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July 2, 2020Most parish summer programs for youth this year have been cancelled or reduced due to COVID-19. This was not the case for a group of 10 girls from Saint Mary Catholic Church in Guthrie and two girls from Saint Monica Catholic Church in Edmond who made a pilgrimage to the Immaculate Heart of Mary Convent in Wichita, Kan.
The purpose of the trip was so the girls could encounter the life of consecrated religious as they are discerning their vocational calling. For a young Catholic teenager, the most important thing they can do besides seeking to always remain in the friendship of the Lord, is to discern what God has made them for in this world. For a Catholic, the three vocations are marriage, priesthood and consecrated life.
The Sisters of the Immaculate Heart of Mary are a beautiful order of women religious who have consecrated themselves to the Lord Jesus Christ through vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. They number 29 sisters and teach in Catholic schools. These beautiful consecrated religious uphold the Church by their prayers and by their teaching apostolate.
Sadly, since the 1960s, many of the once-great religious orders have had their charisms diluted or even abandoned. But, many religious orders in the United States are still growing and are youthful. The Immaculate Heart of Mary Sisters are one of these orders, humbly continuing their spiritual work in this world by remaining faithful to their order’s charism of teaching religious faith to our nation’s youth.
Consecrated religious life still has much to offer our ailing world, and for those young women who have been made by God for this life, this is how they will give glory to God and in their own way build up the Kingdom of Christ the King on this earth.
Father Wickersham is pastor of Saint Mary Catholic Church in Guthrie.
