I became a member of the Sister Servants of Mary Guild maybe five or six years ago. One of the sisters, Pilar, was there for me when my dad was hospitalized and died. She visited him, although he was not conscious to see. She called me literally at the moment of his passing, offering me her solace and God's mercy.
One of their sixconvents in the United States (they were founded by a Spanish nun, St. Maria Soledad Torres Acosta and have seven locations/addresses in Mexico) is in the Bronx. You see, says Djinn FROM THE BRONX, there truly are no accidents with God!
What triggers the praise of this group for which I have an abiding affection, just now? Yesterday, the officers of the Guild (I have far to go to be among that terrific group) held the annual luncheon to raise funds for the Sisters at the Wilshire Country Club so that they can continue to do their work for those in need for free. It was a joy to see an infusion of new members, and some who were a bit younger and potentially more energetic than the still extant founding members who must soon pass the torch.
There were even some men present at the luncheon tables, a plus for an organization that has been sustained primarily by women since circa 1960. (The Guild, not the Sister Servants themselves). After the cocktail hour on the patio of the club looking out over the golf course on a breezy but sunny Saturday, not only was there good food and a silent auction, and a raffle, but there were the truly angelic voices of the young choir of Christ the King School. For me there was something wistfully incongruent hearing the children sing mostly from the Sound of Music, at the age I very nearly was when I saw the original movie in 1965.
The front row had the youngest, boys and girls, one smiling, another watching the room, another so serious and standing with the insides of his sneakers wedged against each other as he sang. They seemed surprised by the joy and approval their music wrought. Their innocence somehow emphasized the goodness of the nuns for whom the benefit was being held, one at each of 18 tables with the diners. And noting the variations of age in that room, from those little ones to people like me at upper middle age and many at the sunset of their lives, emphasized how quickly the fresh and the young become those who need the services of gentle and compassionate nursing nuns who ask for nothing but the next task.
We had one of several of the Sr. Maria's in the room at our table. She had just returned to the convent in Los Angeles after years away, a young, poised woman, who spoke not only of her prayers, but of her all night vigils and caring at some home where someone sick needed her. The thing about these sisters, one and all I have met, is their palpable happiness. They are around the sick, the dying, and the pain of families who lose their loved ones, and yet, their giving is complete and not only without complaint, but with a simple fervor that is mesmerizing. It is transfiguring, the revelation of someting so spiritually beautiful as to seem almost impossible on this earth. We Catholics, we Christians all, talk the talk about sharing in Christ's sufferings, but when suffering is near to us, or we are suffering ourselves, we often default to a "Why me?" or "I can't handle it". When we cry, '"Father, let this cup pass" us by, we do not readily follow, with the words, "Not my Will, but Thine be done:". But these women, they are not afraid, truly understanding that suffering is not only inevitable, but a joining to One whom they love. And thus do they make His love visible to those for whom they care and an example to those of us who would help them serve others.
Someone recently asked me if I had ever considered being a nun. Truth is, I wouldn't have the guts these women have. At least, though, I can tell those of you who read this blog about them. I am pretty sure I mentioned them before in these pages, although certainly not recently.
They are a bit under the radar, in part, because they have to be. They need donations to keep doing the work for free for families, but there simply are not enough of them to go around; a lot of people get sick but even with donations they cannot be everywhere. What they need is an infusion of vocations, to nursing and the religious life. Well, for now, the donations that they get will have to be a start.
I want you to know about them. Their convent in Los Angeles is 2131 West 27th Street, Los Angeles, Califronia 90018.
Become a member of the Guild. And pray for them. Pray for vocations.
In our small ways, we can be part of making love visible.
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