Astounded by the gravity of this statement, Sister Maria began her search for ways to serve the God whose love, she had found, allowed her very existence. The next summer, she went on a mission to a poverty-ridden mountain town in Mexico.
There, she said, she found the poorest--yet, the richest--people.
"They were so pure and simple and giving and generous and they treated us like we were angels from God… they offered everything they had, they took us into their homes," she remembered. "This pure life!"
Inspired after the mission, Sister Maria began to frequent a monastery near her home. The sisters, she observed, had a strangely similar poor-yet-rich complex. It took her months to admit it to herself, but Maria finally decided to discern her calling to be a nun.
A strong woman, says the world, is independent. But what if there is strength in dependence--on God?
John Paul II, in expressing his thanks for consecrated women, wrote, "Following the example of the greatest of women, the Mother of Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Word, you open yourselves with obedience and fidelity to the gift of God's love. You help the Church and all mankind to experience a 'spousal' relationship to God, one which magnificently expresses the fellowship which God wishes to establish with his creatures."
This specific and crucial mission, to "help the Church and all mankind to experience a 'spousal' relationship to God" is one only women can fulfill. And, because of the world's disdain for obedience and quietness, this noble mission is also often looked down upon.
Although Sister Maria lives behind closed doors, she lives pray for people outside those doors. "We are here for the world, for the sake of others," she said.
To some women, a life like Sr. Clare's might seem to impossible- too simple, too humble, not empowered.
Consecrated life, like motherhood, is sometimes regarded as less significant work than traditional employment.
"People are so afraid of permanent commitment," said Sister Maria, adding that she has seen fewer and fewer vocations to the Poor Clares.
A strong woman, says society, is a woman who isn't afraid to invest in herself and do what she pleases.
But a strong woman of faith, says God, is a woman who isn't afraid to fully commit herself to Christ.
Not only do "feminists" disregard the gravity of such commitment, but they also constantly reach for ways to prove that they are not "different than men, instead of trying to compete or equal in their own way," the nun said.
Even when it comes to roles in the Church.
"Some groups continue to demand priesthood for women," she said, but this "doesn't make much sense."
Considering Mary, she said, there are many opportunities for women to have a strong influence on the church.
Mary "never claimed to be one of the apostles…. She had her own role, and continues to have it in the church," she said. "Who can be more important… her role in salvation history… than Mary's?"
Disclaiming that she did not encourage priesthood for women, she added, "In a way, Mary was a priest. She was the first one who carried Jesus… The body of Christ is Mary's body. The Eucharistic Body, in a way, is Mary's flesh."
"Every Communion, you carry Jesus," she said, and, quoting St. Francis, "You give birth to Jesus through your good works."
Sister Maria referenced St. Clare's teachings: "We can carry Jesus the same way that Mary carried him… Mary carried Jesus in her womb for nine months, but the faithful soul can carry him spiritually, always."
Women, she said, should embrace the roles in the church that God has offered to them rather than scrambling for more roles. If man and woman were the same, she said, it wouldn't be as beautiful.
Ultimately, each woman--and man, for that matter--is called to be vigilant of God's wish for their life, said Sister Maria.
"It's a journey that never ends. You will always be receiving the vocation from God every day and answering to a vocation every day," she said. "Do not be afraid to give yourself to Christ."