Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and her new world

At the end of Mother Theodore Guerin’s first journal, she writes about her new mission:

“It is astonishing that this remote solitude has been chosen for a novitiate and especially for an academy. All appearances are against it. I have given my opinion frankly to the Bishop, to Father Buteux, and, in fine, to all who have any interest in the success of our work. All have given reasons that are not entirely satisfactory; yet I dare not disregard them. The spirit of this country is so different from ours that one ought to be acquainted with it before condemning those who know more about it than we do; so I await the issue before passing judgment in a positive manner.”

To learn more about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, click here.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and sabots

Mother Theodore Guerin and her sister-companions were used to wearing wooden shoes or sabots when working outside. She writes about missing her sabots:

“Just now we are suffering from the want of sabots. It seems to me that if I only had the tools I could make a pair for each one of us. We shall not be able to go outside without sinking deep in the mud, except when it freezes.”

To learn more about sabots, click here.

Reflecting on becoming a Providence Associate

During this Holy Week, you might want to take some time to reflect on seeking a deeper understanding and awareness of how Providence works in your life. Perhaps becoming a Providence Associate might help you in this quest.

If you are interested in becoming a Providence Associate, please click here.

To learn more about Providence Associates, click here.

Week six Lenten reflection

Sister Joan Coultas, CDP, writes in her Lenten reflection, “While the God of Providence does not intervene in stopping natural disasters, the pulse of a Savior beats throughout the universe, especially during hard times. As Providence people, we then are called to bring order out of chaos.”

To read her entire reflection, click here.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and the church

After receiving the Blessed Sacrament upon her arrival at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Mother Theodore Guerin examined the church a little more closely. This is what she writes about it:

“No tabernacle, no altar, for can the name of altar be given to three planks forming a table forty inches long, supported by two stakes driven into the ground? — that is all, for there are no altar cards, no stand for the missal, in fine, nothing but what I have mentioned. A cotton cloth is spread over these planks; there is a small altar stone; and now you have the whole altar. Except at the time of Mass, the pyx, the chalice, and the rest are covered with a dark blue calico which seems to have been used as a bedspread by the good country people.”

To view some of the early sacred vessels used by the Congregation, click here.

Picture of the Week: March 26

Sister Jenny Howard, vocation director, shares a quote from Saint Mother Theodore Guerin with attendees at the Los Angeles Religious Ed Congress March 18-21 in Anaheim, Calif. Thirty-eight thousand attendees were predicated and the Sisters of Providence had a well-visited booth at the event.

Click here for other events that you can find the Sisters of Providence.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and the Blessed Sacrament

Once Mother Theodore Guerin and her sister-companions were safely on land at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Ind., the sisters wanted to visit the Blessed Sacrament. The following is what Mother Theodore writes about this experience:

“We had agreed among ourselves that our first visit would be made to the Blessed Sacrament, and that we would not speak to anyone before having satisfied this longing of our hearts. The priest preceded us and we followed in silence to the church. The Church! I send you the picture!! Yes, dear friends, that is the dwelling of the God of the Universe, in comparison with which the stables wherein you shelter your cattle are palaces!”

To learn more about where the first Mass at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods was offered, click here.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and fear

The short journey from Terre Haute to Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Ind., took forever as Mother Theodore and her sister-companions were forced to wait several hours for a ferry to cross the Wabash River. Once across the Wabash, Mother Theodore and her traveling companions faced a dangerous stagecoach ride. Mother Theodore writes:

“I may say, however, that I was not at all alarmed. When one has nothing more to lose, the heart is inaccessible to fear. The water poured in on us. We thought we were surely gone this time; but the driver without losing his American coolness managed the horses so dexterously as to set the carriage up again.”

To learn more about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, click here.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and Terre Haute

Arriving in Terre Haute, Ind., the afternoon of Oct. 21, 1840, Mother Theodore Guerin and her sister-companions spent the night in the city. She writes about Terre Haute:

“Like all American cities it [Terre Haute] is laid out on a large scale; in some places the houses are a gunshot from each other. We passed the night there in a hotel, and the next day heard Mass in a small Catholic church [St. Joseph’s] which has just been built. It is quite good for this country.”

To learn more about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, click here.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and smoking

Traveling by stagecoach from Vincennes to Terre Haute, Ind., was another arduous and dangerous leg of Mother Theodore Guerin’s journey to Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Ind. Rain made matters even worse. When the stagecoach overturned and the driver was unable to upright the vehicle, assistance was sought from a man who lived in nearby cabin. Mother Theodore and her sister-companions stayed with the woman of the house as the men turned their attention to the stagecoach. Mother Theodore writes:

“The man of the house was so kind as to go and help our driver, and we were left to groan at our ease and to warm ourselves in this narrow abode. The woman, about sixty years of age, asked us who we were. As we could not answer except in French, she continued quietly smoking her pipe. (Smoking seems customary among the women in this part of the country; even young girls smoke; this seems very strange.)”

To learn more about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, click here.

Have a listen! Our Lady of Providence

We've been recording some Sisters of Providence here at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods singing hymns as a gift for some sisters in other parts of the world. I thought I'd share this little gem, "Our Lady of Providence," with music by Sister Cecelia Clare Bocard (RIP).

(If the player below doesn't work, you can find the song on this page about Our Lady of Providence, too.)

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and Vincennes

Mother Theodore Guerin and her sister-companions stayed with the Sisters of Charity while in Vincennes, Ind. She writes about Vincennes:

“At Vincennes, especially, one might think she was in Noah’s ark. The confused noise is deafening. The two pianos that the Sisters [of Charity] have for twelve pupils, and which are going from the beginning of the day to tend, add to the confusion. … Well, such is the village of Vincennes.”

To learn more about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, click here.

Week five Lenten reflection

At the Last Supper, Sister Ellen Rufft, CDP, writes that Jesus forever changed the model of Lord and servants between himself and the disciples to one of friends. Sister Ellen’s hope for the Church is much the same.

She writes: “It is understandable, therefore, that women religious pray for the time when similar efforts to imitate Jesus’ paradigm of communion will characterize the actions of the hierarchy of our Church.”

To read her entire reflection, click here.

Picture of the Week: March 19

Sister Edwardine McNulty chats with Emma Campbell, a Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College freshman who stops by regularly. For more information about opportunities like this, visit the Sisters of Providence Volunteer Services page.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and corduroy roads

Mother Theodore Guerin and her sister-companions traveled by stagecoach from Evansville to Vincennes, Ind. She writes about this uncomfortable trip:

“ … we entered a thick forest where we saw the most singular kind of road that could be imagined. It was formed of logs, of trees that had been felled to clear the way and then were brought together as though to form a raft [corduroy]. Where some of these logs had become rotten, there were large holes. The coach jolted so terribly as to cause large bumps on one’s head. This day, indeed, we danced without a fiddle all afternoon.”

To learn more about travel in the 1840s, click here.

Desire a deeper Providence relationship?

Do you want to know more about Providence spirituality? Would you like to deepen your spiritual life? Then perhaps becoming a Providence Associate is for you!

The application process for the 2010-2011 year is now open. It will remain open until June 30, 2010. Click here to learn more about the application process or to ask for an application.

To learn more about Providence Associates, click here.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and the Ohio River

On Oct. 4, 1840, Mother Theodore Guerin and her sister-companions saw the Ohio River for the last time. Mother Theodore reflects upon this:

“Nothing troubled the charm and silence of this solitude. Making the most serious reflections on what we beheld, and on our present position, I said to myself: Thus does life also pass away, now calm, now agitated, but at last the end is attained.”

To learn more about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, click here.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and mosquitoes

In Cincinnati, Mother Theodore Guerin and her companion-sisters found a blood-thirsty mob. She humorously writes:

“We were far from supposing that, in the midst of the city where we had been so well received, we were to find a multitude of enemies athirst for the blood of the French. Until then we had not fought unto the shedding of blood, but this was a night of slaughter. I may say without boasting too much that several of my enemies perished by my hands, but I was sorely wounded. All my Sisters, except Sister Basilide, bore the glorious scars which proved that they, too, had undergone a bloody battle with the mosquitoes.”

Abraham Lincoln, when he fought in the Black Hawk War, had a very similar account of these vicious bloodsuckers! Click here to read Lincoln’s story.

Tweeting from L.A. RECongress

The Sisters of Providence will be at the 2010 Los Angeles Religious Education Congress March 18-21 in Anaheim Convention Center. This is the largest annual gathering for religious educators in the world and is an important conference for us as exhibitors. Through this conference, we reach educators across the United States with information on vocations, Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, our ministries and more. If you are in the area, come visit us at booth #466.

If you are not in the area, follow us @spsmw on Twitter for regular RECongress updates from Diane Weidenbenner, our director of marketing and communications, who is also a Providence Associate. Twitter followers attending RECongress can also follow general conference updates at #REC2010.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and steamboats

As Mother Theodore Guerin and her sister-companions traveled down the Ohio River in a steamboat, they saw another America — a more rural area. While they saw much beauty on the river, they also saw the dangers of steam. Mother Theodore writes:

“We passed the skeletons of several steamboats, foundered, burned, wrecked. The sight seemed to make no impression on the Americans. They are so accustomed to such accidents that the papers scarcely mention them. It is surprising that a single boat escapes when the river is low, for when a boat is grounded, so much steam is put on to release it that the danger is great.”

To learn more about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, click here.

Glimpses of Mother Theodore

Théodore 's, originally uploaded by Jean Michel Daoudal.

It's always a joy what you can find on the internet. This lovely photo of Saint Mother Theodore Guerin's childhood home in Etables-sur-Mer, France, comes to us from Jean Michel Daoudal, a contact of ours of Flickr. See a slideshow of some more of his images here.

Incidentally, check out the Sisters of Providence on Flickr. If you're a Flickr user, add us as a contact!

Week four Lenten reflections

“Excessive consumption is bringing our planet to the brink of destruction. …” Sister Mary Horgan, SP, in her Women of Providence in Collaboration (WPC) Lenten reflection addresses this issue. She suggests, “Perhaps during Lent we Providence persons may set aside time to reflect on our awesome responsibility from a spiritual vantage point, a deep love of this beautiful Earth entrusted to our care by our loving Creator.” Read her entire reflection here.

Sister Elsa Garcia, CDP, writes, “Those who enter difficult times or situations out of love are moving in the presence and life of our crucified-risen Lord, Jesus Christ.” Read her reflection here.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and a stagecoach

Mother Theodore Guerin and her sister-companions traveled by stagecoach over the Alleghanies. The trip was indeed a dangerous one. Mother Theodore writes:

“The roadway at times inspired terror also. On one side vast, jutting rocks would overhang, upon which were giant trees apparently uprooted and ready to fall at any moment; on the other hand, frightful precipices, whose depths one cannot fathom, were ready to swallow us up if our horses made the least false step. This was not the only danger. Bandits infested the mountains, and we had to travel both day and night.”

To learn more about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, click here.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore and the Sisters of Charity

When Mother Theodore Guerin and her sister-companions reached Frederick, Md., they were offered hospitality by the Sisters of Charity. This is what Mother Theodore shares about the Sisters of Charity and their educational ministry:

“They teach the various sciences scarcely known in our French schools, but they excel in music, which is an indispensable thing in this country, even for the poor. No piano, no pupils! Such is the spirit of this country — Music and Steam!”

To learn more about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, click here.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore in Baltimore

Upon leaving Philadelphia, Mother Theodore Guerin and her sister-companions traveled to Baltimore. She writes about Baltimore:

“Baltimore is not nearly so fine a city as Philadelphia. The streets are extremely wide and the city is very extensive. The people make you take endless walks telling you all the while, ‘It is quite near, just on the next street.’”

To learn more about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, click here.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore in Philadelphia

On their way to Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Ind., Mother Theodore Guerin and her sister-companions spent some time in Philadelphia. She writes about her visit to one Catholic church in the city and her feelings about some of the American customs:

“The pews are finer still than those in New York, and all have cushions upholstered in green or crimson. I find that rather too much. The service is all carried on with music, as everywhere else in America. I do not fancy that. Every Sunday there are two sermons, and the congregations, so numerous, are very attentive.”

To learn more about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, click here.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore leaves the ship

When Mother Theodore Guerin and her sister-companions arrived in New York Harbor on Sept. 4, 1840, they did not immediately disembark from the Cincinnati. The sisters remained on board until the next day when a small rowboat met them. Saint Mother Theodore writes about climbing down a rope ladder to the rowboat:

“I whispered to the Sisters, ‘Come, if we have to die, let us die, but say nothing!’ With these words I descended first, by the rope ladder, without experiencing the least uneasiness; the others followed, none showing fear except poor Sister Ligouri, who was pale and trembling as though she were sure of meeting her death in the waters.”

To learn more about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin, click here.

2010 Phonathon

The 2010 Sisters of Providence Phonathon is officially over! A huge thanks goes out to everyone who had anything to do with the success of this annual event. It takes a lot of volunteers to make it happen. This year we had more than 80 women and men making calls from Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Chicago and Indianapolis, as well as from their homes in other parts of the country. In addition, more than 40 women worked diligently to keep all the paperwork in order.

A enormous thank you goes out to everyone who made, or will make, a financial pledge or contribution to support the Sisters of Providence, their mission and ministries. Meet some of your callers on our Web site.

Women’s history Month: spotting a whale

In August of 1840 as Mother Theodore Guerin and her sister-companions traveled aboard the Cincinnati to the United States, a whale was spotted. Here is what Mother Theodore wrote about the experience:

“Once quite a novel scene attracted us from our revery: a whale of enormous size appeared. It spouted columns of water to an amazing height, and from time to time the monster came towards us; it came, in fact, within a gunshot and exhibited its massive head, which seemed as big as a house.”

To read more about Saint Mother Theodore Guerin’s travel adventures, visit The Gift Shop at Providence Center.

Week three Lenten reflections

During this third week of Lent, two more reflections are offered by the Women of Providence in Collaboration. Our very own Sister Dawn Tomaszewski and Sister Lucy Zientek, CDP, offer words to ponder this week.

In her reflection, Sister Dawn encourages high school-aged students, “Instead of treating our Earth as our stomping ground or worse yet, our dumping ground, we simply need to love Earth and then ask ourselves as we would for any loved one: ‘What will I do to help restore health to Earth?’” Read her reflection here.

Sister Lucy writes, “When we exploit each other, we are inevitably exploiting all of Earth’s creatures. It means that when we fail to reverence each other, we are inevitably failing to reverence all of Earth’s creatures, and that in the worst of ways: we are depriving them of their right to be shaped by human love.” Read her reflection here.

Youth Art Contest winners announced

The Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, Ind., honored all Youth Art Contest entrants at a reception held in their honor yesterday. This year’s contest theme was “Saint Mother Theodore Guerin — Indiana Pioneer.” The contest, which is in its fourth year, drew 36 submissions from youth residing in the Wabash Valley. First- through third-place winners in the four age categories received ribbons, cash prizes courtesy of Terre Haute Savings Bank and certificates.

Check out the video below to see a slideshow of all of the winning entries!

Picture of the Week: March 5

Kate Grabowski, 10, of Terre Haute, Ind., receives a certificate for placing second in the Sisters of Providence Youth Art Contest from General Officer Sister Paula Damiano as General Officer Sister Jane Marie Osterholt, Lynne Hughes and General Officer Sister Marsha Speth look on. A reception honoring all young artists who entered the contest was conducted March 4 in Providence Center at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods. Plans are under way for the 2011 contest.

See the top 16 winners’ artwork in the Heritage Museum of Providence Center. The artwork will be on exhibit until March 26.

Chicago associates and sisters gather

Sisters of Providence and Providence Associates and Candidate-Associates in the Chicago area got to know one another a little better during a social on Sunday, Feb. 28. The gathering was held at Mother Theodore Guerin Convent in River Grove, Ill. View photos from the event here.

For more information about Providence Associates, click here.

Women’s History Month: Mother Theodore’s travels

Saint Mother Theodore Guerin’s trip from Ruillé, France, to Saint Mary-of-the-Woods was an arduous one. Mother Theodore traveled by most of the “modern” forms of transportation at that time — ship, train, stagecoach, canal boat — and survived!

In her journal, she wrote about traveling by stagecoach: “The coach jolted so terribly as to cause large bumps on one’s head. This day, indeed, we danced without a fiddle all afternoon. The road was really dreadful.”

To learn more about Mother Theodore, visit The Gift Shop at Providence Center.

Women’s History Month is here!

March is Women’s History Month and what better way to celebrate than to remember the life and ministry of our own Saint Mother Theodore Guerin!

Did you know that her father, Laurent, was an officer in the French Navy under Napoleon Bonaparte? Laurent was murdered when the young Anne-Thérèse (birth name of Mother Theodore) was 15 years old. After this tragic event, Anne-Thérèse devoted nearly a decade to caring for her mother and her sister. She was nearly 25 years old when she entered the Sisters of Providence of Ruillé sur-Loir, France.

Learn more about the early life of Mother Theodore by clicking here.

Census Day is approaching!

A 2010 Census form will be arriving in your mailbox soon! WoodsUp.com, our children’s Web site, wants to make sure students understand the importance of the census, so a great deal of information appears in our special 2010 Census section. You can even count down with us to Census Day on April 1 (no foolin’) by checking out our countdown clock!

And if census information is your bag, you might want to check out information from the 1850 Census, the first (and only) census Saint Mother Theodore Guerin participated in.

For those of you who are teachers or parents who homeschool your children, check out our “Using a census” lesson plan.

Art contest reception set for Thursday

The Sisters of Providence invite all Youth Art Contest entrants and the public to a reception from 6-7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 4, in O’Shaughnessy Dining Room in Providence Center. The reception starts with social time and light refreshments from 6-6:30 p.m.

Thirty-six young artists entered the contest with its theme, “Saint Mother Theodore Guerin — Indiana Pioneer.”

Prizes will be awarded to first- through third-place winners in four age categories.

For more information, click here.

Anniversary of two Lincoln speeches approaching

Thursday, March 4, is the anniversary of two of Abraham Lincoln’s speeches: his first and second inaugural addresses. During his first inaugural address in 1861, he said, “In your hands, my dissatisfied fellow-countrymen, and not in mine, is the momentous issue of civil war.” Read portions of Lincoln’s address here.

In President Lincoln’s second inaugural address, given in 1865, he said, “Fondly do we hope — fervently do we pray — that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away.” To read other parts of this address, click here.

WoodsUp, our children’s Web site, celebrates President Abraham Lincoln by sharing portions of both addresses.

Want to become a Providence Associate?

If you’ve been thinking about becoming a Providence Associate, now is the time! The application process for the 2010-2011 year is open now until June 30, 2010. The Sisters of Providence and Providence Associates welcome you!

For more information about Providence Associates, click here.

For more information about the application process, click here.

Week two Lenten reflections

Two more Lenten reflections are offered by the Women of Providence in Collaboration. Sister Myra Rodgers, CDP, asks, “Why does it take a horrific natural disaster [such as the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile] to break our hearts open?” Read her reflection here.

Sister Esther M. Guerrero, MCDP, writes, “This Lenten season, we are given the opportunity to love and do good to others. May God’s Provident love, manifested through us, bring healing to others. …” Read her reflection here.