World Refugee Day
June 20, 2020As I had reflected on the Morning Prayer in the Josephite Prayer Book for Easter Sunday more than once during Easter Week, I had been struck by the artist Jesus Mafa’s portrayal of Jesus and Mary Magdalene.
The touching sense of relief, astonishment, welcome and delight on Mary Magdalene’s face seems to leave Jesus awed, speechless, reserved, keeping his distance. The image of a coloured Jesus reminds me of the hundreds of refugees who are longing for a welcome, someone to believe that they are worth something, that they are not frauds, that they have come through horrific ordeals.
Writing of the experience of Behrouz Boochani in Christchurch, New Zealand, Ben Doherty says:
“Here,” he says, “I feel free.”
What a contrast to the bleak existence endured by Behrouz Boochani in the Manus Island Detention Centre for six years. An ethnic Kurd, from Ilam in the west of Iran, bordering Iraq, he described himself as a child of war. A graduate of two universities, with a Masters Degree in Political Science, Political Geography and Geopolitics, he was forced to flee his homeland after his journalism for the Kurdish magazine Werya, attracted the attention of Iran’s ruling regime. His life was in danger. He fled to Indonesia and then by boat to Australia. He thought Australia was a free country. ‘Reporters without Borders’, as well as a coalition of human rights groups, have warned that sending Boochani back to Iran would put his life in grave danger, as dissent is not tolerated by Iran’s theocratic regime. He has asked repeatedly to be handed to the United Nations.
During his detention in Manus, Boochani wrote numerous articles for leading international media, notably The Guardian, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Refugee Action Committee. These articles were about the plight of refugees held on Manus Island, and he has won several awards. His memoir ‘No Friend but the Mountains’ published in November 2019, won the Victorian Prize for Literature and the Victorian Premier’s Prize for nonfiction. Getting the text written and out of Manus was itself an extraordinary feat. He tapped out the script on a mobile phone in a series of single messages over time and had them translated from Persian into English by a friend, Omid Tofighian.
Behrouz Boochani is an example of survival, even triumph over dehumanising adversity. As well. he is one example of the very big contributions refugees have made and continue to make to their adopted countries. Behrouz is a gifted person who is using his gifts to advocate for asylum seekers who are still trapped in ways that deprive them of hope, condemning them to years of mental brokenness. He has become a spokesperson for the men in his compound, meeting with PNG immigration and other officials, as well as Amnesty International and UNHCR representatives. As The Guardian journalist Ben Doherty said, on accepting the Amnesty International Australia award, on Behrouz’s behalf in 2017: “Behrouz rightly sees himself as a working journalist on Manus Island, whose job it is to bear witness to the injustices and the violence and the privation of offshore detention.” (The Guardian 2/11/2017) [2]
“It is like a duty, a responsibility, as a citizen in my future, to care about human rights,” Boochani said. “I will continue to work on this issue, because it is my life, I cannot walk away from my own life, my own experience. And Manus was my experience.” (The Guardian 16/11/2019) [1]
Boochani’s journey is but one example of the thousands who have made tortuous journeys to escape danger, deprivation and cruelty to find safety and a place to call home. Despite the appalling treatment, condemnations, racist rejections that have been endured along this journey, many have in the end found a community, helpful neighbours, magnanimous supporters, amazing generosity, schools that have welcomed the children. The wonderful organisations whose main work is service to refugees and asylum seekers, such as Asylum Seeker Resource Centre (ASRC), Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS), Centre for Asylum Seekers, Refugees and Detainees (CARAD), and other less known organisations and groups, do a noble task.
Margaret Keane rsj
Footnotes:
[1] Behrouz Boochani, brutalised but not beaten by Manus, says simply: ‘I did my best’ by Ben Doherty.
[2] Behrouz Boochani wins Amnesty International award for writing from Manus by Ben Doherty.
Image sources:
– Book cover: No Friend but the Mountain by Behrouz Boochani obtained from Amazon.com
– Child’s Hand Refugee by Anja obtained from Pixabay. Used with permission.
Feast of the Sacred Heart Message
June 19, 2020Greetings on the feast of the Sacred Heart.
Today (19 June) we celebrate the feast of the Sacred Heart. This feast speaks of the love God has for each of one of us and the love we are called to extend to one another. Devotion to the Sacred Heart was integral to the spirituality of both Fr Julian Tenison Woods and Saint Mary MacKillop. Mary MacKillop wrote to the Sisters in 1907 a reflection on the Sacred Heart. In it she reflects upon the special relationship that she has with the Sacred Heart. She writes:
How apt are these words as we come to celebrate the feast of the Sacred Heart in 2020? Danger has threatened our world through the existence of a small virus named COVID-19; people continue to be persecuted for the colour of their skin, their religious beliefs and their voice for justice; and our planet Earth is ravaged by unprecedented natural disasters and the destruction of the environment.
Our Sisters of Saint Joseph Constitutions remind us:
Saint Teresa of Avila reminds us our eyes are the eyes through which Christ looks compassion on our world today that same compassion which Saint Paul in his letter refers:
Compassion that capacity to stand in the shoes of another and see the world from that viewpoint. Recently we have seen this reflected in the program on SBS called ‘Filthy Rich and Homeless’ when five people have been sent to experience the realities of homelessness in our society. We have seen it in the many essential service workers especially the nurses and doctors who have risked their own lives to care for the life of another and at times making the ultimate sacrifice of their own life. We have seen it in a new sense of neighbourliness that has arisen out of the COVID-19 experience. We have seen it in the response of thousands of people across the world raising their voice against racial discrimination. We have seen it in the UNICEF and other volunteer groups working with those in refugee camps to put in place steps towards preventing the spread of the coronavirus. We have seen it in the simple gestures of kindness and words of encouragement and hope that have filled our world with love in these recent months.
Inspired by the compassionate way of Jesus we are called on this feast day to send forth from that sacred place within us, compassion and mercy on our world. Drawn into the very heart of God the source and fountain of all love we hear the Spirit whisper, ‘Go and embody my Love. Go to those places of deepest pain. Be my hands and feet. Be my eyes and ears. Be my tears and joy. Be my voice. Go plant seeds of love’.
Happy feast day.
Sr Monica Cavanagh
Congregational Leader
Sr Monica has provided a message from Pentecost in the video below:
Additionally, you’re invited to view a message for the feast of the Sacred Heart from the Congregational Leadership Team below:
CLT Feast of the Sacred Heart Message (PDF)
Footnotes:
[1] Letter Mary MacKillop to the Sisters 21 May 1907
[2] Letter Mary MacKillop to the Sisters 1873
Love Comes Looking for Us
Feast of the Sacred Heart.
The heart of Jesus is viewed as a symbol of “God’s boundless and passionate love for humankind” [1] and in light of the writings of Teilhard de Chardin, Thomas Merton, Elia Delio, Beatrice Bruteau and others, is referred to as the Sacred Heart enflamed, the incarnate Word, the Cosmic Christ, the Centre of centres – intimately personal and yet boundlessly cosmic.
In living the gospel of today through the lens of the Sacred Heart, Richard Rohr reminds us that we are living in a liminal space between two worlds – before and after COVID -19. [2] Consciously aware of the suffering and impact of the current pandemic we take the opportunity to raise our consciousness of love and new tenderness in communion with the Sacred Heart and with each other with a passion for God, for humanity and all the Cosmos.
The following musings may resonate with us as we contemplate the love of the Sacred Heart in the context of the Heart of Jesus, Heart of the Cosmos and our own heart.
Teilhard de Chardin’s spirituality revolved around his childhood and adult devotedness to the Sacred Heart. His vision of the Sacred Heart as the centre of the universe assists us in enlarging our heart’s consciousness of the reality of who we are and the reality of God-in-matter – a lovingly beating world-heart at one with our heartbeat and the heartbeat of our God. [3]
Elia Delio speaks of our Life in God as a daring adventure of love—a continuous journey of putting aside our securities to enter more profoundly into the uncharted depths of God. [4]
The words of Scripture and St. Mary MacKillop testify to God’s loving presence in our lives:
Thomas Merton captures the vitality and intensity of God’s love as conveying the extravagance, the sheer exuberance, of love. [5]
In the writings of David Richo, we are invited to contemplate God seeking us:
Historically the connection between the heart of Jesus and that of the heart of individuals is attributed to French Benedictine, Swami Abhishiktanananda.
As one passes from depth to depth in one’s own heart, the awakened disciple reaches the ultimate depth of the heart of Jesus. [7]
Pope Francis challenges us to touch the wounds of Jesus as Thomas asked: to enter Jesus wounds. [8] We do this with open and responding hearts in communion with the Sacred Heart for all the suffering in today’s world particularly relating to COVID-19 that as people of hope a new world of greater compassion, equality and justice post COVID-19 might be a new reality for all.
Mary Oliver’s words could reflect the love of the Sacred Heart in the mystery of God’s exuberant and inclusive love in our troubled world when she invites us to:
Margaret Cleary rsj
Footnotes:
[1] Wikipedia definition
[2] Center for Action and Contemplation,Richard Rohr- 28 April 2020
[3] Everything Ablaze, David Richo, P. 59
[4] Omega, Elia Delio – dated 27 April, 2020
[5] ‘The Art of Thomas Merton, John Moses, P.46
[6] Everything Ablaze, David Richo, P.57
[7] Radical Optimism, Beatrice Bruteau, P.96
[8] Daily Reflections, Pope Francis, P.129
[9] Daily Love – National Geographic (March 22)
Laudato Si’ Webinar: Part Three
June 18, 2020In May 2015 Pope Francis launched his encyclical with the subtitle “On Care for our Common Home” and the title “Laudato Si’” which are the opening words for a hymn composed by St Francis of Assisi in the 1200s.
For our time, this document is both relevant and important, since it highlights the priority that respect for the environment should have in Catholic life, and integrates the notion with what is central to our understanding of humanity’s relationship with God.
Media Release: CERA
June 16, 2020Fifteen organisations have received funding from Catholic Emergency Relief Australia to support communities recovering from bushfires that devastated large parts of the country last summer.
Catholic Emergency Relief Australia (CERA) was officially launched in February and brings together a number of key national organisations.
The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, Catholic Religious Australia, Catholic Social Services Australia and the National Catholic Education Commission were founding members. The St Vincent de Paul Society has also joined the collaboration…
You’re invited to continue reading the Media Release and visit the CERA website below:
Media Release: Funding Boost for Groups Helping with Bushfire Recovery (PDF)
Demand Growing for Homelessness Services amid Pandemic
June 15, 2020It has been 50 years since Noelene Quinane walked the hallowed halls of MacKillop House in Canberra’s inner north as a young nun.
She came to the home for Josephite Sisters to study for two years when it first opened in 1969.
Now, its cosy rooms host a new generation of Canberra women — ones who do not wear the habit or attend daily prayers.
Living in rental stress, suffering abuse, or struggling with mental illness or addiction, these women are teetering on the edge of the poverty line.
Many have been displaced by the COVID-19 pandemic, and Sister Noelene has returned to make them chilli and cheese scones, using her late mum’s spatula…
You’re invited to read the whole article in the ABC News below:
Holly Tregenza
Christ Has no Body Now but Yours
June 13, 2020Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ.
While reflecting on the coming feast of Corpus Christi, this image captured my attention. Someone has put together into one picture a traditional image of the Last Supper with the Healthcare workers at Hopital La Pitié Salpêtrière in Paris.
My first glimpse brought to mind the words of St Teresa of Avila, ‘Christ has no body now but yours.’ We know that the medical ‘frontliners’ are breaking open the bread of their lives every day for others, reflecting Jesus words: ‘This is my body, given for you.’
Unlike the ‘frontliners’, those of us in isolation have had the time and space for solitude and contemplation. While these ‘bubbles’ may have been very contained, we have been taken right into the suffering of our world through a multitude of media. What a gift to help keep in balance personal need and that of those most suffering.
All around me in my ‘stay at home’ world I see people every day being the hands, heart, eyes and ears of Christ to each other. The ANZAC Day driveway gatherings provided a chance to meet neighbours for the first time; Sisters taking someone for a drive to see more than their own four walls; shopping lists taken by others and the goods delivered; creative ways of celebrating birthdays; facilitating the livestreaming of funerals so people can be ‘present’; the joy and frustrations of communal jigsaws, to name a few. These freely shared, loving acts of neighbourliness and kindness are flattening many curves of isolation and need. So, while not being able to gather for Eucharist, people are daily breaking open the bread of their lives with and for each other.
It is no surprise that this unique global experience has seen our connections across the world dramatically increase through the internet. I have been fed by the sharing of story, image, poetry, satire, song, music and cartoon – all gift to share with others. The creativity shown by many online has nourished solidarity and connection. Platforms like Zoom and Skype have provided new opportunities to bring a variety and a diversity of people together to pray, sing, discuss, celebrate and dream of a better, healthier future for humankind and our planet. St Paul talks of creation groaning and I can’t help but think that our planet is also singing because our standstill has given it a chance to breathe better. We are one body on and with this planet and we have all seen the dramatic impact this standstill has had the planet. Dare we engage in determining a better future?
In our Easter journey this year we, like Jesus’ followers, have had to ‘see’ with new eyes. In the face of extreme suffering we recognise Christ in the breaking of the bread of so many people’s lives. Let’s take these thoughts into this feast of Corpus Christi as we celebrate how each is and has been the feet, hands, eyes, voice – the Body of Christ.
Annette Arnold rsj
This YouTube of St Teresa’s words provides an opportunity for reflection:
Media Release: Sr Margaret Cleary Awarded Order of Australia Medal
June 10, 2020Sister Margaret Cleary of the Sisters of Saint Joseph awarded Order of Australia Medal in Queen’s Birthday Honours.
The Sisters of Saint Joseph are delighted to announce that Sister Margaret Cleary has been awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in the Queen’s Birthday Honours 2020 For Service to the Catholic Church of Australia.
Sister Margaret has been a part of the Congregation of the Sisters of Saint Joseph for over 57 years, having joined the Congregation in January 1963 and being professed in 1966. Having initially trained in education and working ministering as a primary school teacher, Sister Margaret has a natural passion for education and pastoral care and collaborating with Staff, Students, Families and Parishioners.
Sister Margaret went on to continue her work in education across a variety of parishes and dioceses in Queensland. She was Principal in Millmerran, Mundingburra – Townsville, Upper Mount Gravatt, Cloncurry, St. Peter’s Caboolture.
Following her teaching days, Sister Margaret worked diligently as a Provincial Councillor in Queensland before becoming a Congregational Financial (Bursar) Administrator between 2008 – 2013.
“I am honoured and humbled to receive the Order of Australia Medal,” said Sister Margaret.