Posts by Sr. Mary Valerie Schneider

Covey’s famous 7 Habits book claims “Interdependence is ten times more difficult than independence.” How true this is for business teams, athletic teams, economic growth, and peace in the world. Stated positively, interdependence is ten times more effective than independence. So much more can be achieved through teamwork, including the teamwork of intercessory prayer. One…

I read the book Spreading the Fire: the Story of the Sisters of Notre Dame in California 1924-2010 by Sr. Mary Joanne Wittenburg, SND. The hardships the Sisters endured filled me with empathy for the loneliness, inconveniences, and backbreaking work they encountered. Although more recent times lessened the challenges, similar challenges met them in their…

Nine months after the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, the new patronal feast for us Sisters of Notre Dame, we celebrate the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Like all feasts, this day is less about the saint and more about the marvelous work of God. We celebrate all that God has done in Mary…

In her book At the Still Point, Sarah Arthur writes, “Summer is nothing short of miraculous, a kind of extended intoxicating dream.” As students and parents wake up to alarm clocks now that school has resumed, they may feel rudely awakened. The intoxication of freedom from homework and schedules still clings to them. Yet the…

I’m not a professional painter, but I enjoy the challenge of painting a room.  Recently I painted two classrooms. (Full disclosure: Someone came behind me with the tricky trimming around light switches and smart boards.) Dip the roller, raise it high, smooth the paint and keep it even. Repeat. There’s something contemplative about the repetitive…

When someone cries, tears spring to my own eyes. Just reading about someone else’s crying can do the same. In mid-July we hear the story of Joseph sold into slavery by his brothers. The part that brings a catch to my throat occurs when Joseph reveals himself to his brothers: “Joseph could no longer control…

Our hearts go out to farmers whose crops are behind schedule or not planted at all. This year there is little hope that corn will be knee high by the Fourth of July. Perhaps the best hope of discouraged farmers is above the ankles and up the shins. For what do Sisters pray as they…

Perhaps you’ve sung the camp song “We’re All Together Again.” That could be the theme song for us Sisters as we gather in July for many occasions: retreat, jubilee celebrations, national gatherings, and business. No matter the occasion, the event deepens the living of our charism. Deeply experiencing God’s goodness and provident care, we gather…

It is a relief to be back in Ordinary Time. Although Lent and Easter, especially the Sacred Triduum, are very meaningful to me, those seasons are stressful. We run from ashes to Easter Candle. (And even after that we have the liturgical details that come with Trinity Sunday and Corpus Christi.) Ordinary Time has a…

When I saw the movie Breakthrough I gasped at the moment the three boys fell through the ice. The next few minutes were harrowing and horrifying, as the one boy descended into the dark water. Later I reflected on the deep plunge the neophytes took at the Easter Vigil. They willingly died with Christ in…