Having just marked my 25th anniversary of priestly ordination earlier this summer, it dawned on me that it has been 30 years since I began my studies in seminary. Thirty years ago, along with about 30 other classmates from around the country, we began our journey of spiritual and academic formation at Mundelein Seminary in Chicago. During the last week of August of 1992, we began the process of meeting one another and meeting the seminary faculty and staff who would have such a prominent role in helping to shape and form each of us during the years that would follow. They were a mix of priests, religious sisters and laypeople. They all shared rich and deep faith in Jesus and the Church, and they worked together to help shape, form and prepare each seminarian academically and spiritually.

For me, one who will always stand out is Sister Dorothy Folliard, OP, a member of the Adrian Dominican Sisters based here in our own diocese. The Adrian Dominicans have a rich history of serving in schools and parishes around the Midwest, and Sister Dorothy was no exception to that history. Like most religious sisters that I have known, Sister Dorothy was extremely well-educated, having earned a number of advanced degrees at both the master’s and doctoral levels. During her time at Mundelein, Sister Dorothy would teach Old and New Testament Scripture, as well as Latin and Greek. Mostly though, Sister Dorothy would teach holiness by the witness of her life of dedicated service to the Church and by her deep and irrepressible love for Jesus and all that he had done for her through the course of her life.

Taking part in any class taught by Sister Dorothy was a pleasure. Her teaching style blended together her Irish wit and her keen intellect in a way that was never overbearing.

She was always supportive of each student and would take as much time as needed to help us to learn and understand the concepts she sought to share, regardless if that was unpacking the meaning of a challenging Gospel passage or struggling to master a verb conjugation in Greek or a declension in Latin. Sister Dorothy was known for her patience and dedication as a teacher and also, true to her Dominican roots as part of the Order of Preachers, for her ability to bring alive the words of Jesus. Her depth of understanding and insight into the Scriptures she taught was inspiring and memorable. At the same time, Sister Dorothy was always very clear that her ministry of teaching was not about her, it was about Jesus. It was about humbly helping students to encounter Jesus more deeply and understand him more clearly in order to love and serve him and his Church.

I am deeply grateful for the many lessons which Sister Dorothy taught me during my time in seminary. Like all of the religious sisters I have known through my life, her humility and joyful service always pointed the way to Jesus and a deeper encounter with his love. Take the opportunity in this issue to get to know Sister Marie Paul Lockerd, RSM, Sister Mary Rafqa Boulos, RSM, and Sister Mary Nika Schaumber, RSM. They are members of the Religious Sisters of Mercy based in Alma, Mich. They are part of the ministry of Cristo Rey Community Center in Lansing. Through their compassionate ministry, principally in providing health care to a poor and under-served community, they are pointing the way to Jesus, the Divine Physician, and his desire for healing, health and holiness in the life of that community and in the life of each and every person. By their dedicated witness, the compassion of Jesus is made visible for all. And so, our journey in FAITH continues.