It has been a wonderful and productive month in the clothing room at Good Shepherd Ministries in Toronto. I help in the distribution of clothes to the homeless people and received help from three seminarians from St. Augustine's Seminary, a novice of Missionary Sisters of the Precious Blood and lay woman.
Novice Libby Osgood will be leaving for North Carolina on February 18th for her next apostolic and community experience. She will be forming community with Sisters Margarita Castañeda and Thérèse Martin in Hayesville and will also have the opportunity to meet-up with the associates of the area. Libby will be returning to White Plains on June 1st. While there, she will be participating in a series of ministry experiences in the parish as well as in the local area. I invite you to pray for Libby and her new community in this next stage of her discernment process. May her next apostolic experience help her to integrate her sense of religious life within the mission of the Congrégation de Notre-Dame. Many blessings and thanks!
On February 10, Monica Lambton, JPIC coordinator, journeyed to Toronto for the monthly gathering of sisters and associates. We got a good turnout of almost 20, just ahead of the wintry blast.
Carrying forward the theme of last year's Associate Assembly, Monica spoke about Fanning that Flame of Mission. Mindful of the core values (e.g. act with courage and boldness), we must strive to keep hoping in the big shift, despite naysayers all around us. Sometimes, it takes a letting go before we can grow our hope. Allies are important along the way ... and always have been. Comparing notes in small groups, hearing what others are doing to care for our common home, we began to see how much more each one can do. We can also help each other to see how far we've come already, even though there's still such a long way to go. Laudato Si' is a valuable resource: "Everything is beautiful. Everything is fragile. Everything is connected"
