What's Happening

October 31, 2023, Adrian, Michigan – While many people throughout the United States were observing Columbus Day on October 9, Adrian Dominican Sisters, Associates, Co-workers, and friends were celebrating Indigenous Peoples Day – and exploring the cultures of Native Americans, the injustices, and ways of reconciliation with the dominant U.S. culture.

The event was planned by a committee of The People of the Four Winds of Lenawee County, a local Native American organization, as well as Adrian Dominican Sisters, Co-workers, family members, and friends. 

The day-long event began with the lighting of the Sacred Fire outside of Weber Retreat and Conference Center, the site of the teach-in, by Firekeeper Kenneth Johnson. The fire remained lit throughout the event.

Elder Joseph Brave-Heart, a full-blooded descendant of the Oglala Lakota Nation, opened the morning session by speaking of his own experiences and those of his people with the arrival of Europeans and the need for healing and reconciliation of all people. “It is my personal hope that we establish a balanced and cohesive relationship or association, that we may honor the Creator,” he said.

Elder Joseph recalled an address by Pope John Paul II to Indigenous People in the United States. “The early encounters between your traditional cultures and the European way of life was an event of such significance that it profoundly influences your collective life even today,” he quoted the pope. “The cultural oppression, the injustices, the disruption of life and your traditional societies must be acknowledged.” 

After reviewing several past hurts – such as the boarding schools in which the U.S. and Canadian governments tried to force Indigenous children into abandoning their cultures and ways of life and adapting to the dominant culture – Elder Joseph encouraged a spirit of reconciliation between descendants of Indigenous peoples and Europeans. Historically, the “fickle nature” of human beings has led us to forget the words of Jesus: “Love others as I have loved you,” Elder Joseph said. “It is only through true empathetic love, understanding, and humility that we may all heal and go forth as the children of God – or the Creator.” 

Sister Susan Gardner, OP, Director of the Native American Apostolate for the Diocese of Gaylord, Michigan, spoke about the Doctrine of Discovery, predominantly made up of three 15th-century papal bulls, letters written by popes.  

Inter Caetera, the bull most often associated with the Doctrine of Discovery, was written by Pope Alexander VI to King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. The bull stated that any land not inhabited by Christians “could be claimed and exploited by Christian rulers,” Sister Susan explained. “The presiding theory of the time was that indigenous people, because they were non-Christian, were not human, and therefore the land was empty” and could be claimed by Christian settlers, she said. Christians who claimed the land were also encouraged to convert the indigenous people to Christianity but had the authority to enslave and exploit them.

Sister Susan said the Doctrine of Discovery has been used over the centuries – and even in recent times – to settle court cases. For example, the 1823 U.S. Supreme Court case Johnson and Graham’s Lessee v. McIntosh involved a land dispute between Johnson, who bought the property from a Native American, and McIntosh, who bought adjoining and overlapping land from a white person. Justice John Marshall granted the land to McIntosh. 

“The decision allowed our government to legally ignore or invalidate any Native claims to property,” Sister Susan said. “It’s still used by courts to decide property rights cases brought by Native Americans in the United States against non-Natives.” The ruling “stands as a monumental violation of the natural rights of humankind, as well as the most fundamental human rights of Indigenous Peoples,” Sister Susan said.  

Pope Francis rescinded the Doctrine of Discovery in March 2023. A joint statement by the Vatican Dicasteries of Culture and Education said the concepts in the Doctrine of Discovery are not part of the teaching of the Catholic Church. “In no uncertain terms, the Church’s magisterium upholds the respect due to every human being,” the statement reads. “The Catholic Church therefore repudiates those concepts that fail to recognize the inherent human rights of the indigenous peoples, including what has become known as the legal and political ‘doctrine of discovery.’”

Participants concluded the morning by attending one of two break-out sessions. Some chose to participate in a Talking Circle, a sacred way of listening for Native Americans and a private experience for those who attend. 

From left, Sisters JoAnn Fleischaker, OP, Marilyn Francoeur, OP, Janice Holkup, OP, and Mary Rae Waller, OP, offer a panel discussion on their experience as either a Native American or a minister with Native Americans.

Others attended a presentation by a panel of Adrian Dominican Sisters: Sister Marilyn Francoeur, OP, a native of Adrian and a member of the Citizens Band of the Pottawatomie Nation; Sister Mary Rae Waller, OP, whose father was of Cherokee descent and who learned about the meanings and principles of Native life during a summer with her grandmother; Sister JoAnn Fleischaker, OP, who ministered for 21 years among the Cheyenne/Arapaho Tribe in Oklahoma as part of a collaborative Dominican ministry; and Sister Janice Holkup, OP, who for three years directed a summer school work-study program for children, funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
 
View a recording of the morning session.

McKell Johnson demonstrates her skill as a fancy Shaw Dancer.

The afternoon session allowed participants to watch and – when invited – participate in traditional native dancing led by McKell Johnson, a Shaw Dancer and leader of the People of the Four Winds.
 
View a recording of the afternoon session.
 

 

September 22, 2023, Adrian, Michigan – Six people formalized their connection to the Adrian Dominican Congregation on September 14, 2023, during the virtual Ritual of Reception for new Adrian Dominican Associates. The Associates and their mentors participated in the ritual through Zoom. 

Adrian Dominican Associates are women and men at least 18 years of age – married, single, widowed, or divorced – who make a non-vowed commitment to partner with the Adrian Dominican Sisters. While maintaining their own lifestyle and remaining financially independent, they are invited to participate in various spiritual, social, and ministerial experiences with the Sisters and other Associates and attend congregational events.

“Our six Associate candidates and their mentors have spent a great deal of time and energy preparing for this day,” said Associate Nancy Mason Bordley, Director of the Adrian Dominican Congregation’s Office of Dominican Charism. “Each candidate has acknowledged their desire to take this next step and have discerned many ways to live and proclaim the Dominican Charism as members of the Dominican family.

Following are the new Adrian Dominican Associates. 
 
    •    Tom Brady was taught by Adrian Dominican Sisters at St. Denis School in Chicago. “They exemplified the whole idea of reading the signs of the times,” Tom said. “There was always a food drive.” His mentor, Sister Norine Burns, OP, spoke of how Tom followed the Sisters’ example. “Tom is a dedicated teacher in the Chicago Public Schools,” working for 30 years with children from the inner city, she said. He shows his loving presence to his wife, Catherine, and their twins, Mary Kate and Patrick, 15, and the adults he tutors at Aquinas Literacy Center. 
    •    Mark Domingo met the Adrian Dominican Sisters through his work in the Community Health Department of St. Rose Dominican Hospitals in Henderson and Las Vegas, Nevada. He oversees three wellness centers in the Las Vegas Valley. Mark said that the foundation of his Catholic faith through his upbringing in the Philippines prepared him to embark on his Dominican journey. “Mark has a great passion for serving those in need in our community,” said Sister Kathleen McGrail, OP, his mentor who also works at St. Rose. “He speaks of seeing life now through the lens of an Adrian Dominican Associate.”      
    •    Barbara Smith Henning was taught by the Adrian Dominican Sisters at Aquinas High School in Chicago and was a member of the Congregation from 1965 through 1989. Four years later, she met Leo Henning and married him in 1995. Barbara worked for more than 20 years as the Bereavement Coordinator for Hospice House of Mid-Michigan. Associate Trudy McSorley, her mentor and former Sister, noted Barbara’s hunger for the Dominican Charism. “This past year, I have found my way back home to discern how to live my life in a community that values prayer and service,” Barbara said.
    •    Sharese Mathis was inspired to become an Adrian Dominican Associate while serving as Director of Diversity and Inclusion at Siena Heights University from July 2015 to May 2021. “I realized my personal values aligned with being a Dominican,” Sharese said. She was involved in the University’s Torch Bearers program – run by her mentor, Sister Mary Jones, OP – which teaches the Siena Heights community about the Adrian Dominican Charism. “It didn’t take me long to realize that Sharese has a Dominican heart,” Sister Mary said. “She has brought her love of the Dominican Charism to Albion College,” where she serves as Assistant Dean for Campus Life.  
    •    Jean Schlicklin-Tyler, of Ontario, is “a grateful, justice-based, forthright, enthusiastic woman” who felt called in 1978 to be an Adrian Dominican Sister and, in 1991, to leave the Congregation for her call back to the land and service to the poor, said her mentor, Sister Arlene Kosmatka, OP. Married to Godfrey, a farmer, she is the mother of two young adults and mentor to young farmers. “Having been with the Adrian Dominican Sisters earlier, I continue to share the Charism with prayer, study, mission, and community,” Jean said. “This gives me a feeling of being home.”
    •    Jayne Marie Yenko, who lives in a remote area of Wyoming with her husband, Steve, learned about the Adrian Dominican Associates through her youngest sister, Associate Melinda Mullin. Jayne teaches online and coordinates a court-appointed, multi-disciplinary team for juvenile cases. Associates Connie Brady and Gerry Starrat mentored Jayne. Connie noted that Jayne finds community in ways such as book clubs, including one organized by Associates. “I was amazed by the people in the book clubs,” Jayne said. “I knew it was something I was missing in life.” Being an Associate will help her connect with others in a more sustained way, she said.

The Ritual for the Reception of the new Associates included music, readings, and preaching on the Beatitudes by Associate James Mallare. After the new Associates were introduced by their mentors and formally requested to be received as Adrian Dominican Associates, they signed formal documents of commitment to the Congregation and the Dominican Charism.

Associates share the Dominican Charism with the Sisters, as well as Co-workers at the Motherhouse and in sponsored institutions, alums of Adrian Dominican schools, benefactors, and those searching for community and spirituality in their lives. 

For information on becoming an Adrian Dominican Associate, contact Nancy Mason Bordley at [email protected] or 517-266-3534. If you are a single Catholic woman interested in vowed life with the Adrian Dominican Sisters, contact [email protected] or 517-266-3532.