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October 9, 2024, Adrian, Michigan – Adrian Dominican Associate Life welcomed three new Associates on October 3, 2024, during an evening Commitment Ceremony held in Holy Rosary Chapel on the Motherhouse Campus.

Associates are women and men, at least 18 years of age, who feel called to the Dominican Charism (spirit) and who make a non-vowed commitment to associate themselves with the Adrian Dominican Sisters. While maintaining their independent lifestyle, they are invited to share in the Sisters’ mission, ministries, and spiritual and social activities.

Associate Nancy Mason Bordley, Director of the Office of Dominican Charism, welcomed the Associates, Sisters, and friends, explaining the commitment that the Associate candidates and their mentors had already made in preparation for the event. Each Associate candidate “has acknowledged his or her desire to make this next step and has spent months discerning how they will live out the Dominican Charism as a member of the Dominican family,” she said.

During the prayer service, candidate Celeste Mueller preached on the Gospel explaining how Jesus sent out 72 disciples ahead of him to villages and towns where he intended to visit. “It’s a pattern that has been repeated in our history,” she said, noting that Dominic, too, sent out his brothers to preach when they had only been in the Order for a short time. That pattern was repeated with Dominican Sisters who came from Germany to New York in 1853 and the Sisters who began ministries at parishes in Adrian, Michigan, in the late 19th century – and beyond to the new Associates today, Celeste said. 

“What we share with the earliest disciples and every Dominican through the ages is the invitation to become the sacred preaching,” Celeste said. “Each of us is ready and fully equipped to respond to that invitation.”

The new Associates are:

Celeste Mueller, a self-employed practical theologian and leadership formation facilitator from University City, Missouri, is the great-niece of Sister Rose de Lourdes DeSchryver, OP. A native of Detroit and the youngest of seven children, she was taught by Columbus Dominican Sisters at St. Clare de Montefalco Elementary School. She attended Our Lady Star of the Sea High School. 

Celeste, who earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and theology at the University of Notre Dame, came to know the Adrian Dominican Sisters through her studies. While earning a master’s degree and partial MDiv at Aquinas Institute of Theology, a graduate school in the Dominican tradition, in St. Louis, she was a classmate and student of Adrian Dominican Sisters. She earned her doctorate in ministry (DMin) at Eden Theological Seminary in St. Louis and returned to Aquinas as an Assistant Professor, counting Patricia Walter, Joan Delaplane, OP, and Maribeth Howell, OP, as her colleagues. Sister Patricia was her mentor in her journey to Associate Life.

“I am inspired by the creative and deeply committed spirit of the vowed Adrian Dominicans, and I have been deeply impressed by their hope-filled engagement of profound issues and their willingness to collaborate with non-vowed Associates to assure and even expand the impact of the Dominican Charism in the world,” Celeste said.

She and Tom, her husband of 40 years, have two grown children and one granddaughter. Celeste’s ministry is developing leaders “fueled by virtue” for the work of spiritual and theological formation. 

Peggy M. Pantelis, of Chesterfield, Michigan, heard about Associate Life for years from Mary Kay Homan, OP, her mentor. “My family was very loving [and] went to church every Sunday,” she recalled. She is the middle of three children: her older sister, Pat, is deceased and she remains close to her younger brother, Jim. 

A retired teacher in the Macomb Intermediate School District, Peggy remains active as President of the St. Basil Conference of St. Vincent de Paul. She also works one or two days each week with visually impaired students. She and her husband, Gary, have two children: Elizabeth and Paul, who is married with a 4-year-old son. 

Peggy enjoys joining and leading discussion groups for church programs. Becoming an Associate “seems like the next step,” she said. She brings to Associate Life compassion and the ability to teach and hopes to find “growth in my prayers, the ability to share my faith with others, and [involvement] in something that would impact lives.”

Stephen Wolbert, a native of Flint, Michigan, is the CEO of Social Impact Philanthropy and Investment (SIPI), serving as a consultant, primarily with nonprofit organizations in North Flint. In his work, he positions nonprofit organizations, helping them to expand their mission and serve more people. “Over the last 8-and-a-half years, we have helped organizations secure over $10 million in additional resources and impact the lives of over 13,000 people per year,” he said.

Stephen came to know the Adrian Dominican Sisters through Carol Weber, OP, Executive Director of St. Luke N.E.W. Life Center in Flint. Through Sister Carol, his mentor, he said he has “become really amazed with [the Sisters’] ministries and vision for how to sustain them long-term.” He holds Sister Carol – as well as the late Judy Blake, CSJ, Co-founder of St. Luke N.E.W. Life Center, as “tremendous mentors,” along with his parents, grandparents, and friends.

Stephen hopes that being an Associate will augment his ministry at SIPI. “While the work is extremely rewarding, it can become exhausting,” he said. “I would like to explore more fully how to move these challenges into purpose, develop a more focused personal mission, and develop a network of others that are doing work as ministry.”

After each new Associate was introduced by his or her mentor and declared their intention to become an Adrian Associate, they proclaimed together their commitment statement. “United in purpose through the Office of Dominican Charism, we Dominican Associates commit ourselves to sharing life in a communion of Gospel-driven women and men who are spiritual seekers, alive with the fire of being Dominicans in service to the world,” they proclaimed. “We strive to widen and deepen the impact of the Dominican Charism, which urges us forward in our desire to transform the world in partnership with the emerging reign of God.”

The new Associates and their mentors concluded the formal ceremony by signing the commitment form. Associates James Mallare and Rosemary Martin presented the new Associates with the Associate pin and a candle as a symbol of their new commitment. 

For information on becoming an Adrian Dominican Associate, contact Associate Nancy Mason Bordley at 517-266-3534 or visit www.adriandominicans.org/MeetDominicans/Associates.

 

Caption for above photo: Participating in the Commitment Ceremony for new Adrian Dominican Associates are, from left, Sister Patricia Walter, OP, mentor of Celeste Mueller; Sister Mary Kay Homan, OP, mentor of Peggy Pantelis; and Sister Carol Weber, OP, mentor of Stephen M. Wolbert.

Fanjeaux, France, August 22, 2024 – Six people affiliated with the Adrian Dominican Congregation as Sisters, Associates, and Co-workers deepened their understanding and appreciation of the Dominican Charism during a mid-summer experience at various sites in France where St. Dominic ministered and traveled.

Participating in the Deepening the Dominican Spirit experience were Sisters Lorraine Réaume, OP, Vicaress and General Councilor, and Janice Brown, OP; Associate Diane Burgermeister; Douglas Palmer, President of Siena Heights University in Adrian, Michigan; and Carmen McCrink and Karen Stalnaker, of Barry University in Miami, Florida. Both universities are sponsored by the Adrian Dominican Sisters.

They were among 32 Dominicans – Sisters, nuns, Friars, Associates, and Co-workers from the United States and Africa – who participated in the pilgrimage. Together, the group visited the French cities of Carcassonne, where St. Dominic preached; Fanjeaux, the village where St. Dominic lived; Prouilhe, the site of the first monastery of nuns founded by St. Dominic; Montségur, the last stronghold of the Cathars, those who believed that the material world was evil and only the spiritual world was good; Soreze, the site of an international school founded by French Dominican Friar Jean-Baptiste Henri-Dominique Lacordaire (1802-1861); and Toulouse, the first gathering space of the Dominican Friars.

Participants were moved by the opportunity to learn about the history of the Order of Preachers – from its founding by St. Dominic to more recent years. Diane said she participated in the pilgrimage because she “wanted to share with Associates and Sisters a deeper understanding of the history of the Dominican story and the impact important Dominicans have had on the ongoing evolution of the Charism.” 

A key moment for Diane was the group’s visit to Seignadou, the “sign of God” in Fanjeaux, France. Dominic’s vision of a globe of fire resting over the church was a confirmation of his ministry. “The cross with the background of the cloudy sky and expansive green valley and farmland, along with strong gusts of wind, were moving,” she said.

Sister Janice said she was “drawn to walk in the footsteps of Dominic. In all my years as a Dominican, the chance for me to make this pilgrimage had never come up.” She was especially moved by the experience of staying in Carcassonne, allowing her to “walk in Dominic’s path every day.” 

After learning and even teaching about the Congregation’s roots for almost 30 years, Sister Lorraine said she was eager to visit those places “to actually see them with my own eyes.” She was struck by the simplicity of those areas, fitting for St. Dominic. “Dominic’s simple, humble spirit and life were palpable. He never wanted to draw attention to himself,” she said.

The history of St. Dominic and his approach to the Cathars was especially meaningful to Sister Janice. “The Cathars had an understanding that was harmful,” and many people wanted to approach them violently in response to the heresy, she said, noting an incident in which troops burned 244 Cathars at Montségur when they did not renounce their faith. “Dominic was not of that mindset,” Sister Janice said. “It is through respect, discussion, and charity that we discover Truth, and are then inspired to share that Truth.” 

Particularly poignant for Sister Lorraine was the group’s visit to Prouilhe, the home of nine Cathar women who had converted to Catholicism. She noted the “ebb and flow” of Dominican life as illustrated in this city. The home for the Cathar converts was a monastery for centuries but was razed during the French Revolution. “The nuns did return and the community grew; however, on the day we arrived there were just nine nuns,” matching the number of the original nuns, Sister Lorraine said. 

The history of the Dominican presence in France did not end there. Sister Lorraine recalled the group’s visit to Soreze and the story of Lacordaire. “He brought the Order back to life in France after the revolution, when it had been virtually dormant for over 100 years,” Sister Lorraine said. 

The pilgrimage also deepened Diane’s perspective of the Dominican story, which is “ever-evolving but fragile,” often saved by Dominican leaders in the past who kept the Order of Preachers alive. “The charism consists of individual, communal, and cultural stories woven into the larger Dominican history and changes over time,” she said. “The charism is not static and builds upon past experiences while evolving into new expressions for a new vision.”

The Adrian Dominican Sisters – along with the other congregations of U.S. Dominican Sisters that make up the Dominican Sisters Conference – are working together to create this new vision, as are women religious whose congregations make up the Leadership Conference of Women Religious. Associates, Co-workers at the Adrian Dominican Sisters Motherhouse and in sponsored and legacy institutions, donors, and other partners are also working together to claim and live out the Dominican Charism.
 

Caption for feature photo at top: Participants in Deepening the Dominican Spirit are, from left, Karen Stalnaker, of Barry University; Associate Diane Burgermeister; Carmen McCrink of Barry University; Sister Lorraine Réaume, OP, Vicaress and General Councilor; Douglas Palmer, President of Siena Heights University; and Sister Janice Brown, OP.