Sea Sunday 2022
July 7, 2022Sr Mary with seafarers working on container ships and gas tankers that deliver fuel and cargo to Port Botany.
“No Seafarers, No Shipping, No Shopping”
With Sea Sunday approaching on 10 July, we are challenged once again to reflect on the lives of seafarers.
Seafarers and fishers are critical to global trade. They toil daily on cargo and cruise ships as well as fishing trawlers all over the world.
Plenary Council Second Assembly
July 1, 2022
The second and final assembly for the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia will take place in Sydney from 4-8 July 2022.
At the assembly, the 277 Council Members will consider, discern and vote on the motions in the Framework for Motions that have emerged from that national journey, with the goal of renewing the life and mission of the Church in Australia.
Feast of the Sacred Heart
June 22, 2022
For us as Josephites, celebrating the feast of the Sacred Heart (24 June) is intimately connected to God’s compassionate love. The Constitutions of the Sisters of Saint Joseph remind us:
Celebrating ATSI Sunday and NAIDOC Week
From 3 July 2022, we celebrate two events: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (ATSI) Sunday on 3 July and National Aborigines, and Islanders Day Observance Committee (NAIDOC) Week from Sunday 3 July until Sunday 10 July.
Father Julian and the Westbury Letters
Father Julian Tenison Woods had a deep connection with Tasmania over many years. As a missioner, he encouraged many young women to join both the Sisters of Saint Joseph on the mainland and the founding group of the Sisters of Perpetual Adoration.
Aware of the needs in Tasmania, Fr Julian wrote to St Mary MacKillop in 1869:
Doctorate thesis leads to book launch
June 21, 2022Susan Connelly rsj provides a reflection on the launch of her new book, East Timor, René Girard and Neocolonial Violence: Scapegoating as Australian Policy published by Bloomsbury Academic.
The book was launched on 11 June at the Strathfield campus of the Australian Catholic University (ACU) and grew out of Sr Susan’s doctorate thesis completed at ACU’s faculty of theology and philosophy under the supervision of Dr Joel Hodge.
First Adelaide school opens in 1867
On 2 July 2022, the Sisters of Saint Joseph will celebrate 155 years since the opening of the first Josephite school in Adelaide, South Australia.
“What,” they say, “can you expect from colonial girls, without any knowledge of a religious life, and no one to train them?”[1] Writing to Sister Mary MacKillop, Father Julian Tenison Woods conveyed the scepticism of those who had heard his plans to establish the Sisters of Saint Joseph. Just three weeks later, on 2 July 1867, Sisters Mary MacKillop, Rose Cunningham and Josephine McMullen would open a school in Adelaide’s St Francis Xavier’s Cathedral Hall in Wakefield Street.
June Prayer Intention: Families
Each month, Pope Francis asks for our prayers for a specific intention. For the month of June, the prayer intention is for families.
Family Ties
Within the family, bonds can be strong, helpful and a valuable gift. Others can be torn apart after tragedy or trauma. As Pope Francis urges us to pray for families, the history of many religious groups reflects the unconscious influences parents and sibling can have.
Last month while exploring our family tree, I discovered the O’Mara family: sisters in religion as well as in life. Another interesting fact is that two of them led their Congregation in Goulburn.