Remembering Sister Mary Agness Cross, OSF

Sister Mary Agnes Cross died peacefully on September 17, 2024, the feast of the Stigmata of St. Francis. Being a Franciscan was a desire of her life even in childhood as she admired her parents’ connection to nature. Her father, Frank, reminded her of St. Francis when he would get honey from the beehives and none of the bees would harm him. She says, “I would go out and get swarmed by them.” Her mother, Agnes, enjoyed cooking the vegetables her dad grew, and she decorated the house with his
flowers. Mary Agnes was proud to be a twin to Joseph, her only sibling.

As a young girl, Mary Agnes read The Perfect Joy of St. Francis by Felix Timmermans. When she first read it, Francis’ love for all creatures resonated with her. Then she read it at various life stages and found deeper meanings in Francis’ life each time. More recently she wrote, “The passages that strike me now are: ‘Oh, God, how beautiful you have made everything’ and ‘Life is so simple. The essence of life is love.’”

After twenty years with the Franciscan Sisters of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Mary Agnes became a member of our Sisters of St. Francis of Mary Immaculate in 1976.

Read More About Sister Mary Agnes’ Life

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