Squeezed with Love - Mother M Ingeborg Rohner of the sisters of St. Francis of the Martyr St. George in Alton squeezes oranges to make fresh juice for Pope Benedict XVI during his April 15-20 visit to the United States. Mother Ingeborg along with Mother M. Regina Pacis Coury and Sister Marie Schnabel, were invited to assist their fellow sisters at the papal nunciature in Washington, D.C., where the Holy Father stayed during his visit there.

When Pope Benedict XVI arrived at the Apostolic Nunciature in Washington, D.C., April 15 as part of his visit to the United States, three area women religious were eagerly waiting there to serve him. There to help with the cooking, cleaning and other general duties of keeping the nunciature in order were Mother M. Regina Pacis Coury, provincial superior of the American Province of the Sisters of St. Francis of the Martyr St. George, and Mother M. Ingeborg Rohner, retired superior and second provincial councilor, both of Alton, and Sister Marie Schnabel, who serves on the staff at Archbishop Raymond L. Burke's residence in the Archdiocese of St. Louis.

Because of the large number of guests coming to the nunciature for the pontiff's visit in the nation's capital, the three were invited by Archbishop Pietro Sambi, apostolic nuncio to the United States, to help five Sisters of St. Francis of the Martyr St. George who staff the nunciature full time. Another Sister of St. Francis serving in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia also was invited to help out.

Calling the experience "an incredible blessing and grace," Mother Regina Pacis said she got to meet a Holy Father who seemed "joyful, fatherly and attentive to whomever he is with."

"What we knew before his visit was that Benedict was a brilliant theologian, and we heard that he drew crowds of pilgrims in St. Peter's Square every Wednesday for the papal audiences," said the woman religious. "What we did not know was why they were coming by the thousands. Was it out of habit because they were used to coming to see John Paul II? Were they hoping for another John Paul II? Why?

"Now we know why - because this man of God has charisma," she said. "It is not in the same way as his predecessor, but in his own way. He attracts by his sincerity and naturalness. My impression of him is that he is genuinely concerned about the individual soul of each of his flock. He listens to and is focused on the person before him. He is humble and real."

The sisters prepared several meals, all made from scratch, for the pope during his stay. Some of the fare included an Italian stracciatella soup with chicken, potatoes and mixed vegetables, and tortellini and pork tenderloin with potatoes and zucchini. For breakfast, they served the pontiff hot pancakes with fresh fruit and orange juice hand-squeezed by Mother Ingeborg.

TOO PRETTY TO EAT — Cream puffs, made into the shape of swans by Sister Marie Schnabel, FSGM, were among the sweet treats Pope Benedict XVI enjoyed during his stay at the papal nunciature during his stay in Washington, D.D.

As a native of northern Bavaria, in the Diocese of Wurzburg, Sister Marie got the chance to make for the pope, also from Bavaria, a German apple strudel as part of breakfast one morning. She also prepared another delicacy - cream puffs, which she designed in the shape of swans.

"He laughed at that one," Sister Marie recalled. After greeting the pontiff in German and telling him that she, too, was from Bavaria, "he smiled and said, ‘Oh, beautiful.'"

Mother Ingeborg, born in Berlin, said she received a slightly different, yet humorous response from the Holy Father when she told him where she was from.

"I was almost afraid to tell him that I came from Berlin, knowing that people from Bavaria really are not excited about people from Berlin," she shared in a story with her fellow sisters. "And sure enough, he replied that he did not know that there were Catholics in Berlin. He smiled when he made this statement."

The sisters took care of other details surrounding the pope's visit, including tending to his garments and cleaning his personal living quarters. Many of what were simple tasks took on special meaning, Sister Marie said with a smile in her voice.

"For every duty that takes one person, we doubled up because of the honor. Do you know how many sisters it takes to make the pope's bed? Three. But it was just because of the excitement of getting to do something for him."

Asked by her community and friends what impressed her the most about the entire experience, Mother Ingeborg said it was "just everything about our Holy Father."

"To live under the same roof with him was awe-inspiring," she said. "Every time he returned to the nunciature and every time he left, we were right there at the door. He always smiled at us, waved or shook hands with us."

The sisters also had the privilege of twice attending Mass with the pope in the nunciature's chapel. The first, on April 16, the pope's 81st birthday, included a group of about 50 clergy, the sisters and other staff. The second Mass, celebrated his final morning in Washington, D.C., was even smaller, with just the sisters and a few others present.

Mother Regina Pacis said both occasions were "an intensely moving experience."

Noting that she is currently reading his book, God is Near Us, she said the Holy Father "emphasizes that we should make an act of adoration before receiving Communion or after. His words about the Real Presence dominated my post-Communion thoughts."

Sister Marie said that in the pope she met a man who seemed "so mild and so kind. He has so much strength in what he is saying, and at the same time, he is so humble.

He almost seemed a little shy. You could almost feel that he didn't want all of the glamour" that comes with being a pope.

The experience seemed to end much too soon for the sisters, who said they will always cherish the privilege of being able to serve their spiritual leader.

"Saying goodbye had the sadness of saying goodbye to a newly found friend," said Mother Regina Pacis. "He makes such a difference in the lives of those he meets."

Jennifer Brinker writes for the St. Louis Review.