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Mercy Enews
No. 539 | 06 November 2013

Catherine McAuley, foundress of the Sisters of Mercy, used her inheritance in service of the needs of her time. Today, Sisters of Mercy, through Mercy International Association, use their resources to respond to issues of global poverty demonstrated in the massive displacement of persons worldwide...This vision keeps alive the founding spirit of Catherine among peoples of the world most in need of God's compassion and mercy.
from the MIA Visioning Statement 2007

Feature

Between Memory and Hope (The Congregation)

Editor: This week (11 November) we celebrate the anniversary of Catherine's death and are reminded in our prayer intention of Catherine and all Sisters of Mercy throughout the years 'who have given their lives in service to others'.

How timely then is Sr Peggy Collins' reflective article, the result of her 'pondering on the significance of commemorating 175 years of the presence of the Sisters of Mercy in Limerick'. In "Memory and Hope" (linked to this item) Peggy  tells us there is grace in celebrating foundations 'if we allow the encounter with the spirit of our foremothers [to] be real and to touch our hearts; they not only offer inspiration; they carry transforming power.'

May each of us continue to be transformed by Catherine and all our foremothers of Mercy who have each 'gone before us, marked with the sign of faith' (Eucharistic Prayer 1).

Messages to: Peggy Collins rsm, Provincial Leader of South Central Province
 

Image: Mercy Memorial Garden, Limerick, Ireland

more

Further Resources

Worth a Look:
Eating Heaven: Spirituality at the Table
'A trained chef, teacher, social researcher, minister of religion and homemaker, Simon Carey Holt draws on experience and research to explore the role of eating in our search for meaning and community. To do so, he invites us to sit at the tables of daily life...and consider how our life at these tables interacts with our deepest values and commitments.'

There are References for each chapter plus suggestions for Further Reading
A pdf copy of the first chapter of Eating Heaven can be downloaded here
Available from bookshops in paperback or from Amazon in a kindle edition

Worth Watching:
Seán Freyne: Galilee, Jesus and Christology, The Shaffer Lectures, Yale Divinity School
Two great Irish men of letters died in August, 2013: Seamus Heaney (poet) and Seán Freyne (Theologian and Biblical Scholar). We highlighted the documentary on Heaney Seamus Heaney: Out of the Marvellous in Issue 530 (2 September 2013). Now it is Freyne's turn. This three lecture series given by Seán Freyne at Yale Divinity School in 2010 was uploaded to YouTube in February this year. The text links followed by the embedded videos of this series can be accessed here

The Overview Effect
'The Overview Effect, first described by author Frank White in 1987, is an experience that transforms astronauts’ perspective of the planet and mankind’s place upon it. Common features of the experience are a feeling of awe for the planet, a profound understanding of the interconnection of all life, and a renewed sense of responsibility for taking care of the environment.

‘Overview’ is a short film that explores this phenomenon through interviews with five astronauts who have experienced the Overview Effect. The film also features insights from commentators and thinkers on the wider implications and importance of this understanding for society, and our relationship to the environment...' Watch it here (19:00)

Worth Reading:
'A Disturbing Truth: the Church, the poor, and Oscar Romero'
Timothy Radcliffe OP, former Prior General of the Dominican Order, gave the Romero 2013 lecture with this title last week at Westminster Abbey, (29 October) Manchester (31 October) and Edinburgh (1 November). Read the lecture here

Worth Knowing:
10 Facts About The Transforming Global Religious Landscape

Ten things to know about the current state of religion in today's world. From the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life demographic study of over 230 countries and territories in 2012, Read it here

Send your contributions for the "Worth..." section to: the Editor

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Directors:Sister Patricia McDermott (US), Peter Burnett, Sister Colette Cronin (British), Maura Hyland, Sister Margaret Casey,
James Peppiatt-Combes (US) and Sister Denise Fox (NZ)