Dear Catholic Women of Mississippi,
National Vocation Awareness Week is wrapping up. Will you join me and all of our Springfield Dominican Sisters in Jackson and around the world in praying for young people who are discerning religious life?
Do you know someone you feel has the gifts to be a sister?
Be in touch. I’m happy to share with you some tips for how to water the seed of God’s call in someone you know and love. Check out springfieldop.org/a-gift-for-you/.
Interested in Dominican life for yourself? Keep reading!
Do you have a heart made for God?

Sr. Marron

Here’s the secret: everyone does! It’s just a matter of being quiet long enough to hear where your heart, already connected to God, is calling you. Do you think religious life takes courage? It does, some. Having courage is the same thing as having “heart.” The ‘cour’ in courage means heart. St. Paul’s talk about being members of the body of Christ is another way of saying that we are deeply connected to one another and to all of God’s creation in the heart of Jesus, God’s love-made-human for us all.
Do you have a sense of adventure?
Do you like the idea of learning a second language? Traveling overseas? Giving a year of service in an unfamiliar city? Then you already have that sense of adventure that might make you an excellent sister-candidate! There is no shortage of adventure when you belong to the Dominican family: sisters, nuns, priests, brothers, laity and associates who circle the globe and are deeply committed to one another and the preaching mission that St. Dominic imagined when he founded the Order of Preachers 800 years ago.
Do you want to be happy?
Who doesn’t! There’s all kinds of evidence that the one thing that makes us happiest — no matter who we are — is a deep sense of gratitude for the gift of our life, the little and big pleasures, wonders, and surprises that keep us aware of the movement of God’s Holy Spirit in our lives and in our world. Being a Catholic sister comes with a HUGE happiness quotient when it’s the right fit for you.
Are you looking for a place to belong?
Sooner or later every person develops her own sense of identity and the awareness that her gifts are meant, not just for herself, but for the well-being of the world. When you come to that realization, life in religious community can be a fantastic place to land!
More about us
People who know us well say that we Springfield Dominican Sisters are effective ministers, powerful pray-ers and hospitable, down-to-earth folks. They see us as leaders in places where God’s people are alive and thriving. We’ve served in the Diocese of Jackson for 70 years at St. Dominic’s Health Services. We also have a broad reach across Illinois, where we are based, in several other states, and in the peaks and valleys of Peru. With us, you and other like-minded women have the opportunity to live out your dreams in ways that can change the world.
It is never too early — or too late — to consider joining St. Dominic’s family, the Order or Preachers. We’d be honored to accompany you on your journey of discernment no matter what time in life you are ready to respond to God’s call.
The easiest way to learn more about being a Dominican Sister is to talk with a Dominican Sister. You can reach out in all the traditional and electronic ways, but the best way is to get to know one of us. You are most welcome to call Sister Susan Karina Dickey at St. Dominic’s in Jackson at 601-200-6829, or to touch base with me in Springfield at srteresa@spdom.org or 217-787-0481.
We are known most prominently for our education and healthcare ministries, but we also minister to people in need of spiritual guidance, pastoral care and counseling. We are caretakers of 150 acres of land in central Illinois where our mission is to care for Earth, our common home. Our sisters have traveled the world to witness to the urgent needs of God’s people in areas of conflict and poverty around the globe.
At our three Illinois high schools — Rosary High School, Aurora; Sacred Heart-Griffin, Springfield; and Marian Catholic, Chicago Heights — we teach and preach the Gospel, passing along to young women and men excellent intellectual training, a love for Jesus, a commitment to truth, and the skills needed for productive and faithful adulthood.
This year we celebrate 70 years of compassionate, healing service to the people of central Mississippi at St. Dominic Health Services, Jackson, where the opportunities to fulfill Jesus’ healing mission are countless.
We also minister in places like Our Lady of the Sioux, at Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in Oglala, South Dakota, and are deeply engaged in accompanying women and men who want to learn English and become U.S. citizens at our two literacy centers in the Chicago area.
Unsure of Where to Use Your Gifts?
That’s okay! You can make your path by walking it. Our Springfield Dominican family includes both North and South Americans. Our Peruvian sisters minister high in the rural Andes and in Lima’s urban center in parishes and in a shelter for homeless elderly women.
We are passionate in our commitment to dismantle systemic racism in the United States and Peru. Our modest efforts have begun to ripple throughout our spheres of influence in exciting, and we believe Spirit-led ways to root out systemic racism.
Let God Prove You Wrong
If you love God and God’s people, and are attracted — even a little bit — to finding yourself by losing yourself in service to the Gospel, then be in touch with us!
Why not give God the opportunity to prove you wrong? You have nothing to lose and everything to gain! There is a place for you as a Springfield Dominican Sister.
I’d love to hear from you. Please be in touch.
In Jesus and St. Dominic,
Sister Teresa Marron, OP