Day 1 – SSVM Janelle – J-N@yahoo.com
Day 2 – FMA Megan – F-E@gmail.com
Day 3 – TOR Anna – A-A@verizon.net
Day 4 – Martyrs Krystle – K-N@gmail.com
Day 5 – Carmelites Maria – R-S@woltornist.com

Congrats to the winners, and thanks for all of those who entered!

The post The Winners, Announced! appeared first on Imagine Sisters Movement.

Having been the parochial vicar of two parishes and the pastor of a third, each with a parish school, I have been struck by the great tragedy of the general absence of religious sisters in parish life.  It is not primarily because in the past they made Catholic education affordable or because they are great teachers of the faith – both being most certainly true – but because of the importance of who they are.  While religious profession as a sister is not a sacrament as ordination to Holy Orders is, it is nonetheless a sacramental.

Sacraments are physical things in and through which we encounter Christ, the Eucharist being the sacrament par excellence in which the thing is transformed into the very presence of Christ himself.  Sacramentals are closely related in that they “are sacred signs which bear a resemblance to the sacraments. They signify effects, particularly of a spiritual nature, which are obtained through the intercession of the Church. By them men are disposed to receive the chief effect of the sacraments, and various occasions in life are rendered holy” (CCC 1672).

A significant effect of sisterhood is the representation of who the Church is and what we, as members of the Church, are called to be.  In terms of comparison: if priesthood makes sacramentally present the Priesthood of Jesus Christ, Head of the Church, then sisterhood makes present, by way of representation, what the Church is as the Bride of Christ.  Sisters, by who and what they are, remind us of our call to be holy, to be receptive to the Holy Spirit.

In my priesthood, I have been blessed to witness the particular power of the presence of women religious.  While the school at my first parish was not staffed by sisters, there were a number of them present at the parish; they were Felician sisters.  In fact, they still live in the convent next to the school today.  Time and time again I observed my first pastor’s words to be true: if we priests ask people to do something, they will think about it.  If one of the sisters asks, people trip over themselves to do it.  Personally, I am convinced that it is because they remind us of who we are and should be in our daily lives as members of the Christ’s Bride, the Church.

Very Rev. Paul C. Stein, S.T.L
Holy Thursday 2013

Very Rev. Stein is the Rector-President of St. Joseph College Seminary of the Archdiocese of Chicago.

The post Signs of the Sacred appeared first on Imagine Sisters Movement.

This is a quick message for everyone who ordered Imagine Sisters Shirts… all 210 of you! (Yes, you read that correctly!) This round of shirt orders has been the biggest yet, so I wanted to give the world a little look into how Imagine Sisters processes shirt orders and shipping. I hope this clears up any questions you may have, but if not you can always drop us a message with any additional concerns.

1. Orders Come in for About a Week! Because Imagine Sisters is so small, we can’t actually keep a supply of shirts on hand. Instead, we have to create a 10-day ordering period where we get as many orders as we can before Step 2.
2. We Place a Custom Order for the exact number of shirts that have been ordered.
3. Our friends who run a small print shop in California print the shirts (usually takes 2-4 days) and then send them to Ohio (3-5 days).
4. Amanda packages the shirts! Yes, only one person. The Imagine Sisters team is a very small group of dedicated individuals that volunteer their time for the Movement. Amanda will print shipping labels, rolls shirts, add cards, tape boxes, and drop them all off at the post office. This should take 2-4 days because of the massive number of orders and the fact that we only have one person packing and shipping.
5. The shirts are shipped via USPS and usually arrive between 2-3 days later.

That’s the basic rundown of the shirt process, and as you can imagine, it’s hectic. But we don’t care… because you’ll be getting awesome Imagine Sisters shirts that you can wear and proudly proclaim that One Sister Can Change the World!

- Dan

The post Order an Imagine Sisters Shirt? Read This Now! appeared first on Imagine Sisters Movement.

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Sometimes, I like to be in charge – okay, who am I kidding – I am always trying my hardest to be in charge and in control.  At first it was totally a good thing, stemming from a realization that I was lazy and needed to kick into gear and act.  But now – I have stress headaches. Stress headaches… and I take a deep breath, focus on something on my to-do list, and dive into life because I’m ten minutes late for work. And my car needs gas. And I forgot to pay that nasty electric bill. And my mom’s hurt because I haven’t called to chat in over a month.

And in peace and serenity, the Lord says: “Be still and know that I am God.”

Almost every time I’ve stepped into prayer the last couple of years, that line has been whispered to me in silence.  Because I worry. I overthink. I second-guess. I plan ahead. I block out the past. I shut people out. I control as much as I can in my life, trying to be virtuous and good.

And I try to build a box for my life to fit into, to label each piece and try to fit it together, telling myself that the Lord prefers order to chaos.  But my order isn’t necessarily His, and my way leads to chaos more often than not.  And so in my struggle to be good, I forget to breathe and remember that He is God and I am not.  My worst fears are absurd (except the fear of Hell, probably, that’s legit), and my best laid plans are clearly sub-par in His sight… which just goes to show that He is great, I’m tiny, despite my best efforts and sharp mind.

But especially now, all creation waits with eager longing for Him.  We know that we are His children now, meant to try our best to love Him and serve Him in humility and joy.  So what will measure our success? What will come of our efforts? Will it be worth it for us to put away everything that years of academics and worldly information have led us to, for the sake of a living the life that He wants?

Now, when I think about control and chaos, I realize that maybe a little sacrifice of self-consideration is in order. And maybe I, who tend to over-think and over-react, should trust in the Lord and know that He will provide for me. God’s plan, God’s order, God’s love – those are things that never end up being headaches.

- Maria Therese

The post Be Still and Know appeared first on Imagine Sisters Movement.

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The Imagine Sisters blog is a place you’ll want to check in on regularly – we’ve worked hard to build a team of writers from all different parts of the Church. Among our writers are, of course, sisters – along with priests, seminarians, novices, parents, and even a few young people actively discerning right now! Wherever you’re at in your faith and vocation journey, there’s someone going through the exact same thing!

If you’re new to the Imagine Sisters Movement, make sure to check out our FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) pages and the ‘Discover’ section, where we have a ton of great content that answers some initial questions you may have – Why do we have the religious life? What are sisters? What’s up with those awesome outfits?

If you’re already a fan of Imagine Sisters, this’ll be the place to keep coming back to for fresh content every week. Maybe we’ll be talking about a discernment novena; maybe we’ll be reflecting on how God made springtime to remind us that even in hopeless winter there is still life. (Can you tell we’re from the Midwest?) You’ll also find things like interviews and videos from the events we visit throughout the year.

So if you’re reading this… welcome! We’re glad you’re here. Look around, check out some blogs, and know that we are praying for you. More important than any blog we write or video we make is the fact that all fulfillment, all vocations, and all joy come from the heart of Christ. We are all seeking His voice, and we hope this blog helps you hear Him a little more clearly.

In Christ,

Greg Iwinski and the Imagine Sisters Blog Team

The post We’re Glad You’re Here! appeared first on Imagine Sisters Movement.

• Join the Imagine Sisters team in a novena to St. Therese of Lisieux beginning TODAY Wednesday, January 23rd and concluding Thursday, January 31st. Imagine Sisters and those who join us in this novena will be asking, through the intercession of St. Therese for a successful mission to Tulsa, Oklahoma. For more on this novena, and to pray with us you can join the Facebook event, or follow us on Twitter or Tumblr where we will be posting the daily prayers of the novena!

• Join in the Tulsa Mission by telling us why the world needs Sisters and why Imagine Sisters is important / how the movement has touched your life in a hand written note. Sr. Alicia Torres of the Franciscans of the Eucharist in Chicago and friend of the movement will be going on Mission to Tulsa, Oklahoma to meet with some folks who might want to support Imagine Sisters. Sr. Alicia needs your help before the mission in reaching the goal of collecting a hundred or so notes!
  • Send a hand written note ASAP, letting our benefactors know how much Imagine Sisters means to you or how your life has been touched by a sister. Keep your note short and sincere. Here is an example:
    • “My name is Josey. I am a student at the University of Illinois, and I think God is calling me to be a sister. I am so grateful for all that Imagine Sisters does to support me and encourage me to perservere. I especially love all of the videos of the sisters. Thank you for your generous support of Imagine Sisters!”
    • “My name is Matt. I am a seminarian whose life has been deeply touched by religious sisters. Its so awesome to see so many young women excited about the discernment of their vocation, and it challenges us men to be just as excited in the discernment of our vocation. I especially love the blog posts that Imagine Sisters puts out on their blog, they are great not only for young women discerning but for all people. Please, support this great movement! Thanks in advance.

So far Sr. Alicia has only received 5 notes. It is the hope of Sr. Alicia and the Imagine Sisters team to collect 100 notes at minimum. Write a note, have your friends, family and people at your parish write a note and help us spread the word about this project. If you are able to get others to write a note, you can even collect the notes and put them all in one envelope to send off to Sr. Alicia! Be sure to share this blog post with all of those who you know have been touched by sisters or by the Imagine Sisters Movement.

• There are two ways to get your notes to us with the mission fast approaching:
  • Gather them and send them by mail to:
    Imagine Sisters
    ℅ Sr. Alicia Torres
    3808 W. Iowa St.
    Chicago, IL 60651
  • Hand write your note, scan it into the computer and email it to messages@imaginesisters.org with a subject line of: Tulsa Mission. We will then get them to Sr. Alicia to take on Mission!

There are some awesome things to come over the next months from Imagine Sisters. We are so encouraged by the growing excitement and response to the movement. Keep checking back here on the blog and our social media accounts to join us in the novena, see if we reach our goal of 100 notes, and to hear how the mission goes! Thanks especially for your prayers–we are in this together!

God Bless you all!

The post Tulsa + St. Therese Novena + Updates! appeared first on Imagine Sisters Movement.

What does it mean to live as an authentically feminine woman? There are books and articles, essays and poems, paintings and hymns that all capture the ideal of femininity.

It is a particularly pressing question for our generation, as we live in a time when men and women are portrayed as identical in all respects. Yet, we know that from the beginning, God created man and woman equal in dignity, yet complimentary in nature! What does this mean? Click the link below to read the rest of the article, and please email and share with your friends!

Download the essay on Authentic Femininity

The post What is Authentic Femininity? appeared first on Imagine Sisters Movement.

We’re so excited to let you know that we have reached 46% of our fundraising goal of $20,000 for the Light of Love movie! Please pray extra hard that we can find generous donors that will be able to help make this a reality. Remember, we have a deadline of February 1st… and we’re almost there! The various orders (still secret!) are beyond excited that we have the chance to bring their communities into the national spotlight! We’ve also been working hard on getting our friend Sr. Alicia out to speak to people about the film, make sure you follow our Twitter to stay up with her trip to Tulsa, OK on January 29th!

If you haven’t done so already: Follow @Imagine_sisters

Please consider asking a friend, family member, priest, or organization to help us make this film! Donations are totally tax-deductible through our producer, Light House Catholic Media online, and through check or money order! Online donations can be made by clicking here. Perhaps you can’t give money… no problem! We need your prayers… especially asking for the intercession of St Therese of Lisieux!

We’ll keep you updated later in the week, but until then please use the buttons below to share the great news about the film!
 

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