Mar 29, 2021 | NEWS
Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
[John 12, 1-3]
Jesus also had friends. The family of Martha, Maria and Lazarus was certainly a point of reference, and he loved being in this house where he felt welcomed and loved. During the last supper with them, Maria makes a surprising gesture. Her love for him is so profound that she finds no other way to express it than with this very expensive perfume, poured out with exaggerated abundance, applied with gestures of extreme tenderness. It is the last real consolation for Jesus, before His Passion.
I would like to learn from Martha how to serve you,
from Lazarus to be with you,
from Maria, to show you my generous love
poured out like precious oil with exaggerated abundance.
I would like your presence to smell in my home, in my family, in my community …
Jesus, let me live each day in deep friendship with You.
Fiorenzo Salvi
Giampietro Polini
Mar 24, 2021 | FORUM, NEWS
I was born in Berlin on September 12, 1937, at nine o’clock, on a Sunday.
I am the only child.
After the First World War, my parents emigrated from Poland, near Berlin, to the town of Burgwall. There we had a large shop that had everything: food, toys, bedding. I have always been happy to be there. I remember that the store was visited not only by Poles, but also by Jews, Russians and Germans.
When I was 4, my father was shot. After this situation, my uncle took my mother and me to Poland, near Chojnice. We moved to Lipka (Złotów poviat), where I spent my later childhood and adolescence.
When I was 8 my mother got married for the second time.
As my parents did not want a flat in Lipka, we moved to Słupsk. I graduated from primary school there. As a teenager, I started working with my mother, cleaning catechetical rooms at the parish. I also earned extra money by cleaning the dentist’s office and the rooms at the Canonesses.
I went to Chojnice for a year, to a boarding house for girls, which was run by the Franciscan Sisters of the Passion. There were seventy girls there. There we gained knowledge in the field of good manners. The sisters taught us to behave properly at the table and in different places, we did various manual work, we learned to cook. Later I returned to my family home.
From childhood, I wanted to become a nun. There were sisters in Słupsk, where I lived with my parents, but I did not want to go to any congregation that was close to my family home, but to go somewhere further.
When I was about twenty, I found an address for our sisters in the “Catholic Guide” newspaper. Then I told my mother that I wanted to go to the monastery. My mother took this information very calmly, she even said: “When my cousin went to the convent, you can also go, she was an only child and you are an only child.”
It was evident that it was good news to my mother, so I decided to write a letter to the address I found. Mom read it, agreed to send it, and then saw an envelope with the address to which the letter was to be sent. After a moment of reflection, she said: “You are going to those sisters with whom I gave birth to you.”
I was surprised by what my mother said, I did not understand it and seeing my surprise, she told me what it was like when I was born: “There were Elizabethan Sisters not far from our house in Burgwall, and when I had labor pains, I went to see them because they had a delivery room. Unfortunately, due to the fact that there were no more places in the hospital, they refused to admit me, so I drove 50 kilometers further, all the way to Berlin. There I found a delivery room at the Sisters of Mary Immaculate. And that’s where you came into the world with them. ”
And so I found out that I was born in Berlin to our sisters, whom I wanted to join as an adult girl. God guides us in amazing ways.
* * * *
My mother taught me to forgive, thank, apologize and pray, and not resent the other person. She repeated that she should always be reconciled, despite the fact that each of us is different. I have to always pray and forgive.
This is what my mother taught me and I tried to practice this in my religious life, and I wish this for each of us in this Year of Unity in our Congregation.
S.M. Kryspina
Mar 17, 2021 | NEWS
In the Church, every Year we have feast of St. Joseph. It is March, the month when in our Congregation, through novena, fasting and pilgrimage to the Shrine of the Guardian of Families in Kalisz, we are preparing for the celebration of the Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
It was in this context that I had the thought to share with the Sisters that what I have experienced recently.
When Sister Provincial Superior called me in the spring of 2019, I was at school, I had a “window” between lessons. The conversation concerned postgraduate studies organized by the Child Protection Center at the Ignatius Academy in Cracow. I was surprised because after over twenty years in catechesis, having many household chores, I did not take into account such an eventuality. I thought, are there no younger Sisters in the Province? And the name of the course was also not attractive: prevention of sexual violence against children and youth! At the same time, I felt that this wish was a kind of challenge for me. I saw the continuity between the issues of the suggested postgraduate studies and the earlier preparation for teaching, not only religion, but also family life education. The Provincial Sister also said that the representative of the Child Protection Center sent through the Consultation information to the Major Superiors of Religious Affairs and a request to send representatives of their congregations for such training in connection with the increasingly revealed problem of sexual abuse in the Church. So I took up the challenge. Later it turned out that the majority of our faculty are middle-aged people. You can see some life experience was necessary to bear the burden of the issues discussed.
How does this have to do with St. Joseph? Now, That Guardian of the Church was God’s Son’s first Guardian. He gave Jesus a home and a sense of security when as a child he was most vulnerable and exposed to many dangers. And as a righteous man he took Mary with him, although he needed God’s intervention to make such a decision and, not fully understanding everything, he protected life, he protected man.
When reports on the abuse of minors by clergy (and not only) appear in the media over and over again, their authors are rather not for the good of the Church. Listening to the sisters’ reactions to this type of material in the communities, one can often hear about a campaign, fight or lies directed at the Church. However, this relatively new situation can also be viewed a bit differently, because the problem has existed for a long time and is not isolated. It appeared in earlier centuries, and in recent decades, clear actions in counteracting crimes within the scope of the sixth commandment against minors were undertaken by St. John Paul II, Benedict XVI and now Pope Francis. Let us try to see in these events an opportunity to move from a clerical culture that favors concealing abuses, to an evangelical culture, where every human person with whom Jesus identifies himself counts more in the words:
They made the smallest of these cities ”(Mt 25:40). It is also an opportunity to move from a misunderstood culture of discretion – protecting the perpetrator and blaming the victim, to a culture of transparency – building a sense of security and respecting the dignity of every human being. Such a path can be difficult, but it serves the credibility of the Church. In this way, the words of Christ prove true: “You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free” (Jn 8:32).
Our place in the Church is with the weakest, with whom the world cares the least. This has been the case since the time of the Founder and the first Sisters of Mary Immaculate. Hence, the Patron of our Congregation is a model for us how to protect children, young people and women against violence, not only sexual but also in other forms, also in cyberspace. Looking at St. Joseph We do not find in the Bible a single word that he spoke. This is how he teaches us to listen. Listening to God and listening to man – listening attentive, compassionate, supportive, which leads to providing concrete help to specific people. This is what victims of violence need to listen to with respect, understanding, without showing strong emotions, and let them believe that they are telling us the truth. They expect help or at least some hints or indications. Saint Joseph appears to us as a man subject to religious and secular law. In this way, we learn from him, to respect and comply with applicable law. In terms of sexual abuse, it is related to the skillful response to attempts to reveal or visible symptoms of abuse present in our charges or people with whom we cooperate. It is also about taking appropriate action in cooperation with appropriate representatives of the Church and state bodies.
It is also worth bearing in mind that the perpetrators and accomplices of sexual abuse also include women, mothers, teachers and carers. Therefore, let us be transparent all the more, let us live evangelically by following the words of the Lord Jesus, which have proved so successful in the life of St. Joseph and his Immaculate Bride: “So it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should perish” (Mt 18:14). Let us try to protect children, because our Lord identifies with them: “whoever accepts one such child in my name welcomes me” (Mt 18: 5). Often the victim becomes the perpetrator. Thus, by conducting preventive activities, we contribute to a gradual reduction in the scale of the phenomenon causing so many human tragedies, which victims often start talking about only years later, as adults, because earlier shame and helplessness shut their mouths off.
To conclude my reflection, I would like to ask you to pray for victims of violence, especially victims of sexual violence – its unfortunate effects come after years also due to the disbelief of the environment that something like this could have happened. Working in many institutions as a catechist, I have personally encountered students who are victims of sexual violence in the family … Such wounds heal for a very long time, sometimes throughout ones life. Now, looking at the image of Saint Joseph in our home chapel every day, I am moved by the loving care with which he holds a small, defenseless Jesus in his hands. It is an invitation for me to care for those whom I serve, like the Guardian of the Son of God.
Sr. M. Michaela
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
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
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”.
