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2022 Programming: Call for Presenters
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MIA Retreats and Programming
Many in our Mercy community have written in the past few weeks inquiring about in-person programming at Mercy International Centre. While we are still navigating lockdowns due to COVID-19 here in Ireland, MIA is very optimistic about opening Baggot Street in 2022. As we look to the future, the staff has started planning and scheduling retreats, programmes, and workshops for the next calendar year.
In our planning and in your messages, we are mindful of how many in our community have talents, expertise, and experiences to share in a retreat or workshop setting. With this, we would like to invite anyone who is interested in facilitating a workshop, hosting a programme, or leading a retreat at Mercy International in Dublin, or virtually, to please submit the Call for Presenters form…
Vision in Action
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Communications
Transition in Digital Communications
Communications
Transition in Digital Communications
On 30 June, Anne Walsh will be finishing more than twenty years of being central to MIA’s efforts in communication. Anne was part of introducing MIA into the possibilities of a digital world all those years ago. I thank Anne, and am sure the Mercy World will be deeply grateful to her for what she has achieved through the role.
COVID-19 has exacerbated the difficulties of working between Dublin and Melbourne over a distance of over 17,000 kms when normal working days do not overlap at all. Even between the MGA office in New York and Melbourne there is a distance of over 8,000 kms and significant time discrepancies. Prior to 2020 Anne spent significant time in Dublin each year. There is a need now for MIA to integrate communication more extensively and more easily into its day-by- day activities.
A new position, Digital Communications Manager to be located in Dublin, has been created. An advertisement for the position can be accessed here. It will be appreciated if you could share the advertisement through any relevant contacts or networks you may have.
—Berneice
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MGP
Mercy Global Presence May Gatherings: Update
MGP
Mercy Global Presence May Gatherings: Update
Over 100 members of the Mercy Network have already registered for the May Pentecost Week Gatherings on 25-27 May.
The focus of the May gatherings will be on Themes One and Two ‘Contemplative Seeing’ and ‘Compassionate Heart’ from Segment Four, ‘Integrated’.
We invite you to share at your chosen gathering the fruits of your reflections on the posters created from these thematic presentations.
Members of the Mercy network who have already registered their attendance will receive a confirmation email of their booking and the link to download the posters and reflection guides by this Friday evening, 14 May.
The posters and reflection guides will feature in next week’s Mercy eNews and be available for download from the site.
Bookings for each gathering remain open until the day before it is held and all are welcome to attend the gathering (or gatherings) that suits you best.
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Prayer
MIA Prayer Intention: Afghanistan Car Bomb Attack
Prayer
MIA Prayer Intention: Afghanistan Car Bomb Attack
Let us remember in our prayers the victims killed and injured in the bomb attacks in Kabul, Afghanistan last Saturday. Among the deceased were many young girls who bravely chose to attend school, overcoming obstacles that hinder education for so many in their country.
May we, whose education ministries take as inspiration the words of Catherine McAuley, that no work of charity can be more productive of good to society than the careful instruction of women… (Rule and Constitutions, Chapter 2) be strengthened in our resolve to ensure that girls and boys equally have every opportunity to achieve their potential.
Post your prayer in our online chapel
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MGA
MGA to Participate in Laudato Si' Week
MGA
MGA to Participate in Laudato Si' Week
Mercy Global Action will participate in Laudato Si’ week 2021, to be held virtually from May 16th- 25th. Hosted by the Global Catholic Climate Movement (GCCM) with the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and endorsed by over 150 organisations, including MIA, the week will provide opportunities for reflection, prayer and action for our common home. You are invited to participate in the events of this week and can register your interest by clicking here.
Significantly on May 17, GCCM will broadcast an event entitled Laudato Si Dialogue…
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Redevelopment of MIA Shop
Redevelopment of MIA Shop
Throughout the pandemic the MIA Shop has continued to function online. After staff discussion, it has been decided that we should pause activity with the shop, from the date of this Newsletter, Wednesday 12 May, for a few months in order to give time to reorganise the physical shop here at Mercy International Centre, and the on-line version on the MIA website. Pausing the shop will allow MIA to enhance our online offering and processes. You will be notified through the newsletter and website when activity is resumed. If you have a special request during this time, please contact staff and we will do our best to meet your needs.
—Berneice
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MIA
MIC Reduces Carbon Footprint
MIA
MIC Reduces Carbon Footprint
MIC was the recipient of generous donations supplemented by a grant from the Irish Government to assist with retrofitting 64a Baggot Street to make the house more energy efficient. We are proud to inform you that three Air-to-Water Heat Pumps were commissioned last week. The heaters throughout the house are now operating effectively again after three weeks without heating.
The closure of the house is not something we would have wanted but it has made it possible to carry out this project with minimal disruption. The opportunity was also taken to install thick insulation into the ceilings throughout the main building and this has been very effective in reducing heat loss. We will not be introducing tours of the ceiling, but will be pleased to have visitors experience the house as well-warmed while a significant reduction has been made to our carbon footprint!
Sincere thanks is due to Avril Tyrrell, Facilities Manager, who led and coordinated this project.
—Berneice
Members' News
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North Sydney
MGP Theological Imaginings: Compassionate Heart
Those amongst us who have read the Theological Imaginings on the current MGP theme of ‘Compassionate Heart’ by Carmel McDonough rsm (North Sydney) from which the above image is taken, know that this presentation on the Abdallah family tragedy recounts a true story of heartbreak and grace, of experiencing the unthinkable and finding strength and the ability to forgive.
There have been further developments in the family’s story since Sr Carmel’s presentation was published, including the announcement of Leila Abdallah as “Mother of the Year” for her ‘inspiration to all mothers on dealing with life’s worst events with calmness, inner peace and love’.
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(L-r) Srs Johanna Conway, Catherine Harris, Anna ConwayParramatta
Accompanied and Held
Sunday, 18th April, 2021 held great significance for us, the Sisters of Mercy Parramatta, as well as for our Centre’s Administration Staff, representatives of some of our ministries and sponsored works, and the Sisters of Mercy Callan, Co. Kilkenny Ireland Community joined via video. This date marked the dedication of a Founders Chapel - a ‘small chapel within a chapel’ - created in one of the precepts within the Mother Mary Clare Dunphy Chapel which was formally consecrated and opened in 1939.
It all started with the ‘dream’ of one of our Irish sisters, Johanna Conway from Mullinavat, Co Kilkenny. Her hope was to have the precept which contained the tomb of Mother Mary Clare, Superior of the Congregation’s founding community from Callan, dedicated as a place for quiet and prayer…
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Staff members at Casa Corazón de la MisericordiaAmericas
Sisters of Mercy Orphanage in Honduras Nurtures Children Living with HIV
‘SAN PEDRO SULA, HONDURAS — Nestled among the homes, small shops and narrow streets of Colonia Perfecto Vásquez in San Pedro Sula, the sisters and staff at the small compound of Casa Corazón de la Misericordia (Heart of Mercy House) have quietly ministered to HIV-positive children for more than 25 years.
Established in 1995 by Mercy Srs. Masbely Del Cid, founder and administrator, and Sandra Hernández, nurse and care coordinator, the orphanage has served more than 1,000 children who have come through its doors in the past quarter century…’
Source: Global Sisters Report
Laudato Si' Week: 16-25 May
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Resource
Celebrate Laudato Si' Week
‘Laudato Si’ Week 2021, to be held May 16-25, will be the crowning event of the Special Laudato Si’ Anniversary Year, and a celebration of the great progress the whole Church has made on its journey to ecological conversion.
Laudato Si’ Week 2021 will also be a time to reflect on what the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us and prepare for the future with hope’
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Resource
Re-read and Reflect on Laudato Si'
Laudato Si’ Week is a perfect time to re-read and reflect on the encyclical. Text and audio versions of the encyclical have been collected on our website. Additional resources made available on Mercyworld.org which you might like to consult include: Summaries, Readers Guides, Audio and Video Reflections, the Laudato Si’ Guidebook, the Mercy Partners Laudato Si’ prayer package and the 9 Days of Prayer using Prayer for our Earth
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Resource
Participate in the Laudato Si' Week programme
To find out more about Laudato Si’ week and learn how to participate in an event or action, download the week’s programme in English or Spanish or visit the Laudato Si’ week website for information and opportunities to be involved
Mercy Matters
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Resource
Spring Sabbatical for Women Religious
We at Mercy by the Sea are delighted to announce a Spring Sabbatical for women religious, a time for rest, prayer and reflection, solitude and commmunity…This sabbatical will be limited to eight persons who will enjoy sweeping views of Long Island Sound from Seascape, a separate but elegant house on the grounds of Mercy by the Sea…
Dates: March 20-May 1, 2022 at Mercy by the Sea
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Gospel
Feast of the Ascension, Year B
Mark 16: 15-20
‘The feast of the Ascension invites us to face the universal experience of loss, the loss of a loved one or of something precious to us, and to face this experience in a transformative way. In Ordinary Time, we celebrate the life and ministry of Jesus. Over the period of Lent and Easter, we have been re-membering his death and resurrection. The liturgy now draws us into another aspect of the Mystery, that of the presence and absence of the One who has been raised…’
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Immaculate Conception window, Baggot Street chapelResource
Full of Grace
The Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales is producing a series for May, ‘Full of Grace’, publishing the Hail Mary in a different language each day. Website visitors are invited to pray along, listening prayerfully to the day’s language recitation or joining in should it be a language you know.
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Fact
On This Day
1852: Foundation to New Haven, Connecticut From Rhode Island - M Camillus Byrn (Catherine's god-child)
1880: Foundation to Mt Gambier from Adelaide - M Baptist McDonnell
1911: Foundation to Goodna, Queensland from Brisbane - M Scholastica McNamee
Contribute a fact from the story of your Mercy congregation, institute or federation, to our online archive.
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International Days
15 May, International Day of Families
Saturday is International Day of Families. Let us remember and give thanks for each of the members of our own families and all who are ‘like family’ to us. May our relationships be strengthened. May any conflicts be resolved. May love bind us together.
Let us be particularly mindful of all those mourning the absence of family members dear to them and whose family relationships are being tested, including: the recently deceased, victims of COVID in quarantine and in hospital, separated parents, refugees, prisoners, the homeless, runaways and trafficked persons.
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Digital Life
How to Make a Google Form: A Complete Guide
‘Google Forms is an app with a lot of reasons to recommend it. It’s simple to use, easy to share, and it’s got a clean interface. Chief among its best features is that Google Forms is free.
Anyone with a Google account can use Google Forms…’
Further Resources
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Worth Watching
Humanitarian Action Explained by Trócaire
Trócaire, the official overseas development agency of the Catholic Church in Ireland, has just released the first in a new series of short videos which explain key global justice issues. This first video explains Humanitarian Action. It addresses the following: What is a humanitarian crisis? Why do we need humanitarian action? How can we put local communities at the heart of responding to a crisis?’
Watch the video here (10:06))
Worth Watching
The World of Finance: Pope's Prayer Intention for May 2021
Let us pray that those in charge of finance will work with governments to regulate financial markets and protect citizens from its dangers.
Watch the video here)
Worth Watching
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Worth Watching
Our Planet, Our Future
‘The first Nobel Prize Summit brought together Nobel Prize laureates, scientists, policy makers, business leaders, and youth leaders from 26-28 April 2021 to explore the question: What can be achieved in this decade to put the world on a path to a more sustainable, more prosperous future for all of humanity?’
Read the call for action from the Summit here and
Watch videos from the Summit here
Send suggestions and contributions for the ‘Worth’ Section 2021 to: The Editor
The Bottom Line
‘Most of us have figured out that we have to do what’s in front of us and keep doing it… Every time we choose the good action or response, the decent, the valuable, it builds, incrementally, to renewal, resurrection, the place of newness, freedom, justice…’
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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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