Looking for Light in the New Year

As women religious in the Church we are called to listen silently to the Word, and respond to it in faith and in complete openness to the Spirit. In our calling as joyful witnesses and bearers of the Word, we attempt to penetrate the darkness with the light of Christ, to nurture the Christ life within others, and to make a home for the Word in the hearts of the oppressed. (Constitution of the Sisters of the Living Word, Spirituality, p vi)

Dear Friends, 

We have officially entered into the calendar New Year, and within the Season of the Church we are currently in the period of time between the Epiphany and The Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. 2025 also marks the 50th Anniversary of the founding of the Sisters of the Word!

The Feast of the Baptism of the Lord is the liturgical bridge that connects the Christmas season to Ordinary Time. During the Christmas season we pondered the Incarnation, Nativity, and Epiphany. As we commemorate Jesus’ baptism liturgically, we celebrate the fact that our Christian baptism was the beginning of this new unity with the Holy Trinity.  

As we move through this season, may you find that light of Christ all around you – in simple acts of kindness directed toward you, in the green lights as you drive home, in the laughter of those you love. May you also be a bearer of the light to those around you – the clerk at the store, the people with whom you work or live, the neighbor you only see once in a while. 

The Sisters of the Living Word and our Associates thank you for your support over these years as we “attempt to penetrate the darkness with the light of Christ.” We also pray for you and all your intentions that you may experience the brightness of the celebration of Christ. 

Special blessings for these days of joyful witness to the presence of Christ among us.

In Jesus, the Living Word,

Sisters Barbara Mass, Ruth Platte, and Donna Williams

SLW Congregational Leadership Team