Last Sunday marked the inauguration of Sister Sharlet Ann Wagner as the next president of the Sisters of the Holy Cross, along with her five-member council. The ceremony was held during the Church of Loretto’s 10:30 a.m. mass. Wagner and her new council were blessed and gifted stained glass panels of trees.
Before entering the congregation, Wagner earned her bachelor’s degree in journalism and a teaching certificate from the University of Texas at Austin, where she began teaching journalism and English. During her junior year in college, Wagner felt the call to religious life.
“While I was at school at UT and active in the Catholic center, there was a Holy Cross sister, Sister Joanne Bauer … and when I saw her, I was excited because I had just started having these thoughts about being a sister, and I had no idea who to ask or where to turn or where to get more information. And now here was a real live sister,” Wagner said. “So I started talking to her, and learned a little more about religious life … and came here for a little retreat to see the sisters, and realized that I felt very comfortable here. It felt like home, and so I decided to enter Sisters of the Holy Cross.”
From her trial year with the congregation, known as being a postulant or candidate, to her perpetual, or final vows, Wagner participated in the eight-year process of entering religious life. During her two years as a novitiate, she served as an English teacher in Utah and later served in a rural clinic in Uganda.
“When you go out on mission, you need to create that balance for yourself,” Wagner said. “It was learning how to work and minister full time and prioritize prayer, prioritize community life.”
Wagner said her time in Uganda was especially formative for her career with the sisters.
“I had learned as a sister, and I truly believed, and still believe, that sometimes the best ministry we can do is to be with someone in whatever they’re going through, and to be present and to be a listening ear and to be a compassionate presence,” Wagner said. “At the same time, I felt like I wanted to do something about the situation, about the injustice, about whatever it might be. That was where I decided, toward the end of my time in Uganda, that perhaps law school would be a way to really be a voice for others, be an advocate and try to do something to affect the situation.”
After officially entering the congregation, Wagner attended law school at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, focusing on immigration law.
“I felt like I could use the gifts that God gave me in service of others and of those who perhaps need someone to advocate for them, or perhaps don't have a voice,” Wagner said. “I was attracted to working with immigrants because I knew I would be working with people from a variety of countries and backgrounds and cultures, and that was exciting to me.”
Wagner transitioned into administration work in 2009 when she was elected as councilor of the congregation’s general administration. She was re-elected for a second term in 2014.
“When I was in administration, on the council, I wasn’t there to represent the United States, and though I could bring that perspective, I was looking at the good of the whole congregation. And so you get to know the whole congregation, and you get to know the inner workings of the congregation, the administration, the running of this place, this big complex,” Wagner said.
Since 2020, Wagner has guided the Newcomer Network as the executive director with Catholic Charities in the Archdiocese of Washington. There, Wagner worked with immigrants, aiding them in a variety of issues, with her team of immigration attorneys and social workers.
Now, just four days into her new role as the president, Wagner has much on her plate to accomplish in the next five years.
“It’s a whirlwind,” Wagner said. “Even though I was in general administration for 10 years, things change. I’ve been away for five years, and being president is different from being a counselor. So I’m on a steep learning curve, but it’s been great. The sisters have been so supportive and so welcoming. I really feel held up by my sisters.”
According to Wagner, the general chapter is the highest governing authority in the congregation, and they have recently approved a new constitution for the Sisters of the Holy Cross that will be reviewed and tweaked over the next five years. Wagner estimates the new constitution will be implemented in 2029.
“Part of my task, and my team’s task, will be helping the congregation to study that new constitution, ponder on it, reflect, pray with it, and really, fully understand what we say about our life in our new constitution,” Wagner said.
Wagner and her new council will also be in charge of looking over and improving the congregation’s governance structure, specifically within their “area level” regarding their missions in Asia, Africa and North and South America.
“The general chapter asks us to look at that intermediate level, the area level, and see how well that is or is not working for us, and develop a proposal and to be brought to an extraordinary chapter,” Wagner said.
Climate change will also be a large project for Wagner and her council as the congregation attempts to implement more meaningful and permanent impacts on climate change worldwide.
“Climate change is something the congregation has been working on, continually for a number of years. But the general chapter affirmed that, and said we want to continue to find concrete ways to address climate change,” Wagner said.
Lastly, she and her team will address and improve leadership development within the congregation for their new generation of sisters.
“How are we preparing our young sisters to be leaders in the future?” Wagner said. "We’re blessed with a number of young sisters from Africa and Asia, and so what kind of leadership development opportunities do we need for those young sisters?”
The Congregation of the Sisters of the Holy Cross plan to release their 2024 direction statement and decisions, themed “Transforming Love” which will guide Wagner and her council in their decision-making and guidance of the congregation during their term. A part of the direction statement was read publicly to the parish during the Sept. 8 inauguration.
“We, the Sisters of the Holy Cross, celebrate our call to be witnesses of God’s transforming love for the life of the world … In the midst of these various realities, we seek new ways to build and deepen our relationship with one another and the world as we embrace diversities. We desire to be prophetic witnesses with all members of the human family who share our values and our hope for reconciliation and peace. We seek to witness the ‘one hope’ of God’s transforming love in a deeply divided world,” the statement reads.
