Jubilarian Mass at Holy Angels Convent 2020

Published: October 2, 2020

Bishop Anthony B. Taylor preached the following homily at Holy Angels Convent in Jonesboro on Friday, Oct. 2, 2020, to celebrate the 70th anniversary of religious life for Benedictine Sisters Monica Swirczynski, Dominica Wise and Romana Rohmer. It is based on the following readings: Hosea 2:16, 21-22; Psalm 100; Colossians 3:1-4; and John 12:24-26.

Bishop Taylor

Today we celebrate the 70-year jubilee of Sisters Monica Swirczynski, Dominica Wise and Romana Rohmer and the readings they have chosen are just beautiful. They speak of their betrothal to the Lord and the death to self that is part of any true love.

First of all we have betrothal, specifically the passage in our first reading from Hosea which they apply to their experience of the Lord taking them as his spouse: "I will betroth you to me forever: I will betroth you to me with justice and with judgment, with loyalty and with compassion; I will betroth you to me with fidelity and you shall know the LORD."

This betrothal began in their pious Catholic homes even before our jubilarians entered the convent, and then grew during a couple of years in the juniorate — so we’re really talking about maybe 72 years or more. But in any event their betrothal was formalized with first vows in 1950, and this union with the Lord is still strong. This theme is reinforced in our responsorial psalm: "He made us, we belong to him … his faithfulness lasts through every generation."

And then we have the death to self that 70-plus years of faithfulness requires. In our second reading from Colossians: "Think of what is above, not of what is on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ your life appears, then you too will appear with him in glory.” 

But most of all, notice our Gospel story of the grain of wheat which dies and thereby produces much fruit. This image of the seed is a wonderful symbol of the death and resurrection of Jesus, and a powerful challenge especially to us whom the Lord calls to a religious vocation.

I am certain that over the course of the last seven decades our jubilarians have already had to die to self many times. Some of these deaths are adversities that may simply be part of the human condition — illness, loss of loved ones, the limitations of old age — things that we can “offer up” to the Lord with patience and resignation, which is one sort of death to self.

Others of these deaths are times when we sacrifice our will, sacrifices we make for the benefit of others, sacrifices we make to live faithfully our vows of obedience and conversion of life — doing what we have been asked to do, submitting to the will of your superior even when you see things differently or of the community when there are elections.

“Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.” Look back over these last 70 years and you will see what Jesus is talking about.

As a young sister, Sister Dominica served her fellow sisters in the culinary department of Holy Angels Convent and served the sick in the special diet kitchen of St. Bernards Hospital. These were not glamorous jobs, but through them Sister Dominica poured herself out in service to others. And then for the next 40 years she poured herself out in the care she gave to children in daycare.

Sister Romana and Sister Monica served the Lord in the field of education: Sister Monica for 48 years followed by responsibilities back here at the convent; and Sister Romana for 57 years (26 in Catholic schools and 31 as a DRE), both at various schools in Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas.

And now in their “senior years” all three sisters provide prayer support for the community, and in addition, Sister Romana continues to handle community correspondence, runs the gift shop and serves on the council.

Today we celebrate one such death, a death that goes by the name of commitment. Every commitment binds a person to a certain way of life, and thereby excludes certain other ways of life. Making a commitment means burning a few bridges.

And when our jubilarians made their commitment, there was no going back for them. Thank you, sisters, for your faithfulness and your death to self out of love for the Lord, to whom you were betrothed forever 70 years ago.