On January 12, at our weekly morning Prayer Service open to all the residents at Andrews, Sister Della Gaudet gave a short reflection in which she shared some fascinating stories about our foundress. This was greatly appreciated by the participants.
At 11:30, nearly all of the PEI sisters joined us for prayer in Andrews’ Activity Room. Our prayer opened with “O St. Marguerite” accompanied by Sister Phyllis Gallant at the keyboard. A delicious dinner followed, served by Andrews’ kitchen staff. A large picture of St. Marguerite with children, (a replica of the statues in downtown Montréal), adorned the wall. It was a wonderful opportunity to come together, to enjoy one another’s company and to celebrate our foundress.
January 15th, Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours Chapel was alive with CND sisters, associates, friends, and supporters as we celebrated St. Marguerite Bougeoys’ feast day.
Archbishop Christian Lepine presided over our celebration of the mass and spoke of Marguerite’s history and her impact on the beginnings of Ville Marie. He emphasized, over and over again, that the source of her strength was her life of prayer, especially prayer to Mary and to Eucharist. Her life is a model for, not only the CND community, but for all believers. A life dedicated to following Jesus in the accompaniment of Mary.
January 18-25 – Week of Prayer for Christian Unity – an annual ecumenical celebration. This is a time widely recognized as an opportunity to join with Christian people around the world to pray for Christian unity. The theme for this year is Reconciliation - The Love of Christ Compels Us (2 Corinthians 5:14-20). Many churches and faith communities offer special services during his week.