Tuesday, February 8, 1977
third dimension
page 3
A nun?
In our dormitory?
Yes, but . . .?
By Lisa Velders
Sisten Heliena Krenn confirms none of the movie and
television stereotypes of a nun.
I had expected a twinkling Debbie Reynolds, strum
ming her guitar and singing "Dominique, . . jiique, . . .
nique." Or the opposite, a harsh-voiced, steely-eyed crea
ture clutching her cross.
Instead, I found a quiet, 45-year-old woman wearing a
woman, if somewhat quizzical smile as she opened the
door to her dormitory room in Selleck Quadrangle.
Her gray hair was tucked beneath a navy blue veil. Her
skin was pale, her blue eyes faded. And her foice, far from
harsh, contained the faint, soft lilt of a German accent, a
remnant of her Austrian past.
At age 24, in Windischgarsten, Austria, Sister Heliena
decided she "wanted to do more for God." She became a
Missionary Sister, Servant of the Holy Spirit.
Perhaps she took her vows because, as a young girl, she
was impressed by her parents' religious faith. Or maybe it
was- the influence of a teacher who, in speaking of "pro
fessions fit for a girl," mentioned the Missionary Sisters.
She said it was a sacrifice for her family when she
joined an order which required her living in foreign coun
tries. But they were proud that she "was willing to do
this," she said.
Her friends, at the same time, tried to "make it (the
idea of becoming a nun) very distasteful." But it is a de
cision Sister Heliena claims not to regret.
Hipp Vy Q jr .
Before taking her vows, Sister Heliena spent four years
studying English literature at the University of Vienna.
Now, more than 12 years later, she is a Ph.D. candidate
in English literature at UNL. She plans to return to
Taiwan to the Catholic university where she has taught
English literature for nine years, in the fall.
She said she still receives letters from Taiwanese stu
dents hoping she will return.
Religious instruction is not part of the Catholic uni
versity curriculum in Taiwan. In fact, "one has to be care
ful," Sister Heliena said. Western religious values emerge
in Western literature, she said, and she was careful not to
impose them on her students.
Most Taiwanese students go to the Catholic univer
sity, Sister Heliena said, not because it is Catholic, but be
cause their own universities are over-crowded.
However, she instructs about 10 Taiwanese students
who express a "hunger for a deeper meaning in life,"
each semester in religion. She suggested that some
Taiwanese might reject Buddhism in favor of Catholicism
because "for them, the ideal is to go west (where) life
is more convenient."
Now, after three years at UNL, Sister Heliena speaks
in the hushed tone of a prisoner marking time, about
completing her thesis on Joseph Conrad.
Not that her experinece at UNL has been bad. On the
contrary, she said she has been favorably impressed with
the UNL English Dept., where, she said, "I am accepted
for what lam."
And dorm life is little different from her campus life
in Taiwan, where she served as a resident counselor.
She has her own friends-largely among the graduate
students.
Nor has she ever experienced any antagonistic student
reaction to her presence in the dorm. Dressed daily in the
navy blue habit of her order, she is, in fact, a rather visible
Selleck resident. But she suspects she might make some
Catholic girls, in particular, uncomfortable. They might,
she said with a smile, think she was trying to get them to
join the order.
Sister Heliena said she doesn't see much campus
interest in religion-a fairly common phenomenon, she
added.
"Young people are planning their lives, not thinking so
much of what is after this life," she said.
I asked Sister Heliena about lay people taking on
Church duties. She explained that it is necessary, but that
"being a nun or a priest has the additional purpose of
being more exclusively dedicated to God and to His
work."
The life of a missionary sister is a full one, she said.
Little time remains for personal interests. But that
"doesn't mean it is not a happy, fulfilling life," she said.
And on that note, I could not ask her the questions my
friends had suggested when I told them I was going to
interview a nun.
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