Gratitude for a Holy Presence

Sr. Miriam Schnoebelen, whose funeral Mass we celebrated on Saturday, taught me a lot about how to live as a Benedictine woman.

Although her inclination was to lead a contemplative life, Sr. Miriam was often on the move, living in four different communities at Guthrie, Tulsa, and Piedmont, Oklahoma, and Atchison, Kansas. She lived out her vow of stability not in the sense of physical location but in her commitment to her life of prayer and service. Over almost 75 years as a Benedictine, she served in an extraordinary number of ministries as a teacher, administrator, social worker, counselor, pastoral associate, and founder of the Benedictine Peace House in Oklahoma City. She balanced these highly responsible positions with a clown ministry that allowed her to express her impish humor and delight in the people she met.

By the time I met Sr. Miriam at Mount St. Scholastica, she was in her contemplative stage of life. She was quietly gracious and supportive, offering words of encouragement at just the right time, which is such a gift in communal life. She also modeled how to carve out space for quiet reflection — every morning when I entered the dining room, I would find her sitting alone in a holy zone of semi-darkness by the patio windows, eating slowly and taking in whatever scene nature laid out before her.

Having run for many years on the path of God’s commandments, Sr. Miriam welcomed death in the manner of St. Francis of Assisi, as a direct conduit to God whom she loved and longed for.

I remember Sr. Miriam with gratitude and hope I can follow her example of serving where called, being a supportive and affirming presence to others, making time for contemplation, and accepting death as the path to deeper union with God. Her memory is a blessing.