Sister Mariana Koonce, RSM, professes perpetual vows

Sister Mariana, along with two other sisters, made their professions at the Cathedral of Mary of the Assumption in Saginaw, Mich. In attendance from the Diocese of Knoxville were Bishop Richard F. Stika, Cardinal Justin Rigali, and Deacon Sean Smith, chancellor and chief operating officer of the Diocese of Knoxville.

Sister Mariana, Sister Rose Marie Timmer, and Sister MaryThoma Houseal were examined by Superior General Mother Mary McGreevy and prostrated themselves before the altar during the Litany of the Saints. Following the litany, each sister knelt before Mother Mary to profess her vows. The Act of Religious Profession includes perpetual vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience; service to the poor, sick, and ignorant; and to persevere faithfully until death in the Institute of the Religious Sisters of Mercy of Alma.

The Religious Sisters of Mercy, with its motherhouse located in Alma, is a Religious Institute of Pontifical Right dedicated to the spiritual and corporal works of mercy. Established in 1973 in response to the renewal called for in the Second Vatican Council, the institute recognizes Venerable Catherine McAuley as its original foundress.

Sister Mariana directs the St. Mary’s Legacy Mobile Medical Clinic in the Diocese of Knoxville.

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