By EmmaLee Italia | Correspondent
Mercy Sister Terena Gentili knew without a doubt 60 years ago that her chosen life as a Sister of Mercy was one God sought for her. And she committed to that life with her whole heart.
“My vows were intended to be a concrete expression of passionate love, living the Gospel in our actions, not just by word” she said.
Her path to the sisterhood began as a child, when she was drawn to the order after witnessing the religious sisters in her schools. As she put it, “I was born in the holy city of Trenton” to parents Dante and Clara Gentili, and attended St. Joachim Elementary School and Trenton’s Cathedral High School – employed by Sisters of Mercy.
“That was the beginning of my experience of Mercy,” she affirmed. “I was very impressed with their Christian manner, with their community spirit. That’s what it’s all about: the relationships – and that came across to all of us [students]. So that was the beginning of my vocation.”
Having seen something that intrigued her, she researched the order while working for a few years before deciding to enter as a postulant.
“I knew in my heart that what I really wanted was to follow the Sisters of Mercy,” Sister Terena explained, “because they just covered so much – their involvement with the poor and the sick and those who were uneducated – I was just so taken up with that. It was how I wanted to give myself completely to Jesus.”
After receiving her bachelor’s degree in elementary education at Georgian Court College (now University), Lakewood, Sister Terena taught in schools in both the Trenton and Metuchen Dioceses before joining the Mercy community at St. Paul School, Princeton, in 1992. She highlighted the joyful spirit that is present in the school, including how they rejoice as a community.
“When we celebrate, we really celebrate here – it’s with our whole self,” she said. “We always kid around about how we ‘meet and eat!’ That’s what Jesus did: he met with people and ate with them.”
To those who might be considering the religious life, Sister Terena encourages them to check out the Sisters of Mercy Web site, www.sistersofmercy.org, and had these words of wisdom.
“Pray, too. And you need to be joyful – that’s part of it,” she emphasized.