Helen Gladys Douglas, the future Sr M. Frederick, from Malta, for many years worked hand in hand with St Mother Teresa of Calcutta. Had she still been alive, on July 16, she would have turned 108 and also celebrated her 63rd year of service as a missionary of charity.
However, just two months ago, on May 17, Sr Frederick went serenely to the New Life she lived and longed for in the House of the Father.
Born to Helen née Vella and Frederick Douglas, at the age of 19, on July 27, 1935, Helen Gladys was admitted in the Mother House of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Apparition, in Marseille, France, where she became known as Sr Helen.
Two years later, on August 27, 1937, she made her first profession at the same house.
In 1947, Sr Helen came to Malta. She was first at St Joseph, Sliema, where she continued her studies. Then, in 1953, she started her first mission in the Sliema school of the congregation as a teacher and also looking after the boarders.
In March 1959, she was sent to the Paola school and convent of St Joseph. She remained there until 1960 when the needs of the congregation called her to give up teaching and take up apostolate within the administration of the congregation, serving as secretary of the General Council of the congregation in Marseille.
In Malta, Sr Helen became known as perhaps very strict but was much loved by everyone.
“She was a pianist, as she used to play the organ for the sisters when they had choir practice, and had a beautiful voice as well,” an elderly sister of St Joseph told me.
Feeling a call to serve the poor in a new way, in 1961, Sr Helen asked and obtained the necessary clearance to leave the congregation of St Joseph of the Apparition to move to the Missionaries of Charity of Mother Teresa, where she took the name of Sr M. Frederick – her father’s name.
“It took six years of discernment and delays before she came to the Missionaries of Charity in 1961,” explained a fellow MC sister in an eulogy delivered on behalf of the congregation during Sr Frederick’s funeral on May 20 in Rome.
“In April 1963, she took her vows as an MC. Though she did work with the poor and those suffering from leprosy, from the beginning, Sr Frederick found herself at the ‘Service of the Society’ also as a Mistress, Superior, regional and general councillor.”
In 1967, Sr Frederick was elected to the General Council of the Missionaries of Charity and, up to 2003, she was often (not always) re-elected. This meant that she worked very closely with Mother Teresa.
A representative of the Missionaries of Charity (MC) told me that Sr Frederick found her work with the poor very rewarding and valued the time she could be with them.
A person filled with faith
“However, sister’s greatest concern was to share the truths of her Catholic faith with everyone she met. Sister had a special love and concern also for the priests and all those in authority in the Catholic Church, praying daily for their fidelity to and understanding of the true teachings of our faith.”
During Sr Frederick’s funeral, her fellow sisters celebrated the gift of her life of 107 years and her fruitful life in Christ, which led her to respond completely to Jesus’s call to a religious vocation.
In the eulogy, Sr Frederick’s faith was described as “a quality of her life that shines out so brightly. At an early age, she realised the importance of our Catholic faith and knowing that faith well. Sister never stopped studying her catechism and sharing the fruits of her prayerful study with others”.
The eulogy included a number of very significant proclamations.
“When we think of our foundress, St Teresa of Calcutta, we think of a person filled with the love of God, that love was extended to every person Mother met. But love is not the only virtue. Love without faith is weakened and limping. Our Mother saw in Sr Frederick a person filled with faith. Filled with a desire to bring everyone to God by deepening their faith, which would lead to deeper love.
“Mother knew she could entrust Sr Frederick with the faith development of our society and Sr Frederick did not disappoint her. Mother, the pillar of love, and Sr Frederick, the pillar of faith, worked together (hand in hand) for many years. But love and faith are not enough. The third pillar is necessary − the pillar of hope.
“Mother and Sr Frederick saw in every young sister, whose vows they received, the hope of the future. The hope, visible in this young sister on fire with the love of God and understanding of her faith that would bring others to know and love God and the Church.
“Through every situation of life, Sr Frederick’s strong will to bring others to faith in God never wavered. She firmly, but also gently, encouraged others to a life of holiness through prayer and fidelity. And Sr Frederick’s greatest example and encouragement was her own life of daily fidelity to the smallest prescription of our MC life.”
A number of times, with her zeal for souls, Sr Frederick paved the way for new foundations of the society in various countries.
When serving as regional superior in New York, Sr Frederick saw the need of the sisters for more catechetical study. She began giving seminars on the faith to sisters in that region. This eventually led Sr Frederick to travel to various MC communities around the world, teaching and encouraging them to deepen their knowledge of the faith. Finally, in 1997, she was assigned to take charge of ‘The Spirituality Course’. She coordinated this course until 2012 when she went to Primavalle MC Centre, in Rome.
In her old age and sickness, even from her bed, Sr Frederick continued tirelessly to share her faith with anyone who went to visit her. One special aspect of her mission continued to be her love and concern for priests. Their fidelity to the faith and holiness was her first concern.