Sister Amalia strives to live Schoenstatt spirituality

For 50 years Sister M. Amalia Mata, ISSM has been serving Texas with love, as expressed through the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary whose mission is “to renew the world from within.”

Sister Amalia’s vocation began on March 27, 1965, when she was received into the Schoenstatt religious family. She took her final vows and ring eight years later at Sacred Heart Church in Rockport.

Born to Mateo and Benita Mata in Guanajuato, Mexico in 1943, the family of seven moved to La Feria, Texas when she was just a little girl. It was at St. Francis Xavier Church that she was first introduced to the Schoenstatt Movement. The parish priest had hired two sisters who belonged to the movement.

When the sisters were hired to work in the parish they taught groups of boys and girls for specific formation in the spirituality of Schoenstatt.

“We were called the Schoenstatt girls,” Sister Amalia said.

The sisters brought something new to the young girls, “they offered spirituality and practical points of spirituality. Back then, the priest gave basic religious instruction, much of it included memorization. It was not possible for him to do everything,” she said.

When she was 18 she joined the Schoenstatt group and a year later one of the sisters asked her about entering into a religious vocation. “I said I guess I could. It’s interesting because back then you went in without reservations. They told you and you just went,” she said.

It was a time of spiritual growth for her. She got to know the community by living with them. She spent eight years training and invested with the same group of girls that she had entered with. During those eight years she was there because she wanted to be there. From the time she entered until she received the ring, she was free to decide.

After a few years of living her vocation, which included instructing and nurturing others who wanted to join the movement, Sister Amalia enrolled in Del Mar College to study nursing.

For 10 years she worked part-time as a licensed vocational nurse in a Laredo hospital. While continuing her schooling and working part time, she received her license as a registered nurse. She then moved to Austin and worked another 16 years as an RN on the Medical Surgical Floor, all the while living according to the spirit of her vows.

“Our Father said our first vocation is to love,” she said.

For many years Sister Amalia cared for patients who had all kinds of illnesses. “It was sometimes a very stressful and demanding job,” she said. “But I managed to do it for 26 years.”

Now retired, Sister Amalia lives in Lamar on the grounds of the Schoenstatt Shrine, in the provincial house. She still keeps busy by caring for the sick and older sisters. One sister in her group had cancer. She cared for her up until she died. She helps out in the community wherever there is a need. “Right now I’m doing laundry and I love to garden,” she said with a chuckle. “If you love something you put yourself into that.”