Sisters of Charity make perpetual profession
On Aug. 15, the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, three Sisters of Christian Charity — Sister Regina Bathalon, Sister Monique Eloizard and Sister Luiza Simon — made their perpetual profession of vows during a Eucharistic Liturgy at the Chapel of Mary Immaculate, Mallinckrodt Convent, Mendham, N.J. Most Rev. Alfred A. Schlert, Bishop of Allentown, Pa., was the celebrant. The Sisters made their vows into the hands of Sister Maria del Rosario Castro, General Superior of the Sisters of Christian Charity.
The intense period of preparation for perpetual vows, known as Tertianship, was held at the Motherhouse in Paderborn, Germany from June 27 – July 31 and was directed by Sister Mary Joseph Schultz, a General Councilor for the Sisters of Christian Charity. During this time, each sister withdrew completely from her usual ministry in order to intensify her relationship with Christ in an atmosphere of silence and recollection. From August 7-14, the sisters participated in a spiritual retreat at Villa Pauline, led by Rev. Lawrence Lewis, M.M., Ph.D.
Sister Regina Bathalon was born in Fort Sam Houston, Texas and graduated from Maynard High School, Maynard, Massachusetts. She earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education from the University of Vermont in Burlington, Vermont, and entered the Sisters of Christian Charity from Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish, Williston, Vermont. Sister Regina teaches fifth grade at NativityMiguel School of Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Sister Monique Eloizard was born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti and graduated from Nottingham-North Star High School in Hamilton, New Jersey. She entered the Sisters of Christian Charity from Our Lady of Sorrows-Saint Anthony Parish in Hamilton, New Jersey. Sister Monique received a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from Seton Hall University, South Orange, New Jersey. She served at St. Elizabeth-St. Brigid Parish in Peapack, New Jersey and is now ministering as a Guidance Counselor at Bishop McDevitt High School in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
Sister Luiza Simon was born in Manila, Philippines and graduated from Saint Mary’s College high school in Quezon City, Philippines. She entered the Sisters of Christian Charity from St. Aloysius Parish in Jersey City. Sister Luiza received an Associate’s Degree from Assumption College for Sisters, Denville, New Jersey, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Catholic Studies from Seton Hall University, South Orange, New Jersey. She served as the Director of Religious Education at Holy Infancy Parish in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Beginning in September, Sister Luiza will be ministering at Margaretha Home for the Blind in Quezon City, Philippines.
The Sisters of Christian Charity were founded in 1849 in Paderborn, Germany, by Blessed Pauline von Mallinckrodt. They are an international community with Sisters serving in the United States, Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, Germany and the Philippines.
In the United States, the Sisters of Christian Charity serve in the Archdioceses of Newark, NJ; New York, NY; Philadelphia, PA; Chicago, IL and New Orleans, LA; and in the Dioceses of Camden, Metuchen and Paterson (in New Jersey), the Dioceses of Allentown, Harrisburg and Scranton (in Pennsylvania), the Diocese of Toledo, Ohio and the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, West Virginia.
Featured photo: Outside of Mallinckrodt Convent following Perpetual Profession of Vows on Aug. 15, (left to right): Sister Maria del Rosario, SCC, General Superior, Sister Joann Marie Aumand, SCC, Provincial Superior of the Eastern Province, Sister Monique Eloizard, SCC, Sister Luiza Simon, SCC, Most Rev. Alfred A. Schlert, Bishop of Allentown, PA, Sister Regina Bathalon, SCC, and Sister Mary Joseph Schultz, SCC, General Councilor and Tertianship Director. (COURTESY SISTERS OF CHARITY)
