On the vigil of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into heaven, one of our sisters in the Philippines was called to rejoice for all eternity in the assembly of the saints: Legaspi Maria Nemia – Sr. Maria Immacolata, born in Asingan (Pangasinan), Philippines, on 16 February 1932.
A spiritually strong, wise, mature and very dependable woman, Sr. M. Immacolata enriched our Philippine province with her gentleness and kindness, with the brightness and transparency of her gaze, and with the witness of a Pauline life lived to the full, without any regrets.
She entered our Congregation in the house in Lipa on 11 August 1951, after receiving her high school diploma. She made her novitiate in Lipa, concluding it with her first profession on 20 March 1955. She spent her Juniorate in the Queen of Apostles community in Pasay City, where she worked in particular in the technical apostolate. After her perpetual profession in 1960, Sr. M. Immacolata began to carry out the service of authority, first as superior of the FSP community in Cebu and later as formator in the house in Lipa. In 1972 she became the first indigenous superior of our Filipino Province. She generously dedicated all her energies to this service, without regard for her own needs, forming the sisters to a deep love for the Pauline charism and the Congregation. She was considered a true point of reference by the members of the province and a “pillar” of our Filipino foundation.
At the conclusion of her term as provincial superior, she wrote to the Superior General, “I thank the Lord for the abundant graces he has poured out on me during these years. Everything was placed at the service of the good and has helped me mature…. I do not know what the Lord will ask of me now, but I surrender myself to him. Sometimes I am afraid, but the memory of the deep joy and peace I experienced under his fatherly care has always accompanied me, filling me with great tranquility.” In the following years, she served as provincial counselor, formation assistant and then as vocationist in the communities of Pasay City, Cebu, Davao and Tuguegarao. She was also appointed local superior in Baguio and Naga.
Very generous and ready to meet any need, Sr. M. Immacolata considered the crosses and inevitable trials and difficulties of life as opportunities to express her love and fidelity to her Master. She wrote, “I try to never avoid the occasions that help me to mature and grow in the spiritual life. I want to overcome those temptations with the Lord’s help.” In the year 2000, she was assigned to the big Queen of Apostles community in Pasay City, where she worked first as a nurse and later as the person in charge of the community’s archive editions and library– a service she carried out with patience, love, and dedication. She was happy to strengthen the Institute’s “wheel” of study through her serious commitment to her activities in this field.
Sr. M. Immacolata was solicitous to consolidate apostolic relations with the Congregation’s Cooperators, benefactors and especially with the Annunciationists, who considered her to be their “mother,” given the many years she had devoted to their formation. The words they heard most often from her lips were “Thank you!” When she celebrated her 60th anniversary of religious profession, Sr. M. Immacolata wrote: “I cannot thank the good God enough for his immense love, goodness, mercy and fidelity. In keeping with the example of M. Thecla and Fr. Alberione, I try to respond with simplicity and joy to all the graces the Lord has poured out on me….”
In 2018, Sr. M. Immacolata was moved to the infirmary of the Thecla Merlo community in Pasay, following a severe stroke that confined her to a wheelchair. This morning, a cardio-respiratory crisis was the proximate cause of her death. She has now joined the angels and saints in heaven in contemplating the Virgin Mary assumed in glory, using her melodious voice to praise the Lord for the countless marvels of grace she received during her long life.