Meeting the Need in Unique Ways

“If the world takes something from us on the one hand, God will give us something on the other.”

St. Louise de Marillac

By Angela Anno, Associate

Committed to empowering the next generation of physicians, S. Montiel Rosenthal, MD, accompanies residents on annual medical mission trips to Guatemala.

“As pilgrims, we pray for the wisdom to know the needs of our sisters and brothers and dare to risk a caring response.”

Following this part of their Charism Statement has led Sisters of Charity Montiel Rosenthal, Annie Klapheke and Carol Wirtz to go beyond the usual scope of their ministries to find methods that will better help the persons they work with – and it has been a mutual blessing.

When she was studying to become a doctor, S. Montiel Rosenthal, MD, was also considering a religious vocation and wondered if the two calls were compatible. She trusted that God would lead her in the right direction and found “God made it obvious that I was called to both vocations. They fit together and I began to learn about other Sisters, priests, and religious brothers who were following the same path.”

Her dual journey has led her to places where she had to be creative in providing medical care to underserved people in Armenia, Appalachia and remote areas of Guatemala, where she takes medical students with her to experience working with people who rarely get to see a doctor. Each of these settings requires collaborating with a network of people who help provide the medical supplies and support needed.

Though S. Montiel has had a wide range of roles in medicine and was once named “doctor of the year,” what matters most is her daily living out of both her religious and medical vocations, and that begins and ends each day with prayer. For her, it is about being tuned in to where God might be leading, like following an interest and getting trained in acupuncture, a skill practiced by Sister of Charity Rose Chang in her ministry in China. She now offers it as an adjunct to traditional medicine.

In addition to competence, teamwork, evidence-based treatment, and good communication skills, “humility” is a word she uses often to describe what makes an effective physician. “I need to be humble enough to be open to continuing to learn, letting myself be treated by another physician, and working myself out of a job by empowering others, and knowing when it’s time to let go,” she said.

As a dietitian, S. Annie Klapheke helps clients focus on affordable foods, simple meals and the benefits of a healthy lifestyle.

Like S. Montiel, S. Annie Klapheke was discerning her religious vocation at the same time she was preparing for her career as a dietitian and discovered that she was called to both. “Health care has always been a part of the mission – a continuation of Jesus’ own healing ministry,” she said.

“My role as a dietitian very much reflects my spirituality. Jesus gave us the Eucharist, a communal meal that gives us nourishment for the journey. I am aware of the sacredness of food as I talk with my patients. I want it to help them build a healthy relationship with food and celebrate how it can be a joyful part of life even while managing a diet-related disease.”

S. Annie ministers at the Good Samaritan Free Health Clinic in East Price Hill (Cincinnati), a primary care setting, which allows her to see patients for long-term follow-up. “I try to focus on their overall wellbeing, not just on the medical diagnosis. Although we mostly talk about food, patients often share so much more about their lives – their families, their joys, their struggles, and their culture,” she said.

The pressure of competing priorities such as paying bills, family and work obligations, how you can pay for rent or care for your children can be a major barrier to managing disease, S. Annie believes. “I try to focus on affordable food options, such as dry whole grains, beans, canned fish, frozen vegetables and some plant-based proteins, and easy to prepare meals, as well as the benefits of caring for one’s health.”

Being a dietitian fits right in with her vocation. “I love that I get to walk closely with God’s people and hopefully bring them to a place of better health and wholeness of life,” she said.

For S. Carol Wirtz, it was a quiet attentiveness to God’s whisperings that led her to religious life – and ultimately her ministry with children with special needs in Anapra, Mexico.

In her ministry at Proyecto Santo Niño, S. Carol Wirtz uses the Anat Baniel Method® Neuromovement® to support learning and growth through gentle movement.

After graduating from college in Montana, she taught at St. Anthony Indian Mission School in Zuni, New Mexico. There, she met S. Rose Marie Hewitt, who was the principal. Witnessing S. Rose Marie’s joyful spirit and the bond she shared with the other Sisters spoke to S. Carol’s heart, inspiring her to discern becoming a member of the congregation.

“I’m always amazed by how God plants seeds of inspiration that come to fruition later,” she reflected. She recalls how her early experience teaching swimming lessons to special needs children opened her eyes to alternatives beyond traditional methods.

While teaching in Santa Fe, S. Carol studied multiple disciplines in alternative healing. This led to extensive study of lymphatic drainage therapy, a skill she used for several years, primarily working with cancer patients.

Her ministry later took a new turn when she joined a team of Sisters crossing the border into Anapra, Mexico, to provide basic health care to those with little or no access. During that time, one mother gave birth to a child with Down syndrome. “At that time,” she said, “moms felt they were being cursed for having a special needs child.”

There were no services available for these children so she began to see what she could do to help. S. Carol learned about the Anat Baniel Method® Neuromovement® that focuses on what is possible rather than the limitations.

“The brain can make new connections if given the right environment and support,” S. Carol said. “The method provides the brain with what it needs to learn through gentle movement, unlocking the natural potential for learning and growth.”

In time, the Sisters established Proyecto Santo Niño, where S. Carol continues to provide services for the children who come there.

“In living conditions that are often difficult and sometimes violent, a child needs to feel welcome, safe and loved before they can learn,” she says. “Feeling loved is more important than anything else and by trying to do that for people, we put our charism into tangible practice. Through all the difficulties, every day brings joy and the awareness that God is always present.”

Each of these three Sisters faces unique challenges in their ministries, and while the approaches may be different, they continue to live out the charism of Mother Seton in their response.

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