Sisters of Providence celebrate legacy of St. Theodora Guérin

Photo caption: Father Bernard Head, left, former chaplain of the Sisters of Providence, processes into the Church of the Immaculate Conception with Father Daniel Hopcus, chaplain of the congregation, and Providence Sister Denise Wilkinson, general superior, on Oct. 22 for the celebration of Foundation Day and the canonization of St. Theodora Guérin.

By Mary Ann Wyand

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SAINT MARY-OF-THE-WOODS—“We must live like saints.”

That spiritual advice from St. Theodora Guérin, the foundress of the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, was artistically displayed on a banner in the Church of the Immaculate Conception on Oct. 22 as a reminder to people to strive for holiness in daily life. (See more photos from this event)

Providence Sister Denise Wilkinson, general superior, echoed St. Theodora’s words in a reflection during the congregation’s celebration of their Foundation Day on Oct. 22 and the canonization of their foundress by Pope Benedict XVI on Oct. 15 in Rome.

Mother Theodore and five other Sisters of Providence began the local congregation’s history 166 years ago, Sister Denise explained, after enduring three months of arduous travel from France to Indiana.

“Succeeding generations of Sisters of Providence have found enough good to do across the United States, in South America, Taiwan and China, and so followed in the footsteps of our foremothers,” she said. “It is this spirit—this legacy—we have celebrated each Oct. 22, our Foundation Day, since 1840.”

This year, she said, the Sisters of Providence “add a new, rich and complex pattern to our history as a congregation—the experience of the institutional Church’s official recognition of our foundress as a saint of God.”

During the weeks before the canonization Mass at the Vatican, Sister Denise said she was often asked what Mother Theodore’s sainthood means to the people of Wabash Valley, the citizens of Indiana, non-Catholics, former students, friends of the sisters and members of the women’s religious order.

“They’re good questions and deserve thoughtful conversation among all of us,” she said. “… I’d suggest you read or re-read Mother Theodore’s story. Ponder her observations about life, Providence, education, creation, women, the family, justice, prayer, the Church [and] ministry.

“Then let’s find ways to talk with one another, not only about this remarkable woman, but about our hopes and aspirations and deep-seated convictions about issues important to her,” she said. “Let our conversations be marked by respect for one another, a desire to be in community with one another.”

Sister Denise said when Gov. Mitch Daniels dedicated a portion of Highway 150 as “St. Mother Theodore Guérin Memorial Highway” on Oct. 10, he told her, “ ‘As you know, I have Mother Theodore’s portrait hanging in my office. We converse with each other frequently—usually in the evening at the end of my day. I need to tell you that it is impossible to knowingly do anything wrong with her looking over my shoulder.’ ”

Challenging her sisters, the general superior asked them, “Will our love of God, love of one another and life of service with others look like that of Mother Theodore? … What, sisters, must we say and do so that others see in us her unshakable trust in the Providence that never fails? … Will we, as a congregation, so respect her deepest hopes for us that we do ‘lean with all our weight on Providence,’ and thus abandon ourselves totally to the demanding and loving mission of the God of Providence?”

The assembly in the packed church responded to Sister Denise’s remarks with a standing ovation, and some of the sisters wiped away tears.

Before the liturgy, Providence Sister Marie Kevin Tighe, the congregation’s promoter of St. Theodore’s cause, said returning home to Saint Mary-of-the-Woods after participating in the canonization felt like walking on holy ground.

“I really believe that this place is a sacred place,” Sister Marie Kevin said, “and made sacred by the wonderful work and the spirit of … St. Mother Theodore.”

For many years, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods has been the home of the National Shrine of Our Lady of Providence, she said, and now the motherhouse is also the shrine of St. Theodora.

“I hope that more and more people will discover the life and the spirit of St. Mother Theodore Guérin,” Sister Marie Kevin said, “and that other young women will have the same courage that she had in leaving her country, her home, her native land [and] her language to come to the wilds of Indiana to establish a congregation and a school.

“I hope that many people will come here to deepen their own prayer life,” she said, “and their own understanding of their call from God—their relationship to God—and that God is calling all of us to sainthood.”

Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College is the oldest Catholic liberal arts college for women in the United States, she said. “We have a long tradition of education, beginning with our foundress, St. Mother Theodore, who was decorated by the French government … in France for her work in education there, and she brought that gift to America.”

Father Daniel Hopcus, chaplain of the congregation, celebrated the eucharistic liturgy and Father Bernard Head, a retired archdiocesan priest who formerly served as chaplain for the sisters, was the concelebrant.

After the Mass, Father Head said he feels a lot of gratitude for the years he served in ministry with the Sisters of Providence.

“This [canonization] is just the culmination of the wonderful gifts that they all have,” he said. “I feel very privileged to have been assigned here and to have worked with them for over 20 years.”

St. Theodora placed her trust in God’s loving Providence, Father Head said, which sustained her throughout her life and led to her canonization.

“Providence was her whole life,” he said. “I think that people who need to be enriched spiritually, if they can turn themselves over to God like she did, that’s a great lift for them and a great direction for their lives.”

Our Lady of Providence also “plays a great role in the lives of all the sisters along with St. Mother Theodore,” Father Head said. “I think Mary’s trust in God, in her Son, is a pattern by which the sisters have tried to live. … They’re very lucky to have two great [spiritual] models like that.” †