Dear All:
We wish to share with you all the death of two of our sisters: Sr. María de July Quispe Guzman, SSVM and Sr. María of Betharram, SSVM.
Saturday, November 16 at 5pm, in Guayaquil, Ecuador, Sr. María de July Quispe Guzman (Peruvian) passed away. Due to a continuous liver problem, on Tuesday, November 12th, she underwent an operation that did not present any apparent risks. Shortly after the operation, her health began to deteriorate. After four days in intensive care, she was accompanied by Mother Virgen Azul, Maria del Nazareno along with her own mother and sister that came from Peru. Thus, after being assisted by an IVE priest, she gave her soul to God.
We commend her to the most Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph, and we ask for the consolation of her family.
On Thursday, November 21st at 7:39 pm in the afternoon, Sr. María de Betharram, SSVM passed away in the Monastery “Blessed Gabrielle of the Unity”.
The circumstances that surround her death give us a great consolation, which at the same time impels us to give thanks to God for His infinite Mercy. For it shows us the way in which He cares for His faithful spouses until the last breath of their lives.
Precisely her death took place on the feast of the Virgin, the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the temple. It is a day in which the Church celebrates and prays in a special way for contemplatives. This morning Fr. Jon, the brother of Betharram, celebrated the Holy Mass in her room, with the company of the whole community. Along with her sister Carmen, that came from Argentina. In the Holy Mass, Sr. Betharram received Holy Communion for the last time. In the afternoon Fr. Pablo Scaloni, chaplain of the community, celebrated the second mass in her bedroom having her whole community present once more. At the end of the mass they prayed the Divine Mercy chaplet. Then Fr. Jon prayed the litanies of the saints. All of this was followed by the Holy Rosary, and at the end all of the sisters in the community went one by one giving their final farewells. It seemed as if she was waiting for all of them to say farewell. Fr. Jon and her sister Carmen also said their last farewells on behalf of their whole family. They prayed two more chaplets when at the last one, our sister, Sr. María de Betharram. parted to the encounter with her Divine Spouse.
The previous night, she sent me a farewell audio where she expressed her deep thanksgiving for the Institute, recognizing with great humility all the benefits received by the Divine goodness. She also asked for forgiveness for all her miseries. God granted us the grace to benefit from her examples and her countless sacrifices throughout a completely crucified religious life. She was left handicapped, since after the novitiate, when she had suffered from a grave car accident. She always lived completely surrendered to the will of God, thus being a Servidora worthy to imitate.
We ask for the prayers and masses for her eternal rest and for the consolation of her family.
In Christ and in Mary,
M. Maria Corredentora
