Rejoice In The Lord Who Comes

He is coming!  He is coming! How will we know he is here?  The prophet Isaiah describes his coming as a time of justice.  Jesus “secures justice for the oppressed, gives food to the hungry, sets captives free, gives sight to the blind; raises us those bowed down”.  Jesus “loves the just, protects strangers, sustains the fatherless and the widow, and thwarts the way of the wicked."  This kingdom of God is forever through every generation.  We rejoice that in the parched land of our world today, those who thirst will be quenched through the Incarnation of God’s Loving Presence and glad tidings will once again be shared with the poor!

A Voice In The Wilderness

John the Baptist, the Herald of Jesus’ Coming appears this week as “A voice of one crying out in the desert, prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.” During this Second Week of Advent we ask ourselves: Where is our wilderness, the place of solitude where God speaks to our heart? What is the pathway, the ‘going away from and going towards’ we are being called to?  Advent is a time of pregnant new life waiting to be born in and through us.  The rough places in our lives need to be soften so that Jesus takes on flesh.  With Mary we rejoice, “the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is God’s Name”.

Waiting in Hope

Advent has our hearts full of urgent, expectant hope for the Desired One.  We find ourselves praying deeply and singing often:  O Come, O Come!  During this time of darkness in the world, our families, our lives we light the Advent Candles, week by week, one by one reminding us Emmanuel is with us. 

Sept and Aug 2013 Stop Trafficking! Newsletter

Awareness : 

• Organ trafficking is a growing victimization of society's most vulnerable.
• Migrant workers are often abused by employers or trafficked by labor recruiters. 

Advocacy   :

• Verite  created the 'Help wanted' Toolkit to help suppliers of goods in the global economy fight forced labor in their supply chain.
• An immigration reform bill, which includes measures to strengthen regulation of foreign labor recruiters, is stalled in congress.
• The Polaris Project published a state-by-state ranking of legislation that has taken place to address 10 categories related to human trafficking.

Action        :

• A coalition of Catholic nuns responds to the rise in incidents of human trafficking around large sporting events by contacting the hospitality industry involved with the 2013 America's Cup Finals yacht races to encourage local managers to train personnel to recognize and report incidences of human trafficking.
• Consumer tools to help evaluate supply chains
• Sisters of the Holy Cross take a stand against human traficking

Click here for the September Stop Trafficking Newsletter

Click here for the August Stop Trafficking Newsletter

Sister Anne Marie Celebrates Her 50th Jubilee

Sister Anne Marie celebrates Fifty Years with Cluny!

The 50th Jubilee celebration was a joyous 

occasion for all. We are so thankful for Sister Anne Marie's many years of faithfulness. 

Pray with us for vocations.

Prayer for Peace

Cluny Sisters join with Pope Francis in his call for a day of fasting and prayer for peace in Syria, the Middle East, and throughout the world on September 7th.

POPE FRANCIS

ANGELUS 

Saint Peter's Square
Sunday, 1st September 2013

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Hello!

Today, dear brothers and sisters, I wish to make add my voice to the cry which rises up with increasing anguish from every part of the world, from every people, from the heart of each person, from the one great family which is humanity: it is the cry for peace! It is a cry which declares with force: we want a peaceful world, we want to be men and women of peace, and we want in our society, torn apart by divisions and conflict, that peace break out! War never again! Never again war! Peace is a precious gift, which must be promoted and protected.

There are so many conflicts in this world which cause me great suffering and worry, but in these days my heart is deeply wounded in particular by what is happening in Syria and anguished by the dramatic developments which are looming.

I appeal strongly for peace, an appeal which arises from the deep within me. How much suffering, how much devastation, how much pain has the use of arms carried in its wake in that martyred country, especially among civilians and the unarmed! I think of many children will not see the light of the future! With utmost firmness I condemn the use of chemical weapons: I tell you that those terrible images from recent days are burned into my mind and heart. There is a judgment of God and of history upon our actions which are inescapable! Never has the use of violence brought peace in its wake. War begets war, violence begets violence.

With all my strength, I ask each party in this conflict to listen to the voice of their own conscience, not to close themselves in solely on their own interests, but rather to look at each other as brothers and decisively and courageously to follow the path of encounter and negotiation, and so overcome blind conflict. With similar vigour I exhort the international community to make every effort to promote clear proposals for peace in that country without further delay, a peace based on dialogue and negotiation, for the good of the entire Syrian people.

May no effort be spared in guaranteeing humanitarian assistance to those wounded by this terrible conflict, in particular those forced to flee and the many refugees in nearby countries. May humanitarian workers, charged with the task of alleviating the sufferings of these people, be granted access so as to provide the necessary aid.

What can we do to make peace in the world? As Pope John said, it pertains to each individual to establish new relationships in human society under the mastery and guidance of justice and love (cf. John XXIII, Pacem in Terris, [11 April 1963]: AAS 55, [1963], 301-302).

All men and women of good will are bound by the task of pursuing peace. I make a forceful and urgent call to the entire Catholic Church, and also to every Christian of other confessions, as well as to followers of every religion and to those brothers and sisters who do not believe: peace is a good which overcomes every barrier, because it belongs all of humanity!

I repeat forcefully: it is neither a culture of confrontation nor a culture of conflict which builds harmony within and between peoples, but rather a culture of encounter and a culture of dialogue; this is the only way to peace.

May the plea for peace rise up and touch the heart of everyone so that they may lay down their weapons and be let themselves be led by the desire for peace.

To this end, brothers and sisters, I have decided to proclaim for the whole Church on 7 September next, the vigil of the birth of Mary, Queen of Peace, a day of fasting and prayer for peace in Syria, the Middle East, and throughout the world, and I also invite each person, including our fellow Christians, followers of other religions and all men of good will, to participate, in whatever way they can, in this initiative.

On 7 September, in Saint Peter’s Square, here, from 19:00 until 24:00, we will gather in prayer and in a spirit of penance, invoking God’s great gift of peace upon the beloved nation of Syria and upon each situation of conflict and violence around the world. Humanity needs to see these gestures of peace and to hear words of hope and peace! I ask all the local churches, in addition to fasting, that they gather to pray for this intention.

Let us ask Mary to help us to respond to violence, to conflict and to war, with the power of dialogue, reconciliation and love. She is our mother: may she help us to find peace; all of us are her children! Help us, Mary, to overcome this most difficult moment and to dedicate ourselves each day to building in every situation an authentic culture of encounter and peace. Mat, Queen of Peace, pray for us!

Prayer for Peace in Syria

  

God of Compassion,
Hear the cries of the people of Syria,
Bring healing to those suffering from the violence,
Bring comfort to those mourning the dead,
Strengthen Syria’s neighbors in their care and welcome for refugees,
Convert the hearts of those who have taken up arms,
And protect those committed to peace.

God of Hope,
Inspire leaders to choose peace over violence and to seek reconciliation with enemies,
Inspire the Church around the world with compassion for the people of Syria,
And give us hope for a future of peace built on justice for all.

We ask this through Jesus Christ,
Prince of Peace and Light of the World,
Amen.

Petition: For the people of Syria, that God may strengthen the resolve of leaders to end the fighting and choose a future of peace.
We pray to the Lord…

This prayer is from Catholics Confront Global Poverty. . . , a collaborative effort of USCCB and Catholic Relief Services.