The fifth- to eighth-grade girls are intrigued by the striking simplicity of Sister Mary Mia Menke’s floor-length habit and black veil. These junior high girls, who attend the Compostela after-school program at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Paterson, N.J., also enjoy asking her probing questions, such as “How did you know you wanted to be a religious sister?”
The students’ questions are part of the efforts of the entire St. John’s community to get acquainted with — and welcome — Sister Menke and three of her fellow Religious Sisters of Mercy of Alma, Mich., who arrived in Paterson on Sept. 6. Already, three of the sisters are assisting in the Compostela program for 200 students, from kindergarten to eighth grade.
“When the girls ask me a question, I tell them that my religious vocation is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever received. They understand. It gets them thinking about what God is calling them to do in life,” said Sister Menke, originally from Nebraska. “In whatever we do for the children — getting them water while they’re eating or telling them about the Lord, we are meant to reflect Christ’s mercy and show them that, even in the challenges of living in Paterson, the Lord is with them.”
It’s providential that the Sisters of Mercy came to St. John’s to help share Christ’s hope, love, and mercy with the impoverished surrounding community. The cathedral, the mother church of the Paterson Diocese in New Jersey, continually provides outreach through spiritual and social justice efforts to help ease the suffering of its neighbors as part of “The Block of Mercy.”
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The sisters have established their convent in the rectory of nearby St. Michael Parish, also in Paterson. The sisters at St. John’s are Sister Menke, Sister Paul Miriam MacInnes, originally from Minneapolis, Minn., and Sister Moira Debono, from Long Island. She serves as the community’s local superior. A fourth member, Sister Marie Bernadette Steinmetz, originally from Germany, is preparing for other apostolic work.
Soon, the Sisters of Mercy will assist with St. John’s growing religious education program, which serves 600 students. The sisters will also help with St. John’s adult education program, offered in both English and Spanish. In the Compostela after-school program, students have time for homework, a snack, sports, and catechism.
“An education for these children is important, but what’s most important is that they come to know the Lord. A number of them learn the faith at home. We reinforce those lessons as we talk about the faith and answer their questions,” Sister Debono said.
Sister Debono called Msgr. Geno Sylva, rector of St. John’s and diocesan vicar for special projects, “a true man of God, who energizes people. We strive to participate in that.”
The Religious Sisters of Mercy of Alma, Mich., is a Catholic religious congregation founded in 1973. They are rooted in the charism and legacy of Mother Catherine McAuley, the founder of the first Sisters of Mercy, with the opening of her House of Mercy in Dublin, Ireland, in 1827. The institute focuses on service in education and health care.
Msgr. Sylva first met the Sisters of Mercy in Rome. There, he served as an English language official of the former Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelization for the Holy See, from 2012 to 2018. Msgr. Sylva was impressed by how the sisters there welcomed pilgrims to the Holy City.
Since arriving at St. John’s in 2018, Msgr. Sylva had been asking Mother General Mary Christa Nutt to send a few sisters. This year, she agreed. The cathedral community refurbished St. Michael’s rectory for the sisters’ new convent and welcomed them during a bilingual Mass and block party on Sept. 6.
On Sept. 24, Msgr. Sylva celebrated a Mass for the feast of Our Lady of Mercy, the patroness of the sisters.
“Sisters, I can’t believe you’re finally here,” Msgr. Sylva said to the sisters in his homily. He said, like Mother McAuley, they find “the peace of the cross, joy in suffering, prayer in action, and action in prayer” and find their charism in ministering to children and those who are sick and in need. “Your community goes out as religious sisters, engaging the world with God’s mercy,” he said.
Salesian Sister Theresa Lee, diocesan chancellor and delegate for religious, welcomed the Sisters of Mercy to Paterson.
“Their charism, especially in the service of mercy, will bring much joy and comfort to the children and adults whom they will encounter each day as they teach and walk with them in faith,” Sister Lee said. ” I am delighted that we will be working more closely in this diocese with Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney, the cathedral staff, and all our consecrated religious.”
