Following God’s Path
On May 16, 2021, on the Feast of the Ascension, the heavenly Father called our dear Sister M. Lucina Juárez home into eternity. For two years she had been bravely fighting a very aggressive cancer. Her attitude throughout this way of the cross was clearly expressed in the words she said to a fellow sister six days before her death: “I do not know which path God will lead me or take me on: the easiest one, or the difficult or painful one, the one with thorns or stones. I can imagine that it will be a difficult one because if Jesus suffered so much, why should it be different with me…?”
Called to His Service
Sister M. Lucina was born on June 30, 1955, in Chimalcoyotl, Mexico, as the oldest of eight children. Her parents were very religious, and the example of her father, who was active in the parish and often had night adoration, deeply impressed Sister M. Lucina.
In 1975, the Schoenstatt Sisters in Mexico opened a social service center in Tlalpan, very close to her parental home. Thus Sister M. Lucina came in contact with the sisters and eventually decided to dedicate her life to God as a Schoenstatt Sister of Mary. The pastor of her parish described Sr. M. Lucina as a “simple, joyful, humble person with an inclination toward a deeper religious life.” This is how we also experienced her during her 45 years in our community. She was one of the little ones in the kingdom who silently and selflessly served in the background.
In Simple, Joyful Readiness
Sister M. Lucina was very unselfish and ready to respond to the needs of others. One could always ask her for help, and she willingly changed her own plans to accommodate the needs of others. She fulfilled her tasks with a simple and joyful readiness to serve. She was able to endure suffering and was very sacrificial. She used her practical and artistic talents to give joy to others.
Throughout her life as a sister, Sister M. Lucina’s tasks alternated between caring for our sick and elderly sisters, cooking, and house cleaning, both in Texas and in Mexico.
On August 26, 2017, Hurricane Harvey hit our property in Lamar, where Sister M. Lucina was stationed at the time. It did major damage to the houses and surroundings. Sister M. Lucina was part of the group of ten sisters who remained in Lamar. There she worked very hard to help bring order to the property after the terrible storm.
Radiant Joy Amid Suffering
In August 2019, the Heavenly Father took Sr. M. Lucina into a difficult school of suffering, as she was diagnosed with advanced cancer. After an initial treatment in a specialized hospital in San Antonio, Texas, she was transferred to our province house in Wisconsin. Sister M. Lucina took this move, as all the other moves in her life, with a simple, joyful readiness to do God’s will. Her example of confidence and total conformity with God’s will impressed all of us. No matter how painful her condition and her treatments were, she always smiled and trusted that God knows what is best. She offered her life and suffering for the beatification process of our father and founder, Father Joseph Kentenich.
We give thanks for the radiant example of Sister M. Lucina, and for the gift that she was to our sisters’ community and to the Schoenstatt Movement. May she rest in peace.
