know, on a colt, as opposed toon some big, huge fancy horse.
He comes in on a donkey,basically, and shows sort of the
simplicity that he is adifferent kind of king than what
someone would expect to see.
Speaker 2 (24:03):
Any thoughts on the readings this weekend?
Speaker 3 (24:07):
I like this piece about when they're arguing
amongst themselves which canhappen in a communal setting
about who is greater, and it'sreally.
I am among you as the one whoserves, and I think that, for me
, is reflective of who we shouldbe and what Jesus is asking of
us.
It's really about how do we?
Our faith is about seeing thestranger, seeing that there are
(24:30):
no strangers, seeing the personbefore us that we're here, we're
meant to serve.
We're here to bring the kingdomof God here, right here and now
.
And it's not about fame, it'snot about wealth and I think
that for me, is a big part ofhow I see my vocation as a
Catholic sister but also whowe're meant to be.
Speaker 4 (24:50):
Nice.
Going along with that, I reallylike the line where it says
Jesus took his place at thetable with the apostles and that
kind of reminds me of ourproject, because we're asking
people to see themselves in thelives of the sisters, see how
the sisters serve them andreally reflect on what the role
of spirituality has been in youreveryday life and how you serve
(25:13):
your God or the people aroundyou and community.
Speaker 2 (25:17):
And we haven't mentioned it yet, but today is
April 8th.
It's the one year anniversaryof the solar eclipse Totality
three.
I love the eclipse so much.
Speaker 1 (25:29):
You cannot stop talking about this, no, I
already.
Speaker 2 (25:31):
I sent all my friends a text today with pictures from
it.
We've been going back and forth, but what I loved about the
eclipse so much was it was atheological day for me, because
it was totality, completeness.
And John 3, 16,.
God so loved the world that hegave us his only son not a part
or not most, but all of him.
And then Jesus, in theEucharist and on the cross,
(25:53):
gives this is my body, given foryou, not a little bit of it or
not most of it, but all of it.
And that so God's love for usis complete, emptying of self,
and what he wants back from usis the complete gift of ourself,
again in service and love andacts of charity and acts of
justice.
And so this is it Like the Lordgives us the model for how to
(26:14):
make ourselves a gift and thenwe return ourselves as a gift
back.
So you know, it comes back tothe eclipse often for me, it's
true, anyway or it comes back tocanonic love often, and the
eclipse reminded me of that.
Speaker 1 (26:26):
That's a better way of putting it Well, sister,
susan Durkin and Sarah Lubelski,thanks for your complete gift,
not only being here today, butthe gift that you're going to
give this entire diocese withthe gift of this Women Religious
Archives Collaborative that'scoming up soon.
Speaker 3 (26:39):
It's our privilege to be able to do this and just so
grateful for the invitation tojoin you today.
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (26:46):
Absolutely, thank you .
So we'll have this and a wholelot more next time here on
question of faith.
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