of Jesus Crucified
(Sophie Karpowicz)
August 8, 1910 – May 26, 2003
Immaculate Conception Province
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
“0 Lord, you said that when you would be lifted up from the earth you would draw everybody to yourself. Oh, yes, my Lord, raised on the cross, you draw everyone to you by love.” (Blessed Mary of Jesus the Good Shepherd, Love Conquers All)
“Drawn to Jesus by love” is a sentiment that aptly reflects Sister Sophie Marie’s life in God. Kind, courteous and always appreciative, Sister found Jesus in encounter and in conversation. For those who knew her through the years, the whisper of, “I love you, Jesus,” many times followed by still more intimate conversation, formed the essence of Sister Sophie Marie’s most profound relationship in life, that with her Savior and Spouse. There would have been many who could have been accused of eavesdropping and, yet, the short prayers that fell from Sister’s lips seemed to draw the listener deeper into her own heart.
Indeed, drawn to Jesus, Sister Sophie Marie brought him to others in love. With a certain simplicity about her, Sister, perhaps many times unbeknownst to her, invited others to contemplate the God who gently accompanies each journey. Pleasant, grateful and quietly helpful when and where needed, Sister unmistakably drew others to Jesus. But perhaps it was most especially in trial, suffering and with a sometimes heavy heart that, drawn to Jesus, Sister Sophie Marie most clearly understood the mystery of Jesus Crucified, her companion and confidante.
Surely it was love learned at the feet of her doting parents that paved the way to life-long relationship with Jesus for this child of God who was born August 8, 1910, in Mineola, New York. Parents, George Karpowicz and Anna Gryn proudly modeled the Creator’s warm and tender embrace as Sophie was bathed in the cleansing waters of the baptismal font at St. Hedwig Parish, Floral Park, New York, on August 14, 1910.
A graduate of George Washington Elementary School, Throop, Pennsylvania, Sophie had set her sights on Nazareth Academy from where she entered religious life as a Sister of the Holy Family of Nazareth on August 20, 1929. Almost a year later, Sophie was welcomed into the novitiate in the Immaculate Conception Province on July 8,1930. Then known as Sister Januaria, Sister Sophie Marie basked in the light of new learnings and first experiences. September 1, 1932, marked the day of temporary profession and confident beginnings in the practice of chastity, poverty and obedience. Perpetual profession on August 15, 1938, invited Sister Sophie Marie to enter more deeply into the mystery of Jesus Crucified.
Pursuing a Bachelor of Art in elementary education at Manhattan College, New York, Sister Sophie Marie became more than adequately prepared for the world of education where she spent forty-six years in elementary schools throughout the province. From Massachusetts to Maryland, Sister Sophie Marie dazzled her students from grades one to eight with a fine sense of humor and a quick wit.
In later years, it wasn’t unusual to hear Sister prayerfully remember her students by name. There were assignments at St. Joseph, Jamaica, Our Lady of Czestochowa and St. Stanislaus, Brooklyn, all in New York as well as time spent at St. Hedwig, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Sacred Heart of Mary, Baltimore, Maryland. In Pennsylvania, Sister ministered in such schools as Visitation BVM, Trooper; Queen of Peace, Ardsley; St. Kunegunda, McAdoo; and St. Katherine of Siena, St. Stanislaus, and Our Lady of Calvary in Philadelphia.
In her last years before retirement to Mount Nazareth, Philadelphia, Sister Sophie Marie returned to Our Lady of Calvary where she was busy about many things. Whether engaged in household chores or after-school tutoring, Sister served with a glad and giving heart. However, with increasingly fragile health, Sister Sophie Marie was transferred to Mount Nazareth in 1987. There her health continued to deteriorate over time. Although she was slowly becoming more and more forgetful, there were certain places and certain someones that she seemed to always remember, even to her last days.
Sister’s boundless energy now spent, it seemed that age and illness had surely had their way with her. On the afternoon of May 26, 2003, amid Memorial Day parades and distant fireworks, there was a pervasive quiet and reverential stillness about Sister Sophie Marie’s room at Mount Nazareth. Drawn to Jesus by love, Sister Sophie Marie entered into the eternal dwelling uniquely prepared for her for all eternity. Rest safe and secure in the dying and rising of Jesus Crucified, dear Sister, for surely the battle is done and the victory won.
Digitized by S. Brendan O’Brien, CSFN, MA
School of Arts & Sciences
History Department
Holy Family University
9801 Frankford Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19114
215-637-7700 x3279
srbrendan@holyfamily.edu
http://web3.holyfamily.edu/srbrendan
Last updated: March 2006