Helga Leija

Sr. Helga Leija is a trained and experienced translator and a  Benedictine Sister of Mount St. Scholastica in Atchison, Kansas. She joined Global Sisters Report as Spanish liaison in July 2022 and became the Columns Editor in July 2023.  She earned a bachelor's degree in translation studies from the University of Texas in Brownsville and a master's in religious studies from the University of the Incarnate Word. She has served as a preschool, elementary and high school teacher in bilingual and dual-language classrooms. She volunteers for Translators without Borders. She enjoys art journaling and cooking Mexican food.

By this Author

Sr. Helga Leija works on her piñata for Epiphany. (Courtesy of Helga Leija)

Offering our gifts to others: Revealing Christ's presence at Epiphany

GSR Today - The sisters said the piñata was too pretty to break, but that is the whole point of it! It is about sharing culture and creating memories. It is about sharing a part of myself that points the way to Christ.

Two photographs sit on a table with a white lace tablecloth with a black rosary and orange poppy in front of them

Day of the Dead: The triumph of memory over oblivion

We still believe, like our ancestors, that during these days, the strength of our love and remembrance grants the souls of our loved ones a temporary return home to the world of the living.

(Unsplash/Ross Sneddon)

Exclaustration: Not a matter of fidelity

I realize, as I look back at my time in exclaustration, that although difficult, it was also a time of grace, growth, and an outpouring of goodness.