Sister Antoinette Cedrone, FMA, Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians, is the new sister on the block.
She began serving the diocese in September after her appointment as the bishop’s delegate for religious.
Still becoming acclimated to the diocese – she arrived in August – Sister Antoinette will help other consecrated religious do the same. Her work will be dedicated to welcoming and helping male and female religious communities settle in and make the diocese their home, much like she is doing.
As delegate for religious, Sister Antoinette said she will serve as a direct extension of Bishop Earl Fernandes in supporting and caring for religious communities who serve in the diocese.
“Right now, I am connecting with all the communities: getting to know the sisters and the religious priests, learning about their charisms, their mission here in the diocese, as well as their needs and challenges and their dreams for the future,” she said.
She said the diocese currently has 23 communities of women and about 14 communities of men.
Sister Antoinette will be responsible for cultivating and strengthening relationships among the various religious communities in the diocese. She said her work will involve ensuring that communities are supported, connected and equipped to fulfill their mission.
Religious communities have a unique charism, which is given by the Holy Spirit to enrich and build up the Church and serve God’s people.
Sister Antoinette’s community, the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians, commonly known as the Salesian Sisters of St. John Bosco, is dedicated to serving the youth. The community was founded in Italy in 1872 by St. John Bosco and co-founded by St. Mary Mazzarello.
Sister Antoinette previously ministered to youth at Catholic schools in Paterson, New Jersey; Louisiana and British Columbia, Canada. She served as a teacher, principal and as a director of religious education in several parishes. She particularly enjoyed teaching young women in formation for the Salesian order, which, she said, was her assignment before coming to Columbus.
She made her profession of vows with the Salesian order in 1977 in New Jersey. “It was not too hard to decide which community I would join,” she said. “The (Salesian) Sisters’ joy and especially their love for working with the young won me over.”
Sister Antoinette currently lives with five Salesian Sisters in a convent on Patterson Avenue by Columbus Our Lady of Guadalupe, Star of the New Evangelization parish.
Now in her position as delegate for religious, she will help discern which religious communities to bring to the diocese going forward.
“I want to be open to discerning the Father’s designs for the diocese, what it is that the Lord wants, and the bishop,” she said.
“Bishop Fernandes, who is very aware of the needs of the diocese, will definitely welcome communities whose charism will meet the needs of the community.”
