Prayers

20^Th  ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION OF THE TRANSFER

OF THE TOMB OF THE BLESSED MARIE-ROSE DUROCHER (2004-2024)

Opening Hymn: Magnificat by Taizé (or a song of your choice)

Magnificat, Magnificat, Magnificat anima mea Dominum. Magnificat, Magnificat, Magnificat anima mea.

Introduction

Friday, June 13, 2003, was the feast of Saint Anthony, the patron saint of the Co-cathedral in Longueuil.

Sister Mary Pat Le Roy, then Superior General, chose this occasion to announce to the assembled congregation the upcoming return of Mother Marie-Rose to Longueuil. Applause broke out in that usually quiet and reserved place. It is a beautiful gift to the parish, exclaimed Fr. Raymond Poisson, the pastor.  The project required extensive preparation. But today, we will recall the event itself.  Those three days of fervour and community solidarity led us to truly pave “a way to the other shore”. Sister Jacqueline Boudreau, provincial leader, had invited us to this challenge:

 Since 1925, Mother Marie-Rose has been present for all our supplications, at the heart of our Motherhouse, this venerated place, crossroads of all our meetings. She calls us to new horizons and confirms her presence in another way.

RITUALS AND VIGILS AT THE MOTHER HOUSE    

In an experience of inner pilgrimage, let us relive the great stages of this Easter triduum.  

*** On the evening of April 29, 2004, the tomb was officially opened in the presence of the Most Reverend Michel Parent, Chancellor of the Diocese of Montreal. The casket containing the remains of Mother Marie-Rose was carried in procession from the oratory to the chapel and remained there for an all-night vigil as a tribute to our mother.  

In her presence, hearts are gathered, comforted. Mother Marie-Rose is there, beyond the precious casket. She brings us together, strengthens us. Her charism unifies us. Watching her, we listen to her words; words that deeply touch our hearts. We remember her, her passion, her fire, her desire to be all for God. (Testimony)

Pause

Refrain:    I came to cast fire on the earth,

How I wish it were already burning. (twice)

 

*** In the afternoon of April 30, a pilgrimage was organized.  The procession with the reliquary, moved through all the floors of the infirmary.  With respect and reverence, the nurses and attendants formed a semi-circle of “angels in white”, as noted by one of the ailing Sisters.

 Every ailing Sister had the privilege of touching, kissing the casket … Each one offered her intentions, some aloud, somein tears, or in solemn silence. (Testimony)

 The casket was then placed prominently in the community room where the vigil continued.   

Pause

*** On the evening of April 30, a farewell ritual began with a prayer of gratitude.

Let us say it together:

Mother Marie-Rose, you believed in a future full of hope.

The moment you precede us into your new home,

May we call to mind your presence among us.

May we keep your spirit alive

by creating together, a future under the guidance of the Spirit.

Instill in our hearts a thirst for love and justice for all people.    

Pause

*** Then the moment of the great departure.  A diverse group of people stood at the main door of 1420 Mont-Royal Boulevard. Mother Marie-Rose left this blessed place as the song Je mets ma confiance was being sung. Her remains were reverently placed into the van that would take her to the convent of Longueuil where she was eagerly awaited. She will continue to look after us, wherever she is, wherever we go. (Testimony)

Song: Je Mets Ma Confiance.  My Trust Lies in You

BACK IN LONGUEUIL

*** At the convent of Longueuil, Mother Marie-Rose was greeted with great joy. Following the legal proceedings carried out by Fr. Raymond Poisson, the pastor and Fr. Jean-Pierre Camerlain, the chancellor of the diocese, a welcome ritual began. Throughout the night, a vigil of prayer and deep recollection was held. We felt the tangible presence of Mother Marie-Rose in our midst. An immense feeling of gratitude and the pride of being daughters of Mother Marie-Rose arose from our hearts. (Testimony)              

Pause

*** On the morning of May 1st, the Congregation’s Leadership Team carried the reliquary to the Co-cathedral. Children, each holding a rose, led the procession and formed an honor guard on the square in front of the church where a large number of people were gathered.

Psalm 121 Ref.  Let us go up with joy to the House of the Lord. (Adaptation)

I rejoiced when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord!”

Now we are standing in front of your doors, Longueuil.

This is where the tribes of the Lord come.

Where your people give thanks to the Lord.

*** Welcoming gestures. Before the Eucharistic celebration, Sister Mary Pat LeRoy entrusted the remains of our foundress to the local parish. She expressed the wish that they be preserved and venerated by the faithful. Bishop Jacques Berthelet of the diocese officially accepted this gift to the parish. The simple and joyful celebration ended with the placing of the remains on the tomb. Fr. Raymond Poisson testified:

I carried the casket containing the remains of Mother Marie-Rose to the heart of the congregation and placed it at the tomb. It felt heavy, as if it were filled with all the intentions and prayers of the many who touched it as I walked by.

 Pause

A festive and joyful reception was held in the basement of the church.

Mother Marie-Rose was back with us!

 

Marie-Rose, ever alive!    

What remains of you is an unassuming radiance on our milieu.

It is protection for children and families.

What remains of you is the momentum you give to our lives.

It is your faithful presence at the heart of our mission.

What remains of you is the hope that illuminates our paths

It is the certainty that God precedes us along the way.

 

Invitation from Mother Marie-Rose

I invite you to come with me

into the hearts of Jesus and Mary,

because that is where I want to stay

and where, if you wish

we will never be apart.

Final song: The Magnificat from Holden Evening Prayer (or a song of your choice)

Longueuil, May 2024

Reference “She Who Believed in Tomorrow” (Frances Allison, SNJM), Update 2015, pages 29 to 33.

INTRODUCTION

The image of our blue planet seen from space gives us the illusion that we have plenty of water. However, fresh water represents only 2.8% of the total water on the planet. We are, therefore, called to take responsibility for keeping water safe and accessible for our whole planet.

 

RIVER REFLECTION

I am the river,

I was born from the merging

of channels and rivulets.

Swollen with life and charged with energy,

I cross waterfalls and dams.

With my powerful current,

I run towards the sea.

 

Silently,

I offer life and fertility to the lands I water

and so am desolate before my changing water levels on the planet.

 

As she relentlessly follows her life’s course, the river invites you to persevere.

She teaches you that it is possible to draw energy

even from the obstacles you encounter.

The river questions your thirst for celebration

and your search for what is spiritual[1]

 

WORD OF GOD (IsaIAH 41: 17-20)

The poor and needy ask for water and there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst.

I, the Lord, will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not abandon them.

I will make rivers well up on barren heights, and springs in the midst of valleys. I will turn the desert into a lake and the dry land into springs of water.

In the wilderness I will plant the cedar, the acacia, the myrtle, and the olive. In the wasteland I will set the juniper, with the cypress and the pine side by side, so that all may see and know, so that all may observe and understand that the hand of the Lord has done this, that the Holy One of Israel has created it.

PERSONAL REFLECTION

THANKSGIVING FOR WATER

 Thank you, Loving Father, for the gift of water, powerful generator of light and electricity, inexhaustible fountain for the thirsty, renewed life for the dying or sprouting grain, and blessing for the dry land.

Blessed are you for the water of our lakes, rivers, streams, and ocean!

May all the waters of heaven and earth, the waters of our rebirths and of our baptism, make the melody of their waves be heard!

 

HYMN: of your choice

 

UNIVERSAL PRAYERS

Father, you who are source of all life, hear our prayer.

Help us to be sensitive to the needs of all creatures and all the elements of our earth.

Lord, hear our prayer.

May we feel the pulse of life in wind, rocks, mountains, waters, and deserts.  R.

May we continue to protect the precious gift of water and use it responsibly.  R.

Help us to be good stewards of the wonderful creation you have entrusted to us.  R.

LET US PRAY

We pray, O Lord, for all those who are concerned about natural habitats, clean air, and clean water. May their work to protect endangered species bring about concrete results. We rejoice when a single acre of natural habitat or a single body of water is restored. Strengthen our common resolve to work together to protect creation and to restore what has been lost. Amen.

[1]Free translation of Reine Magnan, Attends-nous la terre Abécéterre pour penser les relations entre les vivants de la planète. Éditions du Lac du Corbeau, 2007, 415 pages.

November 25, 2020 -INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR THE ELIMINATION OF POVERTY (UN)

Setting the context

On this November 25^th, International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, a day proclaimed by the United Nations, CATHII invites you to turn your eyes, your thoughts and your heart to a real case of trafficking, that of Bridget Perrier, an Algonquin Anishnaabe woman.

Factual information will alternate with excerpts from a compilation by Pierre Prud’homme (Cultiver la confiance – Novalis 2018).  The content in the boxes is inspired by an internal CATHII document: “Update: January 14, 2019 / HUMAN TRAFFICKING CASE in Canada / INDIGENOUS SEXUAL EXPLOITATION / case number 3”, itself based on several sources.

N.B.: At the time of writing, the news is recording the tragic death of Joyce Echaquan, of the Atikamekw Nation, who endured numerous insults as she lay dying at the Joliette Hospital.  Let us have a special thought for her and for all Indigenous women who are victims of racism and of contempt. 

71% of all human trafficking victims worldwide
are women and girls, and three quarters of them are sexually exploited.

SEE

* Hyperlink to source

Summary of Bridget Perrier’s testimony following her escape from trafficking:

I spent 12 years in the sex trade, between the ages of 12 and 24. Once I escaped, it took me about four years to talk about it and eight years of intense therapy to begin to heal. To this day, I am still suffering physically from the effects. I experience uterine trauma and reproductive problems, as well as nerve pain due to the physical violence and torture I endured. I continue to suffer emotionally. I need to sleep with the lights on and I cannot tolerate being taken by surprise. I am always afraid of the basement, where the washing machines are. I don’t go to the basement unless my dog is with me. I am filled with anxiety when certain types of men are around. I lost my innocence and my adolescence because of men who needed sexual access to my body.

JUDGE 

“We place before you the open wound to our very dignity that we feel when faced with the atrocities and inhuman acts that are multiplying throughout the world against too many of our sisters (…).    We entrust to you our confusion mixed with a sense of anger and revolt at such contempt for human life.”

ACT

Means used by the victim to get out of this exploitation:

• Called her adoptive mother to come and get her.
• After the birth of a second child, entered a halfway house in Toronto.
• Worked to stay away from her former milieu and obtained her diploma in social work.
• Co-founded “SEX TRADE 101” in 2007 (lobby group against sex trafficking).

 “In communion with Jesus of Nazareth, we (…) offer you our determination to strengthen the glimmer of hope that still animates us by uniting our efforts to open up paths to peace by means of our words and actions.”

“Thus inspired by your Spirit, at times of killing, we will offer instead times to heal; at times of destruction, we will answer with times of building; after times of crying, we will propose times to laugh; once the time of mourning is over, we will free up time for dancing; during times of war, we will invest our time for peace.”

“And so that ‘Your Kingdom come and your will be done’, we will replace a time to hate with a time to love.” Amen!

INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR THE ELIMINATION OF POVERTY

A little bit of history on this 17^th day of October:

One hundred years ago, on February 12, 1917, Joseph Wresinski was born in France in an internment camp for foreigners. From his family, he learned to resist humiliating judgments and to believe in others. In 1957, having become a priest, with the inhabitants of an emergency camp in a region of Paris, he created a movement that has become global – the ATD Fourth World Movement.

On October 17, 1987, he launched this appeal engraved, in French, on the square of human rights in Paris: “Wherever people are condemned to live in poverty, human rights are violated. Uniting to enforce respect for these human rights is a sacred duty.” October 17 has been recognized by the United Nations as the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. This calling should be engraved in the hearts of all of us who work in Christ’s vineyard.

Source: (https://www.atdquartmonde.ca/blog/2019/02/13/joseph-wresinski-linsoumis/)

SEE:

In the context of the current pandemic which has opened us, more than ever, to what is essential in life and in our own lives, we look to the most vulnerable … and women are unfortunately still among this category of people who fight fiercely on a daily basis so that their families will be safe and have everything they need.

“It is hard to imagine the terror of women and girls who are victims of sexual trafficking during a pandemic. These human beings find themselves without resources, destitute and desperate, and are at a greater risk of being subjected to situations of appalling exploitation.”  (Translation of text by Julie Miville-Dechêne, 13 mai 2020, le Devoir)

JUDGE:

“Observing, listening, questioning those who live in poverty is an approach which requires a very great humility and availability. Humility tells us that this poor person has something to teach us and readies us to accept the consequences of what we have learnt.” (Translation of a text by Fr. Joseph Wresinski)

ACT BY PRAYING: Come and see

Lord

I have looked at the world.

Lord,

I have looked at my sisters and brothers.

I have seen the misery of the poor

and I have heard their silence.

I have seen all these people

who do not matter to anyone;

children abandoned by their parents

and parents abandoned by their children.

I have seen hospitals and cemeteries,

the whole mass of the oppressed who are rejected,

those we despise,

all those who work without having a say,

who have been given no responsibility.

I have seen all those who are helpless

to defend their rights.

I have seen those who hunger and thirst for justice and the crowd of the bruised and the resigned.

I have seen the violence and the blood of wars.

I have also heard, like a murmur of great waters,

the silence of the poor and the anger of the young and the elderly.

And I have felt it was your silence and your anger

because you are Father and it is your own children who are being bruised and humiliated. It is you who are rejected and scorned.

And, in the silence of the little ones and in the anger of the young and the old,

I have heard your call, discreet and insistent, saying: “Come and see”.

 

Give us a new heart, a heart of flesh, a beating heart.

Give us new eyes, eyes that see and ears that hear,

eyes that see in the night and ears that hear the silence -the silence of your call,

the silence of your silence.

And do not leave us alone.

(Text inspired by P. Grostéfan)

Celebration for October 6, 2020

MARIE-ROSE DUROCHER,

HER LIFE, AN ANSWER TO GOD’S CALLS

Time to recollect ourselves: (soft music)

Opening prayer (alternating)

Loving God, you called Eulalie Durocher into life

and you led her to places she would never have imagined.

You called her by a unique name known only to You.

You made her aware of the slightest movement

of the Spirit,

 

You shaped her path according to the rhythm of your calls.

You gave her the strength to commit her whole being

to following Jesus and Mary

with love, trust and openness.

 

We give you thanks

and ask you to strengthen our gift of self each day. Amen.

 

Response: Following Jesus (Ed. Du Cénacle.T. and M.Dubé – Translation)

To follow Jesus, to be his witnesses

On the path of the Gospel;

Presence of love, sign of hope

In the midst of our world:

This is our daily gift.

 

Leader:

I encourage you to live a life worthy of the calling

to which you have been called. (Ephesians 4:1).

 

Our religious consecration, a personal response to a divine call, is rooted in our baptismal commitment and expresses it more fully. (Constitutions no. 17)

All throughout her life, Mother Marie-Rose responded to the inner calls of the Spirit by using, as best she could, the gifts she received from God.

 

Let us give thanks to God for the gifts of presence and closeness to God and others given to Mother Marie-Rose.

 

Lector: In her family, Eulalie received an education imbued with faith. At a very young age, she opened up to the mystery of God. She recognized God’s greatness while also welcoming him as a close, loving companion. She found God in Jesus and Mary and in the Eucharistic presence that was food for her soul and consolation in days of suffering. Her enduring trust in God gave her the energy needed to accomplish her mission. In the simplicity of her daily life, she knew how to integrate the important dimensions of contemplation and action. She put all her joy in God.

 

Response: God, my joy          

God, my joy,                                                         God, my joy,

you are the breath of my life,                               you have made of my poverty

you are the source of my singing,                          your abode of silence

you are the rhythm of my blood,                            where every being can adore you

you are the fire that animates me.                        in the secret of your presence.

1. Lebret, Translation

(Moment of silence)

 

Leader:

Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people. (Matthew 4: 23)  

 

In so far as you did this to one of the least of my brothers or sisters, you did it to me. (Matthew 25: 40)

 

Let us thank God for the gift of active charity given to Mother Marie-Rose.

 

Lector: Moved by a great desire to consecrate herself to God, Eulalie carefully discerned her vocation for many years. Under the protection of Jesus and Mary, she developed her personal gifts and received the mission to “cast fire on the earth”. She thus fostered life around her, contributing to the growth of each person she met, wherever she went. Her spiritual intuition allowed her to discern the needs of her time and propose creative responses. Initially a lay person committed to the poor, the sick, young girls and families, she later felt called to leave Beloeil for a daring adventure that awaited her in Longueuil.

 

Response: Following Jesus

To follow Jesus, to be his witnesses            Lord, you call us to follow your path

On the path of the Gospel;                          You, O faithful God, have chosen us.

Presence of love, sign of hope                     Keep the fire of your love in our hearts

In the midst of our world:                           That we may proclaim your closeness.

This is our daily gift.

 

(Moment of silence)

 

Leader:

I am among you as one who serves. (Luke 22, 27)

 

Our foundress guided our Congregation with wisdom and courage while serving the sisters in a spirit of humility. (Constitutions, no. 86)

 

Let us thank God for the gift of compassionate leadership given to Mother Marie-Rose.

 

Lector: A creative unifier, Mother Marie-Rose attracted others by her gentle, courageous personality which radiated joy. Her skills as a leader and organizer were founded on intelligence, sound judgment and business savvy. She had a sense of justice that demanded respect in all circumstances. She recognized the gifts of others and knew how to attract collaborators through her pastoral and educational activities.  She participated in the Oblate mission of evangelization, lived co-responsibility with the clergy and her companions, and gradually took her place as a woman in the Church and in society.

 

Response: Following Jesus

To follow Jesus, to be his witnesses          Lord, you call us to follow your way:

On the path of the Gospel;                        You love us, You who gather us together.

Presence of love, sign of hope                   Guard in our hearts a thirst for unity

In the midst of our world:                         That we may proclaim your presence.

This is our daily gift.

 

(Moment de silence)

 

Leader:

I urge you, then, remembering the mercies of God, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God. (Romans 12: 1)

. . . our religious vocation is a call to follow Christ and to entrust our whole being to the transforming action of the Spirit..  (Constitutions no. 71)

Let us thank God for the gifts of strength and resilience given to Mother Marie-Rose.

 

Lector: For Eulalie, following the path of service meant experiencing the hardships of the Cross: fragile health that thwarted her plans; the death of her mother; feeling like an exile in the Beloeil presbytery due to the hostility of the servants and the coldness of her brother; along with uncertainty. Twelve years of parish and social commitments and of growth in spiritual maturity would prepare her for her mission as a foundress, a mission which was confronted from the outset with opposition from her own family.

 

In Longueuil, she would experience great suffering: skepticism from the parishioners; financial problems because of Father Brassard; the schemes of Father Chiniquy who wanted to influence the Community, etc. Calumnies and internal divisions threatened the survival of the Congregation. Eulalie experienced herself as unfit to lead it and suffered in soul and in body. She confided herself to Mary and found in this “good mother” both comfort and the strength to surpass herself. At the moment of her death, in a final detachment, she returned her Sisters and her Congregation to God, saying, “God will take care of you. This is God’s work.”

Response: Following Jesus  

 

To follow Jesus, to be his witnesses On the path of the Gospel; Presence of love, sign of hope In the midst of our world: This is our daily gift.

Lord, you call us to follow your way. You, our hope, have blessed us. Kindle in our hearts enthusiasm for the future So that we may proclaim your marvellous deeds.

 

Commissioning: (Leader)

Let us go forth in the peace of God, allowing our path to be traced out by the Spirit. Amen, Alleluia! Amen, Alleluia!

 

Questions for those interested in further reflection:

• What heritage has Mother Marie-Rose left us? How are we living it in the context of our present time?
• How does our foundress still inspire us today, both as individuals and as a Congregation?
• What message for the future might she be offering us at this precise moment in our history?

 

Province of Quebec,

Simone Perras, SNJM

PRAYER

Suggested by CATHII

(Action Committee against Internal and International Human Trafficking)

March 25, 2020 – Feast of the Annunciation

At this time of border closings due to the corona virus, we carry in prayer those at risk of being trafficked, the vulnerable, families and individuals in migration, who might be rejected at border crossings or who have no access to protection or medical care. Let us pray also for the women who are in very vulnerable situations in their own homes or who are homeless on streets and roads throughout the world.

INTERCESSIONS:

Lord, we pray for all people who are met with injustice, inequality and sexual slavery.

Help us to recognize and confront rampant discrimination

against those who are rejected in any way.

1. Where there is hatred, let me bring love.

Lord, console all people who are struggling amidst the darkness of slavery

or of rejection because of racism or their status as immigrants.

May we stand with them in the light, recognizing their pain

and taking action to eliminate the causes of their suffering.

1. Where there is despair, let me bring hope.

Spontaneous intentions…

Let us pray:

God so Totally Other, so different from any other, we ask your forgiveness for any intolerant, exclusive and hurtful attitudes and actions on our part. Strengthen us in creating networks of solidarity with individuals and organizations so that we may guide those who risk becoming victims of exploitation, racism or exclusion, towards a better life where they will be welcomed, respected, recognized and appreciated for who they are.  Amen.

Prayer inspired by Prière pour nos différences (Prayer for our Differences)  www.portstnicolas.org

Visual: a globe, a painting of St. Josephine Bakhita, large iron chains and an unlit candle

Leader:

Today, we celebrate together the sixth World Day of Prayer and Reflection against Human Trafficking. In many parts of the world, trafficking is a scourge that strikes everyone without distinction, but above all the poorest and those who in various ways can be defined as “the least”, those “discarded” by our society. Those who live on the margins and the weakest, such as women and children, are the first victims of injustice and abuse. May Saint Bakhita intercede for us and for the many “Josephine Bakhitas” of our time.

Entrance hymn of your choice

Leader:

We present some stories of commitment against trafficking – stories of desperation, poverty, courage.

Reader 1: (A Story from Uganda)

“I worked in a chemical factory in Uganda. After I got sick because of an allergy to the materials we used, I had to quit my job. I bought a small kiosk to sell food to passers-by. Everything was fine, until I was tricked by an agency that offered me work in the Middle East. I thought I was being offered a great opportunity but found myself in a situation of domestic slavery. I worked endlessly and received no food or compensation.”
                            [One minute’s silence with only the sound of the chains]

Reader 2: (A story from Italy)

“I had decided to leave my country, Nigeria, after the death of my father. I wanted to help my mother and my brothers. When I arrived in Italy with the promise of a job, I found myself on the street, under the control of a Madame who subjected me to physical and psychological violence. I thought that once I had paid my debt I would be free from this nightmare. But they kept demanding more and more money. Alone and without documentation, I ended up in prison, even though I was the victim…”

                            [One minute’s silence with only the sound of the chains]

Leader:

“If there are so many young women victims of trafficking who end up on the streets of our cities, it is because many men here — young, middle-aged, elderly — demand these services and are willing to pay for their pleasure. I wonder then, are traffickers really the principal cause of trafficking? I believe the principal cause is the unscrupulous selfishness of the many hypocrites in our world. Of course, justice demands the arrest of traffickers. However, the real solution lies in the conversion of hearts, in eliminating the demand in order to dry up the market.” (Pope Francis, Address to the participants in the World Day of Prayer and Reflection against Human Trafficking, February 12, 2018)

Reader 3: A reading from the book of the prophet Ezekiel

“I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove the heart of stone from your body, and I will give you a heart of flesh. I will put my Spirit within you and make you keep my laws, and respect and practice my judgments.” (Ezekiel 36: 26-27)

Reader 4:

When our hearts are indifferent to the pain of our sisters and brothers,

                             All: Loving God, free our hearts.

When our minds refuse to find out whether what we use and consume has been produced by slave workers,

                             All: Loving God, free our minds.

When our eyes can’t recognize others as our sisters and brothers,

                             All: Loving God, free our eyes.

When our ears block out the cry for freedom,

                             All: Loving God, free our ears.

When our hands and feet become instruments of violence against others,

                             All: Loving God, free our hands and feet.

The candle is lit as the leader says:

Each person can be met, consoled, listened to. Together it is possible to break the chains of slavery. In this way, life stories can become stories of rebirth, hope, dignity.

Reader 1: (Conclusion to the Story from Uganda):

“Desperation led Jessie to flee and thankfully she managed to get to the embassy. For her, it was the beginning of a new life: they brought her to our community, which took care of her, giving her food and clothes and giving her back her dignity. One day she asked us if she could return home: she often thought of the happiness that that small kiosk she owned only a few years earlier had given her. So we helped Jessie to obtain the documents and make contact with her country of origin. Today she lives in Uganda and we are continuing to support her on her journey of reintegration into work and society.”

Refrain of a song

Reader 2: (Conclusion to the Story from Italy):

“When I met Maryam in prison she told me her story and I decided to help her. So I convinced my community in Sicily to welcome her into our home so that she could live out her prison term under house arrest. During the subsequent years Maryam has managed to transform her life and to help many young people who, like her, had fallen into the hands of traffickers. Today she is happy: she is a mother with a beautiful family, working as an educator in our community.”

Refrain of a song

Leader: Let us pray, together.

When you cry, the Beloved hears and comes to you;
your troubles disappear.

How often the Beloved weeps with compassion
over those who are crushed in spirit.

Though we are beset with many fears
that cause illness and troubles.

The Beloved is ever ready to lighten our heavy hearts,
to ease our burdens, to confort us in our sorrows.

The Beloved renews the life of all
who surrender to Love.

(Psalm 34 – Psalms for Praying by Nan C. Merrill)

Reader 3: A reading from the Gospel of John

 My command is this: Love one another as I have loved you.  Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.                                           (John 15:12-13)

Leader:

Our first call is from Love, and responding to Love is necessary and urgent because only Love can bring peace and give meaning to our lives. We are called to bear fruit in Love: gestures, words, feelings and behaviors which manifest to those around us the deep affection of our God. In uniting our lives to the stories we hear and to the people around us, we commit ourselves to overcome indifference and to transform the world around us.

Closing hymn of your choice

Text edited by Giovani Impegno Missionario (GIM) and the youth of the Community of Pope John XXIII and adapted by Claudette Bastien, s.n.j.m.

(Adaptation of a prayer prepared by the Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Commission of the International Union of Superiors General)

As we come together to celebrate the International Women’s Day, we join our sisters and brothers throughout the world remembering that “the care we have for one another leads us to engage with the pain and suffering of all people and creation” (USG/UISG).

 

THE WOMAN NEXT TO YOU (1)

Look around Sisters, look around you!

WHO IS THE WOMAN sitting next to you?

 

The woman next to you is an inexhaustible reservoir of possibility…

With possibilities that have never been completely realised…

Full of necessity and possibility…dread and desire…smiles and frowns…

laughter and tears…fears and hopes…

all struggling to find expression.

 

The woman next to you is striving to BECOME something in particular,

to arrive at some destination…to have a story… a song…

to be known and to know…

 

The woman next to you believes in something…

something precious…

stands for something…counts for something…

lives for something…

runs towards something.

 

The woman next to you…has problems and fears, wonders how she is doing…

and often doesn’t feel very good about it…

is often disorganized and sometimes close to chaos…

but endowed with great toughness in the face of adversity…

and able to survive great difficulties.

 

The woman next to you is a colony of persons…

persons all met during her lifetime…

father and mother, friend and enemy.

 

The woman next to you has something she can do well…

something she can do better than anyone else in the whole world…

there is something that she and she  alone can do…but she may not dare speak of it to you.

The woman next to you can live with you, not just alongside you…

she can live, not just for herself, but for you, also…

she can comfort, encounter, understand you if that is what you want…

and in turn she wants to be understood, too.

 

The woman next to you…can never be fully understood…

she is more than any description or explanation…

she can never be fully controlled nor should she be.

 

The woman next to you is a MYSTERY…

and the WORD MADE FLESH is MYSTERY.

The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us… and so my Sisters and Brothers,

look around you… for CHRIST IS HERE, HE DIED and IS  RISEN,  ALLELUIA!

 

[1] Please note in the above poem that use of the term “woman” can also signify any person.

 

Reflection and Sharing:

• Who is the woman whom Jesus looks at in the synagogue, and how does He relate to her?
• What things today bend or hold back the life of people, particularly of women?
• Which are some of my personal experiences of having been “straightened” by the Lord or having witnessed the liberation experienced by others?
• Can we see in this action of Jesus a graced opportunity to reach out with compassion?

 

Prayer for all women in difficulty

May God bless you and be with you in your time of deep sorrow and pain.

Through our tears, may you know that God weeps with you.

By our touch, may you know that God’s arms are holding you.

In our endeavour to assist you, may you know that God is helping you to cope from day to day.

Through our prayers, may you know that God hears your plea.

And in the desolation you suffer, may you know that we bring God’s love to you to filter into those empty spaces his compassion and understanding.

(Taken from: Marjorie Dobson in: A World of Blessing, Compiled by Geoffrey Duncan, Canterbury Press, 2000)

Prayer adapted from an anonymous text

God looked at everything He had made and found it very good.

Genesis 1: 31

 

We do not exist outside of nature or above nature

or independent of nature —

we are simply its most vulnerable part.

— Joan Chittister

 

Prayer

O God, Holy Spirit, whose breath gives life to the world

and whose voice is heard in the soft breeze,

come to us, be among us;

speak to us through your creation.

 

Lessons from Creation (from Ute prayer)

Earth, teach us freedom

as the eagle which soars in the sky. Earth, teach us regeneration

as the seed which rises in the spring. Earth, teach us to forget ourselves

as melted snow forgets its life.

Earth, teach us to remember kindness

as dry fields weep with rain.  — from Ute prayer

 

Prayer before Reading Sacred Scripture

O Lord, open our minds and hearts

so that we may hear and act upon your Holy Word.

 

Wisdom of Solomon 11:24-12:1

For You [God] love all things that exist, and detest none of the things that you have made, for you would not have made anything if you had hated it. How would anything have endured if you had not willed it? Or how would anything not called forth by you have been preserved? You spare all things, for they are yours, O Lord, you who love the living.  For your immortal Spirit is in all things.

 

Matthew 6:26 and Luke 12:6

Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet our heavenly Father feeds them.

Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies?  And not one of them is forgotten in Godʼs sight.

Reflection

As we are called to see ourselves and each other as earthen vessels that hold God’s presence

and bring God’s gifts to the world, so too, our world and all that is above, around and within

it are earthen vessels – just as easily shattered, just as much in need of our loving attentiveness

and support. May our hearts and hands align with God’s so that we will respect and live in

harmony and interdependence with all creation.

 

Sharing: on texts above or on an action you are prepared to take to help save our planet

 

A Prayer of Healing

Response: We join with the earth and with all of creation.

To bring new life to the land

To restore the waters

To refresh the air                 R.

 

To renew the forests

To care for the plants

To protect the creatures     R.

 

To celebrate the seas

To rejoice in the sunlight

To sing the song of the stars         R.

 

To recall our destiny

To renew our spirits

To reinvigorate our bodies            R.

 

To create the human community

To promote justice and peace

To remember the children            R.

 

We are full of the grace of creation.

We are grateful.

We rejoice in all life.

 

Hymn: For the Beauty of the Earth (or one of your choice)