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Celebrating 160 Years of Mercy in Geelong
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Pipers lead Sisters & guests to Mercy Cemetery for blessing & rose ceremony
Editor: On Tuesday, 3 December, Feast of St Francis Xavier, the Sacred Heart Geelong community celebrated joyfully 160 years to the day, the arrival in that city from Ireland of M. Xavier Maguire and her five companions.
The celebrations took a number of forms:
Eucharist celebrated in the Heritage Precinct in front of the College Grotto;
A blessing and rose ceremony held in the Sisters of Mercy Cemetery;
Afternoon tea shared in the Dining Room;
Launch of the book, Mother Xavier Maguire – A Women of Faith and Vision
Pipers lead Sisters & guests to Mercy Cemetery for blessing & rose ceremony
Mercy Global Presence
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MGP
December Resources Available 18 December
MGP
December Resources Available 18 December
Resources on ‘Incarnate God in Cosmos and Person of Jesus’, the fourth and final of our Global themes, will be published on the MGP microsite next Wednesday, 18 December and linked from Mercy eNews.
Presenters for December are: Elizabeth Davis rsm (Newfoundland, Introduction), Elizabeth Dowling rsm (ISMAPNG, Theological Imaginings), Corlita Bonnarens rsm (Americas, Artistic Inspiration), Margaret Mary Alamban rsm (Philippines, Grassroots Ministry), Angela Reed rsm (MIA, Mercy Global Action), Mary Pendergast rsm (Americas, Distinct Voice), Elizabeth Marrie rsm (Newfoundland, Reflective Prayer)
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MGP
MAST - the Cosmology Issue Now Available
MGP
MAST - the Cosmology Issue Now Available
The latest issue (Vol. 26, No. 2) of The MAST Journal was recently published. Editor Eloise Rosenblatt, rsm notes that this issue, “Cosmology: Our Place in Creation, the World and the Universe,” was first imagined by Elizabeth Davis rsm, Congregational leader of the Sisters of Mercy of Newfoundland who served as guest editor.
This issue is an example of collaboration and communion among academics and practitioners, men and women, Mercies and co-workers. A list of contributors and their topics can be found here.
Note: Some additional copies are available at US$10 each plus postage. Contact: Julia Upton rsm. Congregations and Institutes interested in purchasing the print ready PDF and licence to print this issue locally should also contact Sr Julia.
Vision in Action
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Mario Tozzi Natività (1943)Greetings
Final Reminder: Send in Your Christmas Greeting for Posting on Mercyworld.org
As we bring this year to its conclusion, we invite you to share a Christmas greeting with the global Mercy community.
Send in your greetings - text or text and image - by Tuesday, 17 December. The last issue of Mercy eNews for 2019 will be published on Wednesday, 18 December.
Messages to: the Editor
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Prayer
MIA Prayer Intention: Foundation Day
For our Sisters, Associates, partners-in-Ministry, Friends, Benefactors and Donors throughout the world, that on this feast we may experience our oneness in Mercy.
For the new Nga Whaea Atawhai o Aotearoa Sisters of Mercy New Zealand Leadership Team members who commence their term of office today.
Compassionate God, pour out your mercy on us and all members of the Mercy family.
Post a prayer in our online chapel.
Adapted from Morning and Evening Prayer of the Sisters of Mercy
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Photo by Mika Baumeister on UnsplashMIA-MGA
Mercy Global Action to Advocate at COP 25
Colleen Swain is attending the second week (9-13 December) of COP 25 in Madrid, Spain on behalf of Mercy International Association Mercy Global Action as we continue to respond to the climate crisis and heed the call to respond to the degradation of the earth and the displacement of peoples.
The 25th Session of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP25) commenced on December 2nd and will end on December 13th. Originally scheduled to take place in Santiago, Chile, the conference was cancelled and Spain made an offer to host the event.
Members' News
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Sr Jan photographed at the Opening of MIC, 23 July 1994ISMAPNG
Remembering Jan Geason rsm RIP
On Wednesday, 27 November, Jan Geason rsm died as a result of a fall two days earlier.
Sr Jan was President of ISMA (Institute of Sisters of Mercy of Australia) and Member of Mercy International Association from 1993-1999. Her vision and belief that 'Connectedness across the world can sustain us in our local on-going struggle for mercy and justice' led to her significant support for the implementation of online communication across the Mercy world.
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Sr Elizabeth with roses from MIANewfoundland
Convocation: Elizabeth Mary Davis, Doctor of Theology
On Saturday morning, 22 November 2019, in the chapel of Regis College in Toronto, the Degree, Doctor of Theology, was conferred on Elizabeth Davis, rsm, by Regis College and the University of Toronto. Joining her in the celebrations were Sisters from her congregation in Newfoundland (Sisters Madonna Gatherall and Patricia March) and her sister, Rose Davis. Mary Sullivan, rsm, one of Elizabeth’s mentors, and Marilyn Williams, rsm, drove from Rochester, NY to share this day with Elizabeth…
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The Congregation
Sr. Carmel McEnroy, Author Who Captured Women's Role in Vatican II, Dies
‘When a comprehensive history of women and the Catholic Church in the 20th century is written, the name of Sr. Carmel McEnroy will loom large. She penned the most insightful account to date of the 23 women auditors who participated in Vatican II. Guests in Their Own House: The Women of Vatican II was published in 1996 and the following year (1997) won the Catholic Book Award for History/Biography…’
Source: Global Sisters Report
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Stock imageAmericas
Haiti's Civil Unrest Reaches Chaotic, Disruptive Point
Marilyn Lacey rsm, Executive Director of Mercy Beyond Borders is among the religious interviewed about the unrest in Haiti in this article from Global Sisters Report.
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North Sydney
Women Empowering Women
Monte Sant’ Angelo Mercy College Alumni gathered for a beautiful afternoon of painting and creating in the grounds of Stormanston House, the Heritage Centre for the Sisters of Mercy North Sydney.
The event, instigated by the ex-students, provided the opportunity for conversation, connection and creativity, whilst raising funds for women who have been trafficked in Cebu, Philippines. The fundraising was a direct response to the stories heard at their first Mercy Effect gathering earlier in the year on the issue of human trafficking.
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Aotearoa New Zealand
Addressing Human Trafficking
On 28 November, Kathleen Rushton rsm was interviewed by Tim Lynch of GreenPlanetFM, an Auckland based radio station. The topic: *‘Kathleen Rushton on Slavery in NZ, in the work place and what is commonly called people trafficking in the USA’. *In promoting the interview Tim Lynch advised his subscribers ‘All of us have a role to play in bringing modern human slavery to an end….Be informed by visiting the Mercyworld.org website and reading Mercy eNews’.
Mercy Matters
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Resource
May Hope Be Yours: CD Now Available
Purchase the CD by Srs Frances, Patricia and Marie and support the work of St Vincent De Paul this Christmas and beyond.
Purchase from the MIC Gift shop in person or online, or from Aine McGoldrick rsm
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International Days
12 December: Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Our Lady of Guadalupe (Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe) is the Patron Saint of Mexico and Patroness of the Americas.
We wish all our Sisters, Associates and partners-in-Mercy in the Americas a very happy feast day.
School Sisters of Notre Dame have developed this prayer service honoring the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
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Resource
Mother Xavier Maguire: A Woman of Faith and Vision
by Helen Delaney rsm
Just published.
Illustrated. 127 pps including endnotes, appendices and bibliography.
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Stock imageDigital Life
Always Be Squinching and Other Tricks From a Portrait Photographer for Taking Flattering Pictures
‘How to look your very best when posing in front of the camera–even if you’re also the photographer.’
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Fact
On This Day
1988: Opening of Spiritual Life Centre, Auckland - Patricia Hook
1994: Rededication of Motherhouse after destruction by fire - Albany
Contribute a fact from the story of your Mercy congregation, institute or federation, to our online archive.
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Gospel
3rd Sunday of Advent Year A
Matthew 11:2-11
'The third Sunday of Advent used to be called Gaudete (be joyful) Sunday. It provided a mid-term break within a period of austerity or penance in preparation for Christmas. Advent is no longer celebrated as a penitential period, but rather as a reflective time of expectation and hope...'
Further Resources
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Worth Watching
Benedictus - Karl Jenkins
A unique performance of Sir Karl Jenkins' The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace conducted by Jenkins himself at the 'Sing for Peace' concert held in Berlin in November 2018 to commemorate the centenary of the end of the First World War. The concert brought together The World Orchestra for Peace and 2,000 singers from 30 countries, including seven choirs from Ireland.
Don’t miss this.
Watch/listen here){kind=logo}
Worth Knowing
Pilgrimage to Spain
SDI, Spiritual Directors International, is pleased to invite you on a pilgrimage to Spain in the footsteps of St. Ignatius. This Pilgrimage will follow the newly designed “Ignatian Camino,” or Ignatian Way from June 17th to the 27th, 2020. More information can be found here
Kathleen McAlpin rsm (Americas) will guide an ‘eight-day retreat’ based on the Spiritual Exercises and serve as a Spiritual Director for this pilgrimage.
Download the flyer)
Worth Reading
‘The Amazon Is Completely Lawless’: The Rainforest After Bolsonaro’s First Year
Using video and photographs, the New York Times documented the scale of deforestation in the Amazon rainforest under President Jair Bolsonaro. More than 3,700 square miles were razed in the past year, the largest loss in a decade.
View the presentation here)
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Worth Knowing
All-New: Review for Religious
Review for Religious: New Series is launching in 2020. The new journal will explore the vocation, theology, and life of consecrated men and women. RFR is calling for Papers & for Peer Reviewers. Further details may be found here
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Worth Knowing
Church’s Nativity Scene Puts Jesus, Mary and Joseph in Cages
‘A California congregation’s display is meant to highlight the plight of refugees and asylum seekers.’
View the imageSend suggestions and contributions for the ‘Worth’ Section 2019 to: The Editor
Members of Mercy International
‘To practice Advent is to lean into an almost cosmic ache: our deep, wordless desire for things to be made right
and the incompleteness we find in the meantime.’ Read more
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Mercy eNews
The online newsletter of Mercy International Association is published fortnightly, 24 weeks each year and distributed to subscribers via email.
For more information on the directors click here
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