2026 Vocations Awareness Supplement
‘A desire for more’: Former New Albany parishioner professes first vows as a Dominican Sister of St. Cecilia
Dominican Sister Mary Francis Noll, left, smiles after professing her first vows on Aug. 10 at the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Nashville, Tenn., as a member of the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia, whose motherhouse is in Nashville. Dominican Mother Anna Grace Neenan, prioress general of the community, right, sits beside Sister Mary Francis, who was previously a member of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in New Albany. (Photo courtesy of the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia)
By Julie Young (Special to The Criterion)
When Dominican Sister Mary Francis Noll first heard the Lord call her to be a religious sister, she was flattered but she wasn’t ready to make a commitment.
At the time, the Villa Hills, Ky., native was a senior at Western Kentucky University where she was pursuing a degree in psychological science. With graduation looming and the need to find that first post-college job, she spent a few quiet moments in prayer in adoration before the Blessed Sacrament. Becoming a bride of Christ wasn’t exactly on her radar.
“Thankfully, the Lord was patient with me,” she said.
After completing her undergraduate program, Sister Mary Francis was offered and accepted a position as a teacher’s aide at Immaculata Classical Academy in Louisville, Ky. Her parents, Bob and Jane Noll, had been educators. So, she was comfortable in a school setting and thought it would be a great environment to begin her career. She moved to southern Indiana where she rented a house with her good friend Emma Cox who connected her with Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in New Albany, as well as the area’s vibrant young adult scene.
Although she hadn’t forgotten that moment in adoration, Sister Mary Francis settled into single Catholic life. She sang in a choir at Our Lady of Perpetual Help under the direction of Katelyn Stumler, joined a weekly Bible study, worshiped at daily Mass and hung out with her new friends. But she couldn’t shake the feeling that something was missing.
“I was really happy, but I wasn’t completely happy or not as happy as I should have been in those circumstances,” Sister Mary Francis said. “There was a desire for more that I couldn’t quite put my finger on.”
It wasn’t long before the Lord approached again in her prayer. This time, she told him that she would pray about it. She’d researched various religious communities online after the first time she heard the Lord calling her during adoration and felt drawn to the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia in Nashville, Tenn.But she was torn.
After all, she was established in her parish community, and she had a great support system of friends. Would they understand if the Lord was calling her to something more?
“I didn’t tell anyone about my calling for a good amount of time because it was so personal to me,” Sister Mary Francis said. “But deep down, I knew that whatever the Lord was calling me to, I would have the support of that loving community.”
After arranging an informal visit to the religious community in 2022, Sister Mary Francis returned for a more formal “come and see” retreat the following year. She told her roommate that she found so much joy in the congregation that she didn’t want to leave.
“After this, she began discerning more seriously, and all the pieces fell into place,” Cox said. “It was like she was becoming more herself as she became more open to her vocation.”
Stumler wasn’t surprised at all when Sister Mary Francis shared that she was discerning a religious vocation.
“One of our parish choir members shared with me, after the fact, that there was always something different and special about her in regard to her love for the Catholic faith,” she said. “I think connecting with the members of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish gave her a supportive, faith-filled community where she could cultivate her calling.”
Just as everything seemed to be falling into place, a full-time job offer and a friend’s upcoming wedding caused Sister Mary Francis to reconsider the timing of the Lord’s plan for her life. Although she was confident that she was called to be a religious sister, she assumed that she would have to wait a year or two before entering the Nashville Dominicans, as they are commonly known. On the surface, life continued on as normal, but inside, Sister Mary Francis was restless and she was no longer content to wait.
“As soon as I admitted that to myself there was instant peace,” she said.
After a lengthy application process, Sister Mary Francis was accepted into the congregation in June 2023 and entered religious life two months later. After a year as a postulant in which she was introduced to life as a Dominican and continued to discern her vocation, she was admitted into the community’s two-year novitiate where she received her white veil as well as her religious name. During that time, she gained a deeper understanding of the vows she would profess as well as the customs of the community.
On Aug. 10, Sister Mary Francis took the next step when she professed vows of poverty, chastity and obedience during the Rite of First Religious Profession at the Cathedral of the Incarnation in Nashville. Six other members of the community professed vows with her. Sister Mary Francis’ parents and younger sister were present for the occasion, as well as several members of her former faith community in New Albany.
“I was overjoyed to be at the Mass where Sister Mary Francis took her first vows,” Stumler said. “Her face was radiant and we couldn’t help but feel that she had the look of someone who was truly fulfilling God’s will for her life.”
Today, Sister Mary Francis is working toward her Master of Arts in teaching at Aquinas College in Nashville. She has also been given the opportunity to be part of her community’s choral ensemble and continues to play praise and worship music on her guitar.
Although she doesn’t get to see her southern Indiana friends as much as she used to, she remains grateful to the faith community who supported her as she answered the Lord’s call.
“I made wonderful friends there and I continue to carry them in my heart,” she said.
(To learn more about the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia in Nashville, Tenn., visit nashvilledominicans.org.) †
