what I was made for
Maria-Regina shares her vocation:
I was born into a good family, with a very devout mother, who instilled her faith in me from a very young age. Since as far back as I can remember, probably as a toddler, Jesus was my dearest friend. I thought of religious life even then. Even as a child, I was smitten by the idea of it – pretty much ever since I was told it was the way Christ could call us to be His spouse. This, to me, seemed the greatest possible thing
that could happen to a woman, and I longed to grow up so I could live for and with Him. Time went on and I went through school, and by middle and high school, my prayer life became more and more consistent and central in my life.
After I graduated, I had the grace of spending just over a year abroad in Senegal with an organization called Consolatio. There, we lived a very simple yet intense routine focused on prayer, apostolate, and international community. We offered nothing but our simple friendship and presence to our neighbors and the children who lived there, following the silent example of our Patron, our Sweet Mother of Sorrows, at the foot of the Cross (I did not know, then, that she was also the patron of a community of religious who lived the same sort of mission in their own contemplative way: the Passionists! But I am sure Our Lord did…) It was only a temporary program, but during that time, I had a taste of a life very similar to that of a religious… and I hungered for more. It was the first time the idea which had been buried since my youngest childhood became concrete and I LOVED it. I felt that I was finally truly giving of myself, and I wanted to live that way forever, exhausting myself in love. Yet the 14 months came to an end all too quickly.
After returning from mission, I had the idea of religious life strongly on my heart, but my spiritual director at the time recommended going to university before directly jumping to discernment. I trusted the judgment and was given a decidedly providential scholarship to Ave Maria University… where I have been the past 4 years.
I visited many communities during my school breaks, but they never felt quite right. As my senior year began, I had plenty of ideas for where to go next – I absolutely love philosophy and teaching and had been given some offers – but I knew the idea of religious life was still nudging at my heart. So, I figured I would take my Thanksgiving break to make a silent retreat, and give God a chance to redirect me if I was meant to do something other than study philosophy or teach next year.
Somewhat coincidentally, the Passionists were a young, thriving congregation that offered silent retreats. Something about them drew me, so I flew there for 8 days last November. And, completely unexpectedly, I fell instantly at home. I had not even realized what their charisms were – I was just coming for a retreat – but for the first time in all my searching, they aligned perfectly with my own heart. The community felt like family. I was suddenly convicted that cloistered, contemplative life was exactly what I was made for. It was a very graced time – so graced, in fact, that I was drawn back only two weeks later to make another, more intentional ten day retreat. And by the end, I was completely in love. I applied for aspirancy and to my great joy, the community accepted my request. I was almost skipping down the cloistered halls, although I couldn’t quite skip in good conscience because I knew it would break monastic decorum. Still, I couldn’t stop smiling.
The community set my entrance date a year later, December 19, 2026, and now, here I am, an official Passionist aspirant, longing to go at last and live the rest of my life keeping our Lady company at the foot of the Cross, and learning the sublime lessons there hidden. That is my story, which I submit to you with my grateful prayers. Thank you for everything your organization does for religious and for the Church.
Can you support other young men and women eager to give their lives to Christ and His Church?
