Maryknoll Affiliates

1913 was a year of settling-down on Sunset Hill. 

In January 1913 the Teresian pioneers celebrated their first year at Maryknoll, making a retreat guided by a Redemptorist, Father Henry Borgmann. This retreat was Mary Joseph's first such experience. Despite the fact that the women had to continue with some of their work, she was caught up in the conferences and prayers. 

Father Borgmann put emphasis on the life and spirituality of Teresa of Avila as their model and patron. He downplayed what he termed "baby devotions" and frequently used his favorite maxim, "Know thyself; know God.” He led the group to a more profound understanding of the Mass and urged them to use the Missal, which was not the common custom of that era. 

The Death of Mollie’s Father

On March 4, 1913, Mary Joseph received a message from Jamaica Plain that her father had collapsed, was paralyzed and unable to speak. She immediately traveled to Boston and remained at his bedside for two months. He died on May 2 and a week later Mary Joseph returned to Maryknoll, welcomed with a "chorus of joyful shouts" by the Teresians. Fr. Walsh (JAW) came over after supper and they all had a beautiful evening sharing together.

A Red-Letter Day with the “Redness” Left Out

After breakfast on May 5, Fr. Walsh told the Teresians that Cardinal Farley was coming to visit Maryknoll in the afternoon.  He asked them to put on their uniforms, which had been hanging in the closets.  So the bustle and hustle began.

They gave everything an extra sweep and a special flourish of the duster.  Sara hung some pictures in the office.  Anna put the last stitches in her uniform and covered a cushion with red satin on one side only, because the remnant was a small one.  They took turns at pressing their dresses and after a hasty attempt at dinner, hurried upstairs to put them on.

The afternoon went on with nothing more exciting than the noise of the hammer as two of the students put on some stray doorknobs.  Then, about four o’clock, there was a loud crash and, following the direction of the noise to the community room, they discovered that the ceiling was resting in pieces on the floor, table and chairs.  The debris was shoveled out and once more they worked and waited.  However,  the Cardinal did not come!  The anticipation of his visit had, however, accomplished something.  They had put on their uniforms and they had several repairs made about the house!

Feast of St. Peter and St. Paul

The Teresian Diary relates:

June 29, 1913, Feast of St. Peter and St. Paul: Fr. Walsh sang High Mass and Mary Joseph played the organ.  Father spoke of the significance of the day, marking the end of the scholastic year and the second milestone in the history of the Society.

In the afternoon at six o’clock Father came to give us our cinctures, postponed from the 24^th of May.   In his conference Father spoke of the significance of our putting on the cinctures with the Chi Rho within a circle, which is a symbol of Christ’s worldwide mission.

The Venard in Scranton, PA

On July 1, 1913, Father Walsh sent the following letter to the Teresians:

We will need at Scranton a woman to assist Fr. John I. Lane: (1.) As supervising housekeeper,  (2.) As secretary and accountant, and we have decided that, although our numbers are few at Maryknoll, one of our own should be at Scranton. I do not wish to ask any one of you to go, but I do ask for volunteers. Please read this note to all your flock, instruct them not to act hastily, but to say a prayer and leave a note in my basket before next Monday.

On July 31, Father Walsh returned from a long trip. After supper on August 1, he visited the Teresians, giving an interesting account of his trip, including his visits to Detroit, Notre Dame in Indiana, Chicago, Des Moines, St. Louis and Scranton, where he encountered difficulty in leasing a house for the Apostolic School.  Finally came the announcement that Mary Augustine Dwyer was chosen to go to Scranton.

Father Walsh said he considered the position a very responsible one,  a possible beginning of a series of foundations of the same kind. On September 8 Mary Augustine left for the Venard in Scranton.

Miss Julia Ward

We were delighted to see our Fairy Princess, Julia Ward. After inspecting our house from attic to cellar, she promised all kinds of improvements, new floors and ceilings, wall paper, a closet for each bedroom, rugs, a well-lighted sewing room for Anna and a ‘sanitary’ kitchen.  She even feared that our uniforms would not be warm enough for the winter and offered to get heavier material and send up two or three women to make the dresses for us.  She also took upon herself the duty of providing winter cloaks and hats.

She asked Mary Joseph to write to her at any time for whatever we might need. The story of these wonders, as Mary Joseph told it to us, sounded like a midsummer night’s dream, but the best part of it was that we knew it to be true.

Also, in September-October 1913, a Chapel was added to the Society Farm-house Seminary and Julia paid for all the furnishings for the new Chapel.  Fr. Walsh called Ms. Ward ‘Lady Bountiful!’

St. Teresa’s Day 1913

October 15, the great St. Teresa’s Day, we had enjoyed pretending that we were going to sleep late, but of course we got up at the usual time. Father said Mass for us.  When we came into the dining room, we found the first surprise.  The room was hung with strips of yellow and white crepe paper, and the pictures were decorated with autumn leaves.

On the table were eight St. Teresa dolls, dressed in a Carmelite habit of brown and white crepe paper.  Anna Maria Towle had made them and not even the cincture of white knotted string was left out.

After breakfast we dressed up the dog and cat with bows of crepe paper, so that the whole family might have a share in the festivities.  

A remembrance we much appreciated was a bouquet of carnations from the students.   Later a box of candy came from Fr. Walsh, and Mrs. Grant and her daughter sent us some hot doughnuts and a cake.  At dinner we had ice cream.  At six o’clock Fr. Walsh gave us a talk on St. Teresa.   He told us it was especially fitting that we take St. Teresa as our patron.  He mentioned the importance of our work and showed how necessary our services were for the advancement of the Seminary at this time.  

After supper, the students came over to see the decorations.  As soon as they left, we started a combined concert and dance, to the accompaniment of popular music played on the organ. A good bit of merri-ment ended the celebration of our great holiday!

Some News from the 1913 Teresian Diary

• Among the guests were Fr. Walsh’s sister, Mrs. Hughes, who spent a few days with us.   Our guests were a bit frightened by the prospect of falling ceilings, at any time and in any place, and wondered if they would ever survive the cold and other inconveniences.
• Fr. John Lane wrote Fr. Walsh that Mary Augustine was “panning out beautifully at the Venard doing all kinds of things well.” 
• Fr. Price asked the Teresians to call him Fr. Bernadette.  He blessed the statues of Our Lady of Lourdes he had given them, touching them with a bit of rock cut from the spot where the Blessed Virgin stood.    
• The Teresians had a triduum, praying to St. Luke for funds, and the receipts amounted to more than $200. They then  began a Novena to St. Philomena for the same purpose!
• On October 30, we went to the Seminary for the blessing of the bell.  The ceremony was performed by Monsignor Edwards, who was in charge of all the Religious Sisters in the Archdiocese of NY.  The Bell was named “Paul,” and Fr. Walsh and Mary Joseph were the sponsors.  The service was impressive, in spite of the fact that we wanted to laugh when the sponsors hit the bell with a piece of wood for lack of anything better at hand!  

We learned from the Archives that the 1913 Bell is not the present Mission Departure Bell in the Society’s Quadrangle. Fr. JAW made a trip to Asia in 1917-1918 and on his way home he stopped in Japan and received a gift of a Bell from a resident missioner, Fr. Defrennes of Fukushima.  The Bell was from a Japanese Temple that had burned in Sendai.  The over 200-pound Bell arrived with Fr. Walsh in April 1918, and was used in the Society’s first Departure Ceremony on September 7, 1918. 

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Question for Reflection

 Sorrow, disappointments, calamities, change and joys weaved through the lives of the Teresians. How are these realities embraced in our lives today?

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