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PDF versionNotre Dame Sister Mary Daniel Turner dead at 84
She never stopped the struggle for human dignity for all
Jan. 28, 2010
Sister Mary Daniel Turner
Sister of Notre Dame de Namur Mary Daniel Turner, a driving force for justice and church renewal before and after the Second Vatican Council, and the executive director of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious from 1972-78, died peacefully Jan. 27 at the Sanctuary at Holy Cross care center in Burtonsville, MD. She was 84.
Widely respected for her thought and leadership, Turner was co-author, with Sister of Divine Providence Lora Ann Quinonez, of “The Transformation of American Catholic Sisters (Women in the Political Economy) (Temple University Press, 1992). For six decades, she was a tireless advocate for women, including women religious.
In an August, 2009, interview with NCR Editor Tom Fox, the gentle but frequently provocative Turner lamented that Vatican clerics cannot accept women religious as moral agents. "At the heart it is hard for Rome to understand us a moral agents in our own right," she said.
Speaking about the current Vatican-inspired Apostolic Visitation of U.S. women religious congregations, she said, "I think the issues are wider than women religious. The issues have to do with with whole church. I hate to see this reduced to religious life. It's deeper than that. It's really a difference in values between the church of Rome and the U.S. church."
This investigation is not simply about the way sisters are living. It has to do with issues that are far wider. A wider number of laity are asking the same questions we are. Deep down, the central question is 'who are we, as Catholics, in a pluralistic society.'"
Turner went on to say that "a democratic spirit lives in our [American] bones and it has to do with the inviolabilty of each person." Church structures, she said, must promote this. Americans, she said, "look for processes that honor the common good and promote the individual."
Turner received the LCWR Outstanding Leadership Award in 2005.
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Ministry of Sr. Mary Daniel Turner
Click here to see her remarks upon receiving the Outstanding Leadership award:
NCR: February 3-16, 2012
Subscribe to NCR to get all the news and special features that aren't always available online. In this issue:
- US News: Bishops Host Conference on Immigration
Conference fields advocates' questions on law, policy
- Special Section: Deacons. Serving as parish administrator; roles of wives; and more
- Study: Black Catholics are more engaged
New study by Notre Dame researcher about parish involvement in America
Click here to see Turner remarks upon receiving the Mary Emil Penet award.
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The following are appreciations by past LCWR president, Mercy Sister Camille D’Arienzo, and current LCWR president, Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration Marlene Weisenbeck.
By Sister Camille D’Arienzo
The passing from our midst of Sister Mary Daniel Turner represents the extinguishing of a leading light for U.S. women religious and countless others whose faith formation she enriched through her spoken and written presentations. Her influence, however, will remain as gift and grace for those of us who knew and loved her.
I had the privilege of visiting her at the Sanctuary at Holy Cross care center where she spent her last days. Mercy Sister Pat Kenny kindly took me to see Mary Daniel on Jan. 15, the morning after the Smithsonian Institute’s opening of the magnificent “Women in Spirit: Catholic Sisters in America” exhibit. This display recaptures the stories of numerous religious communities, dating back to the 18th century.
The exhibit demonstrates how so many courageous women traveled from foreign countries to bring the Catholic faith and the works of mercy to what was becoming the United States of America. In so doing, they shaped and enriched the nation’s cultural and social history through pioneering in cities and suburbs and enduring the travails of war, bigotry and poverty.
Until the day of the opening, Mary Daniel had hoped to regain enough strength to see for herself what had been created by Blessed Virgin Mary Sister Helen Maher Garvey and her colleagues, many from the Leadership Conference of Women Religious. She was vitally interested in what we had to tell her about the exhibit and the reception and tributes that followed.
I reported to her that Mother Clare Millea, the Vatican’s emissary to investigate U.S. sisters, had attended the event. When I suggested, with a touch of criticism, that I’d like Mother Clare to bring the exhibit to Rome, Mary Daniel simply suggested that her presence at the Smithsonian might be another opportunity for bridge building.
That conversation exhausted, we turned to the continuing valiant service of contemporary women religious. I presented my pocket album containing a recent medical mission to Peru, led by our Mercy Sister Karen Schneider, a pediatrician with Johns Hopkins Medical Center. Only then was I aware that Mary Daniel was no longer able to see.
I left saddened by her failing health and comforted by the warmth of her welcome, her gratitude, and still extraordinary mind. For decades she had put her intellectual and spiritual gifts at the service of numerous religious communities. She was a visionary rooted in reality.
In her own way she was as fearless as the late much loved Loretto Sister Mary Luke Tobin. Mary Luke and I ventured with a women’s group to El Salvador the year after the assassinations of Jean Donovan and Sisters Ita Ford, Maura Clark and Dorothy Kazel. One day a few of us on our way to the U.S. embassy were surrounded by four rifle pointing terrorists. Mary Luke took stock of the situation and, putting her hand on one of the guns, redirected it while saying, “We are Americans. You have no right to bother us.” They couldn’t understand the language, but her commanding presence stopped them from further threatening us.
Mary Daniel Turner was cut from the same cloth. She was strong, courageous and fearless. She was empowered by her faith and pursuit of truth and justice. And how she loved a party! I rejoiced in seeing her enjoying the accolades heaped upon her when the LCWR honored her with its Outstanding Leadership Award in 2005. She continued to share her wisdom with past presidents at our private luncheons during annual LCWR assemblies. There she unfailingly nourished us.
Turner had suffered many illnesses. Servant of Immaculate Heart of Mary Sister Annmarie Sanders and Sister of St. Joseph Janet Mock were among those who kept night vigils during Mary Daniel's last days.
Of course, we loved her and always will. And we give thanks for her long, beautiful life.
By Sister Marlene Weisenbeck
Though never a close associate of Mary Daniel Turner, I remember countless times in my religious life when I heard her name pronounced with awe and reverence. I remember consulting the book she coauthored, “The Transformation of American Catholic Sisters,” as if it were the 20th century gospel experience of religious life. And surely it was.
When I attended a workshop of hers where she was still teaching young sisters about the evolution of thought in an ever evolving world, when she graciously greeted me at the initial Cincinnati opening of the magnificent “Women in Spirit: Catholic Sisters in America” exhibit and related her earlier years of leadership for LCWR in collaboration with [Franciscan Sister of Perpetual Adoration] Sister Grace McDonald, my congregational leader of 40 years ago, I sensed the blessing of a woman steeped in relationship to the great Love of her life.
I learned of her stature and love through those who accompanied her in her final days of her journey of life. In every encounter, real or through the experience of others, Mary Daniel was a woman of strength and courage and of expansive love.
Today, as in the past, we celebrate the fulfillment of Mary Daniel’s vowed commitment to the gospel call of love. She called us to eagerly renew and intensify our baptismal call, to proclaim the unconditional welcome and acceptance of God in our lives.
In our world where so many must eat alone because of poverty, illness, war, addiction, and relationship disconnection, where so many are rendered unequal to the company of the priesthood of believers, through her vowed life, she threw open the doors and named the overlooked holy spaces of our world. Not only were meals made holy by Mary Daniel, she also named all places where people gather as holy, and witnessed mercy and loving presence with others. She engaged in the “sacrament of the neighbor” and the “sacrament of the ordinary.”
As executive director of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious from 1972-78 and throughout her 40 year presence with innumerable congregations and the accompaniment of organizations working for the vitality of religious life, she presented herself as knowledgeable, courageous, as gentle, yet fearless. She leaves us this legacy because it found a solid place of focus in her own soul.
In her honor, we light a fire, bring in the bread, and invite our friends to a feast of love. Like Mary Daniel’s, this vowed life of ours clothes us and leads us in ways never imagined. Like Mary Daniel, we give it time; give it love; give it our all! Let us find stillness, a time to gather our thoughts, to connect our spirits and bodies, to reach within ourselves, to connect with those that gather in the community of love and witness, and with those throughout the world, to share our strength and our wisdom.
Through Mary Daniel’s beatific place in the eternal universe of God’s love, we pray to be released from the captivity of our fears; we seek healing from the blindness of those who use power in hateful ways; and freedom from the prisons of unjust relationships. We pray for new vision to relieve the suffering of the world’s people, new ears to hear the cries of the poor, and for hearts aflame for mission.
Eucharisteo, dear friend!
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Funeral arrangements
Wake: 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. on Sunday, January 31 at Collins Funeral Home, 500 University Blvd., Silver Spring, MD.
Mass of Christian Burial: Monday, Feb. 1 at 10:00 a.m.. St. Camillus Church,
1600 St. Camillus Drive, Silver Spring, MD 20903.
Interment: Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur Cemetery in Ilchester, MD.
Contributions can be made in Mary Daniel's name to:
Sisters of Notre Dame Mission Support Office
c/o Leonore Coan, SNDdeN,
30 Jeffreys Neck Road
Ipswich, MA 01938
Cards to Mary Daniel's SNDdeN base community can be sent to:
Sisters of Notre Dame Base Communities
125 Michigan Ave. NE
Washington, DC 20017
So wonderful to hear of such
So wonderful to hear of such a wonderful Woman who happened to be a member of a Religious Community. Such a wise woman. A loss to all of us at this time, but perhaps she will be able to do even more for the U.S.A. Catholic Church during the time that ROME is so threatened that their POWER is not being effective as the olden days. Sr. Mary Daniel will continue to be the Saint she was on earth, only now on the next level of being in God's love. Linda Seidel
Sister Mary Daniel Turner
Sister Mary Daniel Turner will be truly missed by those who knew her. May she now rest in the peace of the Lord's love.
Sister Maureen Paul Turlish SNDdeN
Mary Daniel Turner is one of
Mary Daniel Turner is one of the truly great women who have served the Catholic Church and the community at large. A truly great woman of vision and love. We honor her by standing up to injustice, be it from the hierarchy in Rome as they conduct the current witch hunt of women Religious of the LCWR, or by government actions that hurt the poor and the marginalized. Her leadership was stellar, her kindness and love constant and her spirit will remain with us for years to come. Well done, good and faithful servant. Your legacy is great and we will remember you and all that you have done.
Sister Mary's thoughts and
Sister Mary's thoughts and words about how American democratic ideals, informed and shaped by God's natural law, relate to the larger issue of church structure and governance . . . I am impressed and inspired by this train of thought. And I pray the church heirarchy, who seem to increasingly isolate themselves from the laity, would think and pray about this as well. It's only the future of the RCC in America that's at stake.
Sr. Mary Daniel Turner had it
Sr. Mary Daniel Turner had it pegged in three sentences: "It's really different of value between the church of Rome and the U>S> Church. . . "a democratic spirit lives in our (American) bones and has to do with the inviobility of each person. . .deep down the central question 'is who are we, as Catholics' in a pluralistic society."
Any more need be stated?
Yeah, actually. The Church
Yeah, actually.
The Church isn't American. The Church is the Church. Our "American" vision of the Church also isn't the Church. The Church was instituted by Christ, built on the Rock of Peter, and is hierarchical in nature. Its primary work is the salvation of souls, not the establishment of some kind of "egalitarian" utopia (I put that in quotation marks because it's anyone's guess what that means, esp. for readers of this particular publication). If it's a toss up as to which we should listen to, this "American Catholic" Church or the Church Christ founded and entrusted to Peter's governance and the governance of his successors, I'll go with the Church of Rome.
What is the American Church?
What is the American Church? I've never heard of it. It is separate from Rome?
My Dad taught me that those
My Dad taught me that those who lack the courage to identify themselves should not be listened to.
We whose lives she touched -
We whose lives she touched - some directly, all indirectly - will miss her clarity of thought, gentle words and great love. She leaves a huge hole in the ranks of religious women everywhere. But we now have an advocate - and Mary Daniel will not cease to care, and be involved in what was so dear to her her whole life long. She and Lora are no doubt enjoying each other's company now and the uninhibited view!
For the several 'families' of which she was a part, strength and peace be yours in knowing she will not cease to be part of your circles and your lives.
Remember us, Mary Daniel, as we grieve our loss.
What a great woman of God! I
What a great woman of God! I honor Mary Daniel as one who studied, wrote and spoke about power with a wisdom that was truly of God.
When she received LCWR's Outstanding Leadership Award in 2005, she delivered a characteristically moving and challenging address. Among her words, I treasure these:
"...I want to join with the speakers in urging us to be women who say, "Yes, yes, yes" to God's continuing self-revelations; to be women exquisitely attentive to the Spirit's movements within and around us; to be women finely-tuned to what God is asking and gracing us to do and to be. Quite simply, I urge us to be women rooted in contemplation.
I join our speakers, too, in calling us to be women boldly responsive to the needs of our times. Embracing the corporate power that our respective charismatic gifts generate, we will be graced to invest ourselves and our resources in the multitudinous poverties of our global village. Claiming our corporate charismatic power, we will experience that we are endowed with the steadfastness of the bent-over-women who changed the face of the earth -- where she was, without having to see the difference she was making....
....And so, let us go forth and JUBILEE:
Standing at the margins
Incarnating Gospel deeds responsive to the exigencies of our times, and
Clothed with an unyielding reconciling spirit."
Rest in peace, Mary Daniel, in the powerful, passionate arms of the God you loved so deeply.
Another great woman gone to
Another great woman gone to God! May she with others like Mary Luke Tobin, Marie Augusta Neal, Ritamary Bradley intercede for American women religious in the midst of the Vatican Inquisition so that we can remain true to the spirit and vision of Vatican II which we have made our own.
I came to know Sr. Mary
I came to know Sr. Mary Daniel Turner in 1992 when I started working as a Nurse at Joseph's House, in Washington, DC, a place where men who were homeless and living and dying with AIDS, could call home. At that time, Mary Daniel was Administrator and she became a dear, dear friend to me. How blessed I was to have her as one of my life's companions on the journey. Her wisdom, love of life, deep and personal caring for so many. Such a gentleness she showed and a lovely smile. Her deep compassion for the fraility of the human condition and all its ramifications showed in all her interactions. She had an exquisite presence with everyone. She had a way of incarnating great mercy and justice in her dealings. I love her very much. I treasure the laughs and tears and nourishing conversations that we had. Enjoy where you are now, Mary Daniel!! I know you will to the fullest!!
This is the announcement the
This is the announcement the Women's Alliance for Theology, Ethics and Ritaul (WATER) sent out.
Sr. Mary Daniel Turner, a Sister of Note Dame de Namur, was a leader among Catholic women religious and a tireless worker for those who are poor and marginalized. She wrote The Transformation of American Catholic Sisters (1991) with Lora Ann Quiñonez, a useful study of the development of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious that includes a lot of insight into the lives of American nuns after Vatican II.
Mary Daniel is in one of the movies that is part of “Women and Spirit,” the current exhibit on American sisters (http://www.womenandspirit.org) at the Smithsonian Ripley Center in Washington, DC. She says there, “Whatever we did or wherever we went we were to educate young girls who did not have opportunities for education.” She did that and much, much more through her own teaching, leadership in her religious community, and through her work at Joseph’s House in Washington, D.C., a center for formerly homeless people who are terminally ill.
WATER extends sympathy to the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur and to the many people Mary Daniel leaves who will carry on her commitments. May her memory be a blessing.
Mary E. Hunt
I agree with Sister Camille
I agree with Sister Camille D'Arienzo's suggestion that Mother Clare Millea take the exhibit “Women in Spirit: Catholic Sisters in America” to Rome. It would definitely provide some valuable information and background not only for the Apostolic Visitation but also for the people of Europe to see for themselves the wonderful contribution women religious made (many of whom were European natives) to the building up of the Church in the United States. These women were definitely the unsung heroes of the Church and deserve recognition.
That said, you'll notice I used the word "made" (past tense). Unfortunately, the past 30 years, the contribution of women religious to the Church in the United States has significantly dwindled due to decreasing numbers, invisibility due to the abandoning of the religious habit by many communities, lack of direction regarding apostolates. Most importantly, there has been a general abandonment of the vows of poverty, which has been replaced by economy and ecology; chastity, which has been replaced by radical feminism and/or eco-feminism; and obedience which has been replaced by dialogue.
Unfortunately, Sister Mary Daniel Turner,Sister Mary Luke Tobin, Sister Anita Caspary, Sister Joan Chittister, Sister Sandra Schneiders, were all responsible for this devolution of religious life in the United States. Together they managed to almost completely neutralize the impact of women religious in the United States.
My sincere prayers for the repose of Sister Mary Daniel's soul. While religious life will thankfully survive with the revival of religious life in the newer orders and those who did not follow the lead of the LCWR, religious of the future will learn from the mistakes of Sister Mary Daniel and her contemporaries.
Exactly. They go on and on
Exactly. They go on and on (rightfully so) about the accomplishments of the predecessors and then with the other hand reject almost every aspect of the lives of those women (community, habit, faithfulness to the Church, common prayer--Catholic prayer).
So, TNCath, you have to come
So, TNCath, you have to come in and try to diminish someone you dislike because she was "one of those" religious sisters. You couldn't just take from the article - and the blogs of those who knew Sister Mary Daniel - the grace it presents to us. Obviously, your agenda is more important than respecting the life of committment to Christ this woman led. Good going, TNC. You have now inspired no one in your devaluation of someone who clearly did.
No, I never said I disliked
No, I never said I disliked Sister Mary Daniel at all. I just believe she was mistaken in her view of religious life and in her thinking against the Church rather than with the Church. I did not devalue or diminish her life. I only questioned her actions by the results they produced. And, I have no desire to "inspire" anyone on this blog; I merely wish to point out the facts Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored. Finally, I hardly think prayers for the repose of her soul is an "agenda."
Additionally, OHthor, I
Additionally, OHthor, I certainly hope you will eulogize the legacy and memory of Pope Benedict XVI when he passes away as you did Sister Mary Daniel.
The challenge here, TNCath,
The challenge here, TNCath, was not about who is loyal to whom. It was about (and this obviously got to you far more than I anticipated)your inability to withhold your own agenda in favor of respect for a woman who did all she could to live the Gospel. You also exaggerate what I wrote: I did not eulogize Sr. Mary Daniel. Those that knew her did so quite eloquently. I only commented on what those people wrote. You are disingenuous to suggest otherwise. But, I have the sense that it is very much a part of how you operate. It is unfortunate.
I stand by what I wrote, and
I stand by what I wrote, and your responses to it betray your true motives. In case you did miss my point, it was that your need to press your own opinions (and, yes, agenda) when a devoted Catholic sister's life is being remembered as it is here, is simply inappropriate. Then dragging Pope Benedict's eventual passing into it is a purely manipulative tacts to take the focus off of you and what you did here. Some self reflection appears to be needed, and I hope you can take this opportunity to do so.
I am sad you 'see' it this
I am sad you 'see' it this way. I "see" sisters everyday without the habit working harder than ever for the gospel and the people Chirst calls them ( an us) to serve. Religious life has not devolved. Fear not little one.
Yes, as Jane Burke, Notre
Yes, as Jane Burke, Notre Dame de Namur, has said, ". . . a great tree has fallen" and we can add, "and leaves a lonesome place against the sky." She was a tremendous leader and a kind and gentle person, and we men religious are tremendously in her debt. She is now with her friend Lora Ann Quinones, CDP, with whom she authored that masterful slender history of the LCWR. She was one of those committed religious women who led the way for women and men in following the calls of Vatican II. The women then were way ahead of religious men, clerical and lay, and Mary Daniel Turner is one of the reasons why. May she continue to guide and inspire the women religious of today, who through the LCWR still lead the way for us men in the faithful realization of the mission and goals of Vatican II.
[On the day of Mary Daniel's death I entered this comment on the blog of Maureen Fiedler, where I first got the news.]
reply
Sister Mary Daniel Turney,
Sister Mary Daniel Turney, SNDdeN, was a woman of incomparable grace and integrity. It was a privilege to have worked with her in a variety of ways when she served as Executive Secretary of LCWR. She was truly a sister among her own, but also to so many others to whom she reached out as friend, mentor, counselor,and guide. In difficult times she was a beacon of calm and strength, always respectful of the other, but uncompromising with the truth. Her commitment to the religious life of women in the Church was unfailing. She was a reservoir of knowledge drawn from experience with the Church in its many expressions. Like so many others, she had no need of an official "investigation." Her faithful ecclesial life is its own witness and a model for us all. It now takes its place in a galaxy of great women who shine as the stars for all eternity.
I miss her. When I think of her, I will always remember the beautiful smile with which she always greeted me, as her spirit reached out and embraced mine.
I, too, came to know Sr. Mary
I, too, came to know Sr. Mary Daniel, when she was administrator of Joseph's House, in Washington, D.C, as she directed, cared for and loved the people with AIDS who came there for support and care before they died. Upon visiting patients there, I noticed how her joy and gentleness spread to everyone she met: patients, nurses, visitors, doctors, family, friends. She was a charismatic, peace-filled person, with a kind and generous heart, who deeply loved God and shared that love with everyone she met. With all her experience, wisdom, and expertise in and among many religious communities, she was able humbly to become "one of the family" at Joseph's House.
I also remember her when she came to our Congregation of St. Joseph, at Nazareth, Michigan to give a special presentation on religious life in the world today. One could not help but be a better person, for having met her.
She was deeply loved and will be greatly missed.
I am so touched by this
I am so touched by this article and the stories posted in reply. This is a wonderful grace to have at this time of difficulty for all women religious in the US. How fortunate those of you who knew Sr. Mary Daniel, as we are for hearing your stories of your experiences with her. It reminds us all, I hope, that there are, indeed, "saints" who live among us each day.
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