Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters SSpS Mission Winter 2010
Called by the Spirit ~ Embracing the World IN THIS ISSUE: √ Trust Home in Livingstone, Zambia √ News from Angola √ Missionary Adventures in Molineaux, St. Kitts √ Vocation Message √ Domestic Violence Program in Waukegan, IL √ HSMA news √ News Notes
Children from Livingstone, Zambia waving to Sr. Ewa Piegdon, SSpS as she takes the picture. She works there as a Catechist and with abused girls. See article on the next page.
SSpS Mission Magazine LUSHOMO in the Tonga language (one of the 72 local languages in Zambia) means HOPE. For the people living in the different parts of the world this word may have different overtones. Some hope to get a well-paying job; others hope to spend the next holiday on the sunny beach in the shade of beautiful, wide-stretching palms, etc. But there are also those who hope to eat one meal a day; to have a bed for the coming night where they can sleep calmly. Others long for a protecting hand and a kind smile; some others dream about peaceful moments free from overwhelming fears. Different people have different hopes and desires.
What do the girls in Lushomo Home in Livingstone dream about?
Page 2 Today, she is a different child full of energy and passion for life as if she wanted to catch up on wasted time. At school she is the best pupil among her 50 classmates. We are proud of her, seeing her great efforts to live a better life. There is so much we can learn from that little girl. She reminds me of Jesus’ words: “If you don’t become like children…” As we know, the sexual abuse of children is one of the most serious problems in the world. It is very difficult to fight this problem in some countries, especially in African countries because people avoid talking about it since there is a taboo on discussing sex. This area of human life is very mysterious in the traditions of the people in Zambia.
Lushomo Trust Home is meant for sexually-abused girls. Some of them are infected with HIV/AIDS. Currently Lushomo Home provides food, shelter, medical attenthere are 15 girls in the house. The youngest among them is tion and education for sexually abused girls. Counseling and understanding, compassionate embrace help to un6 years old and the oldest 17 years old. dermine (“relieve” or “ease”) the traumas which these Mary is one of the first girls admitted to Lushomo. She was young girls have experienced. Lushomo searches for brought to the center when she was 8, but she looked like a responsible relatives to take care of them where possible 5 year-old child. Everybody looked at her tiny and malnour- or to keep the child at the Home until she is able to care ished body with pity. Her skin was covered by an unpleas- for herself. ant rash as a result of HIV/AIDS. Her guardian said that it is pointless to send her to the school since she will soon die Sometimes looking at the proportion of these problems of HIV/AIDS. Most of the time she was alone at home we feel helpless and hopeless and we do not realize that our small contribution can make a big difference. exposed to violence and sexual abuse.
May God make us sensitive to the needs of others and open to every possibility of uplifting each other. Sr. Ewa Piegdon, SSpS Zambia
SSpS Mission Magazine
Page 3 Sr. Danuta Bunko, SSpS with a patient
Dear Friends and Supporters of Missions! Currently I am on vacation and I am having a bit more time so I am taking the opportunity to write to you and to say THANK YOU for your prayers and every act of kindness that has touched our mission in Angola. I can assure you that the Sisters as well as the people we serve are grateful for your support and we bring your intentions to the Triune God daily. I minister in Luanda, the capital city of Angola. This is the most populated area of Luanda with about one million and two hundred thousand people. A few years back here were just fields with a small population. During the war this part of the city was populated with people running away from the terror of war. In the Health Clinic where I work we take care of about 120 sick people everyday. Our clinic has a lab and pharmacy and we are able to give injections which is very important especially in cases of severe malaria. We are lucky to have a doctor who comes to us once a week for two hours to help with the most extreme cases. With all other problems we have to deal on our own. People with various health problems come to us to get advice, however, they are mostly people with malaria which still is the number one cause of death. When they wait and come to us some time after experiencing their first symptoms it is difficult to help them get healthy again. In the case of malaria it is important to get help as soon as possible to regain health. Each delay to get help leads to lung and kidney problems. The most extreme cases with which we are not able to deal effectively we transfer to the hospital. However, oftentimes it happens that they die on the way to the hospital. Pain and inability to help are our constant companions in our daily work among our African brothers and sisters. It is difficult to look at a mother who is losing another child. Yet, it is very important to be with her to help her to look at the situation with
faith and hope for another, better day. Oftentimes our mission is to provide the necessities to those who come in contact with us. Our ministry is as simple as providing milk to a newborn child whose mother is not able to feed her or pay for tests and care of an old lonely man who was hurt in a car accident. He came to us with multiple open leg fractures. We helped to buy a mattress for a young man who was hit by a military car and who was paralized and developed bed sores. I could write many more examples in which helping others here would not be possible without your material and spiritual contributions for which I am wholeheartedly thankful. For the past seven years there has been peace in Angola. This means that there are no acts of war in which civilian women and children were the most common victims. The country is undergoing changes in many aspects. Our part in this process is to help people heal the scars that the long lasting war left on their bodies and spirits. There are many situations in which our help brings healing and our efforts give us joy and strengthen our desire to continue helping others. Thank you for helping us to keep our mission alive and for encouraging us to go through another day especially when it is difficult! United in prayer– Sr. Danuta Bunko, SSpS from Angola
SSpS Mission Magazine We each are called to share the Good News, and, in a lesser way, I need to share the good news about Holy Family Parish in Molineux, on the island of St. Kitts. In November of 2009, I, along with one of my sons and my son-in-law, were guests at Holy Family Parish, courtesy of Sister Margaret Hansen and Sister Graciela Castro. Sister Margaret is administrator of the parish. I had previously met Sr. Margaret when she was on retreat at the Cardinal Stritch Retreat House, the Archdiocese of Chicago’s retreat house in Mundelein, Illinois. It is my honor to serve as director of that very fine retreat center. During Sr. Margaret’s stay in Mundelein, I had the opportunity to hear her stories of St. Kitts. One story led to another and then more questions from me and, a number of months later, I was on my way to St. Kitts with my traveling companions, two young men in their early thirties. Sr. Margaret and Sr. Graciela were very easy on us during our eight day visit. They knew that this was our first visit to the island and, for the large part, our first exposure to living outside our comfortable, usual surroundings (a previous mission trip had been to Kingston, Jamaica and this ended up with my group staying at the Hilton—the retreat house where we were supposed to stay was fully booked!) There was no Hilton for us in St. Kitts and certainly nothing like that is available in Molineux, about ten miles’ distance from Basseterre, the urban area on St. Kitts. During my stay, blessings abounded for me— I had the opportunity to visit with four of Sr. Graciela’s religion classes at the Catholic school in Basseterre. Consistent with the students’ curriculum, I spoke of the Church’s good news about family life and about one’s own moral development. The students were very kind to me and willing to listen to this stranger from the United States. Other activities included meeting the parish Confirmation candidates, preaching at the Sunday Mass, speaking at a men’s evening of reflection, giving several reflections at the school liturgies and visiting with the St. Vincent de Paul Society (which, much to the amazement of my own Vincent de Paul Society, meets every week, as opposed to our more
Page 4 relaxed pace of monthly, or less frequent, meetings in Illinois). The trip was very instructive for me—to see all the activities at the parish and how, with some differences due to weather and schedules, it seemed so much like home. The learning was to see that, even twenty-five hundred miles apart, both Holy Family and my parish in Chicago face many of the same problems and enjoy many of the same blessings. Just as in Chicago, the patient accompanying of people in their faith journeys requires one’s own faithfulness. Sister Margaret and Sister Graciela exemplified this grace-filled companioning. In fact, their prayerfulness created a quiet peacefulness in all that they did. As a deacon, prayer is, of course, very important to me. However, the sisters’ prayers at the beginning and end of the day, before and after meals, at the liturgies and at the meetings—all those moments of prayer continually acknowledged God’s presence. God’s grace sustained them. Their devotion taught me to rely less on my own wits and more on God.
Below: Deacon Richard Hudzik, author of this article with a group of young men in Holy Family Church in Molineaux, St. Kitts.
SSpS Mission Magazine As noted, we did not stay at the Hilton. We stayed in the rectory at the parish. Its very simple furnishings (were those roosters outside at four in the morning?) were a form of fasting for me and my companions. Being away from home—even for the short event-filled week—fostered an ability to focus. We were challenged a little by the sometimes unfamiliar food and driving on the “wrong” side of the road and the warm weather. Also, it was amusing for us to see the sheep and goats wandering the streets—that doesn’t happen back home! All these little things helped bring us, metaphorically, to the desert where we were able to find God. Sisters Margaret and Graciela led us out to find what we had been looking for. We found God’s grace changing us. The inscription over the front door of the Cardinal Stritch Retreat House says, “Venite seorsum”—come away by yourselves. St. Kitts was a place apart for us. It was a place where we were able to pray. This missionary adventure—my own brief stop and the sisters’ enduring, long-term presence—produces many benefits. It brought me to prayer and provided respite. The people of St. Kitts are blessed by the Sisters. Their joyful and prayerful presence is a stabilizing force in the neighborhood. It is moreover an effective voice against the temptation to meaninglessness endemic to modern, Western, culture which also seeks to penetrate St. Kitts. The people of my own parish where I serve as deacon also are benefited by the mission in Molineux, as I will have the opportunity to share with them the fact that we too often forget—that the Church is universal and that Christ’s love knows no boundaries.
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“Take care not to perform righteous deeds in order that people may see them; otherwise, you will have no recompense from your heavenly Father” (Mt 6:1) This verse is taken from the readings that have been assigned for the liturgy of Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. However, this verse in a particular way is significant at any time. It is natural for most of us to look for gratification when we do something good. We like to be praised because this shows that others value us; we are precious to them. There are situations in which we think we deserve some praise. Those are moments when we do some acts of mercy that require us to make sometimes not very comfortable accommodations in order to serve those who are less fortunate. We also like to be seen doing good deeds because it puts us in the spotlight and actually we receive more than we contributed and perhaps deserve. It is so human to look for gratification and rewards wherever we are and in whatever situation we find ourselves. However, in this passage Jesus calls us to perform acts of kindness without looking for any kind of reward. He encourages us to look into our hearts and see the many rewards that we have already received. He urges us to see if the love that we have received through the power of the Holy Spirit has some roots and is able to produce some fruit. Certainly this way of giving is more demanding because it is based on our love rooted in God instead of our own gratification and self-praise. Let us take a few moments to think about our good deeds and our motives that prompted us to perform them.
Is there anything in my life that I do just for the glory and praise of God? How can I begin seeing God in the quiet of my heart and act according to His will? The St. Vincent de Paul Society, Holy Family Parish, Molineux, St. Kitts. Sister Margaret is second from the left and I am sixth from the left.. Written by Deacon Richard Hudzik
Sr. Elwira Dziuk, SSpS
SSpS Mission Magazine
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DOMESTIC VIOLENCE PROGRAM IN WAUKEGAN, ILLINOIS Domestic violence is a very serious crime that happens in a family or intimate partnership. Based on the American Medical Association, there are over four million women who are victims of severe assault by boyfriends and husbands each year. About one in four women is likely to be abused by a partner in her lifetime. (Sara Glazer, “Violence
Against Women”, CQ Researcher, Congressional Quarterly Inc., Vol. 3, No. 8, Feb. 1993, p. 171). In responding to the need, Holy Family-Immaculate Conception-Queen of Peace parish in Waukegan started a domestic violence group in April 2008. I was glad to have the opportunity to work with Ms. Carmen Patlan who was the founder of this group. To date, the group has around 20-25 women plus their children. The group meets every Tuesday at 6 p.m. and is led by a clinical therapist. The parish also has a licensed psychologist who is ready anytime to help them. One day a seventeen-year-old victim needed a shelter after she ran away from her abusive husband. No shelter was available at that time and the victim sat hopelessly in the parish office. She was two months pregnant and came with her one-year-old boy. The parish did not have any place to shelter them or the money to put them in a motel. Thanks be to God, through some networking, a parishioner was found from the neighboring parish who bought tickets for them to go back to Mexico. Written by Sr. Aprilia Untarto, SSpS
Members of the Holy Spirit Missionary Association from the Chicago area reminisce with Sr. Anita Marie Gutierrez, SSpS, second from left, former HSMA Director, during our Christmas gathering in December.
This is only one of many cases. Many of the victims have chosen to stay with their abusers. The primary reason given by victims for staying with their abusers is fear of further violence, and the lack of real options to be safe with their children (the incapability of living independently, inability to speak English, etc). This fear of violence is realistic. Research shows that domestic violence tends to escalate when victims leave their relationships (75% or greater will face death). Some abusers often threaten to kill or seriously injure their victims if the victims leave the relationship. (Domestic Violence: A National Curriculum
for Family Preservation Practitioners by Susan Schechter and Anne Ganley produced by the Family Violence Prevention Fund, 1995). Beside the support group, Ms. Carmen Patlan also formed a networking group. This group consists of some agencies around Lake County who are concerned with this issue. This group meets once a month and their aim is to find better solutions for these women and to work together hand in hand in sharing their resources. The parish also worked together with the Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters to shelter a victim of abuse and her mother. This was a pilot project for the duration of three months.
The group of the Holy Spirit Missionary Associates concluded their meetings for the year 2009 with a joyful Christmas celebration at the Convent of the Holy Spirit Missionary Sisters. Some time before this celebration the group came together to reflect on the meaning of the Liturgical Year, to pray to the Holy Spirit and discover God’s manifold gifts. This time Sr. Betty Tranel, SSpS presented some inspiring thoughts and answered many questions regarding the Liturgical Year that was just around the corner. Members of the Association are always happy to be together and to share a meal and a good conversation with each other and with the Sisters. If you or your friends would like to join us for the Recollection Days this year please come and enrich our meetings. RECOLLECTION DAYS IN 2010: March 20, May 22 and November 20.
COME, HOLY SPIRIT AND BE OUR LIFE! Sr. Elwira Dziuk, SSpS
SSpS Mission Magazine
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SSpS Mission Magazine P.O. Box 6026 Techny, IL 60082-6026 …………………………………………………………………………………… News Notes
The U.S. Province has been blessed in the past few months with the addition of Sisters from Chile, Argentina, Mexico and Indonesia, as well as a lay volunteer from Germany. On January 6, the Feast of the Epiphany, a celebration was held for the SVDs, our brother congregation, in honor of the Year of the Priest. Waukegan: The Waukegan community prays for justice and peace in the various countries around the world. Each week they take a letter of the alphabet and pray for the countries that begin with that letter. Last week they prayed for the 24 countries that began with the letter “S”. They type the names of the countries and place them in the chapel to remind them to pray. In November, several hundred demonstrators, including some of our sisters, marched together in Fort Benning, Georgia, led by puppetistas and drummers. The March was in support of the effort to close the School of the Americas. The marchers spoke out in defense of democracy, for life, justice, liberty, dignity and peace. This exuberant, rebellious expression of the Return to Life honored the work and spirit of those who have fallen in the struggle for justice all across the Americas.
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Editor: Sr. Elwira Dziuk, SSpS
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