What's Happening

January 24, 2025, Adrian, Michigan – The General Council of the Adrian Dominican Sisters, on behalf of the Congregation’s Sisters and Associates, issued the following statement in response to President Donald Trump’s pardon of individuals who were convicted for their roles in the January 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol.

 
President Trump’s pardon of 1,500 individuals involved in the January 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol is unprincipled and dangerous.
 
It is a blanket affirmation of the criminal behavior of individuals who attempted to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election, assailing our democracy and injuring more than 140 police officers who valiantly put their lives on the line in defense of our Capitol and the members inside. One of the officers, Brian Sicknick, died of severe injuries and several others subsequently died by suicide.
 
As women of faith, we deeply believe in the virtue of mercy – particularly in giving mercy to those who repent and ask for forgiveness. In Hebrew, the word for mercy is rachamim, which has the same root words as “womb.” Mercy is akin to showing the love a mother has for her child. It also is translated as hesed, which means steadfast love – the enduring love that inspires compassion.
 
This was clearly not an act of mercy. It was an act of contempt.
 
It was an act of contempt for the U.S. Congress, the Constitution, the rule of law and all those who enforce it. It was an act that gives license to those freed from serving their court-ordered sentences, as well as others, to engage at will in acts of violent political opposition that endanger public servants and democratic institutions. It dishonors the brave law officers recognized by members of Congress of both parties on December 6, 2022, with their highest honor, the Congressional Gold Medal.
 
The pardons are not merciful; they are alarming.
 
We pray for the safety of all who continue to put their lives on the line to protect our democracy – in deep gratitude for their faithful and courageous service – and for all who now are at greater, unpardonable, risk.  

 
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Members of the Adrian Dominican Sisters General Council are Sisters Elise D. García, OP, Prioress; Bibiana “Bless” Colasito, OP, and Frances Nadolny, OP, General Councilors; Lorraine Réaume, OP, Vicaress and General Councilor; and Corinne Sanders, OP, General Councilor.

January 17, 2022, Adrian, Michigan – The Leadership Council of the Adrian Dominican Sisters issued the following statement in support of the Freedom to Vote Act and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, both pending in the U.S. Senate.

As women of faith who believe that all of us were created equal in the image of God, we call on the U.S. Senate to take immediate action to enact the two voting rights measures now pending. Nothing could more justly commemorate Martin Luther King Jr. Day than passage of legislation ensuring that all citizens of voting age are free to exercise their constitutional right to vote. 

The right to vote is fundamental to our democracy. It should not be dependent on political party, race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religious belief, or economic status. As a nation blessed by people of all ethnic and racial backgrounds, including descendants of people who were sinfully enslaved for 12 generations, we are a multiracial democracy. As Dr. King once said, “We may have all come on different ships, but we’re in the same boat now.” 

We are in the same blessed boat and we believe that our differences are a gift from God that we are called to honor, respect and value. We call on the Senate to take whatever steps are necessary to pass the Freedom to Vote Act, which would prevent partisan gerrymandering and make it easier to register and vote, and the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which would restore protections in the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that the vast majority of Congress has continued to reauthorize in bipartisan support until recently. 

As Dr. King once said, “We are now faced with the fact that tomorrow is today. We are confronted with the fierce urgency of now.… This is a time for vigorous and positive action.”

Members of the Adrian Dominican Sisters’ Leadership Council, led by Prioress Patricia Siemen, OP, are Sisters Peggy Coyne, OP, Chapter Prioress; Joy Finfera, OP, Secretary; Judy Friedel, OP, Chapter Prioress; Elise D. García, OP, General Councilor; Patricia Harvat, OP, General Councilor; Mary Jane Lubinski, OP, Mission Prioress; Frances Nadolny, OP, Administrator and General Councilor; Mary Margaret Pachucki, OP, Vicaress and General Councilor; Mary Priniski, OP, Chapter Prioress; Mary Soher, OP, Mission Prioress; and Sharon Spanbauer, OP, Mission Prioress. Sister Rosita Yaya, OP, also serves on the Leadership Council as Chapter Prioress in the Philippines.