2026 Vocations Awareness Supplement
Sisters of Providence mark 20th anniversary of St. Mother Theodore’s canonization
Representatives from the five dioceses in Indiana receive first class relics of St. Mother Theodore Guérin during an Oct. 11 Mass in the Church of the Immaculate Conception on the motherhouse campus of the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods. Retired Msgr. Frederick Easton, right, represented the archdiocese at the liturgy. (Photo courtesy of the Sisters of Providence)
By Jason Moon (Special to The Criterion)
Twenty years after St. Mother Theodore Guérin was declared a saint, visitors can still come face-to-face with tangible pieces of her extraordinary story.
Her remains rest in a handmade walnut casket made by an employee of the Sisters of Providence of Saint-Mary-of-the-Woods with wood from the campus of the congregation’s motherhouse grounds, inside a shrine dedicated to the congregation’s foundress.
Nearby, a portion of her finger bones—a first-class relic—is publicly displayed for veneration alongside the official decree from the Vatican declaring her a saint.
The Sisters of Providence celebrated the 20th anniversary of Mother Theodore’s canonization on Oct. 11 with a pilgrimage, special Mass and picnic.
During the liturgy, additional first-class relics were given to representatives of each diocese in Indiana. Msgr. Frederick Easton, a retired archdiocesan priest, represented the Church in central and southern Indiana. At the time of Mother Theodore’s canonization, he was the archdiocese’s vicar judicial and was involved in the canonical investigation of the miracle that led to her being declared a saint.
“The 20th anniversary allowed us to remember St. Mother Theodore as a woman whose faith, courage and trust in providence continues to inspire,” Sisters of Providence General Superior Sister Jeanne Hagelskamp said. “Her relics and personal belongings provide a tangible connection to her life and invite visitors to encounter her story in a deeply personal way.”
For Catholics, relics provide a physical connection to saints and serve as reminders of their lives of faith and their continued place within the communion on saints. The Church distinguishes three classes of relics.
First-class relics are portions of a saint’s body, such as a bone, hair or blood. Second-class relics are objects personally owned, worn or used by a saint. Third-class relics are objects that have been touched to a first- or second-class relic.
The Shrine of Saint Mother Theodore Guerin offers visitors an opportunity to explore not only her relics, but also the personal belongings and places that tell the story of a woman who left France in 1840 for the Indiana frontier to establish a religious community that continues its mission to this day.
As the Sisters of Providence continue to celebrate this momentous anniversary, these relics offer visitors an especially meaningful connection to a woman whose life was marked by courage, prayer and an unwavering trust in providence.
Inside the shrine, visitors can see her writing desk, chaplet, prayer book, shoes and other items she brought with her from France when she journeyed with her five sister companions to western Indiana.
The exhibits chronicle her remarkable journey to the Indiana wilderness, where she established the Sisters of Providence and founded schools that helped shape Catholic education despite facing an unfamiliar landscape, limited resources and significant hardships.
St. Mother Theodore Guérin was declared a saint by Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican on Oct. 15, 2006, formally recognizing her holiness and establishing her veneration throughout the universal Church.
Her relics and preserved artifacts at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods offer visitors an opportunity to reflect not only on how she lived, but also on the enduring impact of her faith.
St. Mother Theodore Guérin’s journey through the sainthood process culminated in her canonization, making her the eighth saint in America and the first in the state of Indiana.
Twenty years later, her relics remain a physical reminder of the woman behind the title “saint”—a woman who left France for an unfamiliar land, faced extraordinary challenges and built a lasting legacy grounded in faith, education and providence.
“The anniversary celebration of the canonization of Mother Theodore was a profound experience for me and for so many others,” Sister Jeanne said. “To walk the paths where Mother Theodore trod with so many pilgrims was a graced moment. And the energy in the church of the celebration of the Eucharist was palpable.
“Then to see so many people making connections with one another at lunch was heartwarming. And one of the most touching moments of the day was to be in Mother Theodore’s shrine and to watch pilgrims, young and old, come through and just be with Mother Theodore before they left campus. Providence was with us from beginning to end!”
(To learn more about St. Mother Theodore Guérin and the Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, go to spsmw.org.) †
