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Good Shepherd News Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd

GSN 271 March 2014

A PILGRIMAGE JOURNEY TO PORTUGAL! by Sister Yvette Arnold

WHAT IS INSIDE

A Pilgrimage journey to Portugal by Sr. Yvette Arnold

Vocation of St. Mary Euphrasia Page 1-5

Journeying toward the 2014 Provincial Chapter - Province of Europe BFMN

New project for the out -of - school Children in Beirut, by Sr Georgette Tannoury

Letter to Sr Marie Claude Naddaf, province Leader of Lebanon Syria

Page 5-9

Pilgrims on the Journey By Jeanette McDermott, communications

coordinator, Province of Mid-North America Page 9-11

The Feast of the Presentation Province of Egypt/ Sudan

New Challenges with new projects Province of Portugal

Page 12-14

On 22nd February, Sr. Yvette travelled with Dr. Waldery Hilgeman, Postulator, and Br. Reginald Cruz, cfx, Vice Postulator, to Portugal. It was an opportunity to experience the missionary coun-try of Bl. Maria and to meet the sisters and the people who deeply love Maria. As part of the experience, both Waldery and Reginald shared the process for the cause for the canonization of Bl. Maria. After our arrival and overnight in Lisbon, we travelled to Ermesinde and arrived in time for the Sunday liturgy. The Church is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and it is where the re-mains of Bl. Maria rest on a special altar. The Church was filled – and there was also a couple present to celebrate their wedding anniversary with the renewal of their vows. The music and the choir were wonderful! The celebrant was Fr. Dario, a Jesuit, who is the Por-tugal director of the Apostleship of Prayer, spe-cifically promoting the devotion to the Heart of Jesus. Following the liturgy we enjoyed a very festive meal with the community. The sisters had announced prior to our arrival that there would be an open gathering that afternoon to hear about the process and its current status. There were approximately 100 people who par-

Porto’s greatest beauty is the camellia; the bushes grow to the same height as the thorn

bush with red flowers in Munster. (BMD, Feb 19, 1894 )

Blessed Maria Droste in the shrine of Cristo Rey

Saint John Eudes in the shrine of Cristo Rey

ticipated. Canon Joa o da Silva Peixoto served as the moderator. There was a wonderful ex-change by all in attendance.

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his dedication and teachings on the Heart of Mary. We also had time to visit the houses of the children, Francesco, Jacinta, and Lucia. Before continuing our trip back to Lisbon, we, of course, had to stop for a hot chocolate!

It was in Ermesinde that we first experienced the beauty of the camellia flowers that Bl. Maria loved. They were in full bloom! As we travelled to Porto we viewed more of the beauty of nature that Maria so loved – the views of the Atlantic Ocean were magnificent, with huge waves crash-ing upon the shore. Sister M. Fatima Pires ac-companied us through our days together as well as Sr. Margarida, our driver. We stayed overnight in Porto at Bl. Maria’s house! Sr. Gabriela and her community wel-comed us warmly. One of the special “attractions” for Reginald was the archives where he could research some of the important history of not only Bl. Maria but also of Porto it-self. The next morning we were all very blessed to be able to participate in the Eucharist in the chapel, in what used to be Bl. Maria’s room! The pastor of the local parish celebrated for all of us – the chapel was filled! Again, it was an oppor-tunity to share with the people on the cause of Bl. Maria. After Mass there was time for the sharing of stories of graces and blessings re-ceived. We then went to visit the cemetery where Bl. Maria was first buried among the poor people of the city. After saying our goodbyes, we then made our way to Fatima and arrived in time for lunch! We were very well fed throughout our days of jour-ney in Portugal! Sr. Lucilia, the province leader, met us in Fatima and continued our journey with us. Once again, we had a session for the sisters who were eager to hear about the process and to ask many questions. Afterwards, we had time to visit the shrine of Fatima. We learned that there is a statue of St. John Eudes in the basilica of Fatima because of

On the way to Porto Left Dr. Waldery and Br. Reginald

A PILGRIMAGE JOURNEY TO PORTUGAL! by Sister Yvette Arnold

Lunch in the Community

After having a good night’s rest, we started out the next morning for the Shrine of Cristo Rei. The Shrine was originally built in thanksgiving to the Sacred Heart for protecting Portugal dur-ing WWII. Now it also has a chapel dedicated to the “Confidants of the Heart of Jesus” and in-cludes the relics and modern artistic paintings of four people who lived deeply and spread de-votion to the Heart of Jesus; namely, St. John Eu-des, Bl. Maria of the Divine Heart, St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, and St. Faustina. It was in this chapel that we attended the Eucharistic liturgy for the day. The dream of having a Church built in dedica-tion to “Saint” Maria of the Divine Heart still re-mains a strong desire of the Shrine Director, Fr. Sezinando Alberto.

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Sister Marie Françoise Mestry - Communications Coordinator

Casa Generalizia, Suore del Buon Pastore,

Via Raffaello Sardiello 20- 00165 Roma, Italia Email: com@gssweb.org Good Shepherd News

A PILGRIMAGE JOURNEY TO PORTUGAL! By Sister Yvette Arnold

He has obtained a rock from the Droste zu Vischering family from the Darfeld Cas-tle. The rock will be placed in the founda-tion stone. Following our morning visit, we then travelled to the Patriarch of Lisbon’s office for our appointment to share the update on the pro-cess. Mons. Manuel Clemente was very happy to hear the rapid progress that has occurred in such a short period of time. And he promised to sup-port the ongoing process by letters from the Episcopal Conference of Bishops in Portugal to encourage the Congregation for the Causes of Saints to continue moving forward the cause of Bl. Maria. Our last afternoon in Portugal included a special

treat at a famous bak-ery. We think it is the largest bakery in the whole world!! It has an incredible amount of serving rooms so that customers can en-joy their special treats – custard cakes – a recipe that dates back to the 1800’s. After so many events, meetings, and kindnesses received, we said goodbye to our sis-ters on the 26th February. “Obrigada” and “Merci Beaucoup” for your great generosity in our pilgrimage journey to the land of Bl. Maria. In her own words: “Nothing in the world could take the place of this little piece of earth.” Submitted by Yvette Arnold, Congregational Secretary

Vocation of Saint Mary Euphrasia as she recounted it herself in1866 to the sister novices

You have often asked me to speak about my youth and my vocation. I have delayed for a long time because I did not want you to be occupied with me. But there is a time to talk and a time to be silent and Our Lord has let me know that the time for talking has come. You know that I lived on the Is-land of Noirmoutier and that I was orphaned young. At 13 years of age, I was sent to a

boarding school at Tours. The Superior was an old friend of my mother, and she promised to take good care of me. I cried a lot. I could not understand how they could send me so far away. There were no railroads in those days and to reach Tours it took us three nights and three days.

I was not pious, my dear daugh-ters. I did not like to go to con-

fession. And I did not know why God permitted my confessor to treat me so harshly. All my temptations seemed to be mor-tal sins. My teachers scolded me and vexed me with a thousand corrections which I took very badly. Fortunately, the second mistress, Mademoiselle de Lignac, who was scarcely 20 years old but an angel of piety, saw my sufferings and calling me apart, spoke to me with gen-tleness and kindness. She helped me to make my examina-tion of conscience, enlightened my doubts and soon gained my affection. The boarding school was flourishing at that time.

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Vocation of Saint Mary Euphrasia as she recounted it herself in1866 to the sister novices

There were 90 girls there from the best families. It was an edify-ing sight. Most of them ap-proached the sacraments every two weeks, several weekly. In the evening, they had devo-tions as we do in the novitiate. I witnessed the greatness of that house and a little later I saw its fall. One boarder, one alone, spoiled the whole group of good hearted girls. Disorder and even corruption soon made terrible ravages. The parents, in distress, withdrew their children. Those who remained went from being angels to devils. A religious community set up a boarding school in the city, and Mlle de Lignac went there. I could not go with her. I was obliged to remain and live with my companions who treated me very badly when I refused to be influenced by their behaviour. I was put under the care of a mis-tress who had been a religious before the revolution. She had escaped death through a thou-sand dangers. She was a good religious, but excessively severe. Being an orphan, I cried for Mlle de Lignac who had taken the place of a mother for me. I was very unhappy. Then I turned seriously to God and sought consolation in piety. After six months I felt a great attraction to religious life. We were often shown an old build-ing at the back of the garden of our boarding school. They used to tell us very discreetly that some good religious had opened a Refuge for young girls who have behaved badly in the world ; that these people did a lot of good there working for the sal-vation of souls. That thought of-

ten came back into my mind and inspired me with a desire to join the community. But how could I manage it ? I was only 15 years of age ! I wrote to my guardian that I decided to be-come a religious in the Refuge at Tours. He was quite dis-pleased. He replied saying that he would never consent. I could go to the Sacred Heart but was never even to think of the Ref-uge. However, I was not dis-couraged and told my teachers and companions about my idea. The teachers treated it as child-ishness. The girls began to per-secute me terribly. They would say a thousand insulting things. In the refectory they threw pieces of bread at my head, shouting “So much for your vo-cation. You want to be a reli-gious? Then you must learn to suffer”… and many things like that. I continued to pray fervently counting on the protection of God and longing for a chance to speak to the sisters at the Ref-uge. At last, one evening one of my teachers, who was fond of me and had compassion, made me promise not to betray her and she would take me out se-cretly to the Refuge. So we went out stealthily, one winter even-ing. We were received with great cordiality and the superi-or promised to receive me as soon as difficulties could be re-moved. I came back full of joy to the boarding school. But a furious storm had risen against me. In taking the roll call of pupils, my absence was noted. They looked everywhere for me and not finding me, they guessed I had

gone to the Refuge about which I had been talking. My companion found a way to cover up, but I was obliged to acknowledge where I had been. The Mistress scolded me furiously. It was sup-per time. “Bread and water for this lady” she said sternly. I was shivering with the cold and cry-ing bitterly. All my companions who had been so unjust sudden-ly took my side. They revolted against the Mistress. They were so naughty that they had no fear. They began to say all sort of things : “What… poor little Rose-Virginie, who never harmed any-one ! You condemned her to bread and water. She is a martyr for her vocation. She wants to be a religious. Then let her go to the convent.” Then bringing me near the fire, they brought me cakes and sweets… the very best they had. Never had they paid me such attention. The Mistress could only let them do as they pleased. She had no authority over the pupils who respected no one. Several months passed.

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Vocation of Saint Mary Euphrasia As she recounted it herself in1866 to the sister novices

One Mistress encour-aged me a great deal. She prepared me for the exercises of reli-

gious life. A Sister of the Refuge also wrote to me saying that the Blessed Virgin had appeared to her and revealed her that it was the will of God that I should en-ter there and that I would be damned if I did not obey my at-traction. You can imagine that for a fifteen year old girl, this marvellous event was irrefuta-ble. And so, whatever objections were made, I answered that the

Blessed Virgin said I would be damned if I did not enter the Refuge. Finally, after many struggles and a lot of resistance, I got what I desired. I left my teach-ers who had affection for me in spite of their severity. One in particular, who had treated me most harshly, said to me some time later, “My child, you did not understand my conduct. I had to act strongly towards you because you were one of those persons who go for good or for

ill, according to the direction given them. You are strong now. Go with confidence where God is calling you”. All the dear Sis-ters at the Refuge received me tenderly like a beloved child. I felt I was in heaven and soon forgot all I had suffered.

As St Mary Euphrasia recounted it

herself in 1866 to the sister novices

Translated from an autobiogra-phical record in French (1866), by Sr M. Joseph Deegan, RGS.

Journeying toward the 2014 Provincial Chapter - Province of Europe BFMN

tions still remains , and to do this we need to dig deep . Hence the desire to search into each one’s heart and find out how together we, from 4 different countries, can respond to the invitation of Christ the Good Shepherd today. While fixing our gaze on Him who is calling us to go deeper, it seems im-portant to move away from self-centredness in order to see and hear the world in which we live today. A Congregation’s Chapter, ac-cording to the late Cardinal Pi-ronio, concerns above all the church and the world, and should be an important event, a page of hope. Again he remarks that a Chapter is not simply a reflective meeting or even a re-vision of life style; a Chapter is essentially a Paschal Celebra-tion. A Chapter is a decisive moment in Salvation History, one in which an institute should write “not with pen and ink but with the Spirit of the Living God; not on a stone tablet, but on hu-

man hearts”. And in order that it be a salvific event it should in-corporate three elements namely: The Word, The Holy Spirit and Conversion. We are aware that there are many challenges facing us dur-ing this chapter. Are we suffi-ciently represented in those are-as where our Charism is calling us? Is it preferable , consider-ing our present strengths to do less but to do it better? Are our communities sufficiently open to the world? Are we visible? Do they attract young people? Do we sufficiently share our spiritu-ality with others? And many other questions which we need to tap into. We know about the possible merger with Our Lady of Charity, the greater involvement of lay mission partners, the manage-ment of our heritage into the future, and that these are items that will also figure in our con-versations and are important subjects in guiding our future.

The Provincial Chapter of “Europe BFMN “ is being held in Angers from March 28th. to April 11th in an atmosphere of unity, mercy and hope just as the theme “Launch out into the deep waters.” Why such a theme? Surely its an echo of the theme of the last Chapter which was “ Enlarge the space of our tent.” The wid-ening has indeed taken place now that the province includes four countries. However the task of firmly rooting this tent, of strengthening the founda-

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Journeying toward the 2014 Provincial Chapter Province of Europe BFMN

A Provincial Chapter also has the mission of in-dicating future orientations and of discerning among the Sisters those whose mission it will be to guide the Province forward in the realisa-tion of our desired targets. The new Provincial will either be elected or named with the decision of the Congregational Leader and her council. Provincial Councillors, both Apostolic and Contemplative will be elect-

ed, while others will be nominated according to the decision of the capitulants. The Chapter will also elect delegates to Inter-continental Assemblies as well as the delegates to the Gen-eral Chapter. We could be overwhelmed by all those ques-tions and responsibilities but we have confi-dence in the Holy Spirit who has guided us thus far and who will be with us in our coming Chap-ter; of this we are certain . So in the words of this hymn to the Holy Spirit- “ Let us be guid-ed by the Spirit in the paths of Justice, The breath of the Spirit which has breathed on us will make us free .” Magdalena Franciscus. Province of Europe BFMN

New project for the out -of - school Children in Beirut by Sr Georgette Tannoury

The beginnings of this Project

It was in answer to the great number of women daily attending our socio-medical dispensary situated in the outskirts of Beirut, that three of us, social workers, come there to welcome, to listen and to counsel them etc. We discovered that many children were not attend-ing school for various reasons: -Due to the stresses of everyday life some parents neglect to send their children to school. - They do not have even the minimum resource to buy essential school items. - There are no vacancies in local schools. - The children have never attended school previously. - Quite a number of children roam the streets begging while other children get work in spite of being underage. Providing for this project hasn’t been an easy task with so many other financial demands on refugees: transport, teachers , books, location etc. We began with 20 children at different levels of education, now we have between 45-47 in attendance.

S…..is now 12 years old and had never been to school; she preferred to

remain at home. Now she is happy learning to read

and write.

He is only 11 years of age but works with a mechanic. Like other children of his age he has a

right to education.

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New project for the out -of - school Children in Beirut Sr Georgette Tannoury

We are convinced that loving children con-sists in: - Offering them the possibility to avail fully of their civic rights. - Giving them the chance to be involved with children of their own age. - Creating an atmosphere where the child can be free to open up. -Offering the opportunity of a good education

Photo: The youngest children

All these children are applying themselves to study.

Together in one room the children are listening to a story

For the 10 o’clock break the lady distributes snacks.

Reserved Area

During the last few months many requests have been made for a gssweb mail account for different

groups to enter the reserved area. For those of you who are using your account to enter the re-

served area, please note that the updated address book is now in the congregational documents

site. I wish to thank the Technician who is working hard to create all the e-mails. If some of you

have still not received your gssweb account after having requested , I would be grateful if you could

please send me an e-mail at: com@gssweb.org to do the follow up.

Thanks a lot for your collaboration.

Sr. Marie Françoise Mestry

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Letter to Sr Marie Claude Naddaf, province Leader of Lebanon/ Syria

To you, Marie-Claude, who kept the lighthouse in Damascus … while your sisters and partners were in Lebanon! If you could have seen the progress, of the peo-ple from Syria and the team of Syrian professors from the refugee camp ‘Bekaa’, during this two-day session, what joy would have filled your heart! I am deeply touched by what we have just experienced. Yesterday morning, Friday, realis-ing the time at which the participants from Syria would have to depart today, Saturday, in order to arrive at Damascus during daylight, I won-dered how we would manage in such a short time. God surely wanted this session with you be-cause he showed me the way I should go… A road filled with stops and discoveries! On the first day, I was amazed at all that I managed to share and bring to life for the participants. I was particularly struck by their open and receptive attitude. They took fistfuls of the bread that I was offering them; I saw them savour it and they welcomed it so much that it couldn’t but be productive. I told them from the beginning that they would leave with a “bag of restored security,” a “road bag” from which they could draw to help them face the challenges that they would encounter each day, while trying to support others or wel-come them. I wanted so much for them to be able to help your people and I did all I could for them to receive as many resources as possible in a very short time… and we achieved that. I would like to describe the sharing with each other.

Certain experiences have bowled us over and I will share them with you orally tomorrow night. I will write on paper some key experiences that I could never forget and about which I would like to inform the whole world. In Bekaa, the school principal dared to share a unique experience. I saw that it opened a new way for his people, a way that could unite the people in saying “no” to bloodshed, to violence to death. So that there would be no blood, this man, a Muslim, went between two warring fac-tions and his villagers followed him. He discov-ered universal love in action. He saw this herit-age (universal love) and offered it to his people. I want to write these facts on my return. Andre will also do it because he was bowled over by the quality of the participants. He told me at the end of the session that he had never seen such a session. Within a day and a half, I was able to ini-tiate the restoration of individual vital human forces by making the participants discover signs of their own vital human forces, by shifting their tensions and frustrations by concrete means, and by making them see how to help others elude the grasp of violence. This afternoon, with the team from Bekaa, we looked at how to bring to birth “families of peace” through the for-mation of couples, how to prepare “professors- peacemakers”, how to explore with young peo-ple how they might become “builders of peace bridges”, and consequently build the future of Syria if these ways will open up and multiply. These people have suffered and the earth is ready to receive a new seed.

Marie Marcelle Desmarrais is a sister of CND (the Congregation of Our Lady) and director of IFHIM (Institute for Integrated Human Formation - Montreal) A professional social worker and formator, Marie-Marcelle Desmarais (MSS) holds a Masters in social work and is interna-tionally recognised for her various scientific works. She facilitated a session for Good Shepherd sisters and lay associ-ates who work with Syrian refugees in Lebanon and Syria, using a model based on the vital forces to help people who have experi-enced trauma. After the session Marie Marcelle spoke to Sr. Marie Claude, leader of the province of Lebanon-Syria.

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Letter to Sr. Marie Claude Naddaf

Marie-Claude, it was dense, intense and pro-found. The participation was impressive. If you could have heard the message of grati-tude, you would have been deeply touched. This session had to return to what they were before the war. They rediscovered their val-ues, their strength, the beauty of themselves, of their history, of their heritage. The richness that Syria has given the world was highlight-ed. When you pass through fire and blood you can imagine what it meant for them, for the Lebanese, for me. Yesterday evening, some women told me that it was the first time they had experienced a session for themselves, rather than for the people they were helping. In fact, the nourish-ment they received was for themselves, but it would also to some extent be shared with others. They encountered their own selves, in the greatness of their love. Yes, they realised that their love commits them to the way of

the Good Shepherd, whether they are Christians or Muslims. I felt the connection between them and I was drawn in a way that called me to keep return-ing. Marie-Claude, I loved them a lot! I was so hap-py to be able to contribute to this psychological and social reconstruction, and I felt that they truly welcomed me into their family.

Marie-Claude, a pro-found thank you for trusting me so much. Thank you for this pro-cess which you offered your people and to these

“good shepherds”! Thank you for believing that I could accompany them on the way! Thank you for all that you are for the world! Sister Marie-Marcelle Desmarrais , cnd

Pilgrims on the Journey By Jeanette McDermott, communications coordinator, Province of Mid-North America

I was invited to journey as a Pilgrim from Febru-ary 24 to March 4 to a sacred place for Good Shepherds: the place where our holy work was born -- the Motherhouse, in Angers, France. This is where St. Mary Euphrasia expanded the work of Good Shepherd to an international mission and vision. It has been a place of prayer and con-templation for almost 200 years. I journeyed with 79 other mission partners from the provinces of Canada, New York, Mid-North America, Australia/New Zealand and Malaysia/Singapore. Our pilgrimage focused on the life of St. Mary Euphrasia and the history of the found-ing of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, with time for prayer, reflection and sharing about the Good Shepherd mission and spirituality. We heard about the life events of St. Mary Euphrasia and made connections to our own journey as Good Shepherds.

Carriage with Sr. Anne

Josephine Carr

Sr. Anne Josephine Carr, presenter from the Con-

gregation in Rome, brought Good Shepherd history to life, including telling stories of the car-riage rides that St. Mary

Euphrasia was not particularly fond of.

St. Nicholas

Abbey

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Pilgrims on the Journey By Jeanette McDermott, communications coordinator, Province of Mid-North America

We took time together to discuss how we live the mission of Good Shepherd in our agencies and ministries and how we embody the core val-ues as individuals. We made a trip to Noirmoutier to see the house where St. Mary Euphrasia was born, the prison where her parents were kept during the French Revolution, and the beach and woods that she loved so well as a young girl. We absorbed the sights, sounds and spaces of the sacred Motherhouse and its grounds, most notably by paying visits to St. Mary Euphrasia’s tomb and office, walking through the legendary tunnel that St. Mary Euphrasia had built to help the sisters move about more freely, praying in the same chapel where St. Mary Euphrasia prayed and standing at the Green Doors, where she welcomed young women into the Order and

sent them out as missionaries into all parts of the world. On our visits to these holy places in Angers and Noirmoutier and during large group sessions, we learned about the long line of holy people who have inspired others by their faithfulness to their own special destinies. Most specifically, we came to understand that Count de Neuville was a man of God whose stream of benefactions to St. Mary Euphrasia and the early order she founded and to other good works never ceased, so that by the end of his life he lived in poverty and died a pauper. Countess d’Andigne was a loyal counse-lor, companion and champion of St. Mary Eu-phrasia. She often travelled with St. Mary Eu-phrasia to keep her company and help ease the physical pain she endured on train trips and car-riage rides.

Tunnel entrance The tunnel at the Motherhouse has be-come legendary in Good Shepherd as a symbol of zeal. Pilgrims learned of the tunnel’s history, walked through it to the other side leading to St. Nicholas Ab-bey, and experienced a heartfelt ritual inside its sacred stone walls.

The Labyrinth A labyrinth is a circular path leading to a center. It is a spiritual resource. Pil-grims walked the labyrinth in the gar-dens of the Motherhouse in Angers as a way of getting in touch with them-selves, with others, the earth, the uni-verse and with God.

Some pilgrims wrote intentions or carried them from co-workers to place at the tomb of St. Mary Euphrasia.

Letter boxes photo There is a room at the Motherhouse where St. Mary Euphrasia slept and had her office. It is here that she wrote countless letters to her “daughters” across the globe and main-tained official and personal correspondence with oth-ers throughout her life-time.

Original Chapel

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Pilgrims on the Journey By Jeanette McDermott, communications coordinator, Province of Mid-North America

Two pilgrims in Noirmoutiers

Ina Argueta and Cristina Franco proudly display their pilgrim bags.

Pilgrims traveled by bus to the island of Noirmoutier to get a sense of what life on the island may have meant to young Rose Virginie and the Pelletier family. St. Philbert Church is where Rose Virginie made her first communion in 1807. She was confirmed here in 1808, and at that time her name was added to the St. Philbert parish records.

The pace of the pilgrimage was kept open enough for us to reflect on these stories and to visit the town of Angers to sample French cul-ture and to walk on the same cobblestone streets and stroll across the same bridge that St. Mary Euphrasia experienced when she left the convent to go into town. Our pilgrimage started as an out-ward journey to a fixed destination; however, it soon had become a journey of the heart that con-nected each pilgrim to a sacred center and story and to each other. Our days as pilgrims were joy-ful, informative and rich in blessings.

I know I don’t stand alone when I say that my desire now is to bring my gratitude and the in-sights and rewards I gained as a pilgrim back in-to my daily life. I return to my province deeply committed to the Good Shepherd mission and ready to share our stories with others to support the development of a community of Good Shep-herd people and further the sense of unity within Good Shepherd globally. I am ready to be moved to action and challenged to change so that I may help lead Good Shepherd into the future.

The pilgrimage was sponsored by the Sisters of the Good Shepherd Conference of Provincials of North America. The pilgrim planning team in-cluded Melinda Stricklen, Lizzie Tschida, Sr. Barbara Beasley, Sr. Ellen Kelly, Bob Interbarto-lo, Laurie Williams and Anna Pavan. Sr. Anne Josephine Carr and Sr. Noreen O’Shea brought history to life through their presentations. Jeanette McDermott, communications coordinator, Province of Mid-North America More Pictures of Jeannette Mc Dermott on page 14

Pilgrims

entering

the tunnel

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The Feast of the Presentation 2nd February 2014 Province of Egypt/ Sudan

The Feast of the Presentation was a double celebration for us –the li-turgical celebration of the coming of Light into the heart of the world, and the celebration of the First Profession of Novices Mary and Randa and Perpetual Profession of Sisters Afaf and Rita. At 10 o'clock in the morning, the Chapel of the Good Shepherd at Choubra, in Cairo filled up with Sisters of the Good Shepherd and of other Congregations, relatives and friends. With the ringing of bells the entrance hymn invited us to this joyful ceremony. The four sisters - Afaf, Rita, Mary and Randa entered the Chapel accompanied by His Beatitude the Patriarch Bishop Ibrahim Isaak, Presider of the Eucha-rist, followed by priests, seminarians, sisters and their parents. The Eucharist in Coptic Rite was simple but calling for a collective medita-tive approach. Bishop Ibrahim in his homily gave thanks to the Lord for the gift of vocation of our four sisters. He thanked their parents who have sown the seed of faith in them and also all those who have accompanied them throughout leading up to the present moment. Then he spoke of the presence of God in each one of us and in the world in the midst of painful and discouraging situations, as well as to the call of God who guides us, His people and His Church. He explained the meaning of the vows and how to live the spirit of the mission with great inner free-dom. The purpose of the mission, he said, is to be disciples of Jesus, to build the Kingdom of God. After the homily the ceremony of profession took place. Mary and Randa made their first profession as temporary professed and Afaf and Rita made their perpetual profession - a commitment for life. An atmosphere of thanksgiving prevailed in the Chapel…the whole as-sembly joined with the four young sisters; joy, peace and hope radiat-ed on everybody’s faces. The "lu lu ", a traditional sign of celebration certainly added an Egyptian colour to the celebration. After Mass, all were invited to share a festive meal. A profound feel-ing of solidarity prevailed during the preparation of the feast and its celebration. Let us accompany our sisters with our prayers and wish them every happiness in their calling! Province of Egypt Sudan

Sr. Mary Attala -First Profession

Sr. Afaf Bakhit - Final profession

Sr. Rita Nabil - Final profession

Sr. Randa Bakhit - First Profession

Celebration after

the Eucharist

From Left to right:

Randa, Mary, Bishop

Ibrahim, Rita, Afaf

And Karima

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NEW CHALLENGES WITH NEW PROJECTS Closing a door does not mean leaving forever

In September 2012, the Good Shepherd Province of Portugal passed on to the laity the responsi-bility of a ministry which the Good Shepherd Sis-ters had served in for eighty years in the town of Coimbra. The Province Council decided that the Sisters should however ensure their presence, though changing the field of action of their apos-tolate. Three sisters have therefore set up their residence near the town, in an area that faces many social problems. It is easy to identify the fields of action where the presence of the Good Shepherd Sisters is necessary and required. They work to help women who want to leave prostitution (the Sis-ters Adorers have started a project in this sense, entitled "STAND UP" aiming at inserting these women in workplaces).

It is a project of Sheltered Employment, which benefits from the participation of the Social Se-curity. The women who participate in this pro-ject achieve some professional skills and, after a year, they are able to start working. This is a new experience. The four women who have adhered to this project are already work-ing in a sewing factory, and a new group of women is now forming. The Good Shepherd Sisters work also with the local Caritas offices at the professional training of women who get financial benefits for social inclusion. We would like to point out the pres-ence in this project of some of the women who were once trained by the Good Shepherd Sisters. The Sisters also participate in the evangelization of the local families, by listening to and guiding them to the maximum extent possible.

Another step with Maria Droste

In the context of the canonization of Blessed Maria of the Divine Heart, the Good Shepherd Sisters of Portugal had the joy of receiving, from 23rd to 26th February 2014, the visit of the Postulator in charge of her canoni-zation, Dr W. Hilgeman, Brother Reginald Cruz cfx. the Vice-Postulator (Congregation of the Brothers of St. Francis Xavier) and Sr. Yvette Arnold Congregational Secretary. The purpose of this visit was to better know the place where Blessed Maria of the Divine Heart lived and

died, as well as to become acquainted, among other things, with her writings. The visitors were given the opportunity to visit the city of Porto, her house and the cemetery where she was buried. They also visited Ermesinde, where the relics of Blessed Maria Droste are, as well as the Sanctuary of Christ the King in Lis-bon, where there is a small chapel dedi-cated to the Divine Heart where the reli-quary and a picture of Maria Droste are kept. Then, they had a meeting with D. Manuel Clemente, the Cardinal Patriarch of Lis-bon. They also had an enlightening dis-cussion on the process of canonization, with several sisters of the Province of Por-tugal, as well as with some of their lay col-laborators. It was a great moment of joy and hope! Sr. Olinda Aguiar -Province of Portugal

Stained glass window

dedicated to Blessed Maria

Droste in one of the chapels of

Christ the King in Almada Portugal

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Good Shepherd News While each unit is encouraged to send articles anytime during the year, we have planned that there are specific editions when each unit is asked to submit an article so that at the end of the year all the units have been part of Good Shepherd News.

Please send articles on or

before the 5th of each month. Here is the suggested schedule:

January

Commissions, CLT, Bolivia/Chile, Indonesia

February Argentina/Uruguay, Lebanon/ Syria, Mexico, South Africa

March Europe BFMN Belgium/France/

Magyarorsza g,Netherlands Mid-North America, Egypt/Sudan

April Philippines, Portugal, Peru,

Australia /Aotearoa/N. Zealand May

Spain, Angola/Mozambique, ColomboVe ne zolana/Cuba

June Central America, Northeast

Asia July

East Asia, West Africa , ( Sé né gal, Burkina Faso) The Isles,

August Italia/Malta , Singapore/

Malaysia, Deutschland/Albania September

New York, Canada, Ecuador October

Sudeste de America Latina, Sri Lanka/ Pakistan

November Japan, Great Britain,

O sterreich/Schweiz/Czech Rep December

South Wést India/Céntral East India/Nepal, Ireland,

Congo/Kenya

Calendar 2014

Good Shepherd News Special thanks to the following for the translations

and proof reading

Graciéla Méndéz, Argéntina; Nicolé Bastién Canada; Ana Maria Quiroz, Marta Ceballos, Patrizia Marturano, Armelle Dehennault, Generalate; Adriana Pere z, Claudine Fargeix, BFMN; Ethna Mc

Dermott, Czech Rep; Karla Bernabe, Se ne gal;Rosario Ortiz, Espa-n a, Catherine Veale, Ireland, Delia Rodriguez, Peru ; Yolanda San-

chez, New York; Marle ne Coret Etienne, France Narcisa Vivanco, Ecuador, Ednro Astruc, Mauritius

Pilgrims on the Journey By Jeanette Mc Dermott, communications coordinator, Mid-

North America

Picture taken by Jeanette Mc Dermott

Noirmoutier Sea

Rose Virginie loved the island of Noirmoutier. She enjoyed running along the sandy shores and climbing the rocks. She also loved to pray at the rocky grotto where St. Philbert came

to pray in the 7th century.

The castle

Chateau de Noirmoutier is one of the oldest castles in France, dating from the

11th century. It served as a prison during the French Revolution and is where Dr. and Mme. Pelletier

were imprisoned when they were exiled to the island.