Angelus News | April 21, 2023 | Vol. 8 No

Sisterhood up close
The second Miriam Dinner connected local
women thinking about the religious life with
sisters from several different orders.
BY MIKE CISNEROS
Participants sit together during the Miriam Dinner, which provided young women with an opportunity to consider
religious life, at Our Lady of Grace Church in Encino on March 18. | SUBMITTED PHOTO
was only the second time an event
geared toward young women had
been held in the Archdiocese of Los
Angeles. The first Miriam Dinner,
named after the Blessed Virgin Mary
(Miriam is Hebrew for Mary), was held
in March 2022.
“The goal of the dinner is that those
who are attending would have a better
understanding of consecrated religious
life,” said Sister Sophia Farkas, who
said the dinner welcomed both those
“in discernment” and young women
simply wanting to know more about
religious life.
Additionally, Sister Sophia said, the
event aimed to “establish connections
and relationships between the young
women and the different kinds of
religious sisters.”
Often, the vocational discernment
for men considering the priesthood
gets more attention in the Catholic
Church. But as the women heard that
Saturday night, the call to the religious
life for women is also a crucial part of
the life of the Church.
Miriam Dinners follow the same
model as St. Andrew Dinners, which
give priests the opportunity to invite individuals
whom they think might have
a priestly vocation to have dinner with
the bishop or archbishop in a more
casual atmosphere.
When Cassandra Verma graduated
high school during the
COVID-19 pandemic, she
felt lost. Aimless. A lot of soul-searching.
She didn’t get into any of the
colleges she had applied for.
“I remember being at Mass and
praying and saying in my head, ‘At this
point, I don’t know where my path will
lead to, but I know that you have a plan
for me,’ ” Verma said. “So I trust you
and I put my faith in you and I always
will work toward what is best.”
It is that faith that led Verma on a
path to the Miriam Dinner, an Intercongregational
Vocation Office event
hosted at Our Lady of Grace Church
in Encino March 18 planned to provide
young women with an opportunity
to explore their calling in life in a
relaxed environment.
The dinner, which was organized by
religious sisters, priests, and volunteers,
A sister speaks with a young woman about her vocation story during the Miriam Dinner held at Our Lady of Grace
Church. | SUBMITTED PHOTO
16 • ANGELUS • April 21, 2023