Jan 29, 2023 | NEWS
It has been a while since we celebrated the Diamond Jubilee of our Sister Augustina here in Cochem on the Klosterberg….but I think 60 years of being a Sister of Mary – is worth sharing the memories even now.
Because of the Corona time our way of celebrating has changed – nevertheless we did it on the last Feast of Christ the King and it was a beautiful celebration with many surprises. The Provincial Superior came from Berlin and brought Sister Carla and Sister Ursula with her – because they were on retreat.
The Benedictines from Maria Laach are very close to us and because Father Basil is our special friend – he also celebrated a wonderful festive service with us.
Sister Augustina had secretly wished it, but she did not expect him to come and it remained a secret until he entered the chapel for Holy Mass.
Also the organist, who is seriously ill, did not miss the opportunity to embellish the service with his special way of playing the organ. Jana, a young woman from Sister Augustina’s circle of acquaintances, also arrived and delighted everyone with her wonderful voice.
Sister Augustina could not believe what was possible that day.
Even today she is full of gratitude and always talks about her jubilee.
She told me…. the memory of this beautiful day give her strength in her old age – for her everyday life
Sr. Felicitas
Jan 29, 2023 | NEWS
Such a greeting is now often heard in Ukraine. But even those who were forced to leave their country need a sense of belonging, of mutual support and help.
This is also the case with those who came to Berlin as refugees soon after the war against Ukraine began in the spring of 2022, and who have found refuge, among other places, on the grounds of the Marienkrankenhaus in Berlin-Lankwitz, which is under the sponsorship of the Congregation of the Sisters of Mary v.d.U.E.. These are mainly women with their children. They also try to be together and share their pain, but also their joy.
The Orthodox Christmas, for example, was such an occasion. This time our guests wanted to express their gratitude for the help received and not only spent this special day together with the Sisters of Mary, but also prepared a wonderful feast of traditional Ukrainian dishes.
In order for the benefit received to continue to bear fruit, they do not leave it at gratitude, but organize further help to the best of their ability. As they say, it is also a kind of therapy for them.
May peace reign in our hearts and in the world!
Sr. Natanaela
Jan 17, 2023 | NEWS
In the last week of 2022, a retreat for sisters from Tanzania, who serve in Poland, Germany and Rome, took place in our house in Poznań. The retreat in Swahili was preached by Fr. Alex, who is currently studying in Poznań. The priest reminded us that as consecrated persons, we are to transform the world and not let it be the other way around, that the world changes us and shapes our religious life. After the retreat, the sisters and the priest came to Wrocław to pray at the tomb of the Founder.
Dec 30, 2022 | NEWS
“Come into the world to settle accounts of losses,
to take an empty seat among us at the table.
Once again, let us enjoy the child in us…
(from “Carols for the Absent by Z. Preisner)
One of the customs of the Christmas Eve supper is to set an extra plate for an unexpected guest or a lonely person.
In our community in Świnoujście, this symbolic empty place was occupied by three people this year: Mrs. Barbara – a lonely elderly parishioner, and little Viktoria with her grandmother from Ukraine. The girl and her grandmother experienced Christmas Eve for the first time according to the Catholic tradition, i.e. with reading a fragment from the Holy Bible, sharing the wafer and singing carols. Viktoria experienced this meeting all week, asking every morning “when will Saturday be”. Grandma was happy and touched and willingly talked about the Ukrainian supper and tried every prepared Christmas Eve dish with reverence.
Mrs. Barbara also could not control her tears and repeated how happy she was that she was not alone that evening and was celebrating in such a solemn way.
After dinner, there was the moment Viktoria had been waiting for the most – the presents. All the sisters and ladies received gifts, but Viktoria received the most gifts (we know from the post-Christmas report that after coming home she spread everything on the floor and said: “Oh, I don’t know where to start”).
It was a joyful and friendly Christmas Eve. We thank God that this year the “empty seat at the table” was not just a tradition, but became a reality for us; that Jesus was born through love in our hearts.
Sisters from Świnoujście
Dec 24, 2022 | NEWS
The time before Christmas means visiting loved ones, wishing them well and rejoicing together. A community of sisters in the Philippines visited the women’s prison in Manila, where a Polish woman sentenced to life imprisonment there for twelve years has been held. Together with her, there are 106 women in one cell, most sleeping on the floor, without a mattress, one next to the other. The woman has no one in the Philippines and no family or friends come to visit her. In cooperation with the Polish embassy, our sisters visit her bringing not only small gifts, but above all comfort and support. Our pre-Christmas visit to Mrs Barbara caused her great joy and emotion. We brought her Polish Christmas dishes so that she could have at least a substitute for Christmas in prison. However, Mrs Barbara was most happy to receive a rosary and a prayer to Sister Dulcissima. She prays a lot in prison and participates in the religious meetings organised there. Not only for her, but also for us, it was a very important Christmas meeting. Due to the ban on bringing phones and taking photos, we are only publishing a photo from the outside and our passes that we were given.
Dec 21, 2022 | NEWS
At the invitation of our sister Janina Michnik, who teaches religious education in the nearby primary school in Racibórz Brzezie, on December 19, i.e. on Monday, we took part in a nativity play, a performance about the birth of Jesus.
Undoubtedly, this spectacle brought the viewers closer to the mystery of the incarnation of the Son of God and introduced us to the atmosphere of the long-awaited Christmas.
The roles of actors were played by almost all children and teenagers who, under the supervision of teachers, were preparing for the Nativity play for a month. The students performed in beautiful costumes and sung well-known carols or pastorals. The set could not miss the Holy Family, shepherds or angels. And when the Silesian family, sitting at the Christmas Eve table, appeared on the stage, its members talked about traditional, but also regional customs related to the preparation of the Christmas Eve supper.
Sr. Janina was watching over everything, who was moving the participants into the next stages of the performance. Dances, singing, playing many different instruments are the elements that enrich and enliven this Christmas performance.
The spectators were parents and invited guests who rewarded their children with thunderous applause.
It is amazing how many talents the students of the school in Brzezie have.
Thanks to God for His goodness, which is also happening thanks to the commitment of our sister Janina and the entire teaching staff of the school in Brzezie.
s. Małgorzata Cur
