SPIRIT OF ST. FRANCIS
FOLLOWERS OF ST. FRANCIS by Patricia Mish
Sister Mary Gemma made her final vows as a Franciscan sister in July 2019. At left are her parents, Todd and Mary Harris.
FINDING HARMONY IN THE FRANCISCAN SPIRIT
14 • May 2022 / StAnthonyMessenger.org
‘AN OLD-FASHIONED GIRL’ Sister Mary Gemma’s musical and religious roots go back to her childhood, where she grew up “an old-fashioned girl” in a small rural town in the Columbia Basin of Washington State. She loved books, paper dolls, and classic movies. “My siblings and I would learn musical numbers and perform them for our parents and extended family,” she says. “Music was an integral part of my childhood, from piano lessons to choir and community theater.” Her family life revolved around their Catholic parish. Her mom homeschooled all six children and would
BELOW: COURTESY OF SISTER MARY GEMMA/NICHOLAS BELT (2)
sense, given that Francis was known to sing and dance, even using two sticks to mimic a violin and a bow. “I imagine it was a way to express his very full and passionate heart,” says Sister Mary Gemma. Encouraged by her community, she began songwriting early in her postulancy. After playing her music at a livestreamed benefit, a production company offered her studio time. The result is Go Forward, an album of original music released on the feast of St. Francis, October 4, 2021. The album is available on platforms including Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Music, and Pandora. More information about Sister Mary Gemma’s music can be found at FranciscanSistersTOR.org/News/Music. Sister Mary Gemma says: “Music has always been an expression of my heart. It’s such a gift we have as human beings to give glory to God not only with our souls but also with our bodies. I feel most fully alive when I’m playing and singing for the Lord—even when no words are involved.”
ALL PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF SISTER MARY GEMMA
SISTER MARY GEMMA HARRIS vividly remembers the day she visited Mt. Subasio above Assisi, kneeling before a bed of rock in the same cave where St. Francis often prayed. “I thought of how he must have known and loved God so deeply and met him in this place,” recalls Sister Mary Gemma of that profound moment during a trip to Italy while working as a campus minister for a study abroad program in 2016. For Sister Mary Gemma, her call to religious life as a member of the Franciscan Sisters, TOR (Third Order Regular) of the Penance of the Sorrowful Mother, is very much a love story. A childhood piety nurtured by her devout Catholic parents would grow deeper when she attended Franciscan University in Steubenville (Ohio). “I find it beautiful and mysterious how the Lord formed my heart for great love, and then slowly revealed that he is that great love,” she says. That love would draw her to religious life and find expression in a community modeled after the example of St. Francis. “St. Francis knew the tension between the life of contemplation and the urgency of preaching the Gospel for the salvation of souls. He found peace in imitating Christ, and he lived both with just as much zeal and passion.” Sister Mary Gemma brings zeal and passion to her prayer life and ministries, whether serving the poor with novices at a homeless shelter, counseling students as a campus minister, creating social media content, or cleaning and cooking in the community kitchen. More recently, her Franciscan spirit has found creative expression in music. The connection to music makes
