to Sister Mary Kristin and Sister
Mary Sreeja. The long-awaited feast
was up next, and many traditional
Indonesian foods were served at
the buffet.
It was not Sister Mary Kristin’s first
time visiting Indonesia, in fact, she
was here in the year 2012 for a
General Conference with the
Leadership from all around the
world, consisting of 28 to 29 members.
“We met, and then we toured the
country, so it was very nice,” she
said. Sister Mary Kristin traveled
across Java and Timor, and even
came to Jakarta, but because she
went to so many places and mostly
visited the Sisters, she commented:
“To tell you the truth, I don’t know
the names of all the cities that we
visited.”
She recalled the last time she visited
Notre Dame School, saying, “We
were here, and we had a very nice
performance by the students. We
had a lovely meal, and during the
meal, the students performed for us.
It was lovely.”
What was Sister Mary Kristin’s first
impression of our school? “I think
it’s an excellent school, the children
were very friendly, and since we’ve
been here, we haven’t seen too
many students but those that we
have are very friendly and happy to
see us. I didn’t get a chance to tour
the school, I haven’t been around
to the classes but I’ve talked to the
Sisters and they’ve been telling me
about the new programs and things
that have been happening, and so
forth,” says Sister Mary Kristin.
Being a Sister is not an easy way of
life but it is a special call since you
have to be engaged in the works
of mercy and other ministries that
spread the Gospel values and witnessing
it to others where they are. Plus,
you have to profess perpetual vows
living a life according to the evangelical
counsels of poverty, chastity, and
obedience. So, what inspired Sister
Mary Kristin to become a Sister?
This is her answer:
“I had Sisters in high
school, and I noticed
that the Sisters were
very joyful, they’re
very happy people,
and so I knew that
they loved what they
did, and that they
loved their vocation
as a Sister. I think I
would say that I was
impressed by the life of the Sisters
and the fact that they were teaching
others and spreading the Gospel -
they were evangelizers - and helping
people to live fuller abundant lives
by living their Christian life well.
I was really attracted by that and
their life in community, that they
were happy being together, and I
felt God was calling me to a life of a
Sister of Notre Dame. So, that was
what motivated me.”
The Sisters of Notre Dame have
evolved into a worldwide service
program and the Sisters are all over
the planet now, doing their missions
and helping those in need. Especially
in Indonesia, where the Sisters have
built a school where we study now
in order to teach and spread God’s
kindness. “The Sisters are very hard-
working, our mission is to incarnate
the love of our good and provident
God and you can do that in many
different ways but I think our Sisters
are very dedicated in bringing the
Gospel to others, and to help men
and women and young people to
really value the gift of Baptism and
their call to really live their Christian
life fully. And so, the Sisters are very
good at helping people to really
develop their spiritual lives so that
their lives flourish and they can live
their life in abundance. The Sisters
are very hardworking, very committed
to what they do, and very close to
the people. I think they love their
students. I’m impressed by how the
Sisters really engage in ministry, and
build good relationships with all
those they serve.”
school is to teach students how to
love each other and how to live life
in the grace of God, in the hopes
that they can change the world in
the future. Can we make the world
a better place? Sister Mary Kristin
says, “Definitely! I think that all of
this youngsters that graduate from
any of our schools can, we teach the
children in our schools to make a
difference, they are taught that each
one of them can make a difference
in our world. If you think about a
Sister, in her lifetime, she’s taught
probably thousands and thousands
of young people and each one of
them is going to go forth and be a
witness, and each one of them is going
to do good in our world. I think that
the congregation just multiplies with
goodness and the positive things
that are happening in society and in
our world.”
After all of the amazing comments
about our beloved school, Sister
Mary Kristin has one thing to share
with all of us. She says, “Study hard,
work hard. You’re young, you have
your life before you and just go
forth and put all of the positive energy
you can into our world today!”
Congratulations to Sister Mary
Kristin on her Golden Jubilee as a
Sister and on her current position as
Superior General of the Congregation
of the Sisters of Notre Dame!
Regina Beatrix / SMA
One of the many hopes of our
Notre Dame | April-Juni 2017
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