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Jakarta, Indonesia, Pondok Bocah
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León, Mexico: Ludoteca
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Haregaon, India: St. Theresa’s School
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Colombia, lunch program
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Tinta, Peru: Instituto Tupac Amaru
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Bayadeya, Egypt
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Ayutla, Mexico: alternative medicine
workshop
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Mumbai, India: Sadhana School
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Managua, Nicaragua : Center for
Alternative Medicine
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Mangaon, India: SCESA water project
Photographs by Lolín Menéndez rscj
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Notes on a talk given by Clare Pratt, rscj to the 1st Canadian Association of Sacred Heart Alumnae Conference “Taking Action Against Poverty: Living the Legacy of Saint Madeleine Sophie”
Sacred Heart School of Halifax, 20 October, 2007
The theme of the Conference is not only consonant with the AMASC goals
2006-2010 (Fight Poverty: Share-Care-Love), but, as was pointed out
last night, it is so appropriate that it is taking place this very week
during which people all over the world have commemorated the
International Day for the Elimination of Poverty – “Standing up Against
Poverty”.
On Tuesday evening we prayed:
Holy Creator, we live in a world of plenty.
Yet in this world of abundance, billions of our neighbors live in poverty.
We pray for the courage to ask why,
to listen for the answer,
and to take action.
You came that all might have life, and have it abundantly.
Renew in us a spirit of justice; help us raise our voices against poverty.
Amen.
What can I share that you won’t hear from others? The experience gained
in these seven years of visiting the great Family of the Sacred Heart
in the 44 countries where RSCJs are giving their lives in love, trying
to be attentive to where “the piercing of the heart is taking place”:
the piercing of the heart of women and children;
the piercing of the heart of people uprooted from their land or displaced within their country;
the piercing of the heart of our earth as we continue to destroy our planet.
“To be where the heart is being pierced” is, in fact, to be everywhere.
The heart of our incarnate God is present in every culture and the
heart of God is being pierced in every one of them. In some it is more
subtle than in others. In the developing world it is a physical hunger
and thirst, whereas the “developed” world has lost its bearings, is
disconnected from the earth, caught up in material progress, drained of
meaning. There is a spiritual hunger and thirst. A thirst for God that
is insatiable. Then there is the “piercing” of grief, of
disillusionment, of betrayal that cuts across cultures.
I am reminded of the words of Canon Ann Philp of Salisbury Cathedral: “There is nowhere that God is not, nothing that those outstretched arms and broken heart cannot embrace.”
And of the words of our Constitutions: “The pierced Heart of Jesus opens our being to the depths of God and to the anguish of humankind.” (#8)
So what can I do this morning that will be helpful?
I want to:
- give you some examples of what RSCJs and Alumnae are doing in various parts of the world to heal the wounded heart of humanity, particularly in situations of material poverty
- mention two big issues that affect both North and South and two means we are using to contribute to “knitting” North and South together
- offer some suggestions for action.
A few examples
We are involved in many kinds of educational programs, projects and
institutions, trying to meet people and their needs where they are.
- Our one Indonesian young professed began a pre-school in the garage of the novitiate.
- In India, for years we have had a boarding school for girls in Haregaon for those called “untouchables”.
- More recently, in the north of India we have begun development programs for the empowerment of women.
- In Verrettes, Haiti,
in 2000, as a gesture celebrating the Society’s 200th anniversary, we
began a small community. We went with no intention of beginning a
school, but rather of seeing how the needs would emerge. Our little
community was on a street that led to the local water pump. And who are
those who go to fetch the water but the children! They were fascinated
by these strange women who were living in their midst and began to
knock on the door. Programs evolved gradually.
- In Chad,
south of N’Djamena, the capital, we work in small community schools,
giving formation to parents and other adults so that they can teach the
children. We also work in two agricultural schools, alternative
secondary schools which teach agricultural methods with a view to
keeping young people on their land so that they are not lured to the
city.
- In the north of Peru we work in a secondary school offering agronomy for campesino
leaders, and in Lima, we continue to run a national teacher training
college that for 131 years has trained teachers for the whole of Peru.
In a meeting in July with the executive committee of the Alumnae of
this college I learned that most of them work in the Ministry of
Education along with about twenty other Alumnae of the Sacred Heart. In
the south of Peru, near Cusco, we are involved in another teacher-training institution that is bilingual, Quechua/Spanish.
- Libraries in Philippines, Chad, and Mexico are a way of attracting children and young adults and provide a gathering place as well. Sometimes there are “ludotecas”
or play rooms as well. Our choice of the city of León for our novitiate
in Mexico was influenced by the possibility of working with Alumnae in
the “biblioteca” they founded as well as in other projects offering apostolic possibilities for the novices.
- In Cascajal, Colombia,
there is a community of African-descent, dating back to the time of
slavery, where we had a community for a number of years. Now the
Kindergarten, sewing and other workshops are run by our Alumnae.
In several countries we have workshops for girls who are illiterate, orphans or found on the street.
- In Bayadeya, Upper Egypt there is one begun by Adela
Blanes, a Spanish RSCJ in Egypt for about 50 years, now nearly 80 years
old. It offers literacy (in Arabic) sewing, and handwork and is now
subsidized by the government. Read about it here.
- In Kinshasa, Congo
there are two: one begun by a Polish RSCJ and one founded and run by
Congolese Alumnae. When I visited Congo last year the Alumnae meeting
was held in the building of the workshop. One of the girls about to
“graduate” stood up and read from a typed text. She said “When I came
here I could not read or write. Now I can read and I have something
through which I can earn my living!”
We work in centers for children who are physically/mentally challenged.
(In Spanish they are called “Niños con otras capacidades”, or “Children
with other capabilities”.)
Some examples are:
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Buenos Aires and Campanas, Argentina
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Bogotá, Colombia
-
Bayadeya, Upper Egypt
-
Chekalini, Kenya
- Madrid, Spain
- Mumbai, India
(Sadhana School on the campus of Sophia College. One of the things they
learn is catering and I had the opportunity to sample a delicious
lunch!)
In Seoul, Korea we have two shelters for girls who have run away from home.
Volunteers go out on the streets at night offering them the possibility
of a safe place. Sometimes it takes a long time before they have the
courage to take the step. The shelter has a homelike atmosphere and is
run by a small RSCJ/lay staff.
Although we are a congregation with an educational focus and do not do a lot of health care we are involved in a variety of health-related programs in response to particular needs.
Dispensaries
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in Samalout, Upper Egypt, where a Spanish RSCJ has
for years had a clinic specializing in burns. She developed a salve
which has been very successful, using the aloe plant as a base.
- In Kipako and Mbansa-Mboma, Congo. These are
dispensaries with some facilities for in-patients and offer pre-natal
care, midwifing and nutrition programs for children.
HIV/AIDS
In Eldoret, Kenya one of our sisters from the U.S. is
involved in a diocesan prevention program called “Education for Life”.
She coordinates teams of Kenyans who go into secondary schools and
offer three-day workshops for students at the 9th grade level. I can
attest to the quality of the program.
Alternative/Natural Medicine Clinics
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In Ayutla and Mexico City, Mexico
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In Managua, Nicaragua.
The Society went to Jalapa, Nicaragua in 1979 to help in the literacy
program. A few years later, when the Sandinista Revolution was
foundering and people did not have the money to go to a doctor, the
local parish priest of Jalapa asked the women to go to their
grandmothers to ask them what natural kinds of herbal remedies they
used. Now there are natural medicine clinics all over Nicaragua!
Lunch Program
In Medellín, Colombia we began a lunch program for children
whose parents do not have sufficient food for the family. There are two
shifts, serving over 100 children a day. For some it is the only meal
of the day and they can have as much as they can eat. Teams of four
mothers rotate the preparation and serving of the meals. The children
also learn good table manners!
Now to my second point. The examples I have given are primarily from the global South. There are at the same time issues which bind North and South together to which we are trying to respond.
Immigrants/Refugees
There is not a European country that is untouched by the phenomenon of immigrants. Our provinces of France, Belgium/Netherlands, Italy, Malta, Spain, England/Wales, and Ireland/Scotland are all trying to respond to their physical, psychological, educational and spiritual needs as they can, in a variety of ways.
Just last month a community of three Polish sisters began
in Inverness, Scotland, at the invitation of the Bishop of Aberdeen, to
minister to the 40,000 Polish immigrants who have flocked to Scotland.
In Almería, Spain our sisters work with North African (mostly Moroccan) immigrants
who have come to work in the plastic covered “greenhouses” where
vegetables like tomatoes and peppers are cultivated. Their wives are
kept at home, unable to socialize with other women. We offer
opportunities for language study as well as workshops (e.g. in peace)
which give the women not only needed skills but a chance to get out of
the house and a space to be together.
The Catholic population of Japan has doubled in the past
few years, due to the large number of immigrants from the Philippines
and Latin America (Brazil, Peru…). Several of our sisters have for a
number of years worked in a Diocesan Welcome Center in Tokyo which
responds to the multiple needs of new arrivals.
Water
Those of us who come from the developed world may find it hard to
relate to some of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals.
Universal primary education and infant mortality are not problems for
us. But one issue that is a universal problem is that of WATER. It has
been said that the next wars will be fought over water. As you well
know, water is a multi-faceted problem.
There are situations of
One piece of good news! The water-harvesting project in India
of SCESA (Sophia College Ex-Students Association). These committed
alumnae have taken a simple, feasible method of catching and preserving
rainwater to a large number of villages. They are a focused, committed
group, motivated and encouraged by the success they have experienced.
There are two ways that the Society of the Sacred Heart is
trying to contribute to the knitting together of North and South so
that developing countries can make their voices heard.
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Membership in the AEFJN (Africa-Europe Faith and Justice Network) a
group of about 50 international religious congregations with members in
both Europe and Africa. There is a small office in Brussels and the
purpose of the Network is to lobby the European Union about issues such
as trade which affect Africa. The theory is that “antennae” in European
countries bring awareness of the issues to their respective countries
while antennae in African countries inform their northern counterparts
of the effects of European policies on their countries. The
organization of African antennae has been slow due to political and
communication difficulties and to the fact that often simply surviving
takes all one’s time and energy.
-
NGO status at the United Nations with the Department of Public Information. This
status, which is the most “modest” form of association, presumes a
two-way flow of information: the Society has a responsibility to
disseminate to its membership information about what the U.N. is doing,
especially its humanitarian programs. This is done by our
representative, Cecile Meijer, a Dutch RSCJ from the U.S. Province,
primarily through our international website which publishes information
in English, Spanish and French. At the same time we make an effort in
whatever ways we can to channel information from the grassroots, our
sisters “on the ground”, to the appropriate organs at the U.N.
This is a sampling… For more about our projects and the life of the Society in general go to the rscjinternational.org website.
Finally, I offer a few suggestions to help all of us respond to the call to Take Action Against Poverty.
Last night, Sheila Mason spoke of the “emotional understanding”, the
“emotional contact” that moves a person from Apathy to Duty to Virtue.
I think another way of saying that is “Let what is in our heads descend to our hearts.”
As limited human beings we cannot address all the needs of the world.
If we try we become either paralyzed or do a little here, a little
there, and do it superficially. BUT, as human beings we are able to be
passionate about something!
My message to you is: Get in touch with what your passion is and you will find ways to concretize it. Often passion is sparked by a personal experience… Let me offer a few examples of what a passion might be:
-
Water
- The plight of trafficked women
- The abuses of mining companies
- The Care of the earth as in recycling/composting. There is slogan I find helpful: “repair – reduce – refuse
recycle what you can’t reuse”.
- Teaching English or French as a second language
- Other ways of welcoming immigrants
Whatever is calling forth the gift of yourself,
connect with others with the same passion.
Perhaps you will ask: “How can I do any more?” I have a job. I am
caring for an elderly parent. I am in the “sandwich generation” (caring
for parents as well as for children/grandchildren).
With all of that, can you find ways to stay informed, make your voice heard?
The Internet offers alternative sources of news, analysis. A site like
the Hunger Site (by which you can give a cup of food a day to a hungry
person, provide free mammograms to women without means, make health
care possible for some children unable to afford it, provide books for
children who have none, save acres of the rainforest, provide adequate
shelter for abandoned animals) takes one minute a day and you can
request a daily e-mail message to remind you!
While in Korea a few years ago I read in an English-language newspaper
a new word which I have rarely seen since: netizen. It is a person who
exercises his or her citizenship via the Internet. Become a netizen!
Finally, we cannot underestimate the power of prayer. If we
believe in the words of Jesus: “Ask and you will receive, seek and you
shall find, knock and the door shall be opened to you” we believe in
the power of intercessory prayer, begging God to heal our world.
But over and above intercessory prayer is what prayer does to us/in us. Sheila Cassidy, in her book Prayer for Pilgrims, a Book about Prayer for Ordinary People (HarperCollins, London, 1980/1994), speaking of the effects of prayer says,
“The essence of Christian living is not that we must pray to God and be good to our neighbor but that from
our prayer there will arise an awareness of our neighbor’s needs, the
recognition of our brotherhood with him, the desire to be of service
and the strength to give from our own material and spiritual fullness
to the less fortunate.” (p. 132)
I find it helpful to use “new sacramentals” that are a continual reminder of my passion. For example, the white bands of the “Make Poverty History” campaign. Or a candle, a reminder to keep shining light in the darkness. Water
itself by which we were baptized, used to bless us, is a “sacramental”
and we can try to be mindful of its sacredness every time we use it:
drinking, showering, washing dishes, watering plants, swimming,
welcoming the rain as a blessing… What might your sacramentals be that
help you to keep focused on your commitment to Take Action Against
Poverty?
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