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Since our last Conference Call I have continued to alert Sisters in The Congregation on issues of concern around Ecojustice/climate change etc.
Also a lot of my time before the summer was spent on preparing for a workshop on Cosmology/Ecojustice and aspects of the Christian Tradition that I presented to two groups organised by the St. John of God Sisters. As part of the workshop I focused on Laudato Si' using the opportunity to highlight once again the value and importance of this crucial document. In May I also wrote a brief article on the impact of the encyclical, twelve months on, for the mercyworld.org website.
The work of MIRP is ongoing in the Congregation and it is giving rise to great creativity. In my province here in the south there are now four groups engaged with it. One group —the interconnectedness group — is quite large, ranging across the province. The others are more local, community/cluster based groups. Each has its own flavour and is moving at its own pace. All groups have found it difficult to be very specific in focus, yet they have come to see that the main value may be in personal and group transformation on crucial issues of our time around ecological injustice, climate change, and new thinking on our religious traditions and how they relate to our new story of the unfolding universe. There is also a growing sense of being part of a larger mercy family. For many this idea of a global mercy group is becoming much more of a reality. In the West all the cluster groups are engaged at different levels focusing on a variety of topics such as homelessness, water, sustainability and so forth. And in the Northern Province there is one group of 23 and they are engaged in ‘an appreciative inquiry process around the flourishing of all of life.’
Carmel Bracken rsm and Kathleen Glennon rsm are currently engaged in creating a variety of resources. Firstly they are creating rituals for creation time, focusing on the theme of ‘Widening the circle of Mercy/Compassion’. The whole idea here is the widening of our sense of compassion to embrace all of creation. Secondly, they are working on providing ways in which individuals/groups could make their own of what Thomas Berry is suggesting in his article ‘Bioregions: Re-inhabiting the Earth’. And finally they are providing a power-point presentation on the topic ‘the rights of nature’. When ready, all the material will be circulated.
Carmel is also creating some dances for creation time and has offered to do a workshop in MIC. The logistics of this has yet to be worked out.
Messages to: Margaret Twomey rsm
Cosmology/Ecojustice —Congregation of the Sisters of Mercy, Ireland
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