REVIEWED BY SR. LINDA WERTHMAN, RSM, PhD
MY LIFE'S JOURNEY IN FAITH
By Sr. Mary Maurita Sengelaub, RSM
History is made by persons who, when faced with opportunities, fully engage in the journey and thereby experience a life more fulfilling than they ever expected. My Life's Journey in Faith is a wonderful testimony to a woman, Katherine Marie Sengelaub, who not only engaged in the opportunities presented to her, but, as Sr. Mary Maurita, a Sister of Mercy, made significant historical contributions to the evolution of Catholic health care in the United States.
This memoir spans 90-plus years and traces more than 70 years of Catholic health care in nursing, administering health care institutions and neophyte systems of hospitals; leading the Catholic Hospital Association in an era of significant change; and consulting and governing.
The reader comes away with a better sense of how Catholic health care was delivered before the introduction of Medicare and Medicaid, how communities of women religious took to heart the Second Vatican Council's call to strengthen the role of laity in the ministries, and how women religious began to responsibly turn over their ministry in institutional Catholic health care to others committed to carrying on the mission.
This journey in faith is repeated over and over in the lives of countless numbers of women religious who, in known and unknown ways, labor to bring healing and comfort to the sick and dying; learning to the uneducated; and awareness and calls for action to those ignorant of the plight of the less privileged and disenfranchised persons in our society.
Upon reflecting on Sr. Mary Maurita's journey, one is reminded as to how the reality of one's commitment to a significant insight, graced revelation, can be the impelling motivation for one's choices when faced with life's challenges and opportunities. For Sr. Mary Maurita, her insight was expressed in three words: "Generosity, Perfection, and Love." These words shaped her contribution to Catholic health care and her religious community for more than 70 years. After reading about her journey, readers just might find themselves reflecting on what their impelling motivation is for daily and life choices.
SR. LINDA WERTHMAN, RSM, is adjunct faculty in the University of Detroit Mercy's social work program, and a member of the boards of Catholic Health Ministries/Trinity Health, Mercy Housing, Mercy Loan Fund and University of Detroit Mercy, Detroit, Michigan.
NOTE
Sister Mary Maurita Sengelaub's autobiography is available from McAuley Life Center, 28750 W. 11 Mile Rd., Farmington Hills, MI, 48336. A donation to help defray the cost of printing would be appreciated.