Agrégées and vowed sisters

In reaching back to their roots in 17th century France, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia have discovered — and revitalized — a type of committed spiritual life for women known as “agrégées.”

The order, which has grown worldwide over the centuries and now has autonomous congregations in more than 50 countries, began in the French city of LePuy in 1650. Based on research into the original constitution and rules for the congregation, written by founder and Jesuit priest Jean-Pierre Medaille, the sisters now recognize that in addition to vowed members of the order, there were also “agrégées,” from a French word meaning “attached to” or “aggregated with.”

An agrégée — pronounced ah-gre-ZHEY — did not make vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. But she lived according to the rules of the Sisters of St. Joseph, and was recognized by the local people and the local churches as a Sister of St. Joseph.

In the past decades, the modern Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia studied their origins and their original spirituality, and have now revived that early practice based on what they learned. The Senate of the Concordia congregation approved agrégée membership in 2006.

The first modern agrégée — Rosabel Flax of Ness City, Kan. — professed a vow of fidelity to the Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia two years ago. Last year  Rosemary Foreman of Topeka, Kan., became the second agrégée to join the Concordia congregation. On June 13, Jean Ann Walton of Augusta, Kan., and Ann Ashwood-Piper of Grand Junction, Colo., professed their vows.

Four other women are currently agrégée candidates.

Agrégées are defined as those persons who commit themselves to active and inclusive love of God and the dear neighbor as expressed in the spirit and spirituality of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia. In almost every aspect, they are viewed as full members of the congregation, meaning they have a voice and a vote on congregational issues.

There are three significant differences, however.

• “Vowed sisters” profess the canonical — meaning governed by Church law — vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. As part of the vow of poverty, an individual sister relinquishes all personal wealth and income; at the same time, the congregation assumes responsibility for her economic well being for the rest of her life.

• “Agrégée sisters” profess a vow of fidelity to the congregation, but it is noncanonical, meaning that it is not part of Church law and is instead a private vow between that sister and the Concordia congregation. It also means that the agrégée does not relinquish her finances to the congregation, and the congregation assumes no financial responsibility for her.

• Also, vowed sisters begin their religious life with a formal “formation” that includes a postulancy and novitiate that are, together, about three years. During this time, they have left their previous life, but haven’t yet taken up their works as a Sister of St. Joseph. For agrégées, the period of being a candidate may be about the same length of time, but they do not leave behind their outside lives. Instead, they meet with mentors and study around their regular work and life schedules. And once they have professed their vows, they return to that work and life schedule.

Other congregations of St. Joseph have developed similar definitions or are doing their own studies, but the Concordia congregation is believed to be the first to recognize agrégées as full members of the community.

In Concordia, the definition of who may be an agrégée will be refined as individuals feel called to the community, explained Sister Marcia Allen, the president of the congregation.

“This opens up our charism to people who might not have traditionally given thought to religious life,” Sister Marcia said. “We haven’t answered all the questions, but we will — as they’re asked.”

Sister Ann Ashwood-Piper

Ann Ashwood was born in Moline, Ill., but her family soon moved to Phoenix, and then to Indiana. That pattern, it turned out, would repeat itself over and over for half her life.

Ann, now 65, graduated from high school in a suburb of Milwaukee and then enrolled at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn. While there, she spent a semester at Knoxville College, a historically black college in Mechanicsville, Tenn. (“It was the ’60s and I was one of three whites on a campus of 900 blacks,” she recalls. “And I was exactly where I wanted to be.”)

When she transferred to Marquette University, she had a different kind of immersion experience: Rasied as a Presbyterian, she was surrounded by Catholic students and Jesuit priests. She was struck by importance religion played in the lives of her classmates. “I really admired their faith,” she says. “These were college kids who went to daily Mass.”

She also became acquainted with the Jesuit priests who taught at Marquette — “very bright, very committed men,” Ann recalls — and ultimately asked one of them for instruction in the Catholic faith, and she eventually converted.

While at Marquette, Ann also met the man who would become her husband, and the driving force behind several more moves in the coming years as he launched his career. First the couple moved to St. Paul, Minn., and then “to the outback of West Virginia.” It was there they adopted their first child, daughter Rebecca, now 36.

The next move took them to Minneapolis, where they adopted son Zachary, who is now 35.

Then, 33 years ago, they made one more move — to Grand Junction, Colo., where Ann still lives. There they adopted Hannah and then a year and a half later added brother and sister Tony and Abby to the family. Hannah and Abby are both 30 now, and Tony is 31.

(“My last three kids are all within 10 months of each other, so it’s kind of like a litter,” Ann wisecracks.)

And Ann was doing more than tending the growing family. She completed a master’s degree in pastoral studies from Loyola University, taught in a number of Catholic schools, then taught in public schools for 17 years, eventually earned another master’s degree — this time in educational administration from Northern Colorado University — and seven years ago took over as principal at Grand Junction’s Holy Family Catholic School, which has some 420 pre-school through eighth-grade students.

It was during those years that Ann and her husband divorced, and a year later he died.

She had always been active in her local parish, but it was through her role as an educator that she got to know Sisters Pat Lewter and Faye Huelsmann, who live and work in Grand Junction. After Ann became principal at Holy Family, she invited Sister Pat to work there as a part-time counselor.

“About four years ago, I went out to dinner with them and (Sister) Nancy Meade, and Faye told me about this new form of membership their congregation was introducing,” Ann recalls. “The more I heard, the more I felt it was designed exactly for me.”

Ann came to Concordia in 2008 to begin the formal process of becoming an agrégée sister. She returned in the summer of ’09 to take part in an intensive monthlong seminar on the history and origins of the Sisters of St. Joseph. And this summer she is here to profess her vow of fidelity to the congregation.

“I love God and I love God’s people, and this is my avenue for expressing that love,” she explains. “Being an agrégée is about my relationship with God.”

That is not something that her five children necessarily understand. There is a hint of sadness in her voice when she explains that none of her children, or her six grandchildren, attends any church regularly. But, she adds, they support her decision to become a Sister of St. Joseph even if they don’t completely understand it. “I have a very loving family, and by loving me, they allow me to make choices for myself.”

Those choices include adding “Sister” before her name when she returns to her job this fall. “I’ll be Sister Ann as a witness, both to the kids and to their parents, of service to God and the dear neighbor,” she explains.

But with Ann, the seriousness doesn’t last. “This has to be an authentic choice directed by God,” she says before adding with a laugh, “Whoever heard of a 65-year-old mother of five kids becoming a sister?”

Sister Jean Ann Walton

Jean Ann Walton literally began life with the Sisters of St. Joseph: She was born almost 61 years ago in the Sabetha, Kan., hospital then owned and operated by the Concordia congregation.

Her family soon moved to Augusta, Kan., where she grew up and lives today. After graduating from high school in 1967, she enrolled at Bethany College in Lindsborg, Kan.  While there, she says, the young woman raised in a Protestant family “became aware of Catholicism.” By the end of her second year in college, she had converted.

But as she left her childhood religion behind, so did she leave behind college. In 1969 she enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps and served for six years.

Returning to Kansas, she began a spiritual quest that led her — eventually — back to the Sisters of St. Joseph. She spent a year at Manna House of Prayer as a lay volunteer, but she also spent time in the inner city of Houston as a volunteer with the Jesuits.

By 1982, she believed she was ready for a total commitment to religious life, and entered the Concordia congregation as a postulant. In 1985 she professed temporary vows, but two years later asked that those vows be dispensed with.

“I came to realize that I wasn’t called to religious life at that time, even though I was grateful for what I learned from the sisters,” she says now of her decision to leave. “What I didn’t realize was that they planted a seed in me for down the road.”

And, she notes with some lingering pain, “When I left, I also basically left the Church. But I never left God. And God never left me.”

About seven years ago, Jean Ann explains, “I began to feel a need to go back to church — and I found a church where they are very mindful of ‘the dear neighbor,’ as the charism of the Sisters of St. Joseph puts it.”

That was St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in Andover, Kan., roughly 12 miles from her home in Augusta.

“Because of that welcoming church,” she says, “it began to tug on my heart to come back to this community.”

It was then she learned of the agrégée program launched in 2006 by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia, to recapture a form of membership that existed when the congregation was founded in the mid 17^th century.

“I went to the very first ‘Agrégée Information Day’ (about three years ago) and here I am,” Sister Jean Ann notes with a laugh. “It’s been an awesome journey.”

It hasn’t been a journey that’s taken her away from Augusta, however.

After Sunday’s ceremony, she will return to her job as a shipping clerk for Aerospace Logistics at Hawker Beechcraft in Wichita. She will also continue her service at St. Vincent de Paul, as a religious education teacher, lector, eucharastic minister “or anywhere else God calls me to be.”

“There won’t be any huge changes because I already carry the charism within me,” she says. “This really is a calling from God. And what God wants, God gets — even if it takes a lifetime.”

Sister Julie Christensen

As a child in Concordia, Julie was familiar with several of the Sisters of St. Joseph. “We’d come help (Sister) Annie (Glatter) in the garden sometimes, and my mom was good friends with (Sister) Margaret Schreck,” she recalls.

“But sisters were all old and not relevant,” she concludes with a laugh, “and I wanted to be relevant.”

By the time Julie had reached high school, she knew she wanted to be of service — perhaps as a social worker — and while at Kansas State University she had a chance to visit Mexico and see religious women doing social justice work.

While there the students visited a convent and even played volleyball with the sisters, “And I thought, ‘Huh! These nuns are pretty cool!’” Julie says.

But, she adds quickly, “I also thought, ‘Me? A sister? Religious life? What’s that all about?’”

Yet she started going to vocation talks at St. Isidore’s Church in Manhattan and meeting younger women who were interested in religious life. And she got to know Sister Anna Marie Broxterman, who at that time was vocation director for the Sisters of St. Joseph.

“It spiraled from there, but it was a very slow spiral,” Julie explains, laughing. “Anna Marie was relentless — but it was relentlessness in helping me find my way.”

After Julie graduated from K-State in 2004, her restlessness took hold: She lived for 10 months with Anna Marie and Sister Carolyn Teter, then completed a graduate certificate in conflict resolution. But she started and stopped work on another graduate program, and then she and a friend moved to Portland, Maine, for three months.

On one hand she was living the reasonably carefree life of a young college graduate who has not quite found her place in the world; on the other hand she was increasingly drawn toward the Sisters of St. Joseph.

She says now, “I was pretty certain I was called to religious life when I was 18 — but nothing about it made sense. The majority of sisters were elderly, the minority were in their 50s and 60s; there was nobody in her 20s. It didn’t seem normal for a 20-something.

“It wasn’t a fun and crazy atmosphere — in fact, it seemed almost the opposite of what I was used to.”

And at the same time, she says without laughing, “It felt so right, but I couldn’t explain it.

“It took a while for me to own this; this is what I’ve been called to be.”

So in the fall of 2007, Julie became a postulant of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia. A year later, she began her two-year novitiate.

It was also in 2008 that she joined with seven other novices from congregations of St. Joseph around the country to take part in a formation program in Orange, Calif. When that 10-month program ended in May 2009, Julie returned to Concordia to prepare for her temporary profession this Sunday.

Today she lives at Manna House of Prayer, where in August she will become a staff member. She expects to lead confirmation retreats at parishes throughout the Salina Diocese, and will continue work on a master’s degree in Christian spirituality through Creighton University.

“I am always restless, always looking for something that will capture all of my energy, and my spirit,” she says as she looks toward Sunday’s ceremony. “This is it; this captures all of me.”

Different paths lead women to profess vows Sunday

The very different life paths taken by three very different women brought them together in Concordia Sunday to profess vows as Sisters of St. Joseph.

Concordia native Julie Christensen, 28, has completed one year as a postulant and two years as a novice and has now made her temporary profession as the youngest Sister of St. Joseph. This profession will be in place for three years, when she will make the decision whether to make final vows.

Jean Ann Walton, of Augusta, Kan.,  and Ann Ashwood-Piper of Grand Junction, Colo., each professed a vow of fidelity to the congregation as agrégée sisters. With their professions, the number of agrégées in the Concordia congregation is four, with another four women in various stages of formation to become agrégées.

Family and friends crowded the Sacred Heart Chapel at the Nazareth Motherhouse for the 2 p.m. ceremony and Mass, with a reception that followed in the Auditorium.

To learn more about these three women — and the two forms of membership in the congregtion — click on the links below:

Sister Julie Christensen

Sister Jean Ann Walton

Sister Ann Ashwood-Piper

What is an agrégée and what is a vowed sister?

Help a Concordia family who lost everything!

When a Concordia home was destroyed by fire early on the morning of June 4, the Ramirez family lost everything they owned.

Now the community is rallying to replace household items and clothing to help Emanuel and Katrina Ramirez, their two young daughters and Emanuel’s brother Javier rebuild their lives.

Donations are being collected through the Catholic Thrift Shop at 107 E. Sixth St. and held in a storage unit donated by the Concordia Homestore.  Items may be delivered during regular business hours, including Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Donors are asked to let the Thrift Shop staff to let them know the items are for the Ramirez family.

Items needed include household furnishings, beds, kitchen table and chairs, dressers, sofa, chairs, lamps, radio, TV, appliances, kitchen dishes, pots and pans, silverware, glasses/cups, cooking utensils, bedding, linens, towels, children’s items and toys, plus clothing (for 1½- and 3-year-old girls, and in sizes women’s 2x and 3x, men’s S and M shirts, 32/34 pants).

Anyone who wants to make a donation of cash or gift cards or who has questions is asked to contact Sister Judy Stephens at 243-2149, ext. 21, or (785) 614-4167, or Kim Krull at 243-1435, ext. 249, or  (785) 614-2782.

Jubilarians celebrate with songs, prayer

Family, friends and the Sisters of St. Joseph packed the Nazareth Motherhouse’s chapel on Saturday, to celebrate “jubilees” with 15 of the sisters.

In a special Mass in the morning, followed by an afternoon jubilee program, the sisters were among 18 honored this year for the anniversary of their entrance into the congregation.

Two of the sisters will be honored in a separate celebration later this month at their home, Mount Joseph Senior Village in Concordia, while another sister will celebrate in Teresina, Brazil, where she lives and serves.

Together the 18 jubilarians represent 1,060 years of service to the congregation and to God, amply demonstrating the theme of Saturday’s program, “Celebrating Abundant Gratitude.”

Sister Chris Meyer served as emcee for the afternoon program. Sister Nancy Meade and Sister Lucy Schneider read tributes to each of the jubilarians, who were marking anniversaries ranging from 25 years up to 80 years. Sisters Nancy and Lucy also wrote the parody lyrics for two songs performed by a choir of sisters, with Sister Nancy accompanying on the piano.

Each of the 15 jubilarians who were present received a gift bag hand made and decorated by Sister Loretta Clare Flax and Twila Younger.

The sisters who were present for the celebration Saturday, listed with the number of years they have been in the congregation, followed by their hometown and where they live now, were:

• Sister Agnes Dreher, celebrating her 80^th anniversary, born in Schoenchen, Kan.
, and now living in Concordia.
• Sister Celestine Ruder, 75th, Antonino, Kan.; Concordia.
• Sister Liberata Pellerin, 70th, Lake Linden, Mich.; Concordia.
• Sister Marie Coleman, 70th, St. Marys, Kan.; Concordia.
• Sister Rita Ann Mazanec, 60th, Colby, Kan.; Concordia.
• Sister Jackie Kircher, 60th, Escanaba, Mich.; Concordia.
• Sister Lila Marie Schmidt, 60th, Pfeifer, Kan.; Concordia.
• Sister Therese Richstatter, 60th, Clay Center, Kan.; Concordia.
• Sister Alice Marie Stalker, 60th, Aurora, Ill.; Concordia.
• Sister Mary Jean Assell, 60th, Aurora, Ill.; Concordia.
• Sister Rita Plante, 50th, Juneau, Alaska; Silver City, N.M.
• Sister Jeanne McKenna, 50th, Kingman, Kan.; Topeka.
• Sister Veronica Ann Baxa, 50th, Cuba, Kan.; Minneapolis, Kan.
• Sister Beth Stover, 50th, Beloit, Kan.; Concordia.

The jubilarians who were not able to attend Saturday’s celebration were:

• Sister Viatora Solbach, 70^th, Clifton, Kan.; Concordia.
• Sister Leo Frances Winbinger, 60^th, Cuba, Kan.; Concordia.
• Sister Joseleide da Silva Neves, 25^th, Aroeiras, Teresina, Piauí, Brazil
; Teresina, Piauí, Brazil.

Every year the Sisters of St. Joseph schedule their “Jubilee Day” immediately following their annual June Assembly so that most of the sisters in the United States “come home” to the Motherhouse in Concordia to attend. About 130 sisters serve in Kansas and 10 other states, and fewer than a dozen missed this year’s celebration. There are also about 15 Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia who serve in Brazil.

For more on these special women, CLICK HERE for a listing of all of them. Also check out the PHOTOS from the Jubilee Mass Saturday morning.

Saturday morning Mass honors jubilarians

The very special day for 18 Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia began with a special Mass in Sacred Heart Chapel at the Nazareth Motherhouse. Fifteen of the sisters celebrating the anniversary of their entrance into the congregation were present this morning for the Mass. Two others will celebrate later this month at Mount Joseph Home in Concordia, where they live, and one sister in Brazil will celebrate with the sisters there.

Together the 18 represent 1,060 years of service to the congregation and to God and his people.

For more on these special women, CLICK HERE for a listing of all of them. Also check out the PHOTOS from the Jubilee Celebration program this afternoon.

June 4, 2010: ‘Animals teach us how to be human,’ by Holly Andrews

The calming influence of an animal can soothe the most agitated soul.  I’ve been fortunate, both personally and professionally, to witness the good an animal can do.

Since college, I’ve always had an animal of my own.  I can’t imagine getting though college, my first job, and the stress of life without an animal to come home to.

In January 2010, Shane Britt, Director of Residence Life at Cloud County Community College, and I were presented with the incredible opportunity to work with Nestle, a professional therapy dog trained by C.A.R.E.S Inc. — Canine Assistance Rehabilitation education & Services.

Nestle’s primary responsibilities are to help CCCC students navigate the challenges of college life and to educate faculty and staff about how to interact with assistance dogs.

Once she arrived on campus, Nestle’s impact was noticed immediately by students, faculty, and staff. Students gravitated toward her. They walked in Shane’s office, asking, “Where’s Nestle?  I need her.” Faculty and staff had a similar reaction.

One afternoon while Nestle was in my office, a colleague and I were struggling to solve a problem. As our frustration grew, Nestle quietly got up and walked over to my colleague. He reached out to pet her. After interacting with the dog, we both began to calm down and eventually solved the problem. Only later was I able to reflect on what happened — and why.

In April, a tragic accident claimed the life of CCCC student Ridge Reed. As a college, we were grieving over the loss of one of our own. Unfortunately, Nestle was not on campus during the days after Ridge’s death. However, Nestle’s mother, Honor, took her place and was a source of comfort to students, faculty, and staff.

The day of Ridge’s memorial service, a student who spoke at the service stopped by to see Honor. Instinctively, Honor walked over to the student. Sobbing, the student reached out to pet the dog. After several minutes of silence, the student began to talk about Ridge and how she was coping with her the death of a close friend. Both Honor and I just listened. Twenty minutes later, the student left with a smile on her face chatting with one of her friends about plans for the weekend. Honor’s presence calmed the student and allowed her to better cope with her initial grief.

As Mary Lou Randour, a psychologist and Director of Human Animal Relations with the Humane Society of the United States, said, “Animals cannot  ‘talk’ to us, but they can communicate with us in a language that does not require words. They help us understand that words might even stand in the way.”

Animals teach us so much, yet ask for so little in return. In a time where bullying and violence are all too common, animals teach us how to listen, laugh, and love. In other words, they teach us how to be human.

— Holly Andrews is Coordinator of Outreach Instruction on the Concordia campus of Cloud County Community College.

The welcome sign is finally out!

The women who have visited Neighbor to Neighbor on East Sixth Street in the past month didn’t need a sign to find it. But for everyone else, the new downtown “center welcoming women” finally has its identity in place.

Workers from the Sisters of St. Joseph maintenance crew put the square sign over the doorway this morning. It’s just the latest in a yearlong series of changes and renovations to the former home of Conn’s TV and Appliance at 103 E. Sixth St.

The center is open Monday through Wednesday and Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Thursday from 1 to 8 p.m. All services, classes and workshops are free, and the center is open to women and women with young children. For information, drop by or call the center at 262-4215.

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