Moved to become a Catholic Nun, Sr. Rosemary made eight applications to different female Religious Orders and was accepted by all of them.
“What attracted me to the Daughters of St. Paul, out of all the congregations that had accepted me, was the prayer of the Venerable Thecla Merlo, the co-founder of the Daughters of St. Paul,” she narrated, adding that reciting the prayer helped her to realize that she belonged with the Pauline Sisters.
Sr. Mary Kioko (left) and Sr. Rosemary Mwaiwa who celebrated their Silver Jubilee on Friday, June 14 pose for a photo with Msgr Peter Makau, Bishop-elect of Kenya’s Catholic Diocese of Isiolo, Bishop Paul Kariuki Njiru of Kenya’s Catholic Diocese of Wote and Bishop Rodrigo Mejía Saldarriaga, Vicar Apostolic Emeritus of Soddo, Ethiopia. Credit: ACI Africa
Young Rosemary loved to sing, and she knew that singing was part of the evangelization mission of the Daughters of St. Paul. “I knew that I would continue discovering my mission with them,” she said about FSP member whose charism is “living Christ and communicating Him to the world in the field of social communication in the spirit of St. Paul and in the atmosphere of Mary, Queen of Apostles.”
“When I joined the Congregation, I found that the mission of evangelization of the Daughters of St. Paul was complex. I found myself in many apostolates apart from singing,” the Provincial Superior of the Pauline Sisters in Kenya, Malawi, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe told ACI Africa on the sidelines of the Silver Jubilee celebrations on June 14.
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She continued, “In the different places I went, I felt that the Lord loved me, the Lord challenged me and asked for more of my years. And I found that in responding to my ‘yes’, the Lord spoke loudly. There are moments that the Lord whispers, but to me, He spoke loudly.”
Bishop Rodrigo Mejía Saldarriaga, Vicar Apostolic Emeritus of Soddo, Ethiopia presents Pope Francis’ message to Sr. Mary Kioko on her Silver Jubilee celebration in Nairobi, Kenya. Credit: ACI Africa
Sr. Rosemary shared that her 25-year journey as a Daughter of St. Paul has been marked by profound moments of spiritual growth “along with its share of challenges and countless blessings.”
In his homily during the Silver Jubilee celebration, Bishop Paul Kariuki Njiru of the Catholic Diocese of Wote in Kenya has urged FSP members to foster mutuality among themselves, and make their respective Religious communities places where everyone feels loved and accepted.
Bishop Paul Kariuki Njiru of Kenya’s Catholic Diocese of Wote presents Pope Francis’ message to Sr. Rosemary Mwaiwa on her Siulver Jubilee celebration in Niarobi, Kenya. Credit: ACI Africa
“Let it be a community of love,” Bishop Kariuki said, and called upon Sr. Rosemary and Sr. Mary to always emulate St. Francis Assisi who prayed to “not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love.”
Agnes Aineah is a Kenyan journalist with a background in digital and newspaper reporting. She holds a Master of Arts in Digital Journalism from the Aga Khan University, Graduate School of Media and Communications and a Bachelor’s Degree in Linguistics, Media and Communications from Kenya’s Moi University. Agnes currently serves as a journalist for ACI Africa.