Vol. XXXVI, No. 10 USA– July 2015

A month ago, we celebrated our Province Assembly-Chapter; the theme was: “Widening the Circle creating communion”

With this, we expressed what our Sisters did in the past when they left the USA to go to other countries to share life and mission. Countries such as, Papua New Guinee, Ghana, Aus-tralia, and more recently to Antigua, St. Kitts and Jamaica… it also expresses what our Sisters did here, right at home, going to the South, to work in education, and similar ministries in many other places.

During the first day of our Assembly-Chapter, we listened to many different reports, which gave us a glimpse of our Province’s multiple ministries; I would also like to acknowledge those ministries from which we did not hear much because of lack of time. THANK YOU! For your dedication and efforts to widen the Circle and create communion wherever you are and with whatever you do. Thank you for your efforts to be open to the inspiration of the Holy Spirit; This was evident when we defined the Province’s Mission Statement:

We, Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters, are an international religious commu-nity of women disciples. Empowered by the Holy Spirit we invite people to a deeper communion with the Triune God by living and proclaiming the Gospel of joy, love, peace, and justice. In dialogue with people of di-verse cultures and traditions, we minister together with them in promot-ing human dignity, life-giving relationships, and care for all of creation.

Sr. Monica Mabel, SSpS

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Echoes from the Chapter

“I enjoyed the Chapter!

The atmosphere was friendly

and enthusiastic !”

“It was wonderful! It was really

good and well done!“

“I enjoyed having the opportunity to be with the Sisters from all the different com-munities and especially liked the bible shar-ing and the liturgy where each community showed their creativity, gift, and talents.”

- Sr. Edel Maria Deong

“It was good. The Sisters looked liked they really enjoyed it and everyone was partici-

pating. It was smoothly run.”

- Willie

“ To take us forward as a province, the assem-bly chapter was a shared time accompanied by God in mutual listening, dialogue and decision making.”

- Sr. Anita Marie Gutierrez

“The best part of the PCh was the oppor-

tunity to harness the energy of being to-

gether to reflect on and rejuvenate our

commitment to the mission in this Prov-

ince. This happened during the carefully

planned meetings, liturgies, and the bits

of time in between.”

- Sr. Dorota Piechaczek

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Province Recreation Day

Who doesn’t enjoy having fun? It was a day filled with gratitude and laughter. We all came together as a Province to celebrate Province Day, Mother Leonarda’s Day. Our day began with the Eucharist, dedicated to Mother Leonar-da.

Our morning session started with an excel-lent presentation by Sr. Anita Marie on Mother Leonard’s vocation journey beginning in Ger-many and ending in the United States of Ameri-ca. Mother Leonarda was a great and prayerful woman. Her love for the Sisters and mission were her priorities. During challenging times, many times during the night when the Sisters already in bed, Mother Leonarda was still pros-trated on the floor praying before the Blessed Sacrament, praying for the needs of the Sisters, the Province and mission. Her life will be re-membered and will be told. Her spirit is still alive in each Sister and the Paraclate USA Prov-ince.

We also enjoyed “Jeopardy” led by Sr. AnnIta Walsh. Separated into groups of 5 or 7, the Sisters tried to answer the jeopardy ques-tions. There were no prizes, only fun. When we got the right answer, Sr. Margaret Ann Norris, gave out candy.

In order to show respect to Mother Leonarda and our dear Sisters who have gone before us, we went to visit the cemetery before dinner. We believe that our Sisters are in heaven and they are praying for us.

In the afternoon, we had an ice cream social and a graduation celebration for the Sisters who had completed their studies. A spirit of joy per-meated the afternoon. After supper, we had some cultural entertainments; dancing, singing, and telling jokes.

We concluded our Province recreation day with a beautiful prayer service dedicated to Mother Leonarda, led by the Sisters from the St.

The 2015 Retreat was preached by Fr. Antho-ny J. Gittins, CSSP from July 12 to July 17 at the Convent in Northfield. The topic of the retreat was Discipleship in a variety of situations and callings. The conferences were geared to all age levels but Fr. Gittins stressed the fact even though some of us were no longer in active min-istry, we were still Disciples and God is not fin-ished with us yet. Therefore, let us continue to be aware that we are Disciples.

Sr. Marie Angela Risi, SSpS

Dr. Anthony Gittins has taught Theology and Cultural Anthro-pology at the Catholic Theologi-cal Union in Chicago since 1984. He has held the Bishop Ford Chair of Mission Theolo-gy, and is currently Professor of Theology and Culture.

Sr. Judy Vallimont and

Sr. Sara J. Guardado

Retreat with Anthony Gittins

Professor Emeritus Dr. Anthony Gittins M.A., M.A., Ph.D.,

University of Edinburg University of Cambridge

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Joint Jubilee Celebration

On July 18, 2015 a number of SVD priests, Brothers and novices, along with a good num-ber of SSpS Sisters gathered at Techny Towers to celebrate the 30th annual Joint Jubilee Cele-bration of the United States Provinces of Saint Arnold Janssen’s Religious Congregations. Be-gun in 1986 by Rev. Raymond Lennon, SVD, the

tradition has continued to be celebrated each year, alternating yearly between the Convent of the Holy Spirit and Techny Towers.

This year six Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters, three Sisters of the Holy Spirit of Perpetual Ado-ration, and forty-four Priests and one Brother SVD celebrated anniversaries of Profession or Ordination. Both Jubilarians, Rev. Michael Hutchins SVD was the celebrant of the Eucharist and Brother Bernard Spitzley SVD gave the re-flection after the Gospel. After renewing their vows, the Jubilarians were presented with Mis-sionary Crosses by the two Provincial Superiors, Rev. Thomas Ascheman SVD and Sr. Mónica Mabel Balbuena SSpS.

After the Liturgical Celebration a festive meal was served to all in the Indonesian Room. It is always a joyful celebration and one that serves to bring members of the Congregations closer to one another.

Sr. Priscilla Burke, SSpS

Srs. Elwira Dzuik, Maria Elisabeth Klodt,

and Rose Therese Nolta

On Monday, June 29th, the Holy Spirit Life Learning Cen-ter (HSLLC) opened its doors to welcome children and youth from the Rogers Park neighbor-hood to the 2015 Summer Peace Camp. Through the Summer Peace Camp, our goal is to teach peace as a fruit of faith and help participants de-velop non-violent skills for dealing with conflict inside and outside their homes. The Camp will run until July 31st, Mon-day through Friday, from 9:00 am to 3:15 pm. A total of 44 children ages 4-14 are partici-pating in the program.

The main activities of the Camp include Bible sharing, arts and crafts, puppetry and drama, and learning games. On the first day, all the children planted their seeds for peace (flowers & chili peppers), and they will take care of them for the duration of the Camp. The children cannot wait for them to bloom! In the final week, there will be a performance by the participants and an exhibit of their arts and crafts.

For the adults, we are offer-ing a Bible study program eve-ry Tuesday, from 6:30 pm to 8:30. On the first day, June

30th, a total of seven partici-pants were present and we ex-pect the number to grow for the second session. We thank the Sisters, staff, volunteers, donors, and friends for all their support before and now during the Camp.

Ms. Arantxa Martinez, M.A.

2015 Summer Peace Camp

Sr. Margaretha Ada together with the children for Bible sharing

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Renewal of Vows

On June 28, Sr. Skolastika Wea (Epworth) renewed her 4th religious vows at the Cathedral of Saint Raphael in Dubuque, IA. The celebra-tion was simple but solemn. She renewed her Religious Vows during the 5:30 pm Mass that

was celebrated by Rev. Msgr. Thomas Toale to-gether with four other SVD members. The Ca-thedral was packed, as many people came for Mass

After the Mass, everybody was invited to al-so join the reception and program that was held at the parish hall. During the program, Sr. Skolastika shared her vocation story and ex-pressed her gratitude to everyone who has giv-en her love and support.

Sr. Edel also shared a slideshow presentation about the Divine Word Missionaries, Missionary Sisters Servants of the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit Sisters of Perpetual Adoration. It was also followed by a Power Point presentation (movie) “One Heart, Many Faces.”

Sr. Monica Mabel, SSpS

Visiting Mississippi

Sr. Marie Angela Risi had the opportunity of traveling to Bay St. Louis via New Orleans, Louisi-ana where the Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters had taught at St. Rose de Lima School from 1924 to 1976. It was this class that was celebrating their 50th Anniversary at the school reunion this year. The three day celebration took place from July 3rd to 5th, in the parish hall, Holy Spirit Center, with a closing Mass at St. Rose de Lima Church on Sunday morning.

“St. Rose de Lima School in Bay St. Louis, Mis-sissippi was my Promised Land from September 1952 to June l955. Unlike Moses who could not look back at his Promised Land, I had the hum-bling experience of being invited to celebrate with the Alumni. It so happened that I was the First Grade teacher of the graduating class from high school in 1965’ who had been in my class in 1953. I was able to meet and share with so many students and parishioners who I had known so many years ago.

During the three day celebration everything had been so amazing and I felt the spirit of good-ness was on everyone and everything on which my eyes focused,” so she reminisces.

Sr. Marie Angela Risi, SSpS

Sr. Marie Angela with her former students

Sr. Skolastika Wea

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Living Passionately as Religious-Missionary Women

Sisters Sara J. Guardado, Yina Ni, Skolastika Wea and Uloma Akpa participated in the Junior Seminar at Techny from the evening of July 15 to July 19, 2015. The first and last days were led by Sr. Rose Therese Nolta and Sr. Carol Welp led our recollection.

Sister Skolastika shared the following: “I was really touched by three points during our recol-lection: to look to the past with gratitude, to live the present with passion and to embrace the fu-ture with hope. We looked back to our SSpS in-heritance in Mother Maria Helena as a model with her spiritual symbol: bamboo as a channel of love. Mother Josepha's image of God was a “good God” - the Abba of Jesus. We found that some behavior draws us away from the living today with passion: our apathy and lack of vi-sion, riches and attachments, fears and lack of courage. Personally I learned to be aware of the signs in my life so that I can live in the present with passion. The last point gave me motivation to embrace my future with a real hope.” Other Sisters joined us then for three days.

Sr. Yina shared the following: “Dr. Mary Butler gave new information and training dur-ing this Junior Seminar. The method of Inten-tional Dialogue helps us to have more maturity

when we are involved in our community con-versation. For example, it is important to mirror with “What I hear you saying is”, “Did I get you? “ “Is there more?” Another example, take

care of our 80 first, soothe ourselves and be

connected to our inner child. These will be al-ways very important in our daily community life. Thanks be to God that as Junior sisters we have had this wonderful opportunity to study. At the same time, I also appreciate the PLT. Thank you for the support.”

Sr. Rose Therese Nolta, SSpS

Drivers Training

If you missed the Driver’s Training here are some important things to remember:

By law, it is required to have a copy of the car insurance and the owner’s registration card. Both found in a black card holder in the glove box.

In case of accident, refer to the emergency tip card found in the middle console or the glove box. Contact Roadside Assistance listed in the Network Driver kit (a trifold orange pamphlet) which is also in the glovebox. Lastly, KEEP YOUR FLASHERS ON!

Some important dashboard signs:

Waring sign for low tire pressure

Warning signal: service required

Low fuel notification

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Our Lady of the Assumption School Graduation 2015

Our Lady of the Assump-tion Catholic prep. School had its inauguration “Crossing-Over” ceremony on Tuesday, June 30, 2015 at 3.00 pm. The ceremony was spectacular. The procession began with a march while two boys bearing the Ja-maica and School flags, a fe-male student placed in the middle carrying the certificates of the graduates. The eight (8) students followed, while the congregation remained stand-ing.

Devotional exercise led by Fr. Dominic Pham, SVD was next on the program. Both scripture passages were read by students of the graduating class. It was now time for Ha-ley Lucas, a Pre-K student, to welcome the over 100 persons attending. Next, Masters Aiden Grant and St. Lawrence George introduced the chairman and the guest speaker respectively. The keynote speaker, Mr. Mar-vel Francis, spoke on our theme “I Can.” He addressed the audience, in particular par-ents of and, the graduating class.

For entertainment, through-out the program, we had the recorder group, Mr. Gavaundo Hamilton, the school and the graduating class performing. The acting principal, Mrs. Magaret George, presented the school report for the year 2014-2015. This was followed by the valedictory address done by

Master Neo Xavier, one of the first students to be registered at O.L.A Prep.

The grade K2 graduates sang:

I can live, I can love I can reach the heavens above, I can right what is wrong, I can sing just any song. I can dance, I can fly, And touch the rainbow in the sky. I can be your good friend, I can love you until the end…

This song received thunder-ous applause from the audi-ence, endorsing that it was well received.

The presentation of certifi-cates and trophies were offici-ated by teachers-Mr. Shoy Grant and Ms. Rashemia Reid. All members of the graduating class received certificates. Oth-er certificates were given for-Best Attendance, Exemplary Behaviour and Academic Ex-

cellence. Trophies were also given for the latter. Mr. Drys-dale, the volunteer teacher, gave the vote of thanks.

The National Anthem was sung followed by the recession of the Graduating Class of 2015. We missed the presence of our Principal Sr. Theresa, SSpS and our Pastor Fr. Frank Power, SVD. But we are as-sured that they have kept us in their prayers. O.L.A prep has come to the end of a milestone on our journey towards suc-cess. We thank all persons for their assistance and we look forward to continued growth, support and success for our school.

Sr. Rosalia Galmin, SSpS

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Holy Spirit Catholic Preschool Graduation

This year is the fourth year since its opening in September 2011 of our Holy Spirit Catholic Preschool in Molineux, St. Kitts. Our Paraclete Province took the initiative four years ago to meet the educational needs of children in St. Kitts especially Molineux by opening this pre-school. Our purpose of opening this preschool is to support parents in providing solid Christian and educational foundation for their young chil-dren especially children from low income fami-lies. Recently, we had 30 students. Among them 6 graduated on July 5th 2015.

It is our privilege, to have the opportunity to serve the children and their struggling families in Molineux; bringing hope for a better future for them and their children through education.

Along with our option to serve those in need, last June, we started a sewing class for women as part of our 125th Jubilee Project. The purpose of this sewing class is to give parents, especially mothers, the skill in order for them to start their own sewing business to help their family have steady income for their daily sur-vival.

We would like to invite you to be part of our mission here in Molineux, St. Kitts by your prayers and donating what you can. The future is unknown, but the present is within our reach. Let us unite our efforts to help others in need. It is our calling to stand by and help those who are struggling in life. Thank you and may God Bless you and your good hearts abundantly.

- Sr. Julita Bele Bau, SSpS

Sr. Julita with students

Appointments

Sr. Xaveriana Ngene left for New York on July 29 and joined our communi-ty there.

Sr. Genobeba Da Costa Amaral will move to the New York Community on August 13th and will begin her internship at VIVAT International for a peri-od of three months.

We wish them all the best in their new assignments and may the Holy Spirit’s grace and blessings be with them always

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St. Joseph Church youth group traveled from Memphis, TN to Chicago for their field trip. We enjoyed the hospitality of the Holy Spirit Mis-sionary Sisters of the Holy Spirit Life Learning Center. The sisters and their staff welcomed us with open arms and hearts. It was truly in the spirit of our founder, St Arnold Janssen. The sis-ters gave up their space for us.

The 18 Hispanic youth enjoyed our time in Chicago so much. We visited the Cathedral, the

Chicago Art Institute, the Field Museum, the Baha’i Temple, the Convent of the Holy Spirit and the SVD campus in Techny, IL, among oth-er places.

The youth were so excited to visit all those places. It was a cultural and spiritual experience for them that helped them learn while having a good time. Through the year they did fundrais-ing in order to cover all the expenses. There-fore, it was a well-deserved reward for them, and also an effort to expose them to religious life, as we have stated in our Parish Pastoral Plan.

We thank the sisters of the learning center and Techny, as well as Fr. Abelardo Gabriel, SVD who provided help with transportation to places we could not use public transportation.

Fr. Tony Romo, SVD

Youth Group Visiting Chicago

It has been 3 months since we started our program here. At the end of June, we were happy to have Sr. Josephina Kudo, SSpS visiting us here in Tagaytay. She spent almost a week with us before heading back to Japan. It was a very nice experience for us, especial-ly for me; that I was able to see her again and of course to spend some times with her in music.

We started the month of July in presenting our own cultures. At the end of each presentation we had to prepare a

cultural meal to the group. It took about two weeks to finish all the presentations. For the last two weeks in this month we are reviewing all the Encyc-lical and Church official docu-ments. It is a very interesting topic for all of us and I am sure that each one of us really en-

joys the sharing. In between, we still go for our ministries: to the slum families and their children, the people in the jails and the disabled orphan chil-dren. Of course our activities are not only for our ministries but also learning, listening, sharing and praying.

We also spend our time to-gether to go for an outing. Just recently we went out to visit a park nearby here and Our La-dy of Manaoag. Life has treat-ed me so well here and I am very grateful for the program and especially for my compan-ions on the journey.

Sr. Aprilia Untarto, SSpS

Greetings from Tagaytay City, Philippines!

The group of Tertianship Sisters with Sr. Josephina Kudo

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Lay Volunteers

In the process of discerning any new com-mitment, I always feel a nagging pit in my stomach. “Do you really think you can do this? Are you sure this is where God is calling you?”

So I wasn’t surprised when I felt that famil-iar nag while my husband, Chris, and I were visiting the Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters in Techny, IL. Hearing the stories of these coura-geous women, witnessing their faith, friend-ship, and hospitality, learning about their min-istries and the bountiful fruits born from their labors, more than once I had to swallow that fear, “What can Chris and I offer? Are we way out of our league?”

But when Sr. Anita Marie shared the story of Sr. Leonarda, my doubts were allayed (at

least temporarily). Here was a young woman of faith, brand new in her religious vocation, called to be a missionary in a foreign land, with only 47¢ in her pocket. Of course, she had so much more than 47¢; she had the support of her community and the faith that in all her lim-itations, she was the woman God had called for His purpose.

There are so many questions that Chris and I cannot answer about our call to missionary work. All we can say is “here we are” with all our limitations; here we are, completely reliant on the Spirit. We are so grateful to the Sisters for sharing their home and stories with us and for their continued support, wisdom, and guidance as we discern our lay missionary call-ing.

Chris and Rachel Gilman

From Our Readers

Many thanks for the Province Bulletin. My connection with the SSpS has been very close over the years. I was Chaplain to the Convent and Lecturer in Liturgy and Theology in the 1960s. Between 1970 and 1990 I celebrated the Sacred Triduum with the Sisters 17 times! But I have now been away from the States for almost twenty-five years and I find that I no longer know most of the Sisters mentioned in the Newsletter. However, I still enjoy reading about your "new" personnel as well as about those I still remember and the many activi-ties the Sisters are involved with. My greetings to the Sisters who might still remember me.

Fr. Larry Nemer, SVD

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Sharing God’s Love and Light

It was on December 13, 2014. Brother Linh SVD, two students from Divine Word College, and I made our second trip to Saint Bernard Church in Minnesota for a vocation talk.

On Sunday Father Joseph, the parish priest, met us after Mass. In the past he translated our talks into their language, but this time they did not need a translator, they were ready to listen and speak English well. Brother Linh spoke about formation in the Society of Divine Word. The main theme was “His Mission is our Mis-sion”. Beginning with speaking about St Arnold Janssen who followed Christ’s footsteps, Brother Linh spoke about the founding of the three con-gregations, the SVD, the SSpS, and the Holy Spirit Sisters of Perpetual Adoration.

I talked about vocation as a calling of the Ho-ly Spirit. We are called to share God’s love and the light of Christ’s gospel with all the people. The members of our community, Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters, are in forty-nine countries and we minister to the entire church wherever we are sent. I gave a presentation and shared the celebration of the 125 years of our Mission. I used pictures of our sisters in mission helping the elderly, children, women and all humankind as a continuing ministry of Jesus Christ.

I asked the young people to say anything that they felt about the presentation, and to ask what they would like to know about vocations. One girl said she felt all people need help. A few others said they like helping people and would

like to share their gifts. Others said their dream is of becoming a missionary and experience dif-ferent cultures. Many of the youngest ones were quiet and shy. I invited them to come and see our community, but told them that only those who are 18 and older would be able to enter the community. When they heard that the young ones felt unhappy. I told them we will be in touch with them. I was touched by their interest in wanting to become a missionary and to visit our Community/ Congregation.

In the above picture, all the girls are interest-ed in our Congregation, but below these are the only five girls who are eighteen years old. One of them was missing in this picture.

It was a wonderful opportunity to be with these young girls. We shared our meal together with much joy and laughter. “Thank you” to our Province who supported us.

Sr. Rebecca Chaan David, SSpS

“ I long to give my love and my whole life to the service of spreading the Gospel.”

-Bl. Maria Helena

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Emmaus Group Gathering

Where there are religious, there is joy. On July 18 -19, 25 Sisters Emmaus Group (Sisters in finals vows ages 25 to 60) gathered in North-field, to share God’s love and joy through pray-er, sharing and fun during our Recreation Day. On the evening of July 18 ,we gathered in Voca-tion Office to express our joy through music, dance and playing cards.

On July 19 in the morning, Sr. Dorota led the Emmaus Group in prayer and reflection at the Library.. We began our prayer with the song “Wake up the World.” We remembered with gratitude our call to religious missionary life and we move forward to live the present with passion and to embrace the future with hope. In the morning, Sr. Dorota invited us to look to the past with gratitude. Recounting our history is essential for preserving our identity, for strengthening our unity as a family and our common sense of belonging. The sisters shared their experiences, how they bring the sources of our Charism to their personal and community prayer. Are our ministries, our works and our presence consonant with what the Spirit asked of our founder and foundresses?

We also reflected on: Is Jesus really our first and only love as we promised. He would be when we professed our Vows? Each Sister picked a saying about joy by Henry Nouwen. Some of them shared a prayer, or reflection on the verse they got.

After lunch we continued reflecting on living the present with passion. We asked ourselves about the way we relate to people from different cultures, as our communities become increas-ingly international. Some sisters shared their gratitude for the goodness and the love we re-ceive from God. And the last, we reflected on radical Prophetic Mission: “to wake up the world.” How can we give witness to the radical-ism of the Gospel in concert circumstances of our life? Sisters were invited to share their dreams and hope. How can Emmaus Group members be helpful in living prophetically in communities and in our ministries? Our prayer, reflection and sharing on this gathering have been enriching to our calling to be witnesses to the world.

At the end of our recollection, we gave thanks and gratitude to our past leaders : Srs. Elwira, Edel, Angelica and Julita, for organizing this group. We elected four new Emmaus Group leaders for the next two years: Srs. Dorota, Xa-veriana, Alexis and Paula.

It was a very fruitful day for the Emmaus Group to experience God’s love and joy through our prayer, sharing and also recreation. Our gathering was ended with a cookout, BBQ and enjoying food, music and dance together.

Sr. Xaveriana Ngene, SSpS

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Prayers Welcome!

Sr. Claudia Paola Benitez, a jun-ior Sister, from Misiones Argenti-na arrived on August 9th to join our Province for one year. She we will be staying in Grayslake and will be studying English at the College of Lake County.

Let us continue to pray for all our elderly Sis-ters and for all those who need our prayerful support.

Home Leaves

Sr. Mónica Patricia Darrichón went for vacation to Argentina on July 10 to the begin-ning of September.

Sr. Elwira Dziuk left for Poland last July 21th and will return by the middle of Septem-ber.

Renewal of Vows

Sr. Sara Juarez Guardado will renew Vows on August 23rd in Memphis, Tennessee

Sr. Rebecca Chaan David will renew Vows on August 29th in Epworth, Iowa

Sr. Uloma Akpa will renew Vows on Sep-tember 6th in Waukegan, IL

The logo of our Province Assembly-Chapter held on July 8 to 10, 2015 is shown below:

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Summer Bible School 2015

In the early 1900’s, the Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters, in col-laboration with the Divine Word Missionary (SVD) priests and Brothers, established Cath-olic “mission” schools in Mis-sissippi and Arkansas. Alt-hough the children were pre-dominantly non-Catholic Christians, their parents valued the religious, value-centered education. Also, the schools provided a viable way for Catholic evangelization of fam-ilies. In the mid-1980’s, due to a number of circumstances and mission needs throughout the world, the focus of mission shifted from formal education-al programs to more socio-pastoral initiatives.

Today, our Sisters continue life and mission in Mississippi and Arkansas through the Sum-mer Bible School in Greenville and Indianola (Mississippi) and Pine Bluff (Arkansas).

From June 8 to 12, three groups of SSpS Sisters and sev-eral lay companions from the parishes accompanied children, ages 5 to 13 for the Summer Bi-ble School during which the children were guided through prayer, Scripture reflection, art, music, and other activities to grow in their relationship to God and others as persons of reconciliation and peace.

It was beautiful to experi-ence the children’s sincerity and simplicity as they quietly

centered themselves in prayer! Our parish helpers were amazed as they observed the children so peaceful and still in prayer.

Parent and parishioner vol-unteers generously shared their time and talents with the chil-dren and assisted the Sisters throughout the program. The children received a good break-fast and lunch each day and had time to socialize with one another. They planted flower seeds as a symbol and remind-er of our theme “Planting God’s Garden of Reconciliation and Peace.” At the conclusion of the program, they presented a short program for their par-ents, grandparents, other rela-tives and friends where they shared some of the experiences of the week and received a cer-tificate of participation as a re-minder to be children of recon-ciliation and peace in our world.

One parent expressed grati-tude to all who made this expe-rience possible, saying “Our children had fun getting closer to God and experienced that God so loves them.”

Sr. Mary Miller, SSpS

Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters: in the United States and in the Caribbean

Northfield, IL Grayslake, IL Epworth, IA Antigua

Waukegan, IL Chicago, IL Memphis, TN Jamaica

New York, NY St. Kitts

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Pope Francis’ second Encyclical, Laudato Si: On Care for Our Common Home, offers an extensive theo-logical account of humanity’s responsibility to earth, while touching on several environmental themes, including environmental degradation and consumerism, but also on its connection to issues such as poverty and global inequality. Laudato Si translates to “Praise be to you,” from the first line of St. Francis of Assisi’s Canticle of the Creatures. In the encyclical, Pope Francis urges us to enter into an honest dialogue with one another about the future of our home—a dialogue that ad-dresses the root causes, includes everyone in the conversation, and uses everyone’s gifts. Only then will we be able to solve the problem. Pope Francis calls for an “ecological conversion” to change the way we encounter this planet. “Living our vocation to be protectors of God’s handiwork is es-sential to a life of virtue.” (217)

Laudato Si is divided into six chapters: What is Happening to Our Common Home; The Gospel of Creation; The Human Roots of the Ecological Cri-sis; Integral Ecology; Lines of Approach and Ac-tion; and Ecological Education and Spirituality. One of the major themes running through many of these chapters is the intimate relationship be-tween the poor and the fragility of the planet. A glimmer of hope also flows throughout the encyc-lical. “Humanity still has the ability to work to-gether in building our common home… All is not lost. Human beings, while capable of the worst, are also capable of rising above themselves, choos-ing again what is good, and making a new start.” (205)

Among our five Congregational Directions is Communion with Creation. “The Spirit has taught us

to see that our mission to share ‘life in fullness’ encompasses not just all people, but all of creation.

We realize that Mother Earth has been violated and deprived of her dignity. As she suffers, so does

all life.” As Missionary Sisters Servants of the Holy Spirit, we are dedicated to evaluating our life-

style and our ministries through the lens of integrity of creation. We are committed to justice for

JPIC Corner — August, 2015

Your Guide to Laudato Si

Photo courtesy of mariashriver.com

Continued on next page...

“Many things have to change course, but it is we human beings above all who need to change.” (Laudato Si, 202)

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creation, and we engage in ministries that protect and promote the life and wellbeing of all creation

(Congregational Directions, 2015). It is our hope that

by advocating, educating, acting and praying together

on these crucial concerns, we can learn from each other

and grow closer to Pope Francis’ vision of a healthy re-

lationship between humanity and nature; one that

acknowledges our inherent dignity and responsibility

to the most vulnerable.

Your Guide to Laudato Si (continued)

The St. Francis Pledge

I/We Pledge to:

PRAY and reflect on the duty to care for God’s

Creation and protect the poor and vulnerable.

LEARN about and educate others on the causes

and moral dimensions of climate change.

ASSESS how we—as individuals and in our fami-

lies, parishes and other affiliations—contribute to

climate change by our own energy use, consump-

tion, waste, etc.

ACT to change our choices and behaviors to re-

duce the ways we contribute to climate change.

ADVOCATE for Catholic principles and priori-

ties in climate change discussions and decisions,

Excerpt from A Christian Prayer in Union with

Creation from Laudato Si

Triune Lord, wondrous community of infinite

love, teach us to contemplate you in the beauty of

the universe, for all things speak of you. Awaken

our praise and thankfulness for every being that

you have made. Give us the grace to feel pro-

foundly joined to everything that is.

God of love, show us our place in this world

as channels of your love for all the creatures of

this earth, for not one of them is forgotten in your

sight. Enlighten those who possess power and

money that they may avoid the sin of indifference,

that they may love the common good, advance the

weak, and care for this world in which we live.

The poor and the earth are crying out. O Lord,

seize us with your power and light, help us to pro-

tect all life, to prepare for a better future, for the

Resources:

USCCB

http://www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/human-life-

and-dignity/environment/

Catholic Climate Covenant

http://www.catholicclimatecovenant.org/act/advocate

Catholic Relief Services Photo courtesy of NETWORK

“There can be no renewal of our relationship with nature without a renewal of humanity itself.” (Laudato Si, 118)