Nov 21, 2017
This summer, the MSC reached out to support the Loretto Sisters in Rumbek, South Sudan, where they have made huge strides in creating a better life for residents with life saving medical care and essential educational facilities.
During her recent visit to Ireland, Sr Orla Treacy IBVM visited the MSC Missions Office, to personally thank Fr Michael O’Connell MSC and all of the MSC mission friends for their financial support from their recent fundraising Summer Appeal.
Sr Orla, far left, with some of the Loreto School students
“It is unique for one congregation to financially support another one, so this contribution to our work in Rumbek is extremely generous” she said. In 2008, the Loretto Sisters began working in the rural community of Maker Kuei, Rumbek, where daily life is a constant struggle for 1,000 families. During this period they have built a Primary School that caters for almost 900 students, both male and female, where students are guaranteed to have clean water, nutritious meals, access to health care and a quality education.
“A sincere thank you for your generosity and for your willingness to collaborate in helping us with this challenging yet worthwhile mission”.
The Loretto Secondary School is an all girls’ boarding school, where students are educated in social and life skills as well as receiving a full academic tuition. Currently, 240 girls attend this school, and the demand for places is increasing as principal Sr Orla works with families to protect these young women from enforced marriage. As a result of the very successful MSC Summer Appeal the funds collected have been sent to the Loretto Sisters and work has begun on the foundations for a new dormitory which will accommodate 16 girls each year as they embark on an additional internship year and vocational opportunities.
The foundations for the dormitories which will house 16 of the Internship Programme students
In recognition for her work in South Sudan, Sr Orla was the recipient of the 2017 Hugh O’Flaherty International Humanitarian Award, at an event in Killarney on the 4th November 2017. “It is very humbling to accept this award and I do so on behalf of our sisters, staff and students at loretto School in Rumbek, South Sudan” she told a large and appreciative audience who came to honour her inspiring work.
Sr Orla with the statue of Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty and her Humanitarian Award
We are calling on all our mission friends to join with our MSC community in supporting this crucial work in a country that’s crying out for urgent aid.
PLEASE HELP US TO SAVE LIVES IN SOUTH SUDAN
Read more about the Loreto Sisters and their incredible work in the war-torn South Sudan.
Nov 17, 2017
The winter edition of the MSC Message has arrived!
- Get the latest news from the mission fields with updates from our ongoing projects in Venezuela as we celebrate our Golden Jubilee: 50 years in Venezuela.
- Read about the MSC Audience with Pope Francis and welcome the new Superior General, Fr Absalón Alvarado.
- Meet our new Provincial Leader and his Provincial Leadership Team.
- Sr Orla Treacy expresses her sincere gratitude to the MSC and its benefactors for their generosity in supporting the Loreto School Project in Rumbek, South Sudan.
Read the MSC Message Winter 2017
Nov 15, 2017
November is the month of the Holy Souls, a special time when we remember those who have gone before us. The Light Up a Memory Mass is a beautiful celebration of the lives of our dearly departed, as we join together to pray by candlelight in an evening of reflection and remembrance.
“This is an opportunity to remember those who are no longer with us with fondness and affection,” says Fr Michael O’Connell MSC, director of the MSC Missions Office. “During the dark winter days, a light is unique gift, and each of these lights is a beacon of remembrance in honour of the loved ones who are always in our thoughts.”
On the evening of the Mass, the Sacred Heart Church is illuminated by the glow of hundreds of candles, with choral music adding to the peaceful and prayerful ambience. We come together to pray by the welcoming glow of candlelight in an evening of reflection and remembrance, with each flame burning brightly in memory of those whom we have lost.
We would like to extend an invitation to you to join us on Saturday 25th November at 6.30pm to remember our departed family, friends, and loved ones who have gone before us.
The Light up a Memory Mass is a very special occasion and we would like to offer you the opportunity to submit the names of your departed loved ones online before the 25th and our MSC priests will remember them specially during our Light Up a Memory Mass. We would greatly appreciate your support for our ongoing mission projects, and in gratitude for your contribution, we will be glad to remember your intentions at our annual Mass.
If you are unable to join us on the night we welcome you to watch the Light Up a Memory Mass live here on our website.
Nov 15, 2017
Reflection: Watch. Keep awake. The End of the Liturgical Year; the End of Life and of the World. Prepared to render an account.
The Gospel (Matthew 25:14-30). You have been faithful in small things; come and join in your master’s happiness. The parable of the talents, read in today’s Gospel, can be easily understood, and its message is clear: we should make good use of the gifts which the Lord, God, has given us, and be aware that we will have to render an account of their use to the Lord in due time. Fundamentally, a talent was a weight of 80 pounds, or 36 kilograms. We are then not surprised to see how in the parable one of the persons involved dug a hole in the ground and hid the single talent. A talent had also money value, and in this context it is reckoned to be equal to six thousand (6000) denarii, a single denarius being the ordinary daily wage of a workman. This would mean that a single talent would be equal to twenty years (some would say more that fifteen years) wages for an ordinary workman. The word talent is also used in the sense of gift, natural endowment. The message of the parable, as has been noted, is that people should use the gifts, the talents, whether great or small, which the Lord has given them. Although five talents, or even two, was a large amount, in his reply to those who used them with profit, the Lord calls them “small things”, and they are invited to join in the master’s happiness – which in the Christian context of the parable would mean eternal bliss.
As a parable in itself, this one could fit into any part of the Gospels. However, in its present context it forms part of Jesus’ final discourse on the Last Things, which has as its central theme: Watch, stay awake, be prepared for the day and the hour. Immediately before this parable we have that on the Ten Bridesmaids, with the same theme, and immediately after it Christ’s discourse on the Final Judgment, the Judgement of the Nations. It is thus a suitable reading for this Sunday, at the end of the liturgical year.
Traditionally, at the end of the liturgical year and at the beginning of Advent the Church in the Sunday liturgy devoted its attention to the Last Things, and to the importance of being prepared to meet the Lord at the particular judgment that follows earthly death. No great attention is paid today to death and to the importance of dying in God’s grace, or even to Paul’s advice to the Thessalonians to live as children of the light, according to the teaching of the Gospel and the teaching of the Church. And even if these truths are forgotten, death can come suddenly, as a thief in the night.
There is further material for reflection in today’s Gospel reading that everyone should use their God-given talents, whether great or small., to the best of their ability for their own good, that of their neighbour and of the entire community.
Martin McNamara MSC
Nov 13, 2017
The MSC Youth Team 2017-2018 have hit the ground running and have been doing some fantastic work around the community. They’ve been super busy but have even managed to venture across the water to the UK to share some joy and the message of the Sacred Heart over there. The team this year is made up of six bubbly and enthusiastic young adults who, between them, come from four different countries.
From left to right: Garrett Moore, Michael Mone, Keith Erchinger, Lucy Crispin, Felicia Joosten and Tammie Richardson.
Introducing this year’s MSC Youth Team (Cork NET), we have:
- Garrett Moore, 19, from Minnesota, USA
- Michael Mone, 18, Texas, USA
- Keith Erchinger, 18, Texas, USA
- Lucy Crispin, 19, Leeds, England.
- Felicia Joosten, 18, Alberta, Canada
- Tammie Richardson, 18, from Co. Meath
Lucy took some time out of her hectic schedule to write the following piece for us so as we can keep you up to speed with some of the great work they’ve done to date!
“Hello everybody!
It’s the MSC Youth Team here!
We are a team of six young people working in the Sacred Heart Parish in Cork City. As members of the MSC Youth Team (Cork NET) we help in the running of a young adults youth group, consisting mainly of students, who come together every week to talk, learn and grow deeper in their faith. We run a Parents and Toddlers group where parents can come and relax while their children run wild and have fun. Along with both of those we also hold a Children’s Mass every Sunday wherein the younger children can learn about the gospel in a fun and interactive way through arts and crafts, singing songs and even by playing games. They have so much fun learning about mass in this way and the smiles on their faces speak volumes!
Member’s of the Cork NET Team conducting their Children’s Mass
As well as all of this, the team this year has been working very hard in a number of secondary schools holding day retreats wherein the youth can learn about their faith. We do this through activities, talks, dramas, songs, and, as members of the MSC Youth Team, we are happy to share our own life stories with the groups.
We have also had the amazing opportunity to fly to England and work in the Parishes there! It was a lovely opportunity and we seized the chance to host interactive one hour sessions with over 300 students in Coventry and in St Alban’s. Overall, it has been an incredible start to our year and we are really looking forward to setting up two more youth groups to cater for both the older and younger years of secondary school students. We also have the pleasure of planning off site retreats such as surf, sand and sun retreats for all youth groups to come to and have fun while at the same time getting to know their faith!
We are excited to see what the rest of this year has in store for us!”
Tammie appreciating in the glorious views of Cologne
The globetrotter of the group, Tammie, recently travelled to Cologne to attend the International Nightfever Weekend which took place from the 20th-22nd October 2017. Nightfever 2017 brought over 130 young people from many different countries together to celebrate this very special event. Nightfever is an international initiative by young Christians intended to provide an experience of God’s love and mercy. During the Nightfever Evening events, young people approach passersby in the streets and public squares, offering them a candle and welcoming them to come into church for a while. In the church, multiple activities offer the opportunity to encounter God: lighting candles, picking a Bible verse, writing down prayer intentions, listening to the music, talking to a priest, receiving a blessing or the Sacrament of Reconciliation. In addition to the Nightfever Evening events, the initiative also includes Nightfever Weekends, faith courses / evangelistic courses, academies, etc. Nightfever was founded as an initiative by young Christians after the World Youth Day in Cologne and has meanwhile been established in 27 countries.
A group picture of all those in attendance at Nightfever 2017, Cologne
We look forward to hearing the stories and tales of adventure from the MSC Youth Cork NET team over the course of the next year.
You can keep an eye on the MSC Youth Team’s adventures via their Facebook page, just click here!
Nov 9, 2017
On Monday last, 06th November, we were delighted to welcome Sr Orla Treacy to the MSC Office to discuss the outstanding work she has been doing in Rumbek, South Sudan.
Fr Alan, Sr Orla and Fr Michael
Sr Orla Treacy is a Loreta Sister who was missioned to South Sudan in 2006. She is the Principal of Loreto Secondary School in Rumbek. As you will know the MSC dedicated our Summer 2017 Appeal to South Sudan with the aim of raising vital funds to support Sr Orla and the Loreto Sisters working tirelessly in the war-torn country.
Sr Orla with her Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty Humanitarian Award
On her recent trip back to Ireland to receive the Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty Humanitarian Award, Sr Orla paid us a visit. Her enthusiasm and passion for her work is quite infectious and we could have sat and listened to her speaking of her work in Rumbek for hours on end. Sr Orla’s gratitude for the donation simply could not be measured. Sr Orla wants to extend her sincerest thanks to everyone who supported the MSC South Sudan Summer Appeal 2017. We were elated to hear that the funds raised through the Summer Appeal are already being put to great use. The money raised will be spent across three main areas: food, clinical services and education.
Graduate Housing
The majority of the finances will be spent on building housing for the female graduates. Having completed their government exams and before moving onto university, some of the graduates choose to take a year off to undertake an Internship Programme which was developed by the Loreto Sisters. This programme allows the graduates to work for one year in various positions such as nurse’s aides, teacher’s assistants, office secretaries and in financial roles within the compound in order to gain practical work experience before progressing to university.
“52% of girls in South Sudan are married by 18 and in most cases these are forced marriages.”
The Loreto Sisters developed the Internship Programme in order to challenge this troubling statistic. By introducing this programme and providing this housing, graduates are guaranteed secure accommodation and are provided with practical work experience for one year.
We are excited to announce that building of this housing has already begun. It will consist of 4 rooms which will house 16 prosperous young graduates.
Foundations for Graduate Housing
Loreto Primary & Secondary Schools
As well as aiding with the Internship Programme housing, the funds raised will also be spent on the further development of both the Loreto Primary and Secondary Schools in Rumbek. It costs approximately €1600 per pupil annually to attend the Loreto Secondary School in Rumbek which is a boarding school – a sum which the students cannot afford to pay in full. In the Western world we often associate boarding schools with the children of those more financially comfortable. This is not the case in South Sudan. Sr Orla commented that a “women’s refuge” would be a much more suitable term for their boarding school. The Loreto Girls Secondary School numbers are growing year on year and the Sisters are accepting 280 girls next year. The funds raised by the MSC will allow the Loreto Sisters to offer a number of scholarships to students and to subsidise the costs for others.
Sr Orla with her students
Presently, there are 900 children attending the Loreto Primary School at a cost of approximately €400 per child annually. Children attending the primary school are guaranteed a teacher every day – something which is not guaranteed if they attend a government school in South Sudan. Each child gets a meal every day – in many cases this is the only food the child will consume that day.
“10% of babies in South Sudan will die before reaching 3 months old and 14% of our children are dead by the age of 5”.
Children attending the Loreto Primary School have free access to medication which they would not receive outside of the school. The €400 cost covers a student’s meals, medication and education for the year.
What struck us most listening to Sr Orla speak about South Sudan was the fact that at no point did she dwell on the negative aspects of her work, of which there are many. The UN has called South Sudan the “most vulnerable country in the world” and Sr Orla expects conditions to get worse before they get better. However, this has not hindered Sr Orla and she is still as committed and driven towards educating the South Sudanese woman as she was when she arrived in the country 12 years ago.
We look forward to tracking the progress of the Graduate Housing project and it’s development over the coming months.
