Sister Orianne

Honestly, my story is a confused mess. But God stepped in and made it His.

I was born in Winnipeg to a multi-faith family. 2 of my grandparents were Protestant and 2 were Druze, an off-shoot of Islam. I was baptized in the United Church of Canada.

One of my earliest memories is of flashing a smile up at God, knowing He was smiling back at me. I loved Him. I read about Him in my Bible and my Qu’ran. When my family moved to Ontario, we got sent to Catholic school since it was free, and started going to Catholic church.

It was confusing. I loved the reverence which fully reflected the God I knew, who was both infinitely great and deeply personal. But I had problems with Church teaching. I challenged my catechists, but they couldn’t explain with Scripture, so I shrugged them off as wrong.

When I was 11, I was asked if I wanted to be Confirmed. I agonized over that decision because I knew what it meant. At the same time, I was noticing discrepancies between my Qu’ran and my Bible; between the beliefs of my grandparents and my Church. I was so torn.

I didn’t know what to do. But I knew who I loved. So I prayed earnestly. I asked God to show me who He was really, and where He was fully. I told Him I wanted to know Him for who He was, not for who I wanted Him to be, and that I wanted to be where He was most fully.

He took me at my word.

That year, I was Confirmed in the Catholic Church. But I avoided what I disagreed with, including Confession.

I grew deeply in love with God, but not in trust of the Church. Until, at university, my parents divorced. I was a wreck. One day, after a horrible night, I woke up with one quiet conviction on my heart: I needed to go to Confession.

God met me there.

That day, I learned humility. I realized that Church teaching, passed on by people wiser and holier than I, might be right about things I disagreed with. I began looking for answers. I found many on YouTube and some in the convent.

Yes, I entered a convent.

I’d never wanted to. I associated nuns with Residential Schools. But after a mission trip to Peru with religious sisters, I realized that consecration could be a gift, and a way to gift myself fully.

I found the Daughters of St Paul online. Their spirituality pushed me deeper into God. In July 2021, I made my 1st vows as a Daughter of St Paul to the faithful God who, years ago, took an earnest little girl at her word.