Mother Benedicta (Sybilla) Riepp was the foundress of Benedictine sisters in North America, including the Sisters of the Order of Saint Benedict in St. Joseph, Minn. She was born in Waal, Bavaria, on June 28, 1825, and entered St. Walburg Convent in Eichstätt, Bavaria, in 1844.
When the call came for sisters to teach the children of German immigrants in Pennsylvania, Benedicta answered that call. She and her companions arrived in St. Marys, Pa., in 1852 and established St. Joseph Monastery, the first convent of Benedictine sisters in North America. As superior in St. Marys, M. Benedicta sent a group of seven sisters to St. Cloud, Minn., to begin a new convent in 1857. In 1863, this community moved to St. Joseph, Minn., where we are still located today.
M. Benedicta’s time as superior as St. Marys was difficult, especially in her relationship with Abbot Boniface Wimmer of St. Vincent Abbey in Latrobe, Pa. She resisted his interference in their community’s internal matters, and he challenged her authority as the convent’s superior.
In 1857, M. Benedicta travelled to Europe, seeking help from superiors in Eichstätt and Rome to resolve the conflict. Unfortunately, she was denied the opportunity to present her case before the Pope. She returned to the United States in 1858, no longer welcome in the convents she had founded in the East.
At the invitation of Mother Willibalda Scherbauer, the first prioress of our community, M. Benedicta moved to St. Cloud in 1858. She died of tuberculosis on March 15, 1862, and in 1884, her remains were transferred from St. Cloud to the monastic cemetery in St. Joseph, where they remain today. A lovely flowerbed is planted and maintained atop her grave each year by Sister Ephrem Hollermann.
Despite the various obstacles throughout her life, M. Benedicta’s courage and leadership helped establish three new foundations in Erie, Pa. (1856), Newark, N.J. (1857), and St. Cloud (1857). Her legacy remains steadfast among Benedictine life today.
#LikeaCatholicSister, M. Benedicta pioneered courage and remained faithful in times of conflict, adversity and challenges.
We invite you to watch a short video about M. Benedicta Riepp:
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