On this day, I pray in deep awe, wonder and gratitude to my good, gracious, and creative God who managed to break through and lead me to finding my heart and mission in the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace.
On this day, I pray in love, friendship and appreciation for the amazing women (pictured below) who have entered the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace either with me or in the years since. While I may not know what the future will hold for our world, Church or religious community, I know that I will be walking in the way of peace with these women.
On this day, I pray in hope and solidarity with and for young women who are considering that maybe, just maybe, God might be calling them to religious life. As I ponder the future of religious life and my congregation, I return again and again to these words from Margaret Anna Cusack, known in religious life as Mother Francis Clare, the founder of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace. She said: "We are beginning a new order. We want brave, noble, large-minded, courageous souls." Indeed. These words are just as true today as when she first wrote them.
I also find myself reflecting on the words of Bishop Edward Bagshawe at the first profession of Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace in Nottingham England in 1884: "You will hope, if God blesses your work, to sow the seeds of peace in modern society."
Please join me in praying for our three Novices (Sisters Juliana, Katrina, and Sheena) and our two temporary professed Sisters (Dorothy and Sukyi) as they continue to put down roots and nourish their connections to this mission of peace. Please pray too for new vocations to help us continue to sow the seeds of peace in a post-modern society that is deeply in need of peace.
God of peace, thank you for your gift of peace and the mission entrusted to the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace to promote peace in family life, in the church and in society. We humbly pray that you nurture the seeds of this charism in the hearts of young women who might be called to vowed membership in our congregation. May we grow together in love to embody these words from our original Constitutions. "The very name Sisters of Peace will, it is hoped, inspire the desire of peace and a love for it." Amen.
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