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January 23, 2026, Adrian, Michigan – In a letter sent to every U.S. Senator and Representative, leaders of the Adrian Dominican Sisters expressed deep concern over “the direction we are taking as a nation. It runs contrary to the core values we hold as women of faith and uphold as citizens of our democracy.”

The Sisters wrote that they are “deeply troubled by the abdication of checks and balances we are witnessing in Washington that is resulting in unchecked acts of cruelty, violence and oppression against our people at home and threatening friends and world and economic order abroad.” They called on Members of Congress to be “true to your oath of office and to the people you were elected to serve.”

The leaders of the Congregation further added, “As members of the Dominican Order of Preachers whose motto is veritas, truth, we are deeply troubled by the pervasive mendacity in our national discourse. It is dangerous and demoralizing.” They called on Members “to help restore the virtue of truth-telling in governance.”

“We pray,” they added, “that you will take whatever steps you can to end the daily blurring of fact and fiction in our nation’s capital and to help restore the virtue of seeking and speaking truth, so essential to living and governing with integrity – and love.”

Read the entire January 20, 2026, letter.

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Members of the Adrian Dominican Sisters Leadership Council are: Sisters Elise D. García, OP, Prioress; Mary Margaret Albert, OP, and Margaret Coyne, OP, Chapter Prioresses; Sara Fairbanks, OP, and Durstyne Farnan, OP, Mission Prioresses; Patricia Leonard, OP, Chapter Prioress; Frances Nadolny, OP, Lorraine Réaume, OP, and Corinne Sanders, OP, General Councilors; and Mary Soher, OP, Mission Prioress.

January 21, 2026, Adrian, Michigan – Colorful, quilted tapestries hung prominently in the First Presbyterian Church of Tecumseh did more than mark the traditional beauty of Advent. In a unique way they also symbolized the beauty of friendships among people of different Christian traditions.

Christians throughout the world are praying for that unity this week during the 2026 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, traditionally observed January 18-25. For more than 100 years, Christians around the world have set aside an octave of prayer that one day we can fulfill Jesus’ prayer at the Last Supper, that “all may be one.” This year’s theme, “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling,” is taken from Ephesians 4:4.

The eight tapestries – gifted to the First Presbyterian Church of Tecumseh by the Adrian Dominican Sisters – were created years ago by Catholic parishioners of St. Philip the Apostle Parish in Lewisville, Texas, under the direction of the late Adrian Dominican Sisters Barbara Chenicek, OP, and Rita Schiltz, OP. Sisters Barbara and Rita designed the liturgical tapestries specifically for the church and directed parishioners in using provided materials to create the tapestries. When the tapestries were returned to the Adrian Dominican Congregation, Chief Operating Officer Jennifer Hunter offered them to the First Presbyterian Church of Tecumseh.

Pamela Adair, a member of the First Presbyterian congregation for more than 40 years, gratefully accepted the eight tapestries and used them in the church for other liturgical seasons before Advent. She has been involved in preparing the liturgical environment in the church for several years.

“I want to say how grateful we are for that beautiful gift,” Pamela said. “I do appreciate the hard work that went into them.” She noted the “fellowship that went in with them, creating something so beautiful for so many people to enjoy. That’s the window that opened when the door closed – that First Presbyterian got what the parish in Texas lost. It was divine intervention!”

Rev. Catherine King, Pastor of First Presbyterian said “the tapestries are a blessing, a gift, an acknowledgment of a relationship that has been forged.”

Pastor Catherine, who has served as pastor of First Presbyterian since 2013, recalled the many ways that her congregation and the Adrian Dominican Sisters have collaborated in areas of social justice, noting work on issues of racism and immigration issues, and a joint ministry with migrant farmworkers.

In 2019, the First Presbyterian congregation invited Adrian Dominican Sisters and Associates to join them on a civil rights pilgrimage to Selma and Montgomery, Alabama. “It was a way of deepening our understanding of our racial history,” said Sister Kathleen Nolan, OP, who recently retired as Director of the Adrian Dominican Sisters’ Office of Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Earth. She particularly recalled visiting a museum that focused on monuments to the victims of lynchings throughout the United States. “After that, several of us went to a Sunday service [at First Presbyterian] and spoke about the trip,” she said.

Both Pastor Catherine and Sister Kathleen see the long-standing relationship of the two congregations as an example of Christian unity. “Christian unity is part of the beloved community, reaching out and working together,” Sister Kathleen said. “We can’t do it ourselves. We have to build collaboration. The faith community should be a voice for collaboration, unity, and peace wherever we are.”

Pastor Catherine added: “We want to be unified around the Gospel of Jesus. We have to come back to that plumb line – what are the teachings of Jesus? It’s the hard Gospel, but it’s a Gospel of service, of poverty, of caring for those in need, loving your enemies. It’s a hard Gospel, but it is the truth with a capital T for those who follow [Jesus].” 

She added that she sees the service of two Presbyterian women with the Adrian Dominican Sisters’ Dominican Life Center as an “embodiment” of the unity of the two congregations. Rev. Cathy Johnson-Paine, an ordained Presbyterian minister, once served as a chaplain for the Adrian Dominican Sisters. Now an Adrian Dominican Associate, she offers spiritual direction. Abbie Guthrie, a member of the Presbyterian church, is currently a chaplain at the Dominican Life Center.

“We had at the Presbytery moved to accept [Rev. Cathy’s] role with the Dominican Sisters as a validated ministry of the Presbyterian Church,” Pastor Catherine said. “This is what’s right about Christian unity. It’s building these bridges. There are people doing ministry together – ongoing pastoral ministry. We are the Body of Christ universal.”

Representatives of the Adrian Dominican Sisters and their hosts, members of the First Presbyterian Church of Tecumseh, at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, the first church at which Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. served. The group traveled together an on a civil rights tour in April 2019.

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Feature photo at top: Pam Adair in the gathering area of First Presbyterian Church of Tecumseh, Michigan.