When the Holy Spirit Comes Knocking By S. Regina Kusnir
T
he routed journey of the GPS of the heart is rarely direct. It is mapped over many years and marked with stops created by a variety of circumstances. Sometimes it is a journey we want to retrace. Sometimes it is an entirely different route. No matter, the Holy Spirit is the navigator and the journey never grows old. S. Juana Mendez finds the Holy Spirit a worthy navigator. Over the years of her ministerial journey the route is not a straight line. S. Juana was born in Puerto Rico and at the age of 8 her family journeyed to Cleveland, Ohio. The distance from the airport in Puerto Rico to that in Cleveland is some 1,839 miles. She grew up in Cleveland, attended Catholic elementary and high school there and raised a family. In 1995, when the children were grown, the Spirit directed her to the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati. Her gentle and compassionate heart has always had a sensitivity to the poor. The Covington Diocese in Northern Kentucky, and a number of parishes there, were recipients of her ministry for many years. Her heart found a home ministering to immigrants. Fluent in Spanish, her skills allowed her to help those who, like her own family, also came to the U.S. in search of hope and a better life. This unpretentious Sister reflected: “I have been ministering to the Hispanic community since I can remember. I love helping those in need. I am a good listener and nonjudgmental. I am willing to give up what I 12
While ministering with the Covington Diocese, S. Juana Mendez was given accreditation through the diocese to practice immigration law.
have for my neighbor. I had the privilege of working with immigrants in the Northern Kentucky area for 21 years. That opportunity helped me to grow spiritually and to become humbler.” While in this ministry she was accredited as a Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) representative for the Department of Justice and was given accreditation through the diocese to practice immigration law. The Holy Spirit urges the heart to reset the GPS when the time is right. In 2019 S. Juana felt that urge. “I was trying to decide if I was ready to leave the Diocese of Kentucky. I prayed for many months. When I met Father Mark Riley, the pastor of St. Michael the Archangel parish in Cleveland, Ohio, he was looking for someone, fluent in Spanish, who would minister in the parish. Before the conversation ended, he invited me to join his staff.” S. Juana entered into a time of reflection and prayer after the invitation from Father Riley to “make sure this is what I was being called to do.” The refrain from the song “Anthem” by Tom Conry* was the center of her reflection. It reads: “We are called, we are chosen. We are Christ for one another. We are promised to tomorrow, while we are for him today. We are sign, we are wonder. We are sower, we are seed. We are harvest, we are hunger. We are question, we are creed.” I ntercom
