My first steps in Manila

Mar 10, 2021 | NEWS

I would like to share with you my three-month experience of serving a mission in Manila, the capital of the Philippines in times of a pandemic. When I joined Sister Claudia last November, she took me to one of the poorest neighborhoods in Manila, Payatas, just a few minutes’ drive from our home, where the sisters work in the apostolate. Payatas is a district that was built on a huge rubbish dump that is brought from all over the city. A very large part of the population living there deals with their segregation. And I must admit that I was greatly surprised that people live in such poverty almost next to us. I worked for several years in Tanzania and saw poverty, but I did not see such extreme poverty as here. And one more thing, almost every day we travel the streets of Manila, whether by car, public transport or on foot, but I haven’t seen people drinking alcohol or just drunk, which is a common picture in Europe.

The second thing I want to tell you about is Catholicism and religiosity. When we went to the shopping center with S. Claudia for the first time, I was surprised when the Angelus prayer was heard over the loudspeakers at noon, and at 3 p.m. the prayer to the Divine Mercy, and this is not the end, because in every such shopping center there is a chapel and despite the pandemic every day at at 12 o’clock, a Mass is celebrated in which everyone can participate. In each shop there is an altar with a statue of the Prague Child called here “Santo Niño”, the oldest and most venerated image of the Infant Jesus in the Philippines, brought here as a gift by the discoverer Ferdinand Magellan for the first Christians of the archipelago.

What still struck me here, and I like it, is that in the churches lay and young people are very involved, some are responsible for flowers, others prepare readings, still other comments or singing, others are responsible for the altar, on each of them Holy Mass is the liturgical service of the altar. Figures of Jesus, Mother of God and Saints are here almost life-size, always dressed in beautifully sewn garments, richly decorated according to the occasion with natural beautiful hair. Just like in the attached photo.

There is also a very beautiful custom here, the tradition of showing respect to the elders. The most visible is showing respect by placing a hand given by the elderly person to the forehead. This tradition is still alive and common. When we walk the streets of Manila, children often run up to us and put our hands to their foreheads saying “sister bless”.

We trust that the time of the pandemic that limits us in our actions will end and we ask God for this in our prayers. Finally, I am asking all of you who will read this to pray for our missions here in the Philippines, that we may continue and develop here the work of our Founder.

With cordial greetings and prayers for all those who support us spiritually and materially.

S.M. Agata Sobczyk

Pastoral care in the St. Marien Seniors’ Foundation, Berlin Kreuzberg

Mar 9, 2021 | NEWS

Since November 2006 I have been volunteering in pastoral care in our senior citizens’ home: I visit the residents, pray with them, also with people of other faith, accompany them as they die and on their last journey in life, which is also important for the relatives. If we get the funeral date and the relatives so wish, we will attend the funeral ceremony. There are also single residents who only have one carer and have no relatives or with whom they have no contact. On such occasions I often stand alone with the undertaker at the grave and can pay my last respects to the deceased with a prayer.

At the beginning of my job I had other options: I could play with the residents, sing, read to them and drive them into the garden. Small trips into the city were also possible. Since there have been several employment assistants in the facilities, they have taken on care and employment for the elderly.

The commemoration days of the Holy Patronage of the four living areas: St. Catherine (April 29), St. Michael (September 29), St. Theresa of the child Jesus (October 1) and St. Luke (October 18). Oct.) we shape together by praying, singing and looking at the life of the saints. Afterwards there is a festive coffee table.

During the Easter penance we offered a service with anointing of the sick with the priest of our parish in our chapel, which was well received.

In an emergency and on request, our chaplain also donates the anointing of the sick to the sick in the living area.

In November we celebrate a memorial service for all those who died last year. On this occasion, the photos of the deceased are exhibited and a candle is lit for each. In this way, the memory of your deceased roommate comes to life again.

As a church service representative and communion helper, I have the opportunity, especially now during the corona pandemic, to give communion to my fellow sisters and residents.

We haven’t had a St. Measure more in-house. If possible, we take part in the services in the parish church.

Sister M. Priska

Sisters who care for souls

Mar 6, 2021 | NEWS

For me and many people, the sisters from the Train Station Mission do a lot, so much that it is impossible to write about everything, so I want to tell you about some important things for me, because if it were not for the sisters from the Mission, my life would be completely different and certainly different girl also.

Nobody has done as much for me as the sisters and I know that if it weren’t for them, my life and the lives of many of us who live at the center would be terrible.

Before I got to the Train Station Mission, my life was very hard for me. My parents died when I was 13 in 2002. For a week, after my parents died, I and my sisters were completely alone. Once a day our brother would come and bring food. Unfortunately, he lost his job and moved to our family home with his wife and daughter. My brother was taking alcohol and started beating us. I was treated for epilepsy. My sister tried to kill herself by taking my epilepsy medication. Since then, I have stopped taking them. Then my godfather took us to his place for a week. He did not want me because I was sick, so I ended up with my aunt in Jedlina Zdrój, where my cousin and her daughter also lived. I spent a few years there, but my cousin didn’t want me to live with them because she was jealous of her mother. I moved to my sister in Wrocław. There were terrible moments. One day, when my sister’s husband was holding an axe over me, I dared to change something in my life and asked a colleague from work to help me find a room for rent. At that time, I only had PLN 800, so I asked her to find me a room for PLN 600. One day my friend came to me and said that they rent only to students for this price. I wanted to give up, but my friend said that “there is only one more way out”, I asked “what?” she replied: “to live with the sisters in the center”. I agreed. A friend told me that I had to call there myself. So I called and talked to Sister Goretti then, and that same day, after work, I went to talk in person, and the next day I was supposed to come with my things. Before work, I started taking my things out of my apartment. My sister noticed it and she took all my things, including my purse. I was beaten again by her. My friend called the police and they helped me recover my documents. I went with my friend to the sisters. I was horrified. I remember standing against the wall and I didn’t want to talk to anyone. The sisters helped me out of the room because I was afraid to leave alone.

Since then, my life has changed 180 °. I was surprised that there is a life where you are not beaten every day. The fact that I joined the sisters was something wonderful for me. The sisters were the first people I trusted. Thanks to them, I started smiling. They showed me that the world is not only bad, that there is also good in the world and there are good people. Before, I thought there were no such people. I regained my faith in man again.

A colleague from my work managed to recover my correspondence. It turned out that we have debts and that I could go to jail if I don’t pay them back. My sisters from another house helped me to pay off this debt. They refused something for Christmas and donated money for my debt.

At the center, we try to live like a family. Sisters are like mothers to us and we (girls) like siblings. Sometimes there are disputes between us, but if one needs help, we help each other. The sisters give us birthdays and  gifts, and we give them to them.

The sisters teach that I am “something” valuable and loved by God.

I did not know it before. All I knew was the feeling of fear and the pain of beating. Many girls from the center do not know that it is worth “something”, think very badly of themselves. The sisters help us change this thinking.

At home, each of the girls has a duty, we learn to clean thoroughly and keep order around us. The sisters taught me that a good housekeeper can be recognized by clean windows.

The sisters teach us to share with others who are more in need of help, especially Sr Edyta, who helps the homeless on the street.

The sisters help us deal with matters in offices, e.g. with checking out, in arranging an apartment. They understand us and convince girls who have children to breastfeed their children for their health. They help in taking care of children. Sister Edyta helps me dress nicely because I have a problem with it. We receive clothes and other things, and the sisters joke and say that we come with one bag and we have to leave by buses. This already speaks of the help we get from the sisters.

Sisters save human life.

One of my colleagues told me about a girl who is studying and is pregnant. Her father wanted her to do abortion. She did not want to, but did not have money for things for the child. Then I told the sisters about this girl. The sisters immediately collected things for the child. The baby was born even though it might have been killed. Many children were born thanks to the sisters.

The sisters care for human souls.

When my sister was seriously ill with cirrhosis of the liver, the sisters helped me to come to her by the priest who confessed her, gave the anointing of the sick and communion. Thanks to Sister Goretti, my sister went to Purgatory, not Hell. Sister Goretti saved her soul. The sisters supported me when my sister died and were at the funeral. It was the same as my uncle passed away.

It is the sisters (sister Goretti, Edyta and Helena) who change our lives for the better, they teach us many very useful things.

We can always count on sisters in any situation.

If it weren’t for the house the sisters run, my life would be terrible.

One of the girls from the ” Train Station Mission”.

Charism in practice

Feb 22, 2021 | NEWS

This year, it will be thirty years since I entered our Motherhouse in Wrocław for the first time. One could say that “thirty years have passed as one day …” It was then that I heard for the first time about our Father John, the charismatic Founder of the Congregation. I wrote about the fact that I “fell in love” with him at first sight. Now I want to share what it resulted for many years …

Discovering the charism of the Founder, Congregation, community was for me like looking for an answer to the question about my own identity. During the first holiday meeting, I heard my friends’ admiration for the very current message we have as a Congregation …. The way of transforming the 19th century reality into modern language and the needs that I saw around led me to the conclusion that this “contemporary and timeless ”For me, the charismatic message is CARE FOR THE DIGNITY OF A WOMAN. The form in which it will be possible and to whom it is addressed is a secondary matter. For me, this is a message that is ALWAYS AND ANYWHERE UP-TO-DATE and possible. And if so, there is no excuse that it is impossible, that you cannot take action …

The Founder wrote to us that “we are to be handmaids of servants and serve those whom the world despises.” And if the world despises, it is the DIGNITY of those who are weak, dependent, not self-sufficient, that is under threat and underestimated. That is why concern for DIGNITY and appreciation of the person next to me became the center of my attention, care, prayer and work.

“I cannot thank you, Lord,

because my words are small

Please accept my silence

and teach me to thank you with my life. ”

It’s a chorus of a famous song that I made many years ago into my personal prayer … and I try to implement it in everyday life. I am really sincerely grateful to God for allowing me to experience the possibilities of work and care for the Dignity of a woman for many years. Because that’s what I have been doing for many years at Bardo.

“I was looking for a man” ready with me to give his heart to those whom the world despises, who are helpless, lonely, hurt, despised or only helpless and humble … I believe that help “before it is too late” can save life, hope, joy … and when one man is saved, the whole world is saved!

To create one safe and friendly place for those in need, you don’t need much, but at the same time you need so much – WHOLE HEART! The search for enthusiasts ready to come out against poverty with an attempt to break the chain of helplessness, ready to face the maze of confusing regulations and changing rules, beyond which the most important is MAN and his DIGNITY resulted in the establishment of the Association to help women in crisis, which in honor of the Founder was called: ” Marian Union “. We are here to help in a crisis (difficult situation) and to care for the dignity of every human being, to help “before it is too late”. A crisis means a time of breakthrough, a turning point, a decisive turn, and a period of collapse. Whenever a person experiences a crisis, they feel lonely, different, defective or maladjusted. And that’s why he should seek help from other people to reverse the downward spiral … and that before it’s too late! And one must always hope, because hope is the basis of human existence, “which cannot fail, because it is poured into hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us” (Rom 5: 5).

In order to help people in difficult and breakthrough situations, restore their self-confidence and their own dignity, the Association undertakes specific actions:

• Runs the “Hope” Crisis Intervention Center, which over time expanded its activities to include Crisis Intervention Points in the area.
• Runs a 24-hour Hostel for people experiencing violence in four counties
• Runs the “ASLAN” Psychological Help Room for Children and Families.

At our doorstep you can receive support, legal, psychological, and above all human and spiritual help. Our clients come with a baggage of worries and go into their everyday life with hope. Those who lack security and close, kind people also find a home with us for several months. Yes, it is a house and not only a safe shelter, as the Founder asked, that our houses “become a second family home for the women staying with us”. Sometimes someone stays with us for a short time and comes back still lost to his uncertain reality. But there are also some women who make important decisions about changes in their lives and really come out to others …

We are happy with every person who left us with “new hope” and motivation to make positive changes in their lives. This action will not be reflected in the numbers, because even if it was only a few people per year, it would be WORTH the trouble, because “He who saves one man’s life saves the whole world” (Thomas Keneally, from the book Schindler’s List) and we are after to “help before it’s too late.”

In addition to the “Nadzieja” Crisis Intervention Center that has been run so far, our Association has started a new form of assistance since May 2019, which is the “ASLAN” Psychological Help Room for Children and Families. Taking up new challenges, we have developed the range of proposed forms of help with a more specialized branch – helping children with sensory integration problems. It is a big problem at the present time, which is a serious crisis in everyday life for children and their families. By helping the child – we help the family in crisis. So “ASLAN” is another form of implementing the principle “we are here to help before it’s too late”. Society despises people with disabilities – no matter what kind – difference or dependency is often a reason for rejection or contempt. Again, I have my opportunity to CARE FOR DIGNITY and to be charismatic in the spirit of our Founder.

Our association is a tiny entity. We have only twenty members and a small territorial and informational reach (we try to expand the information to the best of our ability). We employ 5 people under a contract of employment and two more on request. Based on our limited human, budget and housing resources, we have been running the “Hope” Crisis Intervention Center for years, which has already become a permanent part of the “aid map” of the surrounding area. For less than two years, we have additionally had the Study Room and the SI Room, which are slowly constituting our activities, contributing to the overall development of the work as a whole. We respond to various needs of people who come to us, and we adapt many of the new forms of help to the needs, precisely in order to “help before it is too late”.

I am proud to be able to directly help those in need and those “whom the world despises”, I enjoy my work. Sometimes it is not easy, but I keep opening up to new challenges, taking advantage of even small possibilities and enjoying helping the “individual”. – ABOUT YOURSELF. Hence, about my work for the DIGNITY of the people entrusted to me, I say that it is creative (unique every time) and personal (individual).

And one more, “youngest” way of caring for DIGNITY – this year there will be a three-day retreat in Częstochowa in the Valley of Mercy, during which we will focus on the dignity and identity of women. Their title and “calling slogan”: “To be a woman, to be a woman …” We have already taken up this topic in Bardo during the workshops, and now I can invite everyone for three days in May (07-09.05.2021 contact with the Valley of Mercy in Częstochowa). Rediscovering the identity, dignity, endowment and vocation of a woman in imitation of Mary, the Most Beautiful Woman, is a great joy and passion for me. I invite you to do it with me, in the spirit of the charism of the Servant of God, Father John Schneider!

Sr. M. Dorota Frendenberg

Perpetual Profession in Tanzania

Feb 19, 2021 | NEWS

The Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, or the Feast of Our Lady of the Candlemas, Sisters in Tanzania gathered in Nanjota to accompany Sr. Dorotea making her Perpetual Profession on that day.

Perpetual profession, i.e. eternal vows of chastity, obedience and poverty, our sister placed in the hands of our Regional Superior, Sr. Agnes.

The liturgy was presided over by Fr.Bishop Filbert Felician Mhasi. He prayed during the Holy Mass for the help of the Holy Spirit in strengthening the Sister in fidelity to her vows. In his homily, Bishop Filbert emphasized that perpetual vows are a humble and sincere dedication to God forever, they are the entrustment of their entire future to Him and the desire to live faithfully in the spirit of the evangelical counsels and the religious constitution.

Sr. Dorotea discovered the secret of her vocation in her hometown of Chikukwe. She came to our house many times for the meetings of the Children of Mary group. Now she has given her life to God in our religious family forever. May Mary support her with her grace in fulfilling her vocation.

S.M. Monika Kowarsz