Apr 23, 2018
“Sister India” recounts the story of Sr Loreto Houlihan, a 91-year-old Irish missionary, who has spent 70 years teaching in India.
A new documentary by Irish filmmaker Myles O’Reilly, which is currently being screened at a number of film festivals in Ireland and in India, tells the story of a 91-year-old Irish missionary sister who has spent 70 years teaching in India.
‘Sister India’ recounts the story of Presentation nun, Sr Loreto (Peg) Houlihan who was born near Carrick-on-Suir in Co Tipperary in 1927.
The documentary has already been screened at the Dingle International Film Festival and the Silk Road Film Festival.
“Sister India” is due to be screened at the Fastnet Film Festival on 23rd-27th May and at the International Christian Film Festival in Florida. Later this summer, it will be shown at the Ink Well Theatre in Tracton, Co Cork on 18th August, and at the Clare Island Film Festival.
Film-maker Myles O’Reilly has said that he is not very religious but when he saw Sr Loreto’s deep love of India and its people, he found it heart-warming.
“Sitting in front of her and listening to her talk was like being warmed by the hearth of an Irish fireplace on a rainy day hearing stories as she it from ‘the long ago’. I learned from her that India and its culture retains more of the life she left 70 years ago in Ireland than the country of her birth today, and so she chooses to live the rest of her days in India for that natural familiarity” he explained.
Read more about the life of Sister Loreto Houlihan here.
Information sourced from articles written by Áine Edwards for The Irish Times and Sarah Mac Donald for Catholic Ireland.
Apr 16, 2018
Who is Sr Loreto Houlihan?
Born into a large family in 1927, Peg Houlihan grew up in hard times, especially in the 1930s with a worldwide depression and an economic war between Ireland and Britain. By the time she was five years old, her mother was already a widow as her father had died. In 1943, 16-year-old Peg left rural Tinhalla near Carrick-on-Suir in Co Tipperary and joined the Presentation Sisters in Britain. She was missioned to India and set sail from Liverpool to Bombay as the Second World War was drawing to a close; she celebrated her 17th birthday on board.
After landing in Bombay, she made the rest of the journey by train down to Madras. On arrival at the Presentation Convent, there was a letter waiting from her mother. It opened with “Céad míle fáilte” to India.
In the documentary, “Sister India”, Sr Loreto speaks lovingly of that letter, as she knew it was a huge sacrifice for her mother to let her go. They never saw each other again.
Sr Loreto dedicated her life to love and serve others through education in Chennai. After completing her teacher training at Church Park College in Madras, she went on to work as a primary school teacher spending most of her life at St Joseph’s Anglo-Indian School in Perambur in north Chennai.
The children in her class were six years old and over the years, she has taught three generations of families, and become a well-loved and respected person in the community. In class she says she was strict, but outside of school, “I didn’t have enough fingers for them to hold onto.”
Sr Loreto with Irish Ambassador to India Brian McElduff, celebrating her Jubilee at the Presentation convent. Phogoraph: Justin George/ DTNEXT
After Indian independence in 1947, the Indian government asked the Presentation Sisters to continue their education, and the doors were opened to the indigenous population, which in India is almost 80 per cent Hindi. The children were encouraged to celebrate their culture in the schools.
Today, Sr Loreto says she is “blessed with strong faith, good sleep, and no regrets”, and intends to live out her life in her beloved India.
Venerable Nano Nagle – founder of the Presentation Congregation – has been her role model in life. Nano is known as “The Lady of the Lamp” – a pioneer of Catholic education in Ireland during penal times.
The idea for the film “Sister India” was sparked by Irish woman, Áine Edwards, who has been living in India since 2003 where she runs a business consultancy service.
“My many conversations with Sr Loreto evoked a passion in me to produce a documentary on her. I wanted to not only share her story, but also to celebrate the work of so many other Irish educators in India, as this era draws to a close and another starts.”
According to Áine Edwards, “The Irish legacy of education in India is one of Ireland’s strongest links with the country. The seeds have been sown for the Indian sisters to take this legacy forward for the next generation of children. ‘Sister India’ was made to preserve not only the story of Sr Loreto, but to remember all the Irish who have dedicated their lives in the service of education and community support in India.”
Sr Loreto with Irish Ambassador to India Brian McElduff, celebrating her Jubilee. Phogoraph: Justin George/ DTNEXT
“The adults I meet nowadays who attended schools where Irish brothers and sisters were teachers, talk fondly of them and their education. The late chief minister of Tamil, Nadu Jayalalitha, has spoken of her school days at Church Park as being the happiest of her life.”
The first Presentation mission in India began in 1842 when four pioneering sisters from Ireland arrived in Madras (Chennai). The mission spread to many other states in the Indian sub-continent including Rawalpindi which later became part of Pakistan. Sisters from India went on to establish mission foundations Matlock in England, in Zimbabwe, and in Zambia. More recently sisters from India are also ministering in Thailand, Slovakia, Ireland, and the Holy Land.
There are currently 165 sisters living and ministering in a number of states including Tamil Nadu, Goa, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. They are involved in formal and informal education, social work, health and pastoral care, as well as justice, peace, and advocacy on behalf of those on the margins, especially women and children.
Watch the trailer for Sister India here.
Information sourced from articles written by Áine Edwards for The Irish Times and Sarah Mac Donald for Catholic Ireland.
Apr 9, 2018
Reflection: Walk in the Light. Sin, repentance, forgiveness of sin.
Gospel (Luke 24:35-48). So you see how it is written that Christ would suffer and on the third day rise from the dead and that repentance and the forgiveness of sins be proclaimed in his name to all nations.
This is Luke’s account of the last appearance of Jesus to the disciples. For the disciples this encounter with Jesus was to be a new beginning. His work was to continue to all peoples, with its central message of repentance for sin, accepting the gospel message. The message was for all nations, not just the Jewish people, to the ends of the world as put in other gospel texts. It is worth noting that in his Confession St Patrick’s dwells on these texts and thanks God that he had the mission of bringing the Gospel message to the “ends of the earth”, which for him was Ireland.
Today’s readings present a golden opportunity to reflect on what the Church, the Christian message, is centrally about and in the light of this to see what message they have for our own day, for the society in which we live. The second reading today is from the First Letter of John. Both this letter, and the Fourth Gospel, speak a lot about walking in the light. Christ is the true light. He reveals sin. The Apocalypse (Revelation) of John speaks of the Risen Lord, the Son of Man, walking among the candlesticks (the different churches) praising what is good, exhorting the lukewarm, and calling on sinners and defectors to repent, to emend their ways. Each of the letters to the seven churches of Asia addressed in this book ends with Christ’s words: “Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches”.
As the Vatican Council has reminded us Christ is present in his word since it is he himself who speaks when the holy scriptures are read in the Church. As in the Apocalypse of John, the risen Christ is still speaking, encouraging, revealing, and where required calling for repentance. Christians are to walk in the light. But what the light of Christ and its demands are must be conveyed to the believing community. To walk in the truth, the truths of the Christian faith have to be known and made known to the Catholic community. There is a danger in traditionally Catholic communities, such as Ireland, that we may have a large number of what is called “cultural” rather than really practicing Catholics. The 2011 census of Ireland showed that 84% of the population entered themselves as Roman Catholic, which some say that if “ethnically” adjusted (that is excluding foreign nationals) could be as high as 90%. Some analysts have reflected on this that other statistics such as Sunday Mass attendance, marital and sexual morality and other matters may indicate that for many adherence to the Catholic faith is cultural rather than the practice of the Christian message. In the 2016 census the number signing themselves as Roman Catholics had decreased to 78.32%, with 9.84% signing themselves as of no religion. If we wish to “walk in the truth” we have reason to reflect on this. Let us have an ear to hear what the Spirit is saying to us, and seek methods on how to communicate the fuller Christian message, so that the word of God, and the power of grace, might bring us all into possession of the Christian inheritance that is ours (see Acts 20:32).
There is room for all of us, individually and nationally, to be aware of the reality of sin, and to repent and believe in the gospel.
Fr Martin McNamara MSC
Apr 5, 2018
The World Meeting of Families started in 1994, when Pope St John Paul II asked the Pontifical Council for the Family (now part of the Dicastery for Laity, the Family and Life) to establish an international event of prayer, catechesis and celebration that would draw participants from around the globe and that would help to strengthen the bonds between families and bear witness to the crucial importance of marriage and the family to all of society.
As you will already know, Dublin has been chosen by Pope Francis to host the next World Meeting of Families from 21-26 August 2018, guided by the theme “The Gospel of the Family: Joy for the World”.
Held every three years, this major international event brings together families from across the world to celebrate, pray and reflect upon the central importance of marriage and the family as the cornerstone of our lives, of society and of the Church. The event has at its heart the following key moments:
- 22 to the 24 August 2018, a three-day Congress. Each day will reflect on the theme “The Gospel of the Family: Joy for the World” chosen by the Holy Father and will include an enriching programme for adults of keynote speakers, workshops, talks, testimonies and discussions; an engaging and exciting programme for young people as well as fun activities for children. The Congress will also include daily celebration of the Eucharist, prayerful activities, exhibitions, cultural events and musical performances.
- Saturday 25 August 2018, a Festival of Families, comprising a reflective concert style event within a prayerful and joyful atmosphere, in which personal stories of faith will be shared by families from all continents.
- Sunday 26 August 2018, WMOF2018 will close with a solemn Eucharistic Celebration, that will gather thousands of people from Ireland and all over the world.
Credit Photo: Des McMahon
The main events of the WMOF2018 will take place in Dublin, at a large conference venue as well as in other venues in and around the city. It is also anticipated that related events, including the hosting of international groups, will take place all over the island of Ireland.
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Pope Francis
Pope Francis recently announced that he will make the first papal trip to Ireland in nearly 40 years, visiting Dublin for two days later this year to take part in the World Meeting of Families celebrations.
Confirmed events that Pope Francis will be participating in include:
- Saturday 25th August 2018: Attendance at the WMOF2018 Festival of Families.
- Sunday 26th August 2018: Celebration of the WMOF2018 Final Mass.
A detailed itinerary of Pope Francis’ visit to Ireland will be published on the WMOF website once final plans are announced.
Apr 5, 2018
The Missionaries of the Sacred Heart are very sad to announce the passing of Fr Mark McDonald, our former Superior General.
Fr Mark McDonald passed away on April 2, 2018 at the Sacred Heart Villa in Center Valley, Pennsylvania at age 75. Father McDonald was born July 22, 1942 in Watertown, New York, the son of Donald and Anna Murrock McDonald. He was a graduate of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart School and Immaculate Heart Academy.
Fr McDonald attended St. Bonaventure University for two years and began his studies to become a Missionary of the Sacred Heart (MSC) in 1961. He completed his philosophy studies in Quebec, Canada and graduated from Laval University in Quebec City in 1964. He completed his theological studies in Rome, Italy and graduated from the Angelicum Pontifical University in Rome in 1968. He was ordained a priest of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart on June 29, 1968 in Watertown by Bishop Thomas Donnellan.
After ordinaton, Fr McDonald taught at the Sacred Heart Preparatory Seminary and Immaculate Heart Central High School (IHC), both in Watertown. In 1972, he became Vice Principal at IHC. In 1976, he became Director of the MSC Retreat and Renewal Center in Shelby, Ohio. In 1983, he became Formation Director for the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart in Bogota, Colombia and in 1985 became Sectional Superior of the MSCs in Colombia.
In 1991, Fr McDonald was elected Provincial of the MSCs in the United States headquartered in Aurora, Illinois. In 1997, he became Pastor of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart parish in Watertown. In 1999, he became Director of Cor Novum (the MSC retreat and renewal center in Issoudun, France). From 2005 to 2017, he was Superior General of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart worldwide located in Rome, Italy. Fr McDonald became semi-retired in 2018 and was residing at the Sacred Heart Villa in Center Valley, Pennsylvania.
Please keep Fr Mark McDonald in your thoughts and prayers.
Fr Mark McDonald MSC, 1942 – 2018
Source: Watertown Daily Times
Mar 29, 2018
MSC Easter Draw 2018
Prize Winners:
1st Prize: €2,000 Cruise Travel Voucher
E. Byrne
Rathfarnham, Dublin 14
2nd Prize: €1,500 Sun Holiday Voucher
U. Cunningham
Inchicore, Dublin 12
3rd Prize: €1,000 City Break Voucher
M. McGrath
Lusk, Co. Dublin
4th Prize: €1,000 TV/Audio Voucher
J. Keaveney
Ballymoe, Co. Galway
5th Prize: €1,000 TV/Audio Voucher
D.M. Kissane
Killiney, Co. Dublin
6th Prize: €1,000 Home Furniture Voucher
P. O’Siochru
Dingle, Co. Kerry
7th Prize: €1,000 Home Furniture Voucher
J. Brecknell c/o P. Brecknell
Newbridge, Co. Kildare
8th Prize: €500 Weekend Break Voucher
J. McGeehan
Fintown, Co. Donegal
9th Prize: €500 Weekend Break Voucher
B.J. Flaherty
Inverin, Co. Galway
10th Prize: €500 Computer/Tablet Voucher
H. McCormack c/o U. McCormack
Millmount, Co. Westmeath
11th Prize: €500 Computer/Tablet Voucher
M. Sidebotham
London Road, Slough
12th Prize: €500 Home Decor Voucher
Sr B. McAuliffe c/o Sr M. Murphy
Clonakilty, Co. Cork
13th Prize: €500 Home Decor Voucher
D. Collins
Nenagh, Co. Tipperary
14th Prize: €500 Garden / Outdoor Voucher
F. Timmins
Malahide, Co. Dublin
15th Prize: €500 Garden / Outdoor Voucher
C. Smyth
Lanesborough, Co. Longford
16th Prize: €500 Home Appliances Voucher
B. Deighan
Malahide Road, Dublin 3
17th Prize: €500 Home Appliances Voucher
M. Maher
Blessington Street, Dublin 7
18th Prize: €500 Hot Air Balloon Voucher
C. Cooney c/o A. Corboy
Killarney, Co. Kerry
19th Prize: €500 Hot Air Balloon Voucher
P. Flemming c/o J. Fleming
Ferrybank, Waterford
20th Prize: €500 Cookery Class Voucher
M. O’Leary
Athenry, Co. Galway
All winners will be notified individually.
We would like to extend a sincere thank you to everyone for taking part.
The Easter Draw took place on Wednesday evening, 28th March 2018.
