New Book about Ursuline Sisters

Ursulines ALIVE

“Hope and Firm Faith” tells the story of the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph

By Dan Heckel, Mount Saint Joseph Staff

There are so many fascinating stories interwoven throughout the history of the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph, eventually any discussion of one typically leads a listener to reply, “Someone should write a book.”

In June 2017, at the conclusion of her first year as congregational leader, Sister Amelia Stenger decided it was time to find “someone” to write that book.

“Come by my office, I want to talk about a project with you,” she said to me that June. Little did I know that her “project” was to write the history of the Ursuline Sisters who call Maple Mount home.

I had never written a book before, but I agreed to be that “someone.” The ensuing four years provided a life-changing experience for me as I got to know many Sisters who long ago went to heaven. I was motivated by a paragraph I read in a book by two Australian professors:

“History isn’t about the past. It’s about someone else’s present. We hope to write about them as vividly as if they were in the room with us.”

Soon, you will have the chance to see if that happened. “Hope and Firm Faith: The Story of the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph” will be available this spring. (The exact date is still up in the air at the time this magazine went to press.)

We are fortunate to have such expansive archives at Maple Mount. Other than trips to the archives of the Sisters of Loretto and the Ursuline Sisters of Louisville, the research for this book was all done at the Mount, with the help of the Internet and some well-placed phone calls.

The key ministries and adventures of the Ursuline community are chronicled through the eyes of the Sisters who lived them, using their own words from letters they sent. You’ll meet all the Sisters who’ve served in leadership, and Sisters who were simply noted for their kindness. You’ll learn how the Mount Saint Joseph Junior College and Brescia College began, and who was responsible for keeping them going. The relationships between the Sisters and their bishops and priests – most supportive, others tense – are detailed. You will learn of their perseverance through the hard times – from their arrival in the woodlands in 1874, to the struggle for independence in 1912, through the changes and resulting exodus of Sisters following the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s. Mostly, you will learn about many amazing women who managed to forge their own identity while devoting their lives in service to God and the Church. They were teachers, but so much more – role models, spiritual giants and fearless pioneers. This is their story – one that continues being written today.

To preorder your copy of “Hope and Firm Faith:”

You can order online at ursulinesmsj.org/hopeand-firm-faith-book. Or to order by mail, send us your name, address, phone number and email address. Indicate if you would like your book signed by the author (at no extra charge). The cost is $37.10 for the book (that includes sales tax) plus $10 for shipping. If you order two books, shipping is $14. Make check payable to “Ursuline Sisters” and mail your check and

Dan Heckel has served as director of Mission Advancement and information to: Communications for the Ursuline Sisters of Mount Saint Joseph since Book Order 2007. He made his commitment as an Ursuline Associate in 2009. 8001 Cummings He lives in Owensboro, Ky., with his wife Sherri. They have one son, Road Max. This is his first book. Maple Mount, KY 42356