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Creative Ministries

Our sisters have a wide array of talents and skills, including many accomplished artists, authors and musicians in a variety of media. All are generous with their work, but they ask that those wishing to use any of their pieces request permission and use proper attribution.

If you would like to request permission to use a piece of art, please fill out our quick contact form.

This list is by no means comprehensive and continues to grow!

Meet some of our sister artists

A mandala by Therese Denham, CSJ

Therese Denham, CSJ

Therese Denham, CSJ has a certification in communications and a degree in art with an emphasis in graphic design. She currently works with mandalas and zentangles.

Artwork by Donna Gibbs, CSJ

Donna Gibbs, CSJ

The late Donna Gibbs, CSJ wrote and illustrated children’s books with ecological themes. Her books help parents and educators midwife a new wisdom in our children, since they now inherit the ability to influence everything that happens to living Earth. Two of her books are available for purchase: The Seamless Universe: A Discovery Guide through Our Great Universe and The Quilter and the Quail. A teacher for 30 years in the elementary classroom, Sister Donna had a degree in child development and master’s in Earth literacy and art therapy.

Artwork by Ansgar Holmberg, CSJ

Ansgar Holmberg, CSJ

The late Ansgar Holmberg, CSJ was a deeply spiritual contemplative, whose award-winning and imaginative folk art flowed from her buoyant spirit and serious conviction about care of the Earth and the least among us.

Homing by Marion Honors, CSJ

Marion C. Honors, CSJ

Marion C. Honors, CSJ, has exhibited her art nationally and internationally. Sister Marion’s work includes relief and intaglio prints, monoprints, monotypes, drawings and paintings, collages, painted embossments and monotype printmaking with water-based inks. She has painted embossments and illustrations for children’s books and other publications. Her latest work is an exploration of what she calls “painting/print assemblages.”

Marion has a master of arts degree from the University of Notre Dame and a master of fine arts degree from Villa Schifanoia Graduate School of Fine Arts in Florence, Italy. She has taught art in high school and college.

A painting of a serene lake scene with two empty fishing boats

Agripina Morales Acosta, CSJ

Peruvian sister Agripina Morales teaches high school literature and language and is currently studying for her master’s degree in environmental management and sustainable development. She studied painting techniques at the School of Fine Arts of Peru and developed her creative gifts. She is implementing a workshop to help others through painting or handicrafts.

A tan sculpture of a man and a woman walking arm in arm sits on a green cloth

Mary Schneider, CSJ

Ceramics has been a creative outlet for Sister Mary Schneider of Los Angeles for many years. Figures are some of her favorite things to make. She has responded frequently to requests to provide an environmental ceramic piece for community retreats, including “We’re All Just Walking Each Other Home” pictured here. Sister Mary also has a ministry of creative movement and a passion for liturgical dance.

Sunflowers watercolor by Carol Louise Smith, CSJ

Carol Louise Smith, CSJ

Carol Louise Smith, CSJ is an artist using various media, including graphic design, photography, sketching and watercolor. After 30 years of ministry in elementary education, she went back to school for a degree in graphic design from UCLA and now works in the communications department for our Los Angeles Province. Her work is used in publications, brochures, liturgy worship aides, business cards, electronic e-designs newsletters, cards, prints, and more.

Meet some of our sister musicians

Use Your Voice album cover

Sally Koch, CSJ

Sally Koch, CSJ has always had a musical heart. She grew up playing piano and organ and singing at her local Catholic church, where her mother directed the choir. Songwriting has been something she has wanted to do for a while. During the pandemic, she found time and space to grow her skills and fulfill her dream of creating an album. In January 2022, she released “Use Your Voice,” her first album. Sally’s music is born from her own personal prayer, and she hopes her listeners will feel a sense of being seen through her lyrics. May this music transport you to your center and to the Divine who loves you dearly.

Read some of our sisters’ books

Anything of Which a Woman is Capable:

A History of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the United States, Volume 1

by Mary M. McGlone, CSJ

Anyone who wants to know more about where and why the sisters did what they did will find interesting responses in the lives of the women chronicled in this volume. Covering a geography from New York City to Los Angeles and Superior, Wisconsin to Florida, you will meet sisters who struggled with poverty and adversity, all for the sake of the people they called their “Dear Neighbor.”

Called Forth by the Dear Neighbor book cover

Called Forth by the Dear Neighbor:

A History of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the United States, Volume 2

by Mary M. McGlone, CSJ

Volume II of the History of the Sisters of St. Joseph in the USA describes how sisters responded to the needs of their neighbors. Establishing congregations and institutions from New York to Hawaii and from Maine to Orange, California, thousands of Sisters of St. Joseph expressed their love of God through service to their neighbors as women of the Church.

A stylized drawing of a woman sitting on a hill holding two dogs in her lap. Three more dogs and a rabbit stand around her

Five Dogs, a Rabbit & a Nun

by Joan Pitlyk, CSJ

A captivating look at the wonder and absurdity of life as only a dog could tell it. A wonderful blend of humor, wit, imagination and heart. Stories like this remind us of why we love our pets so much.

Book cover with a painting of a rabbit's face on a peachy collaged background

The Rabbit Who Nibbled and Other Poems

by Joan Pitlyk, CSJ

A talking giraffe, a dancing kite, a lonely dinosaur, a funny clown and many other make-believe characters in a child’s world are a few of the poems and artistic illustrations that bring smiles to the faces of children ages 3 to 8.

Responding to the Dear Neighbor book cover

Responding to the Dear Neighbor:

A Sampling of the ministries of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet

by the Los Angeles Province

Explore 27 Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet ministries highlighting the sisters’ legacy developed to meet the needs of the dear neighbor.

Trek of the Seven Sisters Companion Guide book cover

Trek of the Seven Sisters:

Pilgrimage Companion Guide

by Mary Sloper with Mary Murphy, CSJ and Trek Committee; design by Carol Louise Smith, CSJ

This book tells the story of the seven Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet (CSJs) who traveled from St. Louis to Tucson in 1870. Whether you use the book as a pilgrimage guide and travel the Trek yourself, or read it in the comfort of your favorite chair, you will come to appreciate the courage, perseverance, and faith these seven women had to travel on a new mission for the “dear neighbor.”

About us

The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet are a congregation of Catholic sisters. We, and those who share our charism and mission, are motivated in all things by our profound love of God and our dear neighbors. We seek to build communities and bridge divides between people. Since our first sisters gathered in 1650, our members have been called to “do all things of which women are capable.” The first sisters of our congregation arrived in St. Louis, Missouri in 1836, and we now have additional locations in St. Paul, Albany, Los Angeles, Hawaii, Japan and Peru. Today, we commit to respond boldly to injustice and dare to be prophetic.

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