RELIGION
Felicians in U. S., Canada to form one congregation
Published: July 26, 2009, 12:30 am
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The largest community of Catholic nuns in Western New York will join forces later this year with seven other congregations in the United States and Canada.
The new Our Lady of Hope Province of the Felician Sisters of North America will be governed from a single motherhouse in Beaver Falls, Pa.
The Villa Maria convent at 600 Doat St., which recently was renovated and refurbished at a cost of $15 million, will remain, and Felicians will still be involved in a variety of ministries in Western New York.
“The Felicians in Buffalo have a wide impact on the diocese, and we expect that to continue,” said Sister Mary Christopher Moore, who was elected provincial minister of the merged province.
The reorganization follows similar moves in recent years by other shrinking orders, including the Sisters of Mercy in South Buffalo and the Sisters of St. Francis in Williamsville.
Bishop David Zubik of the Diocese of Pittsburgh will celebrate a Mass for the merger in Rochester, Pa., on Nov. 21, the 154th anniversary of the founding of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Felix of Cantalice by Blessed Mary Angela Truszkowska.
Installation of the new provincial council will be the same day, completing a merger process that started with talks about a decade ago. An estimated 400 sisters from around the country, including 65 from Buffalo, are expected to attend.
The reconfiguration includes about 850 Felician nuns from Coraopolis, Pa.; Rio Rancho, N. M.; Livonia, Mich.; Enfield, Conn.; Mississauga, Ont.; Buffalo; Chicago; and Lodi, N. J.
Sister Mary Jolene Jasinski will represent the Buffalo Felicians on the new council.
The current Buffalo province, with about 175 sisters, is the largest community of Felicians in the country. Some communities have just a few dozen sisters.
The merger will bring together all finances and leadership under a single entity.
Moore, currently part of the Coraopolis province, said the sisters would keep a presence in all of their historical provinces.
But sisters will have greater flexibility to serve in various parts of the country. The move was being conducted “for the sake of the viability of the mission of the sisters in North America,” said Moore.
The merger could help spur future vocations, as well, she said. “It’s a sign of vitality and faith in the future, and it will attract young women.”
jtokasz@buffnews.com
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