Seeds of Hope: The History of the Sisters of Providence, Holyoke, Massachusetts (review)

Seeds of Hope: The History of the Sisters of Providence, Holyoke, Massachusetts. Edited by Dolores Liptak, R.S.M., and Grace Bennett. (Holyoke, Massachusetts: Sisters of Providence of Holyoke. 1999. Pp. xxii, 245. Appendix 86 pages. Paperback.)

This work represents the first comprehensive record of the 125-year history of the Sisters of Providence of Holyoke, Massachusetts. It is a work of love compiled by both members of the congregation and their lay collaborators. The purpose of the study is to provide "specific information concerning a congregation which has made such a significant difference within both the religious and secular societies of Massachusetts and North Carolina." Different authors were responsible for each of its fourteen chapters, which accounts for some overlap in material. Eight sections of the eighty-six-page appendix provide historical data and documents covering the scope of the history. Another section, entitled "Faces of Providence," highlights individual members who have been significant to the community in leadership positions and by offering special gifts in music, art, and poetry.

The Sisters of Providence of Holyoke trace their roots to Émilie Gamelin's 1843 foundation of the Sisters of Providence in Montreal. Her community was founded on the spirit of St. Vincent de Paul and followed the Vincentian rule. Within a few years the Sisters of Providence made an independent foundation in Kingston, Ontario, and it was from here, in 1873, that the first sisters were sent to Holyoke. At the insistence of the local bishop Holyoke severed ties with Kingston in 1892. Thirty of the forty-four sisters missioned there made the heart-wrenching decision to remain and thus became pioneer members of the new diocesan congregation.

The guiding spirit of the new foundation was Mother Mary of Providence (Catherine Horan), who served as the first mother until 1910 and continued to make significant contributions to the community until her death in 1943. She was known for her keen mind, her kind, motherly disposition, and her remarkable administrative ability. She continues, even in death, to be an inspiring presence within the Providence community.

After tracing these historical beginnings, the following chapters discuss the spirit and spirituality of the community, which might be expressed as a firm belief that the source of God is Providence in each present moment as well as the diversity of ministries in which the community became involved. Various authors describe the sisters' involvement in a diversity of ministries as well as their struggles for autonomy within a structured ecclesiastical environment and the sometimes overbearing authority that the bishops wielded over the congregation's affairs and institutions. They also discuss the growth of the community and of its ministries amidst hardship and sacrifice, with the needs of ministry often taking precedence over the needs of the sisters. For instance, the building of a motherhouse was delayed again and again because resources were needed for services to the poor. It was finally completed in 1932.

Maintaining their social service and child care institutions was always a struggle and a challenge to the members of the congregation, but the post-Vatican Council II era mandated an evaluation and reassessment that resulted in the community divesting itself of some ministries and creatively responding to new circumstances within the Church and among the people they served. The narrative demonstrates that through the years Sisters of Providence have been women of courage and simplicity, willing to endure hardship and relinquish personal and corporate dreams with humility and obedience. As the title, Seeds of Hope, indicates, this group of women religious intends to move into the future with "faith and imagination born out of mystery . . . and limited only by the ability to dream."

While this book offers a look at the history of the Sisters of Providence of Holyoke, I was disappointed that it did not offer a deeper personal story of the lives and struggles of the sisters...