Sr. Marie Josee Seide, DW, Makes Her Perpetual Profession of Vows
Sister Marie Josee Seide, DW, professed her Final Vows of Religious Life as a Member of the Daughters of Wisdom during a joyous Eucharistic Celebration at St. Hugh of Lincoln Church in Huntington Station, NY, on Saturday, August 6, 2022. She was joined by those who have been a part of her journey to this moment - her dear family, friends from school days in Haiti, co-workers, priests, deacons, and parishioners from Mercy, St. Martin of Tours, and St. Hugh of Lincoln parishes, her Sisters in community, Associates of Wisdom, and Montfort Missionaries, and many more friends. "Sister Marie Josee, as I'm sure you know, is fond of saying and singing, 'This is the day the Lord has made!'" said Sr. Evelyn Eckhardt, DW, in a Welcome to the audience. "Without a doubt, it is Holy Wisdom who has drawn Marie Josee, in the footsteps of Marie Louise, to this life choice of total commitment to Jesus Christ that we ritualize this day. This day, Sister Marie Josee will add forever to the vows that she has been living already for many days. How fitting it is to join Sister Marie Josee at this Eucharist in thanksgiving for God's gracious goodness to her, to us, and to all God's people."
As Director of Parish Social Ministry at St. Martin of Tours Parish in Amityville, NY, Sr. Marie Josee has been the face of God's love to countless people as she ministers to Long Island's poorest populations. Through the food pantry and thrift shop, she assists individuals and families with obtaining food, clothing, and rent assistance to sustain their basic human needs with compassion, kindness, joy, and faith. Fr. Gerard Gordon, Pastor of St. Martin of Tours, attested to Sr. Marie Josee's service to those in need. "Sr. Marie Josee is adamant in her care for the poor," he said, describing Sr. Marie Josee's ministry as a large and vital outreach program assisting people with rent, food, clothing, and paying bills, plus running an entire thrift store and Thanksgiving drives, Christmas drives, employment programs, immigration hardships, as well as "fixing what's broken, and sometimes who's broken."
Rooted in her faith in God and in the testimony of the Founders of the Daughters of Wisdom, Sister Marie Josee professed her Perpetual Vows of total consecration to serve God in the most vulnerable. Sr. Catherine Sheehan, DW, Provincial Leader of the Daughters of Wisdom, USA, was the Presider for the Rite of Perpetual Profession. "Sr. Marie Josee, may God who has begun this good work in you bring it to fulfillment before the day of Christ Wisdom," said Sr. Catherine.
Professing her vows, Sr. Marie Josee said, "I, Marie Josee Seide, make to God forever the vows of obedience, of poverty, of chastity, according to the Rule of Life of the Daughters of Wisdom. It is a decision made through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and I promise, with God's help, to live this life in commitment, with all my heart..."
Educated as a child by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Cluny in Haiti, her first encounter with the Daughters of Wisdom came in Port-au-Prince, where she attended High School at Sacre Coeur, a school with a rich tradition dating back to 1875. Decades later, after relocating to the United States, the paths of the Daughters of Wisdom and Marie Josée Seide crossed again when as a member of Our Lady of Mercy, Brownsville, Brooklyn, she met Sr. Bernadette Sassone, a Daughter of Wisdom serving as Pastoral Assistant in Marie Josee's home parish. Her years of association with the Daughters of Wisdom nurtured her vocation to religious life. In 2012, she joined the French Speaking International Novitiate in Paris, France. And on August 9, 2014, Marie Josée Seide's journey became one with the Daughters of Wisdom, for she made her first profession of religious vows with the Daughters of Wisdom in the Chapel of Incarnate Wisdom at The Montfort Spirituality Center, Bay Shore, New York. Marie Josée Seide has lived in the United States since 2004 and had been employed by the Diocese of Rockville Centre, Rockville Centre, NY, since February 2006. While with the Diocese, she served in many roles, including Bilingual Senior Secretary to the New Evangelization Department and as an Assistant to Coordinators of the Haitian American Apostolate and Campus Ministry. In her native Haiti, she was employed by the National Olympic Committee of Haiti as an executive assistant to the president and earlier in her career by Catholic Relief Services. She worked for the Board of Education of Haiti on a project funded by the International Development Bank and an affordable housing project funded by the United States Agency for International Development in Haiti. Her education includes an AAS degree in legal studies from New York City College of Technology, Brooklyn, New York. While in Haiti, she earned an AAS degree in Bilingual Commercial Studies from Christ the King Secretarial School (Sisters of St. Anne of Lachine, Quebec, Haiti Branch); and completed a three-year course of study in psychology and a four-year course of study in law at the State University of Haiti. She studied Spanish at Institute Lope de Vega.
In his Homily, Fr. Gerald Fitzsimmons, SMM, said, "She's been called by God to touch our lives so that He can touch our lives," and continued, "She has been given to us so that through her God can make Himself gift to you and me, and we can fulfill our true destiny, our true humanity, our true being, as members of the Body of Christ, to make Him present, and therefore the Holy Spirit overshadows, and what's possible for God becomes possible for us."
Check out the Live Stream video of Sr. Marie Josee Seide, DW making her perpetual vows as a Daughter of Wisdom, US Province. Thanks to St. Hugh of Lincoln Church, Huntington Station, NY, for hosting the Mass and making this video available to us.