A young nun’s path: merging career with faith in New Orleans

Sister Seyram Mary Adzokpa, who spent her early years in Ghana before relocating to the United States at the age of 14, had never encountered a nun until she turned 25.

Her life was filled with the demands of nursing, education, and church activities.

However, during her time as a nurse amid the COVID-19 pandemic, she began to feel a strong pull towards a religious vocation.

“I started my nursing career around 18,” Adzokpa shared. “During the pandemic, my faith in God really soared” … “especially since no one had a clear understanding of what we were facing. Being on the front lines was quite daunting.”

“There was also this yearning to reach out to someone who had the answers, and that someone was God,” she explained.

Despite her growing spiritual awareness, Adzokpa had always envisioned a future in marriage, inspired by her parents’ relationship, even having names picked out for her future children.

“For someone who didn’t grow up around religious sisters or the concept of religious life, I was completely unaware of it. I had always aspired to a beautiful marriage like my parents,” she reflected.

“I was oblivious to anything else until this calling emerged.”

During the lockdowns, she wholeheartedly embraced this calling, receiving encouragement from her spiritual director to “date” Jesus.

She shared moments with Jesus while cooking, cleaning, and even having date nights, setting a table for two and choosing movies to enjoy together.

At the age of 27, she made the significant decision to become a nun and join the intergenerational community of the Sisters of the Holy Family in New Orleans, one of the few religious orders established for Black women in the U.S. two decades prior to the Civil War.

She now represents just 1% of sisters in America who are 30 or younger, willingly relinquishing the comforts of modern life—dating, material possessions, and trendy attire.

“But it’s really a crisis in communities. Some communities have dwindled. You know, some communities are not accepting new vocations. But we continue to persevere,” remarked Sister Laura Mercier, the former Vocation Director at the Sisters of the Holy Family.

In the U.S., the average age of religious women, particularly within the New Orleans order, is 80.

This significant age difference has enabled Sr. Adzokpa, who has a nursing background, to utilize her skills in caring for the elder sisters.

“There was a common belief that entering the convent meant giving up your career and what you do. But that wasn’t true. I think that’s why you discover ways to serve using your talents,” she explained.

“I genuinely see it as a blessing from God that I don’t feel alone, despite the vast age difference.”

Three years after joining the community, Adzokpa made her temporary vows and is now on a mission at the nursing home across the street, where she assists in caring for the oldest sisters.

Adzokpa has expressed that if she ever loses the joy she finds in the Lord, she might reconsider her long path to becoming a sister, which typically spans 7 to 10 years.

However, so far, that joy and peace have remained steadfast.

“He has been consistently faithful, providing for me whenever I seek Him. That’s why you see me smiling and filled with joy. He is the source of it all,” she shared.

By Dominic Wabwireh