Sure you must be thinking, “So how does this contribute to peace and social justice?”   Well, Sr. Karen Nykiel attends to this, all while working diligently in the efforts to implement peace and social justice.  She is a part of organizations such as the Rotary Club, where she’s treasurer, and Pax Christi, where she’s President; she also spent time working for The Catholic Campaign for Human Development, and did we mention she’s a Benedictine Sister?

All this is not being said to brag, but more so to give a testimony, you see Sister Karen developed polio at the age of one and has dealt with the effects of that her entire life, but yet somehow she continued to go on.  Instead of concentrating on what she could not do, she focused on what she could.  Because of her great spirit, the world was blessed with an inspirational worker for peace and social justice.

When asked when it was she became involved with peace and social justice issues, Sr. Karen responds, “I always have… at my final vows I made a banner that said, let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.”  Sr. Karen feels that living peace is an ongoing process and that to achieve peace you must first start with yourself.  “You can’t just go to one conference and have it,” said Sr. Karen.  Peace is also practiced in her classrooms at the College of Dupage.  “People have said I have the cleanest (chemistry) lab in the school.” says Sr. Karen, “The students never swear in class, not even when they break something.”

            Sister also practiced peace when she faced an act of civil disobedience.  In 1980 she and a group of nuns went to the Pentagon to protest for peace.  One of their acts would be to bury five Benedictine medals at the five corners of the Pentagon.  However, with no rain and dry hard ground facing them, the sisters knew the only way to bury the medals would be to use a knife or spoon, all which were against the law to have on the premises of the pentagon.  Anyone found with any of these items in their possession would be arrested and charged with civil disobedience.  Fully aware of the consequences, the sisters decided to bury the medals anyway.  On the day of the burial, the sisters joined in prayer and started digging. Immediately the police surrounded them, fully dressed in their riot gear.  The women knelt down, started to dig and placed the medal in the freshly turned soil.  They did this for the other four corners of the Pentagon.  When they were done, the women were a bit surprised that they had not been arrested and charged.  “I went up to one of the officers and said, so what happened,” says Sister Karen, “and the officer replied…  'we couldn’t be a witness, I have to go to church on Sunday.'”  It turns out that when the officers formed a circle around the sisters, they turned their backs to them; law says that if the officers do not witness the act of disobedience being done, it was not done.

            Currently President of Pax Christi Illinois, Sr. Karen admits, “There are three things Pax Christi does and that is Pray, Study, and Act."  And in 2000, Pax Christi was called to do just that. 

      “Marilyn Lemak’s neighbors came to our first meeting and asked for our help,” said Sr. Karen.  Lemak, a Naperville resident, was facing the death penalty for the murder of her four children.  Strongly against the death penalty, Pax Christi developed a monthly prayer service, researched and contacted the appropriate people and fought to save Lemak from the death penalty.  “We had the resources and we knew who to contact,” says Sr. Karen about the case.  “We stood with her family at the trial, and they attended our prayer service.”  In the end, she was sentenced to life without parole.  More good has come from her living than her death.  Three months after the case was decided, the Governor of Illinois announced a moratorium of the death penalty.  “And Marilyn is currently on medication and teaching other women how to use the Internet,” said Sr. Karen.  “Something good can always happen.”

Sr. Karen feels positive about today’s youth. “I see a lot of hope in the youth,” says Sr. Karen.  She admits that the success of our youth is also on the shoulders of adults.  “Children need to see you on the corners as they walk to school and work.” “They don’t need a hand in the window, rather they need a body on the porch, they need to know they are safe.”  In the future, she would like to see more youth groups sistered with other youth groups.  In a hope that if they find community and love here, they won’t go looking for it in gangs and teen pregnancy.  She also believes that schools need to “plant the seed of peace” in children at every stage of their education.  One way to do this would be to institute peace study programs and conflict resolution programs in every Catholic school.

            Sr. Karen hopes that more people become aware of the organizations and people working for peace and social justice.  “The information needs to get out,” she proclaims, "information such as the Rotary Scholarship, which will pay for the graduate education of an individual wanting to study peace."  

            “It’s all about making people aware,” and Sr. Karen Nykiel  has dedicated her life to doing just that.  Highly accessible to the people, she enjoys talking about the issues and possible ways to solve them; she would someday like to write a book.  Anyone interested in contacting Sr. Karen can reach her at srknykiel@aol.com.  Let peace begin on earth and let it begin with me.

by Mystique Adams