Dear Parishioners, +JMJ
While a large group of us from Divine Mercy Parish were on pilgrimage in the Holy Land this past February, we got the happy news that Bishop Daniel Thomas had invited into the Diocese the Religious Sisters of Mercy of Alma, Michigan. In his press release, the Bishop wrote:
The sisters will be establishing a convent in the Toledo Metro area, and we will initially be welcoming two sisters:
Sister Maria Lin Pacold, RSM, and Sister Mary Prudence Allen, RSM. Sister Maria Lin will be serving as my Delegate for Consecrated Life, and Coordinator for the Department of Clergy, Consecrated Life, and Vocations. Sr. Maria Lin holds an M.D. degree from the Indiana School of Medicine, and she completed her residency in Psychiatry at the University of Oklahoma in Tulsa.
Sister Prudence Allen will be serving as a consultant and research assistant, and will also be available to teach and collaborate in various diocesan apostolates. Sister Mary Prudence holds a PhD in Philosophy from Claremont Graduate School, Claremont, California. In 2014 she was appointed by Pope Francis to serve on the International Theological Commission.
Parishioners on the pilgrimage with me in the Holy Land will remember how ecstatic I was at this news! The Religious Sisters of Mercy are amazing sisters, living their charism from the Heart of the Church. They will be a tremendous resource in our Diocese.
[You can’t let Sister Prudence Allen know this yet, but my intention is to ask her to give some talks at our parish. My second summer in Rome, when I needed a place to go where I could speak and read German, i.e., brush up on it for use in my studies, the Religious Sisters of Mercy invited me to stay at their retreat house outside of Frankfurt, Germany. Sister Prudence Allen was the lead sister there for the summer. I came to realize she was an expert in the writings of Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (a.k.a., Edith Stein), in the phenomenology and beautiful Catholic feminism of Pope Saint John Paul II, as well as his Theology of the Body. Sister Prudence since that time completed a three-volume work on the history of the philosophy of womanhood in Catholic thought. Wow!]How did the RSM’s know that I needed a place to stay? They run the Rome Visitors Office for the Bishops of the United States; and that office is located in Casa Santa Maria – the residence for priests studying in Rome from the United States.
It’s worth noting as well that out of that office come all of the tickets for United States pilgrims who want to attend an audience with the Pope. So, it’s RSM’s who would have arranged the tickets for audiences with the Pope for all the pilgrimages to Rome from our parish for the last couple of decades. I know there were at least a couple groups who visited Rome with my beloved predecessor, Father Fillman. Your tickets would have been arranged by RSM’s in the Visitors Office in Rome.
My reason for giving all of this explanation now is that we had been invited to help furnish the new home for the sisters. Their convent in the Toledo area is being prepared for a late June arrival. Because of my connection to the sisters, but more so because I know they will be such a great gift to the whole Diocese, I agreed to offer this opportunity to my parishioners. What a blessing to help welcome these sisters to our Diocese!
The following is the explanation I received from Margie McDaniel, who is coordinating this effort:
In order to prepare their now-empty residence for their arrival, a gift registry has been set up at Kohl’s.com. If you feel so moved to accept, please know you are invited to help us directly welcome, and thank, the Sisters with a gift for their home. Because their home is vacant now, items are being delivered to the care of:
Margaret McDaniel
10426 North Bramblewood Road
Perrysburg, OH 43551
If you prefer to drop off your gift instead of having it shipped you may do so. A quick call to be sure we are home to receive it would be appreciated. 419-290-8782
Following are the details to see the registry. Go to Kohls.com. Under “by department” scroll down to Gift Registry Click “Find registry” you can either enter the registry number: 3447323 Or type in “RSM Toledo” Click on the RSM Toledo House warming link and enjoy shopping for our new Religious Sisters of Mercy!
You may also go into Kohl’s and print out the registry in the store.
For larger monetary items perhaps you could invite your family and friends to go in on something with you. Or, if you would like to send a Kohl’s gift card that would be most welcome and appreciated as well.
So, there is the great news of the Sisters’ upcoming arrival, and how we could take part in a very practical way to prepare their home and welcome them.
Have a blessed week!
In cordibus Iesu et Mariae,
Father Poggemeyer
