EMMITSBURG, MD (Feb. 2, 2022) – The National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton announced the debut of “Stories from the Sisters,” an occasional series of short video interviews with sisters from the orders that trace their lineage to the first native-born American saint.
The first episode features Sister Mary Catherine Conway of the Daughters of Charity, who discusses her 40 years in Catholic education as a teacher and principal. Conway currently works at the Shrine in Emmitsburg, Md. The video series is beginning on the same day as the World Day of Consecrated Life, which celebrates the unique contributions that religious sisters around the world make in society.
Mother Seton founded the Sisters of Charity of St. Joseph’s, the first community for religious women established in the United States, in 1809. Both the current day Sisters of Charity and Daughters of Charity stem from that founding.
“Mother Seton’s sisters have so much to offer to all of us in their everyday witness to our Lord,” said Rob Judge, executive director of the Shrine. “Their stories provide a glimpse of the sacrifices they make but also their service to those experiencing poverty and the joy of life they experience as a religious. They offer us love, good humor and a witness to holiness that is needed now more than ever.”
The videos in the series will be available on the Shrine’s social media channels and on its website at www.setonshrine.org. You can view the first episode here.
The series is just one of several initiatives for 2022, following a year-long commemoration of the 200th anniversary of Mother Seton’s passing.
Other initiatives this year include:
- Seton & Culture Series: A series of original stories and videos by leading Catholic writers, poets and artists. The initial essay is by noted Catholic poet Paul Mariani and describes the sensations of a concerto and the feelings it elicits through the eyes of Thomas Merton and Mother Seton.
- Seton Museum/Visitor Center: The Shrine expects to break ground by the summer on a fully renovated and expanded Museum that will highlight the life and legacy of Mother Seton and the sisters who took her message to the world. Funds for the new Museum and Visitor Center are coming from the Shrine’s “New Century of Charity” capital campaign that is close to reaching its $7 million goal.
- Lift Up My Soul: 15 Days of Prayer with Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton: Mother Seton’s life was full of crisis and discouragement, and yet she persevered and became a saint and one of the most revered figures in the history of American Catholicism. Where did she find the strength to continue? By turning to prayer and a deeper devotion to God.
This free, 15-day email program uses the writings and meditations of Mother Seton to more fully integrate prayer into our daily life and to develop a deeper, more personal relationship with the Living God.
The National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton
The National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, Md., is a place of God and of history, where visitors can walk in the footsteps of a saint. The Shrine offers pilgrims prayerful comfort from Mother Seton’s story and her intercessions as a friend in heaven. It is an active Basilica and has a wide range of historical buildings and programs that show what life was like when Mother Seton lived here more than 200 years ago. It was here that she founded the first community of religious women established in the U.S., created the first free Catholic school for girls staffed by sisters in the U.S. and fulfilled her mission of serving those in need. Today, her legacy includes several religious communities with thousands of sisters, who serve others through schools, social service centers and hospitals throughout the world. She was canonized in 1975. Her remains are entombed at the National Shrine that bears her name. For more information, please visit https://setonshrine.org/.
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