Miriam Teresa Demjanovich, SC (March 26, 1901 – May 8, 1927) was an American
Ruthenian Catholic Sister of Charity
Many religious communities have the term Sisters of Charity in their name. Some ''Sisters of Charity'' communities refer to the Vincentian tradition, or in America to the tradition of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, but others are unrelated. The ...
who has been
beatified
Beatification (from Latin ''beatus'', "blessed" and ''facere'', "to make”) is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to intercede on behalf of individuals who pray in their nam ...
by the Catholic Church. The beatification ceremony was the first to take place in the United States.
[ ]
Early life
She was born Teresa Demjanovich in Bayonne, New Jersey
Bayonne ( ) is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. Located in the Gateway Region, Bayonne is situated on a peninsula located between Newark Bay to the west, the Kill Van Kull to the south, and New York Bay to the east. As of ...
, on March 26, 1901, the youngest of the seven children of Alexander Demjanovich and Johanna Suchy, Ruthenian immigrants to the United States from what is now eastern Slovakia
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
. She received Baptism, Chrismation, and First Holy Communion in the Ruthenian Rite of her parents.
Demjanovich grew up beside the oil refineries that mark the landscape of this portion of New Jersey. She completed her grammar school education by the age of eleven, and received her high school diploma in January 1917, from Bayonne High School
Bayonne High School (BHS) is a four-year comprehensive public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades in Bayonne, in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States, operated by the Bayonne Board of Education. The school has been ...
(at that time located in the present-day Robinson School).
Career and entering religious life
At this time, she wished to become a Carmelite
, image =
, caption = Coat of arms of the Carmelites
, abbreviation = OCarm
, formation = Late 12th century
, founder = Early hermits of Mount Carmel
, founding_location = Mount Car ...
, but stayed in the family home to care for her sick mother. After her mother died in the influenza epidemic of November 1918, she was encouraged by her family to attend the College of Saint Elizabeth
Saint Elizabeth University (SEU) (formerly College of Saint Elizabeth) is a private Catholic, coeducational, four-year, liberal arts university in Morris Township, New Jersey. Portions of the campus are also in Florham Park.
SEU has 25 underg ...
at Convent Station, New Jersey
Convent Station is an unincorporated community located within Morris Township, in Morris County, New Jersey, United States. located east of Morristown.
Among the neighborhoods of Convent Station are Bradwahl, Cromwell Hills, and the Normandy P ...
. She began her college career in September 1919, majoring in literature, and graduated with highest honors in June 1923.
It is claimed that Demjanovich desired a religious life, but various circumstances made her uncertain which community she should enter. Meanwhile, she accepted a teaching position at the Academy of Saint Aloysius in Jersey City
Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.[rosary
The Rosary (; la, , in the sense of "crown of roses" or "garland of roses"), also known as the Dominican Rosary, or simply the Rosary, refers to a set of prayers used primarily in the Catholic Church, and to the physical string of knots or b ...]
.[
Demjanovich was part of the Saint Vincent de Paul Parish choir, the ]Sodality of Our Lady
The Sodality of Our Lady, also known as the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin Mary (in Latin, ''Congregationes seu sodalitates B. Mariæ Virginis''), is a Roman Catholic Marian society founded in 1563 by young Belgian Jesuit Jean Leunis (or Jan) a ...
, and a parish community associated with the National Catholic Welfare Conference The National Catholic Welfare Council (NCWC) was the annual meeting of the American Catholic hierarchy and its standing secretariat; it was established in 1919 as the successor to the emergency organization, the National Catholic War Council.
It co ...
. During the summer and fall of 1924, Teresa prayed to discern the direction of her life. She visited the Discalced Carmelite
The Discalced Carmelites, known officially as the Order of the Discalced Carmelites of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel ( la, Ordo Fratrum Carmelitarum Discalceatorum Beatae Mariae Virginis de Monte Carmelo) or the Order of Discalced Carme ...
nuns in The Bronx
The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...
, New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
. Because of several health issues including headaches, the Sisters suggested that Demjanovich wait a few years before applying. After consulting with her family, the Sisters then suggested that Demjanovich use her education to serve God in a teaching order.[ For the Feast of the ]Immaculate Conception
The Immaculate Conception is the belief that the Virgin Mary was free of original sin from the moment of her conception.
It is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church, meaning that it is held to be a divinely revealed truth w ...
that year, Demjanovich made a novena
A novena (from Latin: ''novem'', "nine") is an ancient tradition of devotional praying in Christianity, consisting of private or public prayers repeated for nine successive days or weeks. The nine days between the Feast of the Ascension and Pen ...
and at its conclusion on December 8, decided she was called to enter the Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth
The Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth are a Roman Catholic apostolic congregation of pontifical right, based in the Convent Station area of Morris Township, New Jersey, USA. The religious order was established in 1859 in Newark, New Jersey, ...
. Demjanovich planned to enter the convent on 2 February 1925, but her father caught a cold and died on 30 January. Her entrance was delayed until 11 February 1925, the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes
Our Lady of Lourdes (french: Notre-Dame de Lourdes) is a title of the Virgin Mary. She is venerated under this title by the Roman Catholic church due to her apparitions that occurred in Lourdes, France. The first apparition of 11 February 1858, o ...
. Her brother, Fr. Charles Demjanovich, and two sisters, accompanied her to the convent. Demjanovich was admitted to the novitiate
The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...
of the religious congregation
A religious congregation is a type of religious institute in the Catholic Church. They are legally distinguished from religious orders – the other major type of religious institute – in that members take simple vows, whereas members of religio ...
and received the religious habit
A religious habit is a distinctive set of religious clothing worn by members of a religious order. Traditionally some plain garb recognizable as a religious habit has also been worn by those leading the religious eremitic and anchoritic life, ...
on 17 May 1925.[ She never received an official transfer of rite, and remained a ]Byzantine Rite
The Byzantine Rite, also known as the Greek Rite or the Rite of Constantinople, identifies the wide range of cultural, liturgical, and canonical practices that developed in the Eastern Christianity, Eastern Christian Church of Constantinople.
Th ...
Catholic while serving as a Religious Sister
A religious sister (abbreviated ''Sr.'' or Sist.) in the Catholic Church is a woman who has taken public vows in a religious institute dedicated to apostolic works, as distinguished from a nun who lives a cloistered monastic life dedicated to pr ...
in a Roman Rite
The Roman Rite ( la, Ritus Romanus) is the primary liturgical rite of the Latin Church, the largest of the ''sui iuris'' particular churches that comprise the Catholic Church. It developed in the Latin language in the city of Rome and, while dist ...
congregation.[
]
Religious life and death
As a postulant and novice, Demjanovich taught at the Academy of Saint Elizabeth in Convent Station during 1925–1926. In June 1926, her spiritual director
Spiritual direction is the practice of being with people as they attempt to deepen their relationship with the divine, or to learn and grow in their personal spirituality. The person seeking direction shares stories of their encounters of the di ...
, Father Benedict Bradley, O.S.B.
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal
, abbreviation = OSB
, formation =
, motto = (English: 'Pray and Work')
, found ...
, asked her to write the conferences for the novitiate. She wrote 26 conferences which, after her death, were published in a book, ''Greater Perfection''.[
In November 1926, after a ]tonsillectomy
Tonsillectomy is a list of surgical procedures, surgical procedure in which both palatine tonsils are fully removed from the back of the throat. The procedure is mainly performed for recurrent tonsillitis, throat infections and obstructive sleep ...
, she returned to the convent but could barely walk to her room. After a few days. Demjanovich asked if she could return to the infirmary. Demjanovich's superior, skeptical that someone so young could be so sick, told her, "Pull yourself together." When Bradley saw how sick she was, he notified her brother, who called one of their sisters, a nurse. When Demjanovich's sister arrived at the convent, she took Demjanovich to the hospital, where Demjanovich was diagnosed with "physical and nervous exhaustion, with myocarditis and acute appendicitis." Doctors were concerned that she was not strong enough for an operation, and her condition worsened.
Demjanovich's profession of permanent religious vows
Religious vows are the public vows made by the members of religious communities pertaining to their conduct, practices, and views.
In the Buddhism tradition, in particular within the Mahayana and Vajrayana tradition, many different kinds of re ...
was made ''in periculo mortis'' (danger of death) on 2 April 1927. She was operated on for appendicitis
Appendicitis is inflammation of the appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these typical symptoms. Severe complications of a rup ...
on 6 May and died on 8 May 1927. Her funeral was held 11 May 1927 at Holy Family Chapel in Convent Station, New Jersey, and she was buried at Holy Family Cemetery on the grounds of her order's motherhouse
A motherhouse is the principal house or community for a religious institute. It would normally be where the residence and offices of the religious superior
In a hierarchy or tree structure of any kind, a superior is an individual or position at ...
.
Favors and cures attributed to her intercession are continually being reported.
Cause for canonization
The Sisters of Charity petitioned Rome for permission to open a cause for her beatification because of Demjanovich's saintly life, her striving for perfection in her religious life, spiritual writings, and the favors received by others after her death through her intercession with God.[
In the latter part of 1945, a communication was received from the ]Holy See
The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...
authorizing Thomas H. McLaughlin
Thomas Henry McLaughlin (July 25, 1881 – March 17, 1947) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as president of Seton Hall College from 1922 to 1933 and as the first bishop of the new Diocese of Paterson in New Jersey fr ...
, Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Paterson
The Diocese of Paterson is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in the United States that encompasses Passaic, Morris, and Sussex counties in northern New Jersey. Most of this territory lies to the west of th ...
, in which the motherhouse of the Sisters of Charity is located, to institute an ordinary informative process concerning Demjanovich's life and virtues. Rev. Stephen W Findlay, O.S.B, of the Delbarton School
Delbarton School is a private all-male Catholic Church, Catholic college-preparatory school in Morristown, New Jersey for young men in seventh grade, seventh through twelfth grades. It is an independent school directed by the Benedictine monks ...
, near , was appointed procurator
Procurator (with procuracy or procuratorate referring to the office itself) may refer to:
* Procurator, one engaged in procuration, the action of taking care of, hence management, stewardship, agency
* ''Procurator'' (Ancient Rome), the title of ...
, and the official investigation began early in 1946. The Sister Miriam Teresa League of Prayer was founded in the summer of 1946 to spread the knowledge of her life and mission, and to work for the cause of her beatification. The headquarters for the League is located in the Administration Building of the Sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth.
Silvia Correale is the present Postulator
A postulator is the person who guides a cause for beatification or canonization through the judicial processes required by the Roman Catholic Church. The qualifications, role and function of the postulator are spelled out in the ''Norms to be Obse ...
for the Cause of Sister Miriam Teresa in the Congregation for the Causes of Saints
In the Catholic Church, the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, previously named the Congregation for the Causes of Saints (), is the dicastery of the Roman Curia that oversees the complex process that leads to the canonization of saints, pa ...
.
On Thursday, May 10, 2012, Demjanovich was proclaimed Venerable
The Venerable (''venerabilis'' in Latin) is a style, a title, or an epithet which is used in some Western Christian churches, or it is a translation of similar terms for clerics in Eastern Orthodoxy and monastics in Buddhism.
Christianity
Cathol ...
by Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...
. On December 17, 2013, Pope Francis
Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...
approved the attribution of miraculous healing to the intercession of Demjanovich, opening the way to her beatification. The cause of her beatification involved the restoration of perfect vision to a boy who had gone legally blind because of macular degeneration
Macular degeneration, also known as age-related macular degeneration (AMD or ARMD), is a medical condition which may result in blurred or no vision in the center of the visual field. Early on there are often no symptoms. Over time, however, som ...
. Msgr.
Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...
Giampaolo Rizzotti of the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints
In the Catholic Church, the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints, previously named the Congregation for the Causes of Saints (), is the dicastery of the Roman Curia that oversees the complex process that leads to the canonization of saints, pass ...
added that the miracle took place in 1964. Demjanovich was beatified at a ceremony on October 4, 2014, held at the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart
The Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart, the fifth-largest cathedral in North America, is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark. It is located at 89 Ridge Street in the Lower Broadway neighborhood of Newark, New Jersey. ...
in Newark
Newark most commonly refers to:
* Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States
* Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area
Newark may also refer to:
Places Canada
* Niagara-on-the ...
. This was the first time a beatification had ever been held in the United States. In 2017, Stanley Rother
Stanley Francis Rother ( ; March 27, 1935 – July 28, 1981) was an American people, American Roman Catholic Church, Roman Catholic Catholic priest, priest from Oklahoma who was murdered in Guatemala in 1981. He had worked as a missionary pries ...
and Solanus Casey
Solanus Casey, OFM Cap. (November 25, 1870 – July 31, 1957), born Bernard Francis Casey, was a priest of the Catholic Church in the United States and was a professed member of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin. He was known during his lifetim ...
would become the second and third Americans to be beatified in the United States.
The following day, Kurt Burnette
Kurt Richard Burnette (born 7 November 1955 at Sculthorpe Royal Air Force Base in Norfolk, England, UK) is the Bishop or Eparch of the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Passaic. He succeeded Bishop William C. Skurla, who was appointed Metropolita ...
, Bishop of the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Passaic
The Eparchy of Passaic ( la, Eparchia Passaicensis Ruthenorum) is a Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church ecclesiastical territory or eparchy of the Catholic Church in the eastern United States. Its headquarters are at 445 Lackawanna Avenue, Woodland P ...
to which Demjanovich belonged, presided at a Divine Liturgy
Divine Liturgy ( grc-gre, Θεία Λειτουργία, Theia Leitourgia) or Holy Liturgy is the Eucharistic service of the Byzantine Rite, developed from the Antiochene Rite of Christian liturgy which is that of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of C ...
at the parish of her baptism, Saint John the Baptist Church in Bayonne.
Veneration
According to Sister Marian Jose, S.C., Vice Postulator of the Cause of Sister Miriam Teresa, Demjanovich's “message” is that “ everyone is called to holiness.”[
Saint Mary's Roman Catholic Church in ]Dumont, New Jersey
Dumont is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough's population was 17,479,[seminarian
A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...]
and artist. The portrait will hang in the vestibule area of the church.
On January 1, 2016, the Blessed Miriam Teresa Demjanovich Parish in Bayonne, New Jersey
Bayonne ( ) is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. Located in the Gateway Region, Bayonne is situated on a peninsula located between Newark Bay to the west, the Kill Van Kull to the south, and New York Bay to the east. As of ...
was established after the merger of St. Mary Star of the Sea and St. Andrew the Apostle churches.
A first-class relic
In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...
of Blessed Miriam Teresa is part of th
Treasures of the Church
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Demjanovic, Teresa
1901 births
1927 deaths
People from Bayonne, New Jersey
Ruthenian Greek Catholics
American people of Slovak descent
Bayonne High School alumni
Saint Elizabeth University alumni
20th-century Eastern Catholic nuns
American beatified people
Deaths from appendicitis
Burials in New Jersey
Eastern Catholic beatified people
20th-century venerated Christians
Beatifications by Pope Francis
Venerated Catholics by Pope Benedict XVI
Catholics from New Jersey
20th-century American nuns