Sister Maria Joselma

Sister Maria Joselma             ND 5384              PDF Download

Barbara Silvina WARKEN

Nossa Senhora Aparecida Province, Canoas, RS – Brazil

Date and Place of Birth:              January 11, 1937                 Rolante, Santo Antônio da Patrulha
Date and Place of Profession:    February 12, 1961               Passo Fundo, RS
Date and Place of Death:            September 02, 2020          Recanto Aparecida, RS
Date and Place of Burial:            September 02, 2020          Convent Cemetery, Canoas, RS

… like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand… Jer 18, 6

The clay of our lives becomes a work of art when entrusted to the hands of our Creator, allowing Him to model, removing any excess and purifying it. So was the life of Sister Maria Joselma in the hands of the Divine Potter. For many years, due to cancer, Sister allowed herself to be shaped and carved when she had to let go of her ministry and pastoral work at the São Luiz Gonzaga Parish church. With the gradual diminishment of her strength, Sister dedicated herself to prayer, silence, adoration of the Holy Sacrament and cultivating her devotion to Our Lady.

Barbara Silvina was the ninth daughter of Leopoldo and Ottilia Anna Warken who, together with their eleven children, drew daily subsistence from their farm. The family was a traditional Catholic one from which four young women joined the Sister of Notre Dame: Sister M. Lourência (+1981), Sister M. Rute, Sister M. Joselma and Sister M. Gloriema. Upon her investment, Barbara received her religious name, Sister Maria Joselma.

Sister graduated as an Accounting Technician, a Nursing Assistant as well as receiving a degree in Theology. After doing house chores for some years, in 1978 she started caring for the sick, initially in hospitals and then, from 1982 to the end of 2017, in the Provincial House and Colégio Maria Auxiliadora. The students loved to spend some time in the infirmary with Sister Maria Joselma taking her tea and listening to her words of affection. Some students even went to the infirmary as a strategy to be absent from their classroom activities.

In addition to the care for the students who needed infirmary services, Sister was also in charge of the reception desk of the school, a job that made her well- known among students, parents, teachers, and employees. She was reliable, intelligent, thoughtful, and observant. She knew a large range of people and made it a point to call each of them by name.

Besides Sister´s ministry for the community, she was also zealously engaged in our Parish Church São Luiz Gonzaga, being a Eucharistic Minister, spiritual companion for senior groups and always ready to bring the comfort of the Word and the Eucharist to the sick at home.

She cultivated bonds of friendship, love, and affection with her family members, especially with her nephews who visited her frequently, and also with friends.

In 2018, weakened by the disease, Sister took time to deepen her spiritual life, performing small community services such as taking care of plants and crocheting, which she did with perfection.

At the beginning of 2020, due to multiple chemotherapies and the spread of cancer, she asked to move to Recanto Aparecida for a better recovery. Sister lived there until September 2^nd when she concluded her earthly journey.

Her desire to live, linked to deep faith, made her a warrior, battling the disease and defying it for many years. May the Lord welcome Sister in His glory together with Mary, whom she loved dearly.