Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth in the USA

Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth in the USA We are an international congregation of vowed religious. Family is the heart of our mission. They first served at St. That same year, they established a U.S.

The Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth (CSFN) are an international congregation of vowed religious women dedicated to spreading the Kingdom of God’s love, particularly within families. It was founded in Rome in 1875 by Frances Siedliska, a Polish noble woman, in religious life known as Mary of Jesus the Good Shepherd, who was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1989. Today there are some 1,100 s

isters serving in 14 countries: Australia, Belarus, France, Ghana, Great Britain, Italy, Israel, Kazakhstan, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Spain, Ukraine, USA; they are joined by 700 lay associates. In 1885, Blessed Mary of Jesus the Good Shepherd came to Chicago with a small band of sisters dedicated to serving the families of immigrants from Poland. Josaphat Parish on Chicago’s North Side; rather quickly, their ministry expanded to include health care, education and pastoral ministry. Provincialate in Chicago. Today Holy Family Province, the U.S. province of the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth, has some 200 sisters serving in Connecticut, Illinois, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas. The Provincialate is located in Des Plaines, IL, a Chicago suburb. We share in Jesus’ mission of spreading the Kingdom of God’s love. We do this by serving families through active ministry in schools, hospitals, parishes, prisons, and social service agencies.

Do you remember a long time ago when there was a poster that read: “Bloom Where You Are Planted”? I think I understood i...
06/17/2026

Do you remember a long time ago when there was a poster that read: “Bloom Where You Are Planted”? I think I understood it then but have a different understanding of it today. Recently, I received this thought from a group called The Jesuspirit Team: “I should be further along by now.” Do you ever feel this way ‘Where is my life going? Am I stuck?’ I must confess that I’ve been there.

God’s timing is much better than mine because, as I read further in the piece, I realized I am not stuck but planted. What does that mean? If we look at Jeremiah 17:7-8, we gain a better understanding of what it means to be planted. “Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in Him. They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit. There is no need to panic or measure my spiritual growth against another ‘tree’. That is because we trust in the Lord, and our roots are running deep. We are connected to the source of all life!

We are where we are because it is part of God’s plan. Again, we look at Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” God has planted us right where we need to be in this time in this season, constantly watering us so our roots can grow deep. Perhaps we can’t see or don’t understand why we are where we are at this moment, but God has a plan, and God looks to the depth of our roots, not at the surface. We need to stop measuring our growth by what is visible. God knows the depth of our hearts and roots. We may be in a growing, not a weak state; be patient.

Instead of asking why we are still at this stage at this time of our life, why not ask God what God may be growing in you as you sink your roots deeper into the earth, feeding from the river of life? If you take the time to reflect on other times in your life, you can see the growth times and the precious fruit it bore, so why not now? Together, let us be patient and grow in the trust of God’s plans for us. We aren’t stuck. We are planted exactly where we are supposed to be, ‘and our fruit is coming.’

Sister Theresita Donach, CSFN

For several weeks now we’ve been celebrating critical events, beginning with Easter, then Ascension, Pentecost, Trinity,...
06/14/2026

For several weeks now we’ve been celebrating critical events, beginning with Easter, then Ascension, Pentecost, Trinity, Corpus Christi, Sacred Heart…..it’s almost like celebratory overload! And now we set our feet back down on the ground and return to Ordinary Time.

So, what is our focus as we start back to the everydayness? It is God’s love for us, from time immemorial! How do we hear that? In today’s readings:

- You shall be my special possession, dearer to me than all other people.
- …perhaps for a good person one might even find courage to die.
- Jesus’ heart was moved with pity for them.
- The kingdom of heaven is at hand.

We are reminded of how special we are, as God’s personal creation! God told us this through the prophets, through the disciples and through God’s own Son, the Christ, now risen, now glorified. We may be thousands of years from experiencing Jesus, the Christ, physically here on earth, but we are intimately close to God each time we receive the Eucharist, each time we pray, each time we recall God’s immense love in creation. And that creation includes everything and everyone around us, near or far.

So, what is that message of God’s love telling us today? “You must hearken to my voice and keep my covenant”. “We will be saved by Jesus’ life”. And the last words of the Gospel tell us concretely how we are to live into that love, that life: “Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give.”

Sister Catherine Fedewa, CSFN

While celebrating the Feast of Corpus Christi this past weekend, we sang a song by Bernadette Farrell titled “Bread for ...
06/10/2026

While celebrating the Feast of Corpus Christi this past weekend, we sang a song by Bernadette Farrell titled “Bread for the World.” For the first time, I must have been fully awake. The words really struck a chord in my heart,

Bread for the World, a world of hunger
Wine for all peoples, people who thirst
May we who eat be bread for others
May we who drink, pour out our love.

The feast reminds us that WE, in June 2026, are now the Body and Blood of Jesus. Think about it, if we eat the bread, we need to be bread for others. How do we do that in this time and space? What are you doing to be bread for others? I am sure it means more than serving people at a soup kitchen (although that’s a good start). How are you feeding those in need? Again, I have more questions than answers. What about drinking and pouring out your love? That can be a real tough one.

Given my limitations, I need first to figure out who is hungry and thirsty and what I can do for them. Each of us must decide that for ourselves. Once we have taken inventory, so to speak, we need to move from prayer to action. What does that mean for you? I must say, pouring out love can be a real challenge. Sometimes we think that ‘some people’ don’t deserve our love. We can be judgmental at times, while there are people who are hungry and thirsty for us to be bread and wine for them.

I concluded that at this time and place in my life, I can be bread and wine by doing my best to offer retreats and listen to the stories the faithful people share. I can also encourage them along their spiritual journey. They want more, and that’s the good news. I pray that, when we are together, “I am an echo of God’s voice for them” (Bl. Mary of Jesus the Good Shepherd). I can also speak justice for those who are marginalized and not treated as valued persons.

My prayer this week is that you take an inventory and see how you are, or can be, bread and wine, love poured out for others. God bless.

Sister Theresita Donach, CSFN

Education has long been a cornerstone of our Sisters' ministry, both in teaching and in continuing their own education t...
06/09/2026

Education has long been a cornerstone of our Sisters' ministry, both in teaching and in continuing their own education to help further the mission's reach. Won't you help them continue this tradition?

Read article --- bit.ly/4oClFOV

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Today’s solemnity is a pivotal celebration for our Church. The Eucharist is famously described as the source and summit ...
06/07/2026

Today’s solemnity is a pivotal celebration for our Church. The Eucharist is famously described as the source and summit of our faith (CCC1324). Our spiritual energy originates from the Eucharist. Just as manna physically sustained the Israelites in the desert, the Eucharist spiritually sustains us in living the Christian life. The Eucharist also expresses our relationship with God.

In our Gospel reading, which is taken from the Last Supper discourse, Jesus tells His disciples that it is necessary to eat His Body and drink His Blood in order to share in His Life. The message is very clear. The Eucharist is the real deal. While many Protestant denominations describe the Eucharist as a symbol, Jesus was very emphatic. It is not symbolic. The Eucharist is truly His Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity. For His followers, this message was shocking, and many left His company, but Jesus did not backpedal. Jesus asked His apostles if they wanted to leave Him too, and I am always touched by Peter’s response, “Lord, to whom should we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

The Last Supper was the first Mass. Our attendance at Mass should be more than a Sunday ritual. It is literally where heaven and earth meet. Receiving Christ in Holy Communion is the most intimate encounter with Him on this side of heaven and a foretaste of the heavenly banquet. Jesus loves each of us so much that He chose to remain with us under the appearance of bread and wine. He is always waiting to strengthen, comfort, and unite us. May we grow each day in our understanding of the Eucharist, allow ourselves to be nourished by Christ, and sacrifice ourselves for the good of others.

Sister Marcella Louise Wallowicz, CSFN

This year (2026) marks the 250th anniversary of our nation’s founding. In preparation for this historic moment, the Unit...
06/03/2026

This year (2026) marks the 250th anniversary of our nation’s founding. In preparation for this historic moment, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) will consecrate the United States to the Sacred Heart of Jesus on June 11.

All are invited to join in the Novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which the USCCB and people from across the nation will be praying from June 3-11, in preparation for the consecration.

Let us prepare our hearts for this incredible occasion. We turn to the Sacred Heart where we are reminded of Christ's burning love for us and His desire to love us tenderly and completely.

I have always been taken by the Word Namaste. There are several translations of the word, but my favorite is, ‘the God i...
06/03/2026

I have always been taken by the Word Namaste. There are several translations of the word, but my favorite is, ‘the God in me greets the God in you’. As I prepared for a retreat centered on the Feast of Corpus Christi, I began to reflect on its meaning.

Corpus Christi is about the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Although we can sit for hours before the Blessed Sacrament, how do we take that prayer, the belief in the real presence of Jesus, out into the world, to our home, workplace, schools, etc.? We need to become the body of Christ today, His hands and feet and heart.

Therefore, when we say Namaste, we would truly be saying ‘the God in me greets the God in you’. The story is told that Mother Teresa would teach her sisters not only to genuflect before the Blessed Sacrament but also before each sister, reverencing the God who dwells within them. Our Foundress, Frances Siedliska, truly believed this when she placed on our crosses “Ecce Regnum Dei, intra Vos est…Behold, the Kingdom of God is within you.”

Ah, but do we truly believe that? Do we try to see God in each other? Do I believe that God is truly living within me when I receive Communion? We can take things for granted and operate on autopilot. We need to become more like Jesus each time we receive the Eucharist. Sometimes I joke and say, “Jesus, if receiving you helps me become more like you, we still have a lot of work to do!” What about you? Are you recognizing that the more you receive Jesus, the more you are becoming like him?

I was talking to a friend who was presenting on negotiating. I shared my word with her and said, “IF we greet each other with that image in mind, all negotiating would be a lot easier.” We would LISTEN to the other person, and HEAR what they are saying, without focusing on preparing our response. Imagine that! Imagine if we greeted each other, recognizing the living, breathing Corpus Christi!

My challenge for this week is for us to recognize the presence of God in the other and treat them as the Body of Christ. NAMASTE, MY FRIENDS. Let us reverence one another.

Sister Theresita Donach, CSFN

Blessed Mary of Jesus the Good Shepherd, lead us ever closer to Jesus. 🙏 💖
06/02/2026

Blessed Mary of Jesus the Good Shepherd, lead us ever closer to Jesus. 🙏 💖

As I read through the prayers and readings for today’s feast, I was touched by the close connection of the Father with t...
05/31/2026

As I read through the prayers and readings for today’s feast, I was touched by the close connection of the Father with the Son through the Holy Spirit. All three are connected and acting in union with one another. No separation from one or the other–displaying the truth for all to see that our Triune God is a God of love and Peace, a God of mercy and forgiveness, of truth and wonder, of life and even of death. No separation within the Trinity. It seems that the three Persons are working for the manifestation of Unity and Love, to be shown and shared with anyone who will stop and open his or her heart to the reality that moves among us and also within each person.

And this revelation can be experienced on mountains, early in the morning, at any time of day or night, with people of all nations and economic realities. All are touched by the marvel of God’s love. Yes, we need faith to venture into this Mystery, believing that we are God’s children and that the Spirit resides within our hearts. Let us take time to ponder this Mystery and let its depth and beauty unfold within our lives, truly changing our world from the depths of our hearts, offering glory and praise to our Triune God of Love.

Sister Maria Kruszewski, CSFN

“Ask the Holy Spirit for light, in order not to be governed by purely human intelligence or sentiment, but by God Himsel...
05/29/2026

“Ask the Holy Spirit for light, in order not to be governed by purely human intelligence or sentiment, but by God Himself and His ordinances.”

- Blessed Mary of Jesus the Good Shepherd

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310 N River Road
Des Plaines, IL
60016

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+18472986760

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