Called to Accompany Mothers w/ Fr. Mike Schmitz and the Sisters of Life

Summary

---

Called to Accompany Mothers (with Fr. Mike Schmitz and the Sisters of Life)

Podcast: Called (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Host: Ascension
Guests: Sister Jana & Sister Zelie, Sisters of Life
Date: December 12, 2025

---

Episode Overview

This episode centers on how the Sisters of Life accompany mothers facing crisis pregnancies, offering emotional, practical, and spiritual support while treating each woman with radical hospitality and dignity. Fr. Mike Schmitz and guests Sister Jana and Sister Zelie share powerful stories, explore what authentic accompaniment looks like, and reflect on the deep call to protect and cherish human life.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Origin and Mission of the Sisters of Life

[03:39 – 07:06]

• Founding Vision:
  • Cardinal John O’Connor, after visits at Dachau and prayerful reflection, felt compelled to respond to our culture's "contempt for human life"—especially through prayer and fasting ([03:41], Sister Zelie).
  • Cardinal O’Connor’s retreat at Dachau impressed on him the depths of human suffering and the need for reverence for every person as made in God’s image.
• Foundation Story:
  • Placed a humble ad ("Help wanted: Sisters of Life") in the Catholic New York, trusting God’s plan would unfold in His time ([03:39], Sister Zelie).
• Fourth Vow:
  • Unlike most religious communities, the Sisters take a fourth vow: “to protect and enhance the sacredness of human life” ([08:05], Fr. Mike).

The Heart of Religious Life & Vocation

[11:54 – 23:32]

• Personal Vocation Journeys:
  • Sister Jana grew up without vibrant community models but found the charism of life at the March for Life and through deepening prayer. Recognizes God’s “laser focus” on each person ([14:47], Sister Jana).
  • Sister Zelie shares her story in a heartfelt and poetic rap, tracing her journey from childhood dreams, through wandering, to clarity at World Youth Day in Cologne—culminating in openness and peace through Marian consecration ([16:55–19:00]).
• Spousal Imagery:
  • Being a sister is fundamentally about being “a bride of Jesus.” All activity flows from union with Christ, not just service ([21:13], Sister Jana).

“What’s the difference between her [Mother Teresa’s] sisters and social workers is that a social worker does it for something and a sister does it for someone.” — Sister Jana ([21:23])

Genuine Accompaniment vs. “Helping”

[24:23 – 42:10]

• Radical Hospitality:
  • First contact often means “having a tea party”—offering a warm, dignifying welcome ([24:23], Sister Jana).
  • Incarnational, reflective listening is emphasized above “fixing” ([25:06], Sister Zelie).
• Journey Through Crisis:
  • Story of “Katie” and the “gummy bear grace” illustrates persistent, compassionate accompaniment even amid deep uncertainty ([28:13–30:37]).
  • The process is rarely quick; the goal is continued friendship, not just “saving a baby” ([31:39], Sister Zelie).

“We want to continue the journey, especially if she’s open to God’s grace…” — Sister Zelie ([31:53])

• Extending Support Beyond Birth:
  • Aim to build lasting relationships, not one-off solutions—e.g., supporting moms through subsequent pregnancies, faith formation, and ongoing practical needs ([34:22], Sister Jana & Sister Zelie).
  • Lay “co-workers of life” extend practical aid and friendship, from legal help to rides and catechesis ([35:57], Sister Jana).

The Power (and Cross) of Spiritual Motherhood

[38:55 – 42:10]

• Suffering With:
  • Accompaniment often involves suffering with mothers amid poor decisions or repeated challenges, relying deeply on God’s grace and intercession ([38:55], Sister Zelie; [39:40], Sister Jana).
  • True compassion means a willingness to endure pain, disappointment, and loss without withdrawing love.

“This mission is so much one of intercession because we cannot change anyone’s heart… God must give that grace.” — Sister Zelie ([38:55])

Myth-Busting: Not Debaters, But Servants

[40:53 – 42:10]

• The Sisters do not engage primarily in pro-life apologetics or sidewalk debate, but serve women through practical love, faith, and the spiritual “long game.”

“To the woman herself in crisis… it’s not like she’s hoping to have an abortion—it’s so an act of fear.” — Sister Jana ([40:55])

The Role of Fathers and Men

[43:21 – 46:05]

• Men’s encouragement and presence is vital; generic statements like “whatever you choose” are often ambiguous—women need to explicitly hear “I believe in you, you can do this” ([43:21], Sister Zelie).
• Sometimes, even encounters with unrelated men (lawyers, teachers) can profoundly impact a woman’s sense of possibility ([44:57], Sister Jana).
• Example: Eighth grade son brings home a Sisters of Life brochure, tells pregnant mother “I believe in you,” helping her choose life ([46:08], Father Mike & Sisters).

Hope, Healing, and Forgiveness After Abortion

[46:56 – 51:21]

• The “Hope and Healing” mission accompanies women suffering post-abortive loss, sometimes decades later. Community, retreats, and the sacraments are central ([46:56], Sister Zelie).
• True healing is experienced when women internalize that God’s love and mercy are for them regardless of past choices ([49:26], Sister Zelie).
• Women who’ve found healing become eloquent witnesses to life and mercy ([49:26], Sister Zelie).

“Women who have suffered an abortion but found healing can be the most eloquent witnesses to life.” — Sister Zelie (quoting John Paul II, [49:26])

• Fr. Mike: Many women wonder if abortion “disqualifies” them from Church or God’s love. Confession and healing are possible and transformative ([50:37], Fr. Mike & Sister Zelie).

Parish Involvement and Community

[51:21 – 55:27]

• Parishes that commit to accompaniment (not just charity) become places of profound welcome and support ([52:17], Sister Jana & Sister Zelie).
• Key programs include “Walking with Moms in Need,” parish baby showers, prayer, and practical support.
• The necessity of a supportive pastor and dedicated volunteers is emphasized ([52:57], Sister Zelie).
• God is attentive to details: Example of a mother in dire need of diapers arriving just as college students deliver a wagon full ([55:23], Sister Jana).

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Discernment & Vocation

• “God actually has kind of a laser focus on me, on each of us, which is a little scary at first, but over time… I just wanted to respond to that in a really meaningful way with my life.”
  — Sister Jana ([14:47])

• “God’s… plan for me would be my joy, not sorrow, fear, and mourning—the tears they flowed as grace came down, divine mercy torrent pouring.”
  — Sister Zelie (from her vocation rap) ([18:14–19:00])

Accompaniment & Hope

• “Our mission, more than to help, is to walk with. Not simply to help—accompaniment means: I’ll stay with you as long as you want.”
  — Sister Zelie ([31:39])

• “The thing you think disqualifies you, I thought it disqualified me, and I’m here to tell you that it hasn’t.”
  — Fr. Mike Schmitz ([49:26])

Mercy & Forgiveness

• “When she is able to know, deep in her core, that God’s love is for her, that she is loved and not forsaken...”
  — Sister Zelie ([48:40])

• “Sometimes women who have suffered abortion, but found healing, can be the most eloquent witnesses to life… and witnesses of Jesus and His mercy.”
  — Sister Zelie ([49:26])

For Listeners: Where to Start

• “There can be this temptation to think… when I’m ready, then I can be holy, then I can do it. But it doesn’t have to wait to start, to love and to seek Him in every area of our life.”
  — Sister Jana ([56:08])

• “…growing more in one’s relationship with Our Lady, because her role, her motherhood, makes the way easier and brings us to Jesus.”
  — Sister Zelie ([57:33])

---

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 03:39 – Foundation of the Sisters of Life & Cardinal O’Connor’s story
• 08:05 – The community’s unique “fourth vow” explained
• 11:54 – Vocation stories: Sister Jana
• 16:55 – Vocation story (in rap): Sister Zelie
• 21:13 – Being a “bride of Christ”
• 24:23 – How accompaniment begins: The “tea party”
• 28:13 – The “gummy bear grace” story
• 31:39 – Beyond birth: Long-term accompaniment
• 35:57 – Lay co-workers of life & practical support
• 38:55 – Spiritual motherhood & suffering-with
• 40:53 – Not about debate: Accompaniment over argument
• 43:21 – The vital impact of men’s support
• 46:56 – Walking with women after abortion: Hope & healing
• 51:21 – Parishes as communities of tangible accompaniment
• 55:23 – The diapers miracle: God’s providence
• 56:08 – Advice for listeners discerning God’s call

---

Tone & Spirit

Warm, humble, and deeply rooted in both faith and realism. The Sisters blend gentle humor (see vocation rap) with profound reflection and practical wisdom, modeling maternal concern and nonjudgmental compassion throughout. Fr. Mike engages with curiosity, respect, and deep pastoral care.

---

Resources & Invitations

• The Sisters of Life will be commemorating their founder with an upcoming documentary and book ([59:15], Sister Zelie).
• Life Fest at the March for Life—open invitation to listeners for community, music, and prayer ([59:43], Sister Jana).
• For more on the Catholic Initiative’s work in revitalizing parish communities, visit thecatholicinitiative.org.

---

Closing Blessing:
“We always just desire that each person know that they’re loved and a gift.”
— Sister Zelie ([60:14])

---

This summary captures the full heart, detail, and invitational spirit of this episode for listeners or readers seeking hope, guidance, or a new model of loving accompaniment.

Transcript

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Coming up in today's episode of Called. Could you share your own story of how you discovered this vocation so I.

[Sister Zelie]

Could express it in the form of a rap? Is that okay?

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yes. I get emails regularly, maybe, maybe once a week, from women who say, does this disqualify me from being Catholic? If I bring this to confession, what will I hear? How do you begin walking with her toward hope, with dignity?

[Sister Jana]

Well, the first thing we do is.

[Sister Zelie]

Have a tea party.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Do you really? Are you serious?

[Sister Jana]

Yes.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Is that a joke?

[Sister Jana]

No.

[Sister Zelie]

Adage of women who have suffered an abortion, but found healing can be the most eloquent witnesses to life are tremendously faithful witnesses of Jesus and his mercy and the warmth and tenderness and goodness. It's just amazing.

[Sister Jana]

Yes. They're some of our closest friends, and I think some of our holiest friends, too.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Hi, my name is Father Mike Schmitz. Welcome to Called, a podcast brought to you by the Catholic Initiative in partnership with Ascension. When I first joined the Catholic Initiative Board, I was immediately struck by how closely their mission aligned with my own to renew the church and to serve those most in need. The Catholic Initiative is restoring parishes and schools, strengthening communities, and is reminding us that faith isn't just something we believe, it's something that we live. That's what this podcast is all about. Hearing real stories of courage, of mercy, and of hope that move us from belief to action. As Jesus tells us In Matthew chapter 25, he said, Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me. Every episode, we'll explore how ordinary people are answering that call in extraordinary ways and how you and I can do the same. Today we're talking about what it means to accompany mothers in crisis pregnancies and the seasons that follow after those crisis pregnancies. Not just to help, but to truly walk with them. To love as Christ loves tenderly, and to love faithfully and to love without fear. The main message of Isaiah is the promise of God's enduring love and salvation. Scripture explains, can a mother forget her infant? Can she be without tenderness for the child of her womb? This verse establishes a mother's instinctive, sacrificial, and fiercely protective love as the highest example of earthly affection. And in a culture that often isolates or pressures women facing unexpected pregnancies, the Sisters of Life embody the gospel of life in action. Like all Catholic religious communities, the Sisters of Life take three traditional religious vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. But the Sisters of Life take an additional fourth vow to protect and enhance the sacredness of human life. These women have been called to protect life and offer emotional, practical, and spiritual support to women who might otherwise feel all alone. To help us reflect on this call, I'm joined today by Sister Jana and Sister Zelie from the Sisters of Life. It's a community whose mission is to walk alongside mothers with radical hospitality, reminding them that they're not alone and that every life, mother and child, is infinitely precious to God. So, sisters, thank you so much for joining us today on the called podcast.

[Sister Zelie]

Thank you, Father.

[Sister Jana]

Thanks for having us.

[Sister Zelie]

It's a gift to be here and to share well.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

And also, it's a gift to just be able to connect with you. Even before we started recording, this is just such a. Your mission and your lives are just. They are. I was gonna. I'm gonna gush. How about this? I had that intro, but kind of describing a little bit about the Sisters of Life. For those who might not be familiar with your community, could you share the story about how the Sisters of Life began?

[Sister Zelie]

Sure. Sure.

[Sister Jana]

I can start.

[Sister Zelie]

So we were founded by Cardinal John O' Connor in 1991. He was a priest from Philadelphia, and he wanted always just to be a simple parish priest, But God called him to do extraordinary things with his life. He ended up being a Navy chaplain for about almost 30 years. And then in like, the 70s or so, when he was made a bishop, he had the opportunity to make a retreat outside of the concentration camp Dachau. So obviously, it's not working anymore. It's 30 years after World War II. But he had an experience while he was there that dramatically changed his life and really was a founding grace for our community. So he described being inside the concentration camp and actually having an opportunity to place his hand inside the red brick oven crematorium where they would burn the bodies of the victims. And he said that when he did that, he described it as feeling the intermingled ashes of rabbi and priest, Jew and Christian, man, woman and child. And it was like everything within him just cried out, good God. How could human beings do this to other human beings? And in that moment, he realized that such contempt for human life was still happening in our day, especially through abortion. So he made almost like a vow at that moment to do everything that he could to protect human life, to promote a sense of its sanctity, to really before each person, have such a reverence that would reflect the fact that God's image is in each person. So that was a huge moment for him. A few years later, he was kind of Looking at the us, looking at the culture of death that was around us, and asking himself, like, what can we do? What is, what is missing? And he was praying in Mark's Gospel, when Jesus comes down after the transfiguration, and he's with his disciples who had been trying to cast out a demon from a boy. And they couldn't do it, but Jesus is able to do it afterwards. The disciples are like, excuse me, Lord, like, why could we not cast this one out? He gave us the authority, all of that. And he says very simply, this kind of demon can only be cast out by prayer and fasting. And Cardinal o', Connor, again, in a tremendous experience of grace, received that as an invitation to found a community of women religious who would do that, who would pray and who would fast that the demon of contempt for human life would be cast out. So those were two huge graces. And if you were years after that, continuing to pray on it and in discussion with, with the right people, he put an ad in the Catholic New York, which was the archdiocese and newspaper, that simply said, help wanted Sisters of Life. And he, he described this, this vision of a new community, a new charism, and kind of always with the. Always with the sense, if this is of the Lord, it will happen, and if not, it's not God's will. So that's really, that's kind of how it all got started. Yeah.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Wow. I, I, you know, actually, I've known of the Sisters of Life for, I think, a long time. I didn't know that. Thank you so much for sharing that. But also, one thing that strikes me about that, not only is he mentioning his faithfulness and his trust in the Lord, that, yep, God, if you want this, let it be. But also, that was not immediate. It was, here's a powerful experience at daco, another powerful experience. And then still waiting and praying during that time. I think sometimes in our kind of instapot, or not just microwave, whatever, instant gratification kind of, not just our culture, but even our hearts just, we want, we want it now to see or hear someone who, like, kind of incubated that or allowed the Lord to kind of just percolate that in his heart until here you are now. How, how long ago was the founding of the sisters of life?

[Sister Jana]

1991.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Okay, awesome. So amazing.

[Sister Jana]

We're 34, right? Yeah.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

And then so I mentioned in the intro about how you have a fourth vow to protect and enhance the sacredness of human life. Tell me about that, please.

[Sister Jana]

We seek, I mean, fundamentally to see the Other as Jesus sees them, you know, with these. These eyes of pure love and not. Not to just see the mask of. Yeah. Like. Like Mother Teresa, kind of the disguise of the poor. So it's also, to me, it just means to. We participate in the motherhood of the church, you know, so we have this. This radical availability. To me, New York City people stop us on the street all the time, from businessmen to homeless people to anybody, everybody in between. So, yeah, it's seeking to see the goodness of each life that God has always seen, and that can be covered over, you know, by sin or by crisis. We see a lot of crisis in our pregnancy mission. So, yeah, we're trying to see as God sees.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah. And how. So that makes so much sense. Especially was it. Was it Saint Maximilian Colby who had. I think I know I came across this quote. I'm going to make sure that I have the right quote that he said, indifference is the poison of our age. Have you. Have you heard that?

[Sister Jana]

Wow. Yeah, I think I have.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Does that connect with your fourth vow in a. In a significant way?

[Sister Jana]

Yeah, absolutely. I think it's. It's easy to.

[Sister Zelie]

Yeah.

[Sister Jana]

Write something off, as with abortion especially. I think it's.

[Sister Zelie]

It.

[Sister Jana]

It can seem like a quick fix to a small problem. And yeah, there's. There's such an invitation and a challenge to really go to the next level, to go deeper of what is God doing here in this woman's life, sending her a child at this moment when it really seems like the worst time ever.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah.

[Sister Zelie]

And I think you're right. I think the indifference that. That is in our culture towards one another, that people feel so isolated and alone, and that's so much a part of what the women that we serve struggle with, the fact of feeling like they can't do this, that they've been abandoned by everyone who should have been there for them.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Well, I imagine that's too. That's part of you mentioning being stopped by people of all walks of life. Because I'm guessing again, I don't want to put this on the two of you, but. Or on your community as a whole. But it seems to me that you kind of stand for, or you just kind of embody the notion, the truth, that, no, you're not disposable and that. That. That you're seen. I mean, that you matter. And it seems like that seems to be the reason why people would want to stop you is like that sense of, like, to be seen by the two of you, to be seen by your community is that what they're looking for. When they do stop you, what are they looking for?

[Sister Jana]

Yeah, I think since we represent the church. Yeah. Just recognition that God sees them and cares about them and. Yeah, it's so easy. Like, as you're saying those, those little truths, I was like, that's totally what we, what we say. And it can seem so basic and like, yes, I know my life has meaning and blah, blah, blah, but actually we. We forget that left, right and center. And we need to be reminded. God chose you for this time, for this place, for a purpose, and we do need to be reminded of that.

[Sister Zelie]

And to communicate that through. Yes, through how we, how we look at another and how we receive another, how we listen to another in our mission. Listening is very important. And again, it can seem like a basic skill you learn in psychology class or whatever, but it's. It's really important how we receive another and. And take in what they're saying.

[Sister Jana]

And.

[Sister Zelie]

Allow them to share their heart and the struggle that they're carrying.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah, well, that's. Have you. Well, here's. Here's the kind of a vocation question for the two of you that a lot of people, maybe everyone listening to this podcast, are still discerning how God is calling them, you know, in that sense of, okay, the podcast is called, called. And so there's the sense of, okay, the vocation vocational journey. Could you, either of you, or both of you, share your own story of how, how you discovered this vocation and how you recognize, okay, this is what God is calling me to.

[Sister Jana]

He swear you should be here. Yeah, I guess for me, I didn't really think about religious life growing up. I didn't honestly know it was still happening in. In a young, like, in a vibrant way.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah, where.

[Sister Jana]

Just where I grew up. And then when I was in college, I started to meet young religious communities that were thriving and the sisters were joyful. When I got to college, the question of vocation kept coming up in conversation, like, and. And just the idea of, oh, God has a plan for my life. Like, do I want to know what that is? And of course, at that point, when you're, when you're young, it's like on the epic scale, you know, of where. What. Yeah. What is my vocation state in life? And so I just thought, okay, well, let me look into religious life, just learn about it. Because I didn't know anything. But I also had felt a really strong call to work in the pro life movement in some way when I was a teenager. So for me, just the more it was kind of a gradual unfolding, so the more I learned about religious life and I met sisters and just stopped kind of being afraid of it as a. As a weird thing. But then I met our community out of March for Life, and it was just such a fusion of my heart and what I think God created me for. It was unique because, yeah, the charism of life that we have is so needed in our time and God, we really think, you know, God plants it in the heart of each sister and even people who aren't sisters, of course, the charism of life, we all need it, but that was kind of where it all began for me. And then. And then growing in relationship with the Lord, really trust and love. It's like, you know, all the things St. Therese says, but growing in trust that you. Your plan for me actually is something I'm gonna love.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Right. Can I ask you about that a little bit? Just in that sense of two things. One is you mentioned, okay, so before college, not really having any sense of religious life is something that you would even want to pursue because there's weren't any religious sisters that, like, you mentioned, with vibrant communities. So that kind of not even necessarily being on the table, getting to school, getting university and seeing this now. And at the same time, were you. Did you grow in prayer? That help? Did that help as well? And then. Yeah, I'll start with. I'll start there. Just asking that.

[Sister Jana]

Definitely starting to, like, develop a personal relationship with God where, you know, the idea that God is actually interested in me personally, not just like, I'm part of this grand plan. And I think before I just thought, okay, well, I'm gonna do the basic, basic life stuff, you know, go to college and get a job, get married, have kids. And I just thought God would kind of approve of that. But yeah, yeah, there's really. I just had a lot of grace in prayer. I was in a good community as well. But yeah, just this, like, this experience of like, God actually has kind of a laser focus on me, on each of us, which is a little scary at first, but over time. Yeah, I just wanted to respond to that in a really meaningful way with my life. I just didn't know how.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah, how did you. You mentioned that me going to the march for life and having this kind of this budding love for Jesus in a unique way as his. As his bride, with this call to do pro life work. How did you know? Like, when was the moment you knew? Like, oh, this is where I'm called to. Called to be with the Sisters of Life.

[Sister Jana]

For me, it was when I was on a retreat here. I had come to visit for. I've been invited to visit during our final vows. And if you can ever go to a final vows mass of anyone, by the way, I recommend that because it's just glorious and. Yeah. The gift of self of the sisters. Everybody's moved by that, but I mean, we are the one. We're the lucky ones, you know, who just get to be called to this beautiful life of total availability to God. So it was when I was on that visit. Yeah, just a. Just a quiet moment in prayer of this invitation from the Lord of. Yeah, I could. I could be married. I could choose that route. But he was inviting me to this. This other way. And then. Yeah, just. He just gave me the grace to say yes to that.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Wow. So you just. We received. Not as necessarily. I don't want to put words in your mouth, but not necessarily as this massive, like, conviction as it was. Invitation.

[Sister Jana]

Yes, exactly.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Wow. Thank you so much. Sister Zelie and Sister Joanna would. How about you? Your journey to.

[Sister Zelie]

So I could express it in the form of a rap. Is that okay?

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yes.

[Sister Zelie]

I wrote it for some kids once and it's really. It's just really taken me far in life, if I can remember. But it does help me kind of explain the grace. So. Okay, let's see if I can do it.

[Sister Jana]

Okay.

[Sister Zelie]

So. So I grew up in the suburbs of a state called Delaware. Seven kids, a mom and pop. Yes, sometimes the people stared. But this fun and crazy childhood home is where my heart first stared. To dream about a life for God live only for his cares. See, I read the stories of the saints, my faves, the virgin martyrs. Attracted to their zeal for Christ, they bled with fearless ardor like St. Agnes, Lucy, Philomena, Cecilia or even barber. Somehow I knew the modern type. I was a professed religious daughter. But worldly cares took hold of me as several years progressed. I buried deep that dream for God, Though faith I still professed. I wanted what the world would claim brings peace and happiness, popularity to be admired, the people to impress. But I found myself with little joy because of my selfishness. But our God's a faithful lover. He's a merciful good shepherd Brought me on a journey like a cheetah or a leopard to world, you'd say in Germany with peeps I never met, ever. It was there I learned to heed and listen and obey God's holy word. Because as my three week pilgrim trip was finally ending at Close of mass the priest he spoke in his spirit he descending his words rang true throughout my soul My heart it was amending. If some of you feel the Lord is calling you to religious life, do not be afraid. Holy Spirit coming down my heart it was a soaring God's will for me to be his bride I was tired of ignoring his plan for me would be my joy not sorrow, fear and mourning the tears they flowed as grace came down Divine mercy torrent pouring When I knew at last that Jesus calling me his wife Took me some time to navigate that what next? Inner strife Got to know our Blessed Mother Daily Mass a new prayer life Till a fanda had to preach God's love like a fifer on his fife God wanted me to be his own as a sister of life.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

That's awesome. That is. You said succinct and you're right. That was to the point that. And also.

[Sister Zelie]

Yeah.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

So, world, do you think cologne was a breaking point?

[Sister Jana]

It was huge.

[Sister Zelie]

It was huge. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I really. I always loved the saints and I was always inspired by them. And there was this question, and I tried to avoid the question. I. I didn't know a lot of religious.

[Sister Jana]

I knew.

[Sister Zelie]

I knew a little bit. A little bit in Delaware, not a lot. And. But yeah, the Lord gave a tremendous clarity and a tremendous peace.

[Sister Jana]

I was.

[Sister Zelie]

Yeah, I was so aware of my. Of my weakness. And. And that was something that he continued to work out, especially through getting to know Our Lady. That was a huge gift. I went to Catholic U. And when I was a junior, I had friends who did a consecration to Mary. And that really changed my life and allowed me to kind of place all those fears into. Into her hands. And I. I just realized when I did that and was honest about that, I feel like I can't do this. I feel it's going to be too hard. And she just took care of that. She. She gave me the assurance that this is where I had had the grace, the initial grace of vocation. But she needed to, like, continue to. To form my heart, to be open. So that's.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

That's beautiful. Thank you for sharing, both of you for sharing that. Because. So here's. Here's something that I wonder if this is true. And I've said it's. Hopefully it's true in other contexts, but where. Where a lot of different religious sisters can do a lot of different things. So you have cloister religious sisters. There is a community based out of Michigan that they're largely professionals in the sense that they're doctors and lawyers and you have others that work. We work exclusively with the poor. In your case, working many ways for life, would you say? I always say this. I always say the thing that unites and maybe the heart of what it is to be a religious sister is not just the task. Here's what we do. Here's what we do. But it's at the heart of it is being a bride of Jesus. Is that accurate in your experience as well, or am I getting that wrong?

[Sister Jana]

Yeah, absolutely accurate. Yeah. Because everything has to flow from that relationship with the Lord. Yeah. And just being totally his.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah.

[Sister Jana]

Because Mother Teresa has that great quote. You probably have heard it a lot. But what's the difference between her sisters and social workers is that a social worker does it for something and a sister does it for someone. So, yeah, the. The source and the. The end and everything in our lives is God. So it's got to come from him first. Yep.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

That makes sense. Just it seems to me like the more and more I get to meet incredible sisters, there's. There's less and less, maybe certain age, I guess, but there's less and less a fear of freely saying that that here is Jesus, who is called you in a unique way here. Here's God the Father who's made us all his sons and daughters in Christ, in baptism and whatnot, but in a very particular. And so he loves us very. He loves us infinitely and infinitely, uniquely. But for religious sisters, he's called them in a unique relationship, that relationship of bride to bridegroom. And it's. There's something I always. I'm just. It strikes me so deeply that whenever I get to meet a religious sister, I think, oh, my gosh. From their creation, from their conception, here is Jesus who marked their heart in a way that just said, no. Yes, of course I love all my children, love all the. All creation, but this particular will be my bride, and this particular one will be my bride. And I just is. Again, once again, is that accurate or am I being crazy?

[Sister Jana]

Yeah.

[Sister Zelie]

Yes.

[Sister Jana]

And it's.

[Sister Zelie]

It's actually. When you were just speaking, it was making me think of. At our final profession. There's a beautiful prayer that's prayed over, over the sisters about to profess. It's like a. I don't know what it's literally called. Maybe it's called the prayer of consecration. And it's this beautiful kind of invocation of God's love upon. Upon each of us chosen. And kind of the humility of that that he does call some of us, not because of anything we've done or merited, but this. This infinite gift and. And meant to be an image for others of. Of having one day. Please God. But. But to be received as. As a tremendous gift. Yeah. With joy and gratitude and. And humility. Please God.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

That's amazing. So that the. That's the heart in so many ways. The heart is that relationship with Christ, and everything flows from this. At the same time, you do have a very particular call as a sister of life, as sisters of life. And, And I've heard, you know that term accompaniment, and I've heard people making this distinction like that. It's not just helping someone in need, like accompaniment, but it's actually walking with. In your case, walking with a woman in love. And could you maybe paint a picture? Like, what does it look like? What does that look like? When a woman first comes to you, she might be scared, she might be unsure, she might. Completely uncertain about her future. How do you begin walking with her toward hope, with dignity?

[Sister Jana]

Well, the first thing we do is have a tea party.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Do you really? Are you serious?

[Sister Jana]

Yes.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Is that a joke?

[Sister Zelie]

No, not a joke.

[Sister Jana]

We have platters and teacups and everything. So she could be coming from anywhere. You know, sometimes women come directly from an abortion clinic because they're. They're changing their mind. Sometimes their friends refer them. Sometimes they just find us on the Internet. So. But however they come to us, we just sit down and we have some tea, you know, make them some scrambled eggs or something, and we just listen to their story. And it's amazing how. How healing that is. Like Sister Jama said earlier, people are just not listened to today. So that's where it all begins, is.

[Sister Zelie]

Is listening. It allows her a chance to. To share obviously, what she's struggling with and all the fears, which is. Is important for her to be able to name and for us to reflect back to her. Again, this. This skill of reflective listening is just. Is. It's such an incarnational thing. So, so she's sharing about everything she's worried about. And we're saying, okay, so your biggest concern is the finances. And then she can elaborate. It allows her, really. Yeah, to share with what she's struggling with, but also gives her a chance to share her. Her. Her hopes.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Right.

[Sister Zelie]

Because that has to be a part of the picture. And so often she thinks, if I have this child, my life is over, period. And so to allow her to continue to dream. And we have so many good men and women who work with us and, and walk alongside with Us and the women who also want to accompany her and who can help her sometimes with, with some of those things, with allowing some of those dreams to become. To become reality.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

What I hear you saying is they, they come to come to you or do you typically go find them or they, they find you? All these different, these different paths you mentioned, whether that's the Internet or they're coming from a. An abortion clinic or something like this. Do you ever go out and like, grab them, grab, you know, go fishing essentially and bring them in?

[Sister Jana]

Yeah, sometimes we're, we're trained outside of a clinic and sometimes a woman will turn around then, or, or other times. Yeah. Sidewalk counselor. They all have our emergency numbers, so they call us if they're with a woman in front of the clinic and sometimes they just get in a cab right then and there and come over. So, yeah, we try to be meeting.

[Sister Zelie]

Them at the clinic when you know they're going to go into.

[Sister Jana]

Oh, yes, sometimes. Yeah. If there's time for a story, we. We did. There was one, one mom we met who. I'll call her Katie. So she. She came to us through. Yeah. Someone who was praying outside of the clinic and they hand out our brochures. So she got our contact information, reached out. We met with her once and she was suffering from this disease called hyperemesis gravido, which is basically have terrible morning sickness for most of your pregnancy, and sometimes you have to be hospitalized. It's really difficult. So the moms who have HG are really extra our heroes because it's not an easy pregnancy. But this mom in particular was going back and forth in her choice for life. She already had one child and then she's pregnant again. But the father of the baby was being really violent towards her and just not supporting her. So she just felt so alone, like she had no other option. So one morning she had an abortion scheduled and she told us. So we're in dialogue this whole time. And another sister and I got in the car, went to the Bronx. We were hoping to catch her before she went to the clinic to go do something else.

[Sister Zelie]

Right.

[Sister Jana]

So go to a park or go to a toy drive for her other child because it was around Christmas.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

But.

[Sister Jana]

And we call her when we're a few blocks away. We say, hey, Katie, we're. We're in the neighborhood. Can we come pick you up? And she. And she answered her phone and said, oh, you know, I'm already on my way to the clinic. But she told us the name of the clinic, which we knew that one. So we followed her there, and we got there and she was already inside, and she's in tears. She's very emotional. She does. She just feels so sick, and she just wants that to be over. Right. But she also is torn about. About. She doesn't really want to have the abortion, deep down. So we waited outside in our minivan, and we're praying the rosary, the divine mercy traveler, just praying all sorts of things while we were still texting her inside. And then it turned out she met with a counselor who could tell she's very upset. And they said, have you had anything to eat so far today? And she said, well, I mean, I throw up everything, but I did have like eight gummy bears for breakfast. And they said, okay, well, we can't do anything today.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Wow.

[Sister Jana]

Because of those gummy bears.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah.

[Sister Jana]

So then she. She calls us and she said, are you guys still here? And we said, yeah, we're just around the corner. So she came out, she got in the van. She was just. Yeah, it was that. That was a very sacred moment. But she was very shaken up, of course, and just relieved and scared and all. All sorts of things. So we. We spent the rest of the day with her and took her to Dunkin Donuts where she ate a full meal for the first time in her whole pregnancy.

[Sister Zelie]

And then.

[Sister Jana]

Yeah, we just kept. She was able to start to feel a little better, actually, after that point. I think God just. Just was helping her. So she did end up choosing life for her little boy who's her little sunshine now. And, yeah, that. That baby was born. So she. We call that the gummy bear Grace.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah. Honestly.

[Sister Jana]

Yeah. And that. That just gave her the space to really, like, stop and think about it. And she went home and actually looked up abortion procedures for the first trimester and the second trimester because she was right on the cusp. And then she called us back and she said, sisters, I can't believe that they. Because. Because her doctor had said, well, if you change your mind, just come back and we can do the abortion later. And she. She was able to just. Her conscience was really moved to. To say, I never want to do that. Thanks be to God, I ate those gummy bears.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah. Wow. And that even. That sounds like there's a moment right there. There's a moment where. Here's God's grace. There's a moment where she. They make a decision, and the decision is towards God's good. But. But that was a long time in the sense that you had known her beforehand in the sense, you know, in. In all of this, she's going back and forth. Here's this time where she's in the building, a time of uncertainty. You're still just praying. And I just keep thinking about this, how this is the long game in so many ways. This is. It's not kind of like necessarily quick win, but that's actually part of your charisma as well. Right. So it's not. It's. It's helping women through that uncertainty, through that fear, through those crises, but not just to get to give birth, but beyond. Beyond that. What? Because you. Because I. I know that you're. That this holistic approach to like, no life is more than just bring, coming, bringing to term pregnancy. But is. You say more about that because. Fill me in on what happens beyond that too.

[Sister Zelie]

Yeah, yeah. You're kind of describing this idea that when we encounter a woman and are in friendship, we want it to continue as long as she wants it to continue. Like we want to continue the journey, especially.

[Sister Jana]

Yeah.

[Sister Zelie]

If she's open. Not especially, but if she's open to God's grace, we can then offer that. We can offer the gift of. Of his love. So many of the women are interested in. In growing in faith. And for each woman, it's. It's a unique journey.

[Sister Jana]

Yes.

[Sister Zelie]

So will we continue to be in touch with all of them five years after the baby's born? No, probably not. Practically, we're not able to, but for some, yes. We'll continue to walk with them and to see them and to see them wrestle with more questions of life and make good decisions and sometimes not. And our love for them grows, and you suffer that with them as they're growing. But I'm thinking of one young woman who I love dearly. And we met her maybe four years ago and she was very vulnerable to abortion. It was a huge. A huge battle, but she persevered and she had beautiful baby girl. And again, the struggle to parent, like you're saying, you need accompaniment throughout it, but she's a Catholic and she wanted her baby baptized. And so that's been a part of. Part of the journey. And now, again, it's not easy, but she's been going to college and making that work so that she can really support her daughter. And, and what I've seen in her and what we see in so many of the women, that is that the child who maybe at first, maybe wasn't wanted, becomes actually the grace that allows her to do hard things because it's not only for herself. It's for. It's for this little one who depends on her. So it's incredibly inspiring and a gift when we're able to walk with them and continue their relationship. And I was just telling Sister Zelie, I'm like, I know, I know I'm gonna. She's gonna be in my life forever. Like, I know that this, this woman and her daughter are. Yeah, are so, Are so dear and so much a part of my life, but doesn't happen always. But we. We love to as much as we can to. To continue that and, and to offer opportunities. We. We started this past year something we call Heart to Heart or Mommy Jesus Day, which treat for moms who we've known over the years who can come with their kids and receive a talk and have a lunch together and the kids go crazy in the basement. We're trying to figure out how to make that a little more organized basement. But. But Christmas parties, Mother's Day.

[Sister Jana]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Because sisters move around, you know, we. We can get an admission each year. That's the potential. Some, Some women are. Are just able to keep coming back, you know, even if, like their first sister moves to a different mission, they can still stay in touch to some degree. But I mean, we had a meeting. I had a meeting this morning. A woman that We've known for 13 years, we served her with her first child and now she's pregnant with number four. So that. That's such a gift when the, when the relationship can continue like that.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Please go.

[Sister Zelie]

I was going to say we love to invite the. Our co workers of life, the men and women who help us, they also kind of become. Yeah. Become an extension of us. And often that's where the relationship continues so beautifully. So I've seen that many times that, that a woman, we call her a handmaid, will continue to be a close friend with a woman, even if she isn't reaching out to us.

[Sister Jana]

So that is.

[Sister Zelie]

That is really cool. And that's something that I think our church as a whole lives and can live. You know, this continued continued friendship and support even when the crisis is over, but the journey to the Lord doesn't end.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

So, yeah, the. As you mentioned earlier too, that there you partner with people who aren't in your community. I mean, they're not in their. They're not professed in your community, but they're local to your larger community. What. What kinds of people are those? And what do they, what do they do? What. How do ordinary people, quote, unquote, partner with the sisters of life.

[Sister Jana]

Yeah, we, we have some sisters who serve in that mission of our co workers of life. So they kind of do the initial getting to know the people, do a little, have a conversation just about, you know, what's the grace to this point that has gotten you to fill out a form on our website to say that you want to serve with us. And then we, we do, you know, take, take stock of their temporal skills. So, you know, if somebody's a lawyer, we definitely note that or somebody has a car and can help a woman move. You know, so there's, there's things like that. But really the, the ultimate goal would. Yeah, like Sister John was saying that someone who has kind of been in a stable enough place to really to give love to someone who hasn't had kind of the same, same stable upbringing or resources available to them, that they can just let them be part of their lives. So that might mean taking her out to coffee, you know, once a month, or helping her go to appointments. You're driving her with her kids. It could be helping throw a baby shower. We do a lot of baby showers. So. But then it could also mean, you know, one of the moms is working with a co worker. She's teaching her rcaa, right. Catechism for all the kids. So they meet like, whatever, the weaker, once a week. So that's really the goal because we, you know, the sisters will always be here to some degree, but we also pray more than we work hours in a week sort of way. So we are limited. And so the co workers just help, help fill all the gaps and, and bring a lot of, I mean, maternal advice.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah.

[Sister Jana]

You know, but this is what it was like when I had my kids. And yeah, they help in so many ways.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Well, it sounds like too like you have really high skill and like if someone's, if someone's a lawyer or if they have medical background and they can offer some of that stuff and you have some, maybe we might say low skill in the sense of I have a car. You know, I can offer all the in between. But the thing that I heard you say is, but really ultimately what they're doing is that they're offering love. And we need someone. We, we need, we partner with people, the co workers, we partner with people who have a heart of patience, have a heart for mom and baby. They have a heart for. I mean, when I hear so from my perspective sometimes I, I know I work on a college campus and I know the, the pain in so many ways of seeing people make decisions that are not good. And you're like, ah, just. But come on, let's, let's do this. It seems like as you mentioned, people, people are coming from unstable backgrounds. They're coming from broken. I mean we all have brokenness in all of our hearts, but especially broken that to be able to accompany, like to walk with someone as you're hoping for the best for them, but they're not always choosing the best. It seems like that's when maybe your motherhood comes out in a very, very powerful way. Is that accurate or is that. Am I just making stuff up?

[Sister Zelie]

I think we desire so much to. For the best for them and so you suffer with them when something good isn't chosen. I always think of this mission as so much one of intercession because we, we cannot change anyone's heart. We cannot help them to choose virtue by ourselves. God must give that grace and we can accompany and guide as much as we can. But the Lord, the Lord must show the way. So yes, it's a, it's a, an experience of, of suffering with. When you see, when you see those decisions made that are so, that are so against what, what brings her peace and God's love and dignity.

[Sister Jana]

But then I mean the beautiful part of engaging that as a, as a Christian, you know, and especially as a sister of life is that there is also the spiritual power of that of being with Mary beneath the cross and saying Jesus, I do not know why this is happening or I don't know what kind of plan God has for this. But yeah, just sticking by her and yeah, just trying to trust God in those moments is. It's kind of like a little bit of a labor of our spiritual maternity.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Oh for sure. I can. That, that, that resonates a lot in that sense of. Yep. The suffering with. Get compassion. Like real compassion looks of that willingness to suffer with. Yeah, I'm sure. So part of me has always thought that as sisters of life you probably are like the most skilled arguers when it comes to the pro life cause or you know, against abortion. And so then I might just. I, my. In my ignorance, I think, well they just go out and they debate people all the time and just kind of have arguments on the sidewalk that I'm getting an impression that's not necessarily that I was wrong. Is that. Am I wrong?

[Sister Zelie]

I'm not very good at that.

[Sister Jana]

Yeah, we don't do much debating. That was kind of what I thought too before I was, before I became a sister. But the more I've been able to have the gift of working with pregnant women. It's, I mean, on the one hand, yes, abortion is a political issue. You know, the March for Life Dobbs legislation, that is all very important, but to the woman herself in crisis, it's not, it's not like she's hoping to have an abortion. It's, it's so an act of fear. So our mission is, is much more with our lady having faith and trying to. I remember one, one woman a few years ago, she's like, I just don't have, I just don't have faith that this is gonna work. And the sister serving her just has inspiration to say, well let me have faith for you right now. And she kind of, you know, went through the valley and then was able to, to choose life. So. But yeah, we, we only can do it if we hang on, to hang on to Jesus and Mary and their great faith. So.

[Sister Zelie]

And I think sometimes when people come up to us and want to argue about that, what it kind of boils down to is more a discussion of the heart of the person and, and, and the harm that it does to women versus like, yeah, the politics about.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

But that's really a really powerful point in that sense of at this, at when someone's facing this, this is not an issue for them anymore. This is their life. This is. I don't need an, I don't need an argument. I need someone to give me some hope. I need someone to walk with me, to love me. I was thinking about this in particular because. Well, because that's what I had assumed it was. I would assume, like if you have all the answers, but that's not, it's not what you're offering. You're not offering all the answers, you're offering your hearts. And that is, that's, that's profound. I, as a man in our culture, a lot of times, certain areas of our culture, like a pro abortion aspect or anti life would say, as a man, you don't have a say. As a man, you don't get to weigh in on woman's issue. But my guess is that when you're walking with women, those who are helping are not just other women, but are also men. How would you say what we make. I, I don't know how to make it not overly broad, but what role do, do fathers do men in general have with your work and with changing the culture?

[Sister Zelie]

That's an awesome question. I think the gift and the power of the presence of a man in the life of, of one of these women who finds Herself in a pregnancy and doesn't know what to do, that that role cannot be underestimated. And what we would kind of suggest as a way that it could be lived is for the man to. When he says to her, like, I want to be with you whatever you choose, it's not the right thing to say because she hears, I should have an abortion. So for men in our culture to know that the way of speaking is to speak of being beside her through the journey of her pregnancy, that for him to encourage her that she is strong and that she can do this, but the presence and the words of a man are so powerful. We used to tell a story years and years ago that one of the women that we were serving, we connected her with a lawyer who was a man. And afterwards she came and told the sister who was walking with her basically that her heart had changed, that she thought she could do this, do this now, have the baby because of what the man had said. Like, I believe in you. I think you can do this. And Sister's like, I've been saying that the whole time. But the fact that it came from this man and this, this presence, that was tremendous for her. And so men in our culture don't need to think that they can do nothing by their presence and their. Their true love and true respect for women, their prayer and intercession, that is huge. That is huge.

[Sister Jana]

Yeah. And it doesn't always have to be the. Yeah, like the father of the baby, because that is often not. Not the place where the woman will receive support, but there was one time where actually it was you. Sister Jona was at a 8th grade high school assembly in the Bronx. For some reason, it was planned and handed out our brochures to everybody. They put one on every seat. And then she said something like that to the. To the kids of, if you ever know somebody who's pregnant and in a hard time, tell them, I'm with you and you can do this and I believe in you kind of thing. And then a couple months later, we had been connected through a priest with. With a pregnant woman in the Bronx. And we went to her house to visit her, and she. She shows us into her kitchen and pulls out our brochures from her kitchen drawer and says this. This is how I found you guys. My son brought this home from his eighth grade school assembly, and he had just found out that his mom was pregnant unexpectedly. And he said those words to her, and that's what she needs to believe in herself.

[Sister Zelie]

Yeah.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Wow. That's incredible.

[Sister Jana]

Yeah.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Her son, eighth grade son, speaking strength. That's amazing. Thank you for that. I. I know that I'm. Well, I'm. I'm sure that in this walk you not only walk with, with women who have, who make the right choice and are, you know, struggling to. How do I raise my child now, how do I keep moving forward, but also in this, where they've chosen abortion. And the need for accompaniment extends beyond that too. Right. And, and that need for healing, that, that sense of loss, that need for forgiveness, how, how do you walk with, with, with a woman who's been wounded through abortion? What is, what is that? What. And how does true. What does true healing really look like?

[Sister Zelie]

We have a beautiful mission called our Hope and Healing Mission. And our sisters at another house are, are blessed, are privileged to walk with women who, who have suffered an abortion. So sometimes it's, it's recent, many, many times it's been years and years and years before. And so their mission is one of offering the mercy and love of Jesus and really of extending again this maternal love of the church who is able to offer the, the gift of, of reconciliation through the sacraments for those who are Catholic. So it's a, It's a privileged and sacred mission, again of accompaniment, of receiving. The story of building community both with the sisters and among. Among other women. They do that through, through different, like day retreats and longer retreats and sometimes prayer groups. But that is a powerful experience of seeing God work in the life of another. And, and what does healing look like again? Each person is unique, but I think it. When, when she is able to know in a, in a way that's like deep in her core, that God's, God's love is for her, that she is loved and she is not forsaken because the experience of abortion can make her again feel so alienated from, From God. I'm thinking of a woman that our sister said on one of their weekend retreats that after she was able to go to confession and really kind of express the, the sorrow of so many years that she was holding this, this secret that afterwards the sister saw her literally, literally doing cartwheels on the grass. And then she said, she's no spring chicken, but, but this, this, this kind of outward manifestation of, of an inner, of an inner freedom and joy and childlikeness. So I jump on the second. In his encyclical, the Gospel of Life, he talks about how women who have suffered an abortion but found healing can be the most eloquent witnesses to life. And that's what I found that the women that I, that I know who have, who have suffered but have found healing are tremendously faithful witnesses of Jesus and his mercy and the, the warmth and tenderness and goodness of, of, of them, of their hearts is, is just, it's just amazing.

[Sister Jana]

So, yes, they're some of our closest friends.

[Sister Zelie]

Yeah.

[Sister Jana]

And I think some of our holiest friends too. Yeah.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah. So when, when they receive the healing of Jesus, which is what he wants, he wants to. Doesn't want to hold any of this against anyone reason why he died on the cross. Right. So that, that the things that kill us, he defeats and that he takes them away. But they also can become like ministers of reconciliation to others, ministers of mercy to others. Because I mean, who we. Anyone can talk about. Well, God's mercy is infinite. God's mercy is abundant. God's mercy is greater than your sin. But when someone knows like, no, this is my experience is my story. The thing you think disqualifies you, I thought disqualified me and I here to tell you that hasn't. I get emails regularly, maybe once a week from, from women who say, that's part of my story, part of my history as I'm coming closer and closer to the Lord. I want to be Catholic, but does this disqualify me from being Catholic? Does this disqualify me? If I bring this to confession, what will I hear? And do you have any experience with that? When it comes to people who are afraid and then they actually go and what is their experience?

[Sister Zelie]

There's a woman again who shares her story in our hope and healing mission. And she was very scared to go to confession, Very, very frightened. And it was, yeah, that was a hard thing for her. And when she finally went, I think it might have been like maybe afterwards he offered her coffee or something so gentle or little. But the experience actually with going to confession and the priest was so healing. He was such a voice of mercy and kindness and welcome. So I think that that's most often the experience of those that we know of. Yeah. Even if it's not in the context of like a hoping, healing retreat. I don't know.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Well, it sounds a lot like what you do, which is you listen, you see people receiving them and being able to just let them present what they've got. And so here you have, you, all the Sisters of Life and your co workers of life, you have the priests, you know, the Catholic initiative. One of the things that we're focused on is we're focused on helping parishes live their mission. More deeply, because we believe, like a lot of people in Catholic Church believe, is that parishes are made for mission. Parishes should be centers of mercy for people. So from your experience, have you ever seen what it looks like when an entire parish or when a parish's character is to walk with families in need and not just ignore them, but also not just kind of respond to the need, but actually walk with them? Have you ever seen parishes do that as part of their charisma or character?

[Sister Jana]

Yeah, we know some parishes that have a beautiful connection with their local pregnancy center through the Bishop's initiative of Walking with moms in need. So often what that looks like. Yeah. Is that they'll. They'll. Some of them will probably volunteer directly with the pregnancy center, but otherwise they're kind of like an extension of that hospitality. So some of them. Yeah. If we know a mom near one of those parishes will definitely try to connect her for. Yeah. Fellowship, and they can, like, have a baby shower for her and. And just try to grow and to be that village that she really. That she really needs.

[Sister Zelie]

Yeah, it's. It's definitely a call to open your heart because, like, we've been talking about, it's not a. It's not an easy fix, and it's not a quick fix. So. So for a parish community to have. To have kind of the initiative to do that or the strength, it does really help to have a pastor who's on board, who wants to. Who wants this to happen. And, you know, if you have a few good souls who. Who want to do this, who want to back it up, it can. It can be a powerful place of grace, of. Of welcome and of. Of accompaniment. Like Sister Zelie was saying, baby showers can be a beautiful, beautiful way to. To welcome and rejoice with. With a woman who might not have that kind of experience before, of being, you know, delighted in and.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah.

[Sister Jana]

Yeah. And to pray for her to really have an. Yeah. To really pray for these women who are facing these. These big choices. Because like we said, it's all. God is the main agent to all of this. You know, we're like his sidekicks, and we're just trying to help. So that's important to keep in mind, too, when you're directly working with women, because that.

[Sister Zelie]

It's.

[Sister Jana]

It's just amazing when the amount of obstacles can. Can seem so insurmountable. But then the grace that a woman who knows she is loved can receive to say, I'm gonna have this baby. I don't care what you say to me. Sort of thing. And. And just the. The miracles. God can really work because he is so attentive to the details. One time we had a mom who had just been in an abortion clinic, and there were cyber counselors outside, and they said, you know what, what if you come. Come with us and we can take you to visit the sisters. She wasn't really sure what that meant, but she went with them. And I think she thought we were in another medical clinic, but turns out it was us. And as she's going there, she's like, I don't know what I'm gonna do.

[Sister Zelie]

I can't even.

[Sister Jana]

I can't even afford diapers right now for my other kids. And at that moment, earlier that day, we had had a group of college students come to volunteer with us, and we had a bunch of CVS gift cards. So we gave him to the college students, said, can you guys go to walk to the nearby cvs? We gave him a little wagon, said, just buy all the diapers you can fit and afford with the gift card. So at the moment that this woman pulls in, come the college students with the wagon full of diapers.

[Sister Zelie]

And that.

[Sister Jana]

That was a huge grace for her, obviously.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah, yeah. God paying attention to the details. And when we listen, we're available, keep showing up. I'm so grateful we asked the same question of everyone on this podcast at the end of every podcast. And I'm asking both of you this question individually, but what would you say to anyone who's listening? People who listen, they want to live their lives out. They want to live out God's call on their lives, but don't necessarily know where to start? So what would you say to any listener who is saying, I want to live out God's call for my life, but I just don't know where to start. Where should they start? What would you say to them?

[Sister Jana]

I would say there can be this. This temptation to think. I mean, even we can have this, you know, when I'm in a different mission someday, or when I'm not living in New York City or whatever. When I live with my. When I. Whatever. I love living with Sister Johnna, so I can't use that as an example. But, yeah, there can be this kind of, like, far off, like, oh, then when I'm ready, then when I'm. Then I can be holy, then I can do it. And I think there's this verse. I think it's in one of St. Paul's letter to Timothy about there's great Godliness and contentment. And I've been praying with that over the last couple years just to stop and really look at my life and say, where is God? And, and where do I. What's my sense of, like my everyday. When I wake up in the morning, like, do I, do I really believe that God in my current state, you know, vocation is a different thing, I guess. But in my current life, is God really, Do I believe God's meeting me here, you know, when I'm eating breakfast and when I'm going to my job and people I meet? Because yes, he's always calling us to deeper conversion and freedom from sin and all of that. It just gets deeper and deeper and higher. But it doesn't have to wait to start, you know, to love and to, to seek him in every area of our life. That was my thought.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

I like that life. You don't have to wait.

[Sister Zelie]

Yeah, I would agree wholeheartedly and I would, I would add also that I think each of us obviously like growing in our prayer life, growing in our sacramental life, if there are places that need healing, addressing that, of course. But then I would say getting growing more in, in one's relationship with Our lady, because there's just, there is something about her role in her motherhood that she makes the way easier and brings us to, to Jesus. And it's just true. It's just true. So, so living. Yes. Living where you are and trusting God's love there and allowing Our lady to be the one to walk you to.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Thank you. That's amazing. So you don't have to wait. You don't have to wait to be holy. You don't have to wait to move and respond to the Lord's invitation. And then also if you want to kick it in the butt, get close to Mary because she's going to be. And then that is, and that's what she does. Right?

[Sister Jana]

She.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

We know this about Our Lady, Our mother, we know that she brings us to Jesus. And I just, yeah, there's no need to be afraid. I think a lot of times it holds us back from doing great things for God or doing anything for God. Doesn't have to be great things. Even doing small things for God is. We're afraid of moving. So thank you so much. I, I honestly, sisters, thank you for taking the time to speak with us. Hopefully. I know that this conversation is a blessing for me and hopefully it's a blessing for everyone who's going to be listening to this. Yeah. Is there anything you would like us to know about your community before we close this.

[Sister Zelie]

Yes. May. It was May 3, 2025, was 25 years since the passing of our founder, Cardinal O'. Connor. And so we're just excited to share with others the gift of his life and the charism that he received and shared with us. So. So look out for a documentary coming out. Look out for a book that one of our sisters is writing, just a beautiful account of. Of his journey with the Lord. So that would be one thing to say.

[Sister Jana]

Yeah. And. And if anybody listening is. Goes to the March for Life, we do have a rally. Have a What's. Is it a rally? It's not. It's kind of like a rally. We have a conference rally. I'm sorry. It's called Life Fest. Let's just say that we have Life Fest. Yes. We have a. A gathering in the morning before the March for Life with music and speakers and just to. Just to have a time to come together. So we would definitely invite anybody out there who wants to look that up to join us for that.

[Sister Zelie]

Yeah, please do. Yeah, I know of our prayers. We. We always just desire that each person know that they're loved and. And a gift. So for each person watching or listening, just that if that's a struggle to just beg the Lord to reveal to them, to their hearts that they're a gift every day, we need to be convicted of that. So.

[Father Mike Schmitz]

Yeah. Amen. Thank you so much once again. Again, thank you. And for everyone who's listening, thank you for listening to Call. This podcast is made possible by the Catholic Initiative, who is inspiring bold faith in action and are investing in vibrant but under resourced Catholic communities. That's what the Catholic Initiative is all about. So it revitalizes iconic parishes, schools, communities. And if you want to learn more about their projects and. Or discover how you can make a difference with the Catholic Initiative, Please visit the catholicinitiative.org, that's thecatholicinitiative.org Remember, the gospel is more than words. The Gospel is a way of life. Jesus tells us in Matthew 25, whenever we serve the least of these, we serve him. So until next time, let's all keep listening to God's call. Let's have the courage to answer it. God bless. Sa.