Catholic Campus Ministry Newsletter

I didn’t directly perceive the Lord calling me to religious life during my years at VT, but I now see more clearly what he was doing in my heart during that time. I marvel at the providence of God and his thread of grace through it all. The Lord led me to become a FOCUS missionary after graduation, where I encountered the Sisters of Life and his invitation to religious consecration in this charism of life. While I was a missionary, the Lord inspired me to pray, “Give me the desire to want what you want more than what I want,” and he began to stir new desires in my heart. I experienced an invitation to give him permission in my heart and my life. I entered the Sisters of Life in 2019, and now live at St. Anthony's Convent in Catskill, NY. I will be forever grateful for the ways that I learned to pray during college, as this relationship with Jesus has changed my life forever.

As I started my time at Virginia Tech I knew I would attend Mass as I always had, but I didn’t know if I would get involved further than that. One of the first weekends, I planned to go to a welcome event, and as I walked across the parking lot, someone spotted me and welcomed me in; I never turned back. Diving deeper into my faith, I experienced more frequent confession, adoration, many retreats, and service events. I joined multiple groups to share faith, and I truly felt like I was starting to have a personal relationship with the Lord. Knowing there were people alongside me, helping me to grow, was both inspiring and positively challenging. I had known since I was in elementary school that I wanted to be a teacher, but I had only experienced public schools both as a student and a teacher. At a Sunday Supper, I had a conversation with a Dominican Sister where the idea of working at a Catholic school was highlighted in a new light. I knew I had grown so much personally, and I was on fire to share that. I quickly changed course and applied to work exclusively at Catholic schools. I am in my eighth year as a Catholic school teacher, and I couldn’t imagine it any other way. A few years ago at my school, a priest visited and was talking with the students about becoming saints. He asked them, “Who can help you get there?” The first student’s response was “my teacher.” The role I have, the gift I have been given, can’t be taken lightly. God has entrusted me to teach these students and “to entrust means that God believes in you [and] trusts that you are capable of receiving the gift.” (A Meditation on Givenness)

Eleni Back Bachelors in Human Development in 2016; Master of Arts in Education, Curriculum and Instruction in 2017

I gave him the gift of my sister and the plans I had, and he gave me back the most beautiful extended family of Sisters. The Lord has also revealed how close we can be with people even in the midst of physical distance and lack of communication. This can only happen when those people are fully seeking God and his directions. Looking back on the past 13 years, I would tell others to lean into all the experiences in front of you — let the Lord speak. Also, be open to the way he is speaking to you through those you encounter. The Lord has great plans for us, and while they might not look like our own, they will ultimately lead you to become a saint. Through the highs and lows of navigating new realities with my sister, my desire for heaven has grown; I’m beyond thankful for that gift. God has also entrusted me with the gift of my twin sister, Sr. Caeli Gloriae. After college my sister and I were physically apart for the first time. I walked with her in her journey as a FOCUS missionary and then her discernment of religious life. When she entered the convent, the reality was that my life with her would look differently. It was easy to focus on the difficult pieces, such as lack of communication, but the hardest part was the uncertainty. There were so many unknowns and things that would be revealed over time, which pushed me to have greater trust in the Lord’s plans for our lives. “These past five years have taught me to surrender in a new way. You give something to God, and he gives you back more than you can imagine.”