Victory Noll Sisters
1900 W. Park Dr.
P.O. Box 109,
Huntington, IN 46750-0109
phone
260-356-0628 - fax
260-358-1504

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Recognizing our diverse life experiences, we understand that there is no one spirituality, but rather strands of spirituality which are woven together to create the spiritual life of the community. OLVM spirituality appreciates our diversity and uniqueness while celebrating our unity. The main strands of this weaving are: living in the light of the Gospels with Mary as our model; participating in the faith-life of those among whom we live and work; and taking an active role in the liturgical life of the Church.

Living in community is creating the space to form bonds of friendship and support. Although our missionary life often keeps us dispersed geographically, we have developed ways to bond with each other and form living situations which foster and nurture faith and personal growth.

VICTORY NOLL SPIRITUALITY -
a series of articles
by Sister Rita Musante, OLVM

#1

“Spirit.” “Spirituality.” Elusive words, seemingly abstract but critically important realities. What do we mean by these words?
I define spirituality as a kind of inner dynamic, a certain way of looking at God, an inner motivation which inspires our outer activities, a sense of identity that expresses itself in all our activities and thoughts.

What, then, is the Victory Noll spirituality? What are the principal “ingredients” of this inner “fire” of Victory Noll? Looming large before us as a paradigm of Victory Noll spirituality is the person of Mary.

Mary holds our attention as the one human being who responded completely, with her whole person, to God’s dream for her and for her part in the world’s salvation. We are drawn to companionship with her in both her intimacy with God and her awareness and concern for social justice for her people.

Perhaps nowhere does this inner dynamism of Mary’s spirit find clearer expression than in her song of praise which we call her Magnificat (Luke 1:46-55). Mary voices humbly and eloquently her awareness of and praise for God’s particular love for her, God’s gifts to her. In that same song she also proclaims boldly the ultimate victory of God’s peace and justice, God’s reign in our world. Mary’s Magnificat is a captivating expression of why we Victory Noll Sisters look to her as the embodiment of our own journey of growth in intimacy with God and in the proclaiming and living out of the Gospel call for peace and justice in our world.

Marian spirituality is our Victory Noll heritage and our treasure. As Missionaries of Our Lady of Victory we, like Mary, are “called for the victory of justice.” (Isaiah 42:6)

#2

Imagine you are arriving tired and hungry in a strange city at a late hour knowing no one in that city. Imagine further, to your happy surprise, that this city has a designated “hospitality minister” with a friendly smile for you, a kind word, a warm beverage and answers to your questions.

This is one way of understanding the hospitality that is an earmark of the spirituality of Victory Noll. Our founder, Father John Joseph Sigstein, loved the mystery of God-becoming-flesh, God as it were, the Stranger, arriving on our Planet in our flesh, and looking for welcome in every human heart and community, looking for our very human hospitality.

Hospitality for the Victory Noll Congregation continues to be a central focus of our vocation “to share Christ’s love with the poor and neglected in a personal, non-institutional way” (Constitutions #2). Our Constitutions also proclaim that “friendliness and hospitality are part of our heritage. . . . we live simply and hospitably among the people” (#18.1 and #3). Over the past two years, Victory Noll’s buildings have been newly renovated in order to enable us to live out our friendly, simple hospitality to pilgrims and travelers of these times. We pray our hospitality of heart and home may contribute in small but powerful ways to global hospitality and peace.

#3

We began to speak about hospitality as another significant aspect of the spirituality of Victory Noll missionaries and their founder.

Actually, hospitality has a marvelous history that originates in the very Heart of God. From the beginning of creation, God has welcomed us hospitably into the very heart of Divine Life and Love, and into the dramatic unfolding of a dynamic universe. Hospitality is practiced even today by God who welcomes us who are still "strangers and outsiders" to God's ways of peace, love and justice for all.

In Old Testament times, hospitality was a requirement among nomadic peoples who were always on the move and always needing hospitable welcome for lodging and meals. For the Jewish people it was a means to express their vocation to be salvation and healing for the nations.

Hospitality was practiced by Jesus when He welcomed to his table the company of outsiders and "strangers" to the Jewish Law: "This man welcomes sinners and eats with them!" (Luke 15:2). Jesus revealed the deep heart of hospitality for his followers when He mysteriously announced, "I was a stranger and you welcomed Me." (Matthew 25:35), thus identifying himself with the strangers and foreigners, the "outsiders," the immigrants among us.

Today there are more refugees on our planet than ever before in recorded history. Our nation, which once welcomed immigrants, now patrols our borders and ports with grim determination to restrict their entry. Jesus steadfastly calls his followers to welcome and serve him, the Stranger, present in these homeless, despised and oppressed of our time.

Over the past two years Victory Noll's buildings have been newly renovated in order to better welcome "spiritual nomads" of our contemporary times. Jesus challenges us to welcome one another as I have welcomed you. Welcome the stranger, the immigrant, the refugee—the contemporary "nomads"—with the hospitality modeled and mandated by God.

The Victory Noll Sisters and Associates strive, with the grace of God, to respond to this call of God in today's challenging world.