The beautiful hymn: Because He Lives tells the truth of Jesus’s life. I would like us all to reflect and enjoy the song in the depth of our heart.

The Lent days in the Church calendar starts with greyness and dullness but as we go through the weeks meditating on His great love, every pain and suffering He endured makes us wonder in awe how could he do this for us, even though we are ungrateful, unforgiving, and unhuman at times? The only answer is God’s LOVE is IMMEASURABALE.  And because he lives. I also live.

Let us ask this question each day especially as we enter into the season of Easter. Where in my life do I need Jesus to LIVE? How can I make my life and others meaningful Because He Lives.

I would like to share Pope Francis’ final Easter message, 20^th April, 2025 at ‘Urbi et Orbi’:

“In the Lord’s Paschal Mystery, death and life contended in a stupendous struggle, but the Lord now lives forever (cf. Easter Sequence). He fills us with the certainty that we too are called to share in the life that knows no end, when the clash of arms and the rumble of death will be heard no more. Let us entrust ourselves to him, for he alone can make all things new (cf. Rev. 21:5)!

From the empty tomb in Jerusalem, we hear unexpected good news: Jesus, who was crucified, “is not here, he has risen” (Lk 24:5). Jesus is not in the tomb, he is alive!

Love has triumphed over hatred, light over darkness and truth over falsehood. Forgiveness has triumphed over revenge. Evil has not disappeared from history; it will remain until the end, but it no longer has the upper hand; it no longer has power over those who accept the grace of this day.  Happy Easter to everyone!”

Easter is about the incredible Hope we find in Christ. If you’re searching for hope in a world that seems hopeless, know that Jesus loves you, and died and rose for you.  Place your faith in him and accept the forgiveness, freedom, and living hope he offers.

Joyce Peter rndm

Over the years, since Vatican II, we have almost imperceptibly evolved and been transformed into songbirds, hardly visible, few in numbers, slower in our movements but with Oh!  So sweet a song to sing to the receptive, listening ear and heart.

And YES!
We are here among you still – 
from many different Congregations.

We each have a different song to sing, yet when our voices blend, there is a harmony so entrancing that we become ONE.

In response to the challenge of Vatican II we have come forth into the very heart of the Church and the world, in order to play our unique part in the transformation by the Gospel…making the Kingdom of God a lived reality on earth.

 Who exactly are we?

We are very ordinary men and women, who like you, share the vocation to holiness through our Baptism and Confirmation.

In our youth we experienced a further CALL to give the ALL of our lives to the ONE who is ALL.

Through the Vows of Chastity, Poverty and Obedience, we have been liberated and empowered to consecrate ourselves entirely to the Lord and to the humble service of all his people.  We are a prophetic group of people witnessing here in the UK and Ireland to eternal values. The main purpose of our lives is to contemplate the face of God in prayer, like Mary, to radiate His reflection by our Christ-like presence.

All other ministries we undertake, and they are diverse, are simply the expression of the song that God’s love calls forth from our hearts.

Need I remind you that songbirds are quite fragile and delicate?

In order to sing melodiously we need others in the choir to sing those notes that are beyond our pitch and ability. That is why we tend to gather together from time to time to rehearse and improve the quality of the sound.  So, if you happen to have a songbird or two in YOUR parish–ponder in these things!

It is not easy to changefrom being a “dinosaur” into a songbird and we do need a little help from you, the orchestra!

Around the world, especially in countries far away, the music of songbirds flourishes loud and strong.

We are alive and well!  So long as there is a breath in our bodies, hearts beating with love for our God – we will be among you!

Look out for us in the coming days and weeks.

And if YOU hear that CALL – know that your hearts too will sing for JOY and lasting HOPE and gratitude! Welcome!    (Image: website)

Sr Mary Frances Collett, RNDM

New Year resolutions are possibly forgotten or, not even made this year, as we tend to move so quickly. In one supermarket I was shocked to see on Boxing Day, Easter Eggs on the shelves! Often we never have that time to really reflect on the year past or the year to come.

As our days gradually become longer, February is really a time of awakening- moments of learning and seeing things that are hidden. However, this year we have been caught up with our unreliable weather patterns and certainly with such an unexpected cold spell with Storm Goretti, our New Year has been rough, leaving many of us with sad and broken memories and for some, an image of what this year might become. Yet, with our world in such a turmoil, maybe this is the time to STOP! February does invite change and a reawakening to what might be.

Catherine Garland, in her poem Learning Life ( Grateful Living, 1/01/26) really struck home, she writes:  I have learned that fences are for climbing to see if the grass is really greener on the other side . . .” Just these opening words opens up a myriad of thoughts and images, of what might “be” behind the fence: She expands her learning of various things beyond the fence that can so easily be lost or to some extent, not even known to exist. Without us knowing, already new life is in the making – there is a green hue when looking at the bare trees and shrubs. We may ask: what fences are holding us back from climbing over to the other side. February, even with its cold and misty days allows us time to ponder the world beyond the fence – it is neither one season nor another, just that time to STOP! It’s a time to reorganise and to rebuild, to prepare for the Spring of New Hope. Wars may continue and climate change will progress, but that shouldn’t stop us from wanting to climb that fence to discover new ways of existing and experiencing new realities that each season brings.

Garland finishes by writing:
I am glad these things were kept hidden from me
until I could open the gate to taste and touch,
to smell and feel, and
to discover myself along the way.

May February be a precious time of reflection and learning, preparing us to be able to climb that fence and to be ready for the unfolding of the New Year!

Rose Mary Harbinson, rndm

“Cheers to a gracious New Year. May we uphold the fullness of God’s  grace, goodness and goodwill.” — Lailah Gifty Akita

January, at the heart of winter in the Northern Hemisphere, is one of the coldest months, yet rich in meaning, offering a powerful opportunity to stop and think about priorities, values and intentions. The stillness and quiet moves our heart and soul  towards spiritual connection and reflection inspired by the natural world’s rhythms of rest and the promise of renewal.
The beginning of a new year is always worth allowing space and time to listen to and value the significance of the song of the earth, our common home.

January, named after the Roman god Janus, the deity and protector of doors, gateways and beginnings, is symbolically a spiritual doorway into the New Year, offering space in quiet moments to ponder life and review personal growth as we reflect on the beauty of starting anew.   Nature in January is in a state of deep rest, a time of quiet and stillness as plants and animals conserve energy to endure cold.  The natural world’s resilience, seen in evergreen trees and the hardy snowdrop flowers and shrubs blooming in the cold, serves as a reminder of inner strength and the power to start afresh, setting intentions for the future with clarity and purpose, rather than rigid resolutions. According to the Celtic Tree of Life, two trees in particular share a space in January.  The Birch tree symbolizes new beginnings, achievement and resilience.  The Rowan trees symbolizing courage and connection with their red berries said to represent protection.  In every aspect of nature, God is conveying something.  It is in the stillness of winter that we often find our truest selves.

By honouring nature’s call to slow down and go inwards, January offers a unique opportunity to shed what no longer serves us, heal our inner world and align our intentions with a deeper, more authentic purpose, ensuring we are ready to ‘rise to new life again’ with the full arrival of spring.  Take time to sit in silence this January.    God never wants us to lose our sense of wonder.

“The new year stands before us, like a chapter in a book, waiting to be written.” — Melody Beattie

Liz Hartigan RNDM

This is the picture many of us have in our minds when we hear the carol “And so this is Christmas.” But is it? One could say we have killed off the spirit of Christmas by an overload of activities. If Christmas is to survive the philosophy of “shop till you drop.” the frenzy of consumerism and the unending commercial exploitation, then we need to concentrate on the real meaning of Christmas “the reason for the season.”

Behind Christmas lies the Incarnation, the story of the Word of God becoming flesh in Jesus of Nazareth, to repair a broken world, by reconciling God with his people. St Paul says: “God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself.” Christmas is a time for reminding ourselves that God reached out to each one of us in Jesus. We are invited to respond by accepting God’s healing and reconciliation. Also, by getting in touch with our broken selves and repairing broken friendships with God, family and friends.

We can’t help noticing a series of paradoxes in our world today. We have more money, but less peace. More concern about our physical welfare and less about our spiritual needs. Rapid technological efficiency and progress, but less social involvement and more stress. The “shop till you drop” consumerism at Christmas is really a search and cry for a communion that is not to be found in the market place.

There is a need in all our lives to get in touch with the still centre of our being. Only when Christ is born in the heart and life of each person, can He be born in the heart of society. The purpose of Advent is to prepare us to receive Christ at Christmas, as Mary prepared for His coming for nine months.

The world is not waiting for Christ anymore. It is waiting for us, to be His hands, feet, voice and heart, so as to be a means of healing and reconciliation. In this way, we will continue the healing mission of Jesus and be participators rather than observers. Christ will be truly born again in us, to bring love, compassion, justice, peace and faith to birth in our world, our families, our relationships in society and in our Church.

Una Rutledge, RNDM.

Pope Francis in his vision for the world taught us to look beyond the everyday events – In his powerful text: Laudato Si’ he states: May our struggles and our concern for the planet never take away the joy and our hope. Throughout this text we see that it is our attitude and how we personally approach the planet- that piece of earth that we dwell and walk upon – that will make the changes for the good. These sad events shouldn’t make me negative and feeling lack of hope.

Today as you read this sentence, “God, don’t change my circumstances, change me.”

Let us pray

God, instead of asking you
to change the outer world,
today I simply request:
guide me within, to the perfect interior
of my heart where you live.
When I find you,
it changes me,
because I trust you more fully.
Change me.

Taken from Franciscan Media: Pause + Pray, by Maureen O’Brien, Oct, 2025.

November then is a time when we can pause and look back and view the world with our loved ones, especially those who have gone before us and remembering those who died to give us hope. It is also a time to reflect on ourselves, here and now, in our preparation to accept change and the new life that we will experience over the Advent, Christmas and New Year period. This is for us HOPE that something will change, within ourselves and within our world.

Peter To Rot (1912-1945) Catechist – New Britain, PNG

This month Pope Leo XIV will canonise the first Catholic Papuan Saint – Bl. Peter ToRot as a Martyr for the Faith.  He was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1995 at the Sir John Guise Stadium in Port Moresby with members of his family present. He was then declared as a “saint in the making” because of his defence of family life and the dignity of Christian marriage.

For over 40 years our Congregation has sent missionaries to Papua New Guinea. Being invited to join other religious by the new diocese of Mendi was a real proud moment for four RNDM Sisters: Srs Mary Bernadette, Mary Majella, and Margaret Dorizzi, to support the Australian mission in 1969 and Sr Marie Lawlor from the UKI province who had been missioned to Australia. This occasion of canonisation will mean much to those of us who have followed on and worked many years with Catechists and those preparing for a full religious life. Some of us lived among the tribal people in various villages, attending to their medical needs, sitting daily with women and children, as the men toiled in the gardens. For days on end, many of us shared the Good News of the Gospel with so many catechists and young seminarians so as to be part of their training to carry the gospel to many far outreaching places in the Highlands. For us, this was the greatest gift of our mission. One of our biggest memories will be sleeping under the stars, climbing mountains, slushing through mud, crossing rapid rivers and driving over precarious bridges often consisting only of two logs! The challenge of learning one or two of the 1000 languages used in PNG and to simply mingle in this unique culture of these remarkable Melanesian people, was for many of us a treasure we will always hold in our hearts and memory.

One great treasure will be the canonisation of the martyred Catechist, Peter ToRot who died holding his own against the Japanese during the Second World War. He died for the faith and on Oct 19^th he will be canonised by Pope Leo X1V as the first Catholic saint not only for Papua New Guinea but for the New Britain region who suffered awful atrocities during the Second World War. Over the years, we have been privileged to work with catechists, preparing them to carry the faith forward and so this event will certainly be a recognition of the work done by thousands of men and women, young and old, who have chosen to carry the Word to the remote villages and to dedicate their lives to Christ.

Bai mipela askim Bikpela long givim blessim long ol husat bin wokmanmeri long dispela ministri na bambai ol i mekim oltaim wok bilong Bikpela. Pita i bin givim laip bilong em yet long dispela pipel, long ol manmeri na long kantri. Long pre bilong Pita To Rot mipela bambai stap wantaim ol Katekis, na long ol manmeri b’long Papua Niugini.

Peter ToRot Katekis Trenim Skul, Mendi Diocese – Catechists trained by RNDMs in Ialibu, Pangia, Kagua and Wiliame.

Grand Canyon – Las Vegas

A “sanctuary of serenity” refers to a place or space that provides a sense of peace, calm, from the stresses of daily life. It’s a place where one can find tranquillity, or spiritual renewal. Essentially, it’s a place to escape the noise and chaos of the outside world and find inner peace, or a time of reflection and prayer.

Nature is often depicted as a time of abundance and gratitude, a celebration of nature’s gifts. It can be a mindful and meditative time, fostering a sense of presence and connection.

I decided to put my thoughts down as a reflection of gratitude and a reminder to oneself of the sanctuary of serenity in the environment and that which allows us humans live it meaningfully with our various religious practices, as Pope Leo XIV constantly reminds us to live in HOPE. So, I am reflecting more on the spiritual side focusing on our forth coming retreat

A “journey of hope” likely refers to an experience, often spiritual in nature, designed to foster personal growth, healing, and a renewed life style. These spaces for reflection, connection with others, and a deeper meaning of faith, offers a wider knowledge how to live simply and gratefully.

We are invited and encouraged to step away from daily routines and dedicate time to self-discovery, journaling, and contemplating our personal journey, connecting with others who are also seeking hope and healing, enjoying the natural beauty and peaceful atmosphere, helping each other heal from past hurts, build resilience and cultivate a more hopeful outlook for the future.” (taken from my personal notes during a retreat in 2016)

So, I believe this is a period of time set aside for prayer, reflection, and spiritual renewal, often in a setting away from daily routines. It’s a chance to step back from the busyness of life to deepen one’s relationship with God, examine one’s conscience, and discern God’s will, even in a celebration. I always felt how lucky are we to have this time off, this is an assurance of the hundredfold blessings we receive as religious and to be thankful for the wonder’s life has given us in serving our God.

Joyce Peter rndm

Many years on, I look at the schools of today and see different approaches to education. The curriculum is basically about covering materials to gain enough knowledge to tackle exams and assessments. There hardly seems time nowadays to allow students space to research and to explore situations or topics. In truth, one doesn’t need to stretch the mind or to sit, ponder, query or even to discover as the answers are already there at the touch of a key or scroll of a page on the internet!

One thing I have learnt is that often our school’s educational roots are not saved on the internet. Some places of education far precede computer science and we rely only on the occasional journal, picture scrap book or simply chatting with former students of many years passed. Legacies and the purpose of forming a school in the first place – its early foundations – have to be researched or experienced within the local community. This became apparent recently when we took our local Language College to the place of their foundress – Euphrasie Barbier. Many schools and colleges around the world are named after this remarkable woman, So, over the years, we have tried to make Euphrasie part of the life of all our students in some form or another– to allow them to discover her vision and desire to see education made available for all young girls and women of many cultures.

To actually visit the place where this person lived, worked and died – to see for themselves aspects of her life – was better that any research or reading endless books. The ultimate purpose was not just for an outing but to capture the spirit of this woman who gave her life for this purpose – to enable the “unnoticed and unknown” to have a voice and purpose in life.

Michael Morpurgo once said that education is to create memories and not just to pass exams. Storytelling and sharing experiences is essential in our teaching and no better than giving students a practical example of those who have gone before them.

What we need today in our schools is a solid foundation and for our pupils to find an identity during the years of the lives in both Primary and Secondary Education. ROOTS – are what matters, hoping that it will hold all of our students steady and keep them focused on what is essential in life.

Sr Rose Mary Harbinson, RNDM

Visit of Sacred Heart Language College to the Heritage House and Tomb of Euphrasie Barbier (Marie du Coeur de Jesus) – Foundress of the Sisters of Our Lady of the Missions, Sturry, Kent.
(Photo with permission)

In walking with others on pilgrimage we meet others like us, who hold stories that long to be told, songs that long to be sung, and dreams that long to be honoured and hopes that long to be shared. Often, it is just a simple ‘hello’ that opens a door to finding our voice which can create a two-way conversation. When we listen with interested curiosity, we provide an opportunity for the other to find their voice. To quote Maya Angelou, poet and civil rights activist, “I’ve learnt that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” (Inspirational and Motivation, April 3, 2024, Website). In other words, let us treat others with dignity and respect especially those who feel voiceless in our world. They too, have stories to tell, songs to sing, dreams to be honoured and hopes to be shared! These are sacred moments. We may never meet the person again, but in going our separate ways, we know something new has happened.

Let us live each day as Pilgrims of Hope and Joy.

Margaret Doherty, rndm.