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| Mother Maria Pia Backes |
After the death of Madre Catalina, the
beatas were disheartened and disoriented. Suddenly they realized none of
them had her experience of religious life or knowledge of the process for
affiliation to the Order In addition the beaterio was in a ruinous state
and needed many repairs. They first approached the Bishop of Léon, Rev.
Sr. Emeterio Valverde y Téllez for advice. He readily granted permission
to leave to the cloister to make arrangements to
repair the house and recommended they contact the Dominican Friars at San Luis
Potosi about affiliation with another Dominican congregation. This
they did but the encounter they were told that their Dominican habits were but
a subterfuge and that the rule by which they were living was completely unlike
the rule of Third Order Dominicans. Undeterred they went to the curate of
Parroquia San Miguel, Don J. Refugio Solís for another idea. He wrote to
the Archbishop of México, Don José Mora y del Rio who convinced the provincial
of the Dominicans in México, Fray Domingo María Fernández, O.P., to take us
their cause. The Archbishop also recommended they contact the superior of
a Dominican congregation from California who had only recently arrived in
Mexico City. They wrote immediately to Madre Teresa Meyer, the superior
of the California community in Mexico. Finally they were given some hope,
she understood their dilemma and promised to write to her Major Superior, Madre
Maria Pia Backes in California. At the end of November 1919, they
received a favorable reply.
