Thank you, Sister Mariette!

One of the Sisters on whose shoulders we stand as Sisters of Christian Charity celebrated 85 years in the convent and her 101st birthday this week!  All we can offer in return is:  "Thank you, Sister Mariette Janson" for your years of dedicated service and your example of fidelity as a Sister of Christian Charity.

Click here  to view the video coverage of Sister Mariette's celebration from WBRE/WYOU in Central Pennsylvania.

ASEC receives $15.3 million from Conrad Hilton Foundation

The African Sisters Education Collaborative (ASEC) has received a four-year grant of $15.3 million from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation to support its Higher Education for Sisters in Africa (HESA) program.  Click here for an article in Scranton's Times-Tribune with more information.  (Because Marywood University in Scranton plays a major part in ASEC, this grant is of interest to the Times-Tribune.)

The goal of ASEC is to contribute significantly to increased access to education in Africa by helping to educate women religious and enable them to acquire necessary professional credentials.

Father John Adeyi, Rest in peace

Father John Adeyi, a Catholic priest who was kidnapped in Nigeria in April, was found dead over the weekend.  Let us remember him -- and all religious who minister in dangerous places all over the world -- in our prayers.  Click here for more information.

USCCB Statement on Immigration Decision

Yesterday, the Supreme Court of the United States announced that it had deadlocked in a case which would have protected millions of undocumented immigrants from deportation and would have allowed them to legally work in the United States.  Click here to read the statement about this deadlock  by Bishop Eusebio Elizondo, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Migration.  Especially during this Year of Mercy, the last sentence of the statement is so poignant:  "People do not cease to be our brothers and sisters just because they have an irregular immigration status.  No matter how they got here, we cannot lose sight of their humanity without losing our own.  Let us pray for all of our immigrant brothers and sisters today."

Fortnight for Freedom

From the USCCB:  Each year dioceses around the country arrange special events to highlight the importance of defending religious freedom.  The Fortnight for Freedom is from June 21 to July 4.  Click here to access materials for the Fortnight for Freedom.

How We Treat Each Other

The website of the city of Orlando, Florida contains multiple updates regarding the unspeakably horrific shootings that occurred there over the weekend.  The last sentence of this update by the mayor of Orlando, Buddy Dyer,  reads:  "We will not be defined by the act of a cowardly hater.  We will be defined by how we respond, how we treat each other."  

As we sift through the layers of this tragedy, what an important thing to remember!  

We pray for the victims of this shooting, for their families and friends, for the people of Orlando and for those who are post-traumatically affected by this shooting.  We also pray for the shooter and for the conversion of hearts of those who would consider perpetrating such acts in the future.  

We are defined by how we treat each other.  Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me!

June Issue of Stop Trafficking

The June 2016 issue of Stop Trafficking -- highlighting forced labor abuses and methods to correct these -- is available here.

Pauline at 199

Today we celebrate the 199th birthday of the founder of the Sisters of Christian Charity,  Pauline von Mallinckrodt.  As readers of this blog are aware, the Sisters of Christian Charity are involved in three years of preparation for the commemoration of Mother Pauline's 200th birthday next June.  We have reported to you about the Pauline 200 mission trip to South America in July 2015 and to the Philippines in January 2016.  Additionally, weekly reflections are available on the SCC Generalate website.  Today, the Companions of Pauline around the world have committed to Eucharistic Adoration to pray for the intentions of the Congregation, the Church and the world.

In this Year of Mercy as we celebrate the birthday of Blessed Pauline, may we also remember her words in the First Draft toward the Constitutions of the Sisters of Christian Charity, written in 1849:  "Called and strengthened by God, the Sisters have chosen the vocation of Christian Charity, of mercy. . . . The Sisters should be merciful not only to those who love them, who are pleasing to them, to those from whom they receive or expect gratitude, but toward all who are in need of their care."

Let us remember Blessed Pauline today by being prayerful and acting mercifully!