Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace welcome two new members

Cheruto Cynthia Bundi and Jessica Sun were welcomed as candidates for vowed membership during the Eastern Region Autumn Assembly liturgy on Saturday, Sept. 23. It was a celebration filled with joy and a sense of hope for our present and future. Congregation Leader Sister Andrea Nenzel welcomed Cheruto and Jessica in a simple ritual during the liturgy, held in the St. Michael Villa Chapel in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.

“It has been a joy and privilege for many of us to become acquainted with Cheruto and Jessica during the past several months,” said Sister Sheena George, Leadership Team liaison for initial formation. “Candidacy is a time in which the candidates and the community continue to discern their call to vowed religious life within the CSJP Congregation.”

Jessica Sun is 27 years old and holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering from Virginia Tech University. She has worked as a computer software engineer in the banking industry. Jessica has served as Secretary and member of the Executive Council of Pax Christi Metro DC Baltimore and as a member of the Pax Christi Young Adult Caucus.

Cheruto Cynthia Bundi is 26 years old and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Quantitative Social Sciences from Dartmouth College. She is as a quantitative research associate at Harvard Business School. Cheruto is a member of the racial justice committee at her parish in Boston.

Sister Susan Francois will serve as Candidate Director for Cheruto and Jessica. “We meet the candidates where they are and provide opportunities for them to experience com community life as they grow in awareness of our charism and spirit,” Sister Susan Francois said. “We accompany them as they develop their relationship with God and the CSJP community and discern their eventual readiness to enter the Novitiate.”

Cheruto and Jessica will be part of a local community of CSJP sisters in Jersey City, New Jersey during their candidacy experience.

Featured image: Sister Andrea Nenzel CSJP, Congregational Leader; Cherato Cynthia Bundi; Jessica Sun; and Sister Susan Francois CSJP, Councilor and Candidate Director.