News from Visitation Province
World Day of Prayer for Vocations
Sunday, April 25
Saint Joseph: The Dream of Vocation
In his message to the world for this occasion, Pope Francis turns to Saint Joseph for inspiration. Presenting Joseph as a man who heard God’s call to be a father, responded to it, and lovingly lived out this vocation throughout his life, Pope Francis invites us to spend some time getting to know Joseph better.
For Pope Francis, Joseph can be an inspiration to all of us trying to live out our respective vocations in the midst of our daily routines, be we mothers, fathers, young, single, consecrated religious, or priests.
This year, as we celebrate World Day of Vocations, let us pray in a special way for young people. May they be open to the call of God in their lives, supported in their life choices, and encouraged on the journey. And, for young women who hear the call to religious life stirring within, we pray for their courage to respond, and we ask God to bless our Congregation with new vocations.
Canadian CND Vocation Committee will be using Facebook on Sunday to announce our virtual Come and See event. Please like and share our posts.
Saint Joseph, watch over our young people and be their gentle guide on the journey.
Submitted by The Canadian CND Vocation Committee
A Lenten Journey
During Lent, our local community used a resource prepared by the Atlantic Liturgical Conference, 2021 entitled Corporal Works of Mercy. The Sundays of Lent focused on one of the Corporal Works of Mercy. Music, readings, reflections and prayers were provided. The weekly ritual concluded with a “Commitment to Action” related to one of the Corporal Works of Mercy. It was a prayerful, inspiring and challenging experience for our local community.
Gwendolyn O’Neil, CND with the Sisters of Holy Redeemer Convent
On the eve of Earth Day 2021, a device known as Moxie extracted oxygen from the carbon dioxide-rich Martian atmosphere. On a planet with no trees, this is a game changer, potentially overcoming one of the biggest challenges that restricts human travel to other planets: breathing. Without the ability to convert breathable air, humans would have to bring oxygen from Earth to Mars, an extremely costly and time-consuming undertaking.
My mind immediately goes to Genesis, when the breath of life was breathed into Adam (2:7). More than just oxygen, the breath of life is said to have infused spirit into humanity. Accepting this passage as an allegory, the breath of life becomes the evolutionary process that produced rational, thinking beings. As Teilhard would describe of humanity: ‘no longer merely to know, but to know that one knows’. The breath of life was the moment in time when we collectively ‘woke up’ and realized that we had consciousness. After all, ‘adam’ means ‘humanity’.
How appropriate that on the eve of Earth Day, a day when we are supposed to examine our environmental practices and “hug a tree”, what can be described as a robotic tree produces oxygen from a previously unbreathable environment. The creative spirit infused in every human gives us the capacity to build or destroy. To cut a tree down, or to plant a new one. To examine our wasteful practices or turn a blind eye to them. Reaching through the solar system to our nearest planetary neighbor, on the eve of this Earth Day 2021, a robotic tree was momentarily made on Mars. I admit it took a lot of money to get Moxie to Mars to prove this could be done, but imagine the possibility. I encourage you to take this opportunity to embrace your ability to create and not destroy. Let this announcement shape your Earth Day and let us celebrate the creative spirit breathed into each one of us.
Libby Osgood, CND
Happy 401st Birthday, Marguerite!
On Saturday, April 17th, in person and live-streamed, CND sisters and associates gathered to celebrate with the parishioners of St. Ann Parish which is the Native Peoples’ Mission Church in Toronto. In a moving liturgy, complete with drumming, smudging and Indigenous vestments, Fr. Wilson Andrade, CSC, connected the dots between St. Kateri Tekakwitha on her feast day with St. Marguerite on her birthday; he joked that it was God’s humour that a priest from India was celebrating the courage and vision of these two remarkable women of such diverse origins in their witness to the love of God. In a beautifully arranged display, information and reflective prayer cards celebrating Marguerite were eagerly viewed by parishioners and taken home. The popular take-aways included hand-crafted packages of seeds with an image and ‘saying’ of Marguerite on the front, prepared by one of the Toronto and Beyond Associates. The celebration became an opportunity to plant seeds of hope!
You can view the recording of the Eucharistic celebration (183) St. Marguerite Bourgeoys – St. Kateri Tekakwitha – 17 April 2021 – YouTube or search for the Holy Cross Family Ministries channel on YouTube.
Eileen Power, CND
A Birthday and A Welcome
401 years ago, Marguerite Bourgeoys was born, and we still celebrate her birthday! A few days ago, Sr. Esther Clarkin joined us at Andrews of Charlottetown – another reason to celebrate! We combined the two occasions with a special prayer service, refreshments and plenty of conversation. At this time, while the pandemic is still a concern, we extend to all of you the same blessing we sang to welcome Esther:
"May the long-time sun shine on you,
And all God's love surround you,
And the pure light within you guide you all the way on."
Réjeanne Bourque, CND
A Special Month for the Sisters and Associates in Innisfail, AB!
Our first highlight was the Consecration of our new church on April 10th. At the consecration two 1st class relics were placed in our Altar Stone, one was St. Marguerite Bourgeoys and the other was St. John Bosco. Although our Church was completed a year ago and we wanted it consecrated as soon as it was built, COVID restrictions prevented it from happening until now. It still wasn’t the perfect time but many of us were able to attend and it was livestreamed so those who could not attend in person were able to be with us virtually. The beautiful flowers were a gift from the leadership of Visitation Province! The following link will allow you to view the celebration. https://www.facebook.com/Our-Lady-of-Peace-Innisfail-Catholic-Church-536648623129585/
Our second Innisfail highlight was a ZOOM meeting with our coordinator Teresa McKerral and as a bonus Anna Rowley was on at the beginning to help us all with the tech issues that happen on a first ZOOM meeting! Thanks for your patience Anna! Teresa did a beautiful presentation on interculturality which touched us all. Our associate leadership is a Blessing for us.
Millie Hoffos, Innisfail associate
A Call to Allyship: Seeking Ways to Honour Indigenous Rights:
Several CND sisters and associates participated in this recent webinar which Monica Lambton had invited us to. The 60-minutes YouTube video made available by CSJ Communications features Father Daryold Winkler, pastor of St. Basil’s parish in Ottawa, sharing his experiences as an indigenous person as well as sharing by representatives from the Canadian Religious Conference and the Anglican Church of Canada. You can view it at https://youtu.be/jPsn5qaNVpk
Mary Myers, Kingston associate