Metropolitan Borys Gudziak Celebrates Sisters of Saint Basil Marking 70 and 65 Years of Monastic Life

In his homily, Metropolitan Borys expressed deep gratitude for the life witness of the jubilarians, praising their decades-long response to God’s call with faith, devotion, and sacrificial love.

“And you, dear sisters, have been answering that question of Jesus, which was posed three times to Peter: ‘Do you love me?’ Sister Carla, Clement, and Dolores, you responded to that question 70 years ago, and Sister Rita and Dorothy Ann 65 years ago—in a radical way, in a countercultural manner—because you love the Lord and you tended the sheep.”

He recounted the many ways the sisters have lived out their vocations, not only in prayer and study but in concrete service to God’s people:

“You prayed and you studied, you prepared and you taught. You accompanied people in joy and sadness, in illness and death. You led people to the sacraments. You celebrated and you wiped tears. You built, you developed, you governed—and through it all, you were guided by that question Jesus poses in the Gospel.”

Reflecting on their decades of religious life, Metropolitan Borys acknowledged the quiet but powerful impact of their witness:

“In your lives, dear sisters, so many amazing things have happened, so many miracles have been brought forth—and you’ve cooperated. You’ve been the instruments. You’ve formed lives. You gave meaning at a time of growing absurdity.”

The Archbishop spoke personally of the inspiration he draws from the Sisters:

“I come here uplifted, inspired, encouraged—because of your gentleness, your kindness, the patience and generosity of your lives, your faithfulness over a lifetime, the self-control that religious life fosters—and most of all, by your joy.”

He concluded with a heartfelt prayer of gratitude and blessing:

“Receiving it all in gratitude—it is with this gratitude that I pray with you and for you, and ask the Lord to reward you a hundredfold and give you many, many happy years.”

The celebration was a moving testimony to the lasting power of vocation and religious life. Through their quiet, consistent witness, the Sisters of Saint Basil have shaped generations of lives in the Church and beyond.