4 minute read
Sister Cecilia: Embracing The Tremendous Joy Of Following Our Lord
When Sister Cecilia was growing up, God had His loving, caring hand on her, making sure her heart and soul were prepared for the great mission He had destined for her life.
“The seeds of the faith were planted in my heart, especially through my family,” Sr. Cecilia says. “I grew up on a farm, and the peace and quiet of living there allowed a contemplative spirit to develop in me from a young age. My parents were very beautiful witnesses of Christian virtue and love, as well. We went to St. Joseph’s Parish, and they faithfully brought us to Mass each Sunday.”
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Amazingly, the saints held her in their hearts as well, especially St. Cecilia.
“I started singing in the choir for Mass in eighth grade, which really helped me to recognize my love for music and my desire to praise the Lord in a deeper way,” she says. “St. Cecilia was my Confirmation saint. It is so beautiful to see that she chose me way back then, and now her name is my religious name. I since have grown in my friendship with her and come to appreciate her purity of heart and love for the Lord.”
By embracing the sacramental graces God had in store for her, she was able to discern God’s will for her life in all of its fullness.
“When I was preparing to be confirmed, I studied on my own and learned a lot about the Catholic faith and various Church teachings,” she says. “This propelled me to continue to seek out my faith, especially when I was attending the University of Minnesota. There, I was involved with St. Paul’s Outreach, and I lived in a household with other Catholic women and missionaries. It was a very formative time for me. Handmaids of the Heart of Jesus would come occasionally to the University of Minnesota for different events and even come to our house to give us spiritual direction.”
In 2018, Sr. Cecilia took a courageous leap of faith and entered the Handmaids of the Heart of Jesus in New Ulm.
“Our religious order is Marian, diocesan, Eucharistic and contemplative,” Sr. Cecilia says. “Our life is centered around prayer, especially two daily Eucharistic Holy Hours. The center of our missionary activity is the parish, where we serve as spiritual mothers in order to help it to be a true family of faith. We serve each parish according to its particular needs — primarily in its catechetical, liturgical and familial life.”
Thanks to God’s grace, Sr. Cecilia made her first religious vows this past August. Looking back, she can’t help but marvel at His providence and tender mercy.
“Being a nun has been such a great gift!” she says. “It has been wonderful to see how the Lord knows me better than I know myself. He also understands my desires even more than I do, and He has been fulfilling them in the convent. For example, He gave the desire of having a family to my heart. Although it has been a big sacrifice to give it up, it is amazing how the Lord has provided for me one-hundred fold, by allowing me to see my sisters and the Church as my family, with priests being our spiritual fathers and the parishioners as my spiritual children. It has been wonderful to pour out my heart for them and to love them.”
Sr. Cecelia
In 2018, Sr. Cecilia took a courageous leap of faith and entered the Handmaids of the Heart of Jesus in New Ulm.
