The Hand of Providence

In 1949, a small booklet written by the Rev. John F. McShane was published. “The Hand of Providence” is a short history of Indianapolis General Hospital. It was at this facility that Indiana Governor Oliver P. Morton requested the assistance of the Sisters of Providence in running during the Civil War. The Sisters of Providence, under the leadership of Sister Athanasius Fogarty, took over the administration and “domestic arrangements” of this hospital, known then as Military Hospital, on May 17, 1861.

To read “The Hand of Providence,” click here. For more information about the Sisters of Providence during the Civil War, click here.

A vision of Mother Theodore

Mother Superior Gertrude Clare Owens, general superior from 1954 to 1960, had always been in frail health since her entrance into the Congregation in 1904. Members of the Congregation believed that Sister Gertrude Clare would not live long after the death of her sister, Sister Genevieve Therese, who died of tuberculosis in 1910.

However, the mother of Sisters Gertrude Clare and Genevieve Therese, Mrs. Michael Owens, had a vision of Mother Theodore one night. In that vision, Mother Theodore told Mrs. Owens, “Sister Gertrude Clare will not die now; she is going to live and do great things for the Community.”

To read more about this vision, click here.

Unconditional love

Providence Associate Jenny Nowalk (pictured at left) spent one week at the Woods volunteering and on a mini-retreat the week of July 12. What she learned during this week was unconditional love.

Jenny shares about her experience in a letter. To read about her week, click here.

To learn more about Providence Associates, click here. And to volunteer at the Woods, contact Volunteer Services.

Lest We Forget

The rich history of the service of the Sisters of Providence during the Civil War comes alive in the small book, “Lest We Forget.” Written by Sister Mary Theodosia Mug and published in 1931 by Providence Press, this book provides insight into the role the sisters played at the Military Hospital in Indianapolis.

Click here to view the book. For more information about the sisters and the Civil War, click here.

To view other Our Past in Print publications, click here.

Providence and Social Media

Your day has begun, whether it consists of rolling out of bed and heading off to class or feeding an infant with a foggy,'Good morning.' to your spouse(more my speed these days), if you read this than most likely at some point you check in on this thing we call the internet. Be it your email inbox, the people you follow on twitter, your blog reader or your Facebook home page, you eventually begin your virtual day as well. I work in web based technology, but sometimes even I am so busy I don’t have time to do the fun stuff. Still at some point within the week I get updates from my social media sources.

I am still amazed how much social media has enabled us to re-connect and continue connecting to the people we love on a regular basis. We can still know what is going on in the lives of the people we don’t get to see every day, that we probably had fallen out of contact with except for special occasions. And, while some updates might seem mundane, I wouldn’t change any of the messages that come across (except those Farmville requests, I am thankful I can hide those) because being aware of the trivial parts of our lives connects us in a way that is even more important when the not so trivial events happen.

How much quicker do you know that someone you love needs prayers or positive thinking because of social media? As Gavin Richardson writes in his blog regarding Spirituality and Social Media, twitter (or any of these tools) could be considered the new town square, or even the ‘temple’ during the time of Christ. We can go here to share ideas, to reach out to one another, to reflect on our life and our spirituality. And, I believe they will continue to help us grow collectively, to understand more of the world around us, to strengthen our trust in Providence and promote works of Love, Mercy and Justice.

At the April Retreat for Providence Associates, I remember hearing concerns from many PAs that letter writing was dying out. It was suggested that all of these emails, tweets, status updates and blog posts would ruin saving information for posterity. I immediately disagreed. I can’t see a better way to save what inspires us and how we live than in digital form. There is always the ‘Older Posts’ option at the bottom of the feed. A blog has a history of all of the posts and you can read them anytime. You can even forward them on to other people with a click or two rather than having to copy by hand or with a printing machine.

And what is most important is that where we are, God is. Providence is in twitter, Providence is in Facebook, and Providence is in a blog post.

Owning Our Gifts

One of the greatest blessings I've been given this year is the chance to be my mother's Companion in her year as a Candidate Associate. I feel so lucky to be able to share this journey with her as we make our way through the Spiritual Integration Units, and of course it is an added bonus that I get to revisit the material and see how much has (or hasn't!) changed since my year of discernment.

One thing that stood out for mom and I this week is the notion of acknowledging and really "owning" the unique gifts that God has given each of us. While it sounds like a simple idea, I think for many of us it is a very difficult concept to embrace. Sure, it is easy to recognize the external gifts we are given--a roof over our heads, money in our pockets, medical technology, our families and friends. But what of those things which are internal gifts, or parts of our nature that our Provident God has given us so that we may better participate in the unfolding of God's mystery? Mom and I found this week that, at least for us, it is easier said than done to boldly identify some part of ourselves as "gifted."

Perhaps owning our gifts is uncomfortable because we have been raised to believe that humbleness is a virture. What happens, though, if our attempts at humbleness put us at risk of missing out on part of God's plan for us? Of course I am not suggesting that we become braggarts--to become so would be to behave as though our gifts are superior to those of others rather than just different. We are all gifted in some wonderful way, are we not? What I AM suggesting is that by acknowledging and thanking God for our own unique giftedness perhaps we can participate more fully in our dance through life with Providence.

When you give a gift to a close friend, chances are you really appreciate a "thank you" and perhaps even the chance to see that gift put to good use. Why should God be any different? How rude of us to sweep our own giftedness under the rug!

Think about your own life for a moment, and notice if you have difficulty when it comes to listing your gifts. If so, I extend to you the same challenge that mom and I have taken on this week: find your gifts and thank God for them, then ask yourself how they can be used to create works of love, mercy, and justice! Maybe you are a good cook--why not use that gift by creating meals for a food pantry? An excellent listener? Perhaps you would enjoy volunteering for a crisis line. If you really draw a blank, ask a friend or loved one for help. It is likely that those closest to you see your gifts very clearly, and they are likely to understand that you are not fishing for compliments when you ask for help.

Enjoy discovering your unique gifts, and if you are so inclined please share your experience with us here in the comments!

A gathering of Providence Associates and sisters

The first Providence Associate Annual Gathering may be over, but there are still plenty of images to share. The Annual Gathering took place June 27-28 at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods in conjunction with the Sisters of Providence Annual Meeting.

A video of the two days is below. If you have trouble viewing the video, click here for a direct link to our Web site.

For more information about Providence Associates, click here.

Picture of the Week: July 2

Sisters of Providence from all over the world came home to Saint Mary-of-the-Woods this week for the Congregation's Annual Meeting. Traditionally, sisters celebrating anniversaries of membership are honored the weekend before in a Jubilee celebration.

Here, the general officers recognize two of their own celebrating jubilees, Sisters Nancy Reynolds and Sister Marie McCarthy. From left: Sisters Marsha Speth, Denise Wilkinson, Nancy Reynolds, Marie McCarthy, Paula Damiano and Jane Marie Osterholt.

Associates and sisters gather at Annual Meeting

Sunday and Monday, June 27 and 28, were truly exciting and historic days for the Sisters of Providence and Providence Associates. For the first time in the history of the Congregation, associates attended the Monday morning session of the Annual Meeting. The associates then had their own gathering that afternoon.

For images of these two days, click here.

For more information about Providence Associates, click here.

Did you know ...

that the Sisters of Providence are on nine different social media sites with more being added all of the time? And that we use related technology (like e-newsletters, ShareThis and RSS) whenever possible? We have found that social media is a great way to communicate with our friends, share our story and do it in a way that's extremely budget-friendly.

So, whether you use Twitter, Facebook, YouTube or other sites, you can find us there.

This graphic is on nearly every page of our website. Click on it and you'll be taken to our social media center, where you can see all of our social media efforts at a glance.

Video on mutuality

On Monday morning, June 28, Providence Associates gathered with the Sisters of Providence for the first time during an Annual Meeting. After a time of prayer, Sister Mary Alice Zander, director of Providence Associates, and Sister Diane Mason, assistant director, presented information about the evolution of the associate movement within the Church and how the Sisters of Providence, in particular, created (and continue to create) this relationship.

A video illustrating the mutuality between sisters and associates was shown at the end of their presentation. Click below to view the video.

If you have trouble viewing the video, click here for a direct link to our Web site.

For more information about Providence Associates, click here.

Teaching Children to Pray

How old were you in your first memories of prayer? Do you remember who taught you what to do or what to say in prayer? For many of us, prayer is such a deeply ingrained behavior that it is hard to imagine having ever NOT done it. My only early memories of prayer involve grudgingly kneeling next to my little twin bed and mumbling “now I lay me down to sleep” whilst thinking how unfair it was that my big sister got to stay up longer than me!

Teaching my children to pray is not something I addressed as I prepared myself to begin the journey of motherhood. I’m not sure how I assumed they would learn, but it certainly never dawned upon me until recently that I will be the one to teach them! Of course, the reality is that in most cases children will ultimately work out their own manner of communicating with the Divine. Until then, though, how do we even begin to teach them to open the dialogue?

This all comes to mind now as I recently witnessed my 2 year old son’s interpretation of pre-dinner prayer. We have always made it a habit to join hands and say grace before digging in to our meals, and it has been something of a struggle to get him to join in (how dare we place food in front of him but not let him at it?!?). In the last few weeks, though, he has been a willing participant. A recent sneaky peek at him in prayer revealed a deeply bowed head and VERY furrowed brow, which nearly made me laugh out loud. Who or what gave him the idea that prayers need be so severe, even arduous?

While it is a sweet and comical image for me, I can’t help but wonder if my husband or I could be the examples of this severity. I have tried to give witness to my own actions over the last several meals, and to my chagrin I find there ARE times when I feel my brow furrowing and my frown lines deepening as we say grace. Aha! So now I see where he got it—the question is where did I get it? Do I feel that prayer is a labor? Like many habitual patterns, I seem to have fallen into this one unawares.
I have taken this mirror held up by my son as a challenge to really be in the moment of prayer. Instead of bowing my head and furrowing my brow to say a quick grace (maybe I’m guilty of being in a hurry for dinner!) or hurry through my daily prayers I have challenged myself to really witness the dialogue taking place. It is my hope that by doing so I can create an example for my son of what a joyful experience prayer can be.

What has been your experience with leading children into dialogue about God? What has it helped you to learn about yourself? Please comment and share your experiences!

Providence Associates gather at the Woods

Providence Associates from all over the country gathered Sunday, June 27, at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods for the first Annual Gathering during the Sisters of Providence Annual Meeting. On Sunday afternoon, associates met in LeFer Ballroom to register and socialize. The afternoon and evening included times for prayer, sharing a meal and socializing with one another and Sisters of Providence.

On Monday morning, June 28, Providence Associates will participate for the first time in the Congregation’s Annual Meeting. In the afternoon, Providence Associates will gather in LeFer for their first official Annual Meeting.

Pictured are some Providence Associates from the Chicago area as they participate in a prayer. From left are Beverly Adams, William Pouncy, Sue Thomas and Barbara Cottrell.

For more information about Providence Associates, click here.

Did you know ...

that you can subscribe to this blog, so that you don't have to remember to come check it every day? (We know you all do that. Every. Single. Day.) When you subscribe, you'll receive one e-mail a day with a summary of anything posted on the blog the day before.

It's easy to do: simply enter your e-mail address in the box to the right and click subscribe. That's it. Now, you'll never miss event information, posts from sisters and Providence Associates and fascinating little tidbits about SP history.

While you are at it, head on over to the White Violet Center for Eco-Justice blog and subscribe to it as well!

Picture of the Week: June 18

Students from Shawe Memorial High School in Madison, Indiana, were at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods this week for a Taste of the Woods overnight experience hosted by SP vocations. Here, they participate in a Eucharistic service in St. Joseph Chapel.

For more about similar experiences available for you or your school, visit the "Become a sister" section of our website.