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                              Global Connections Volume 9, Issue 2   Journey with Hope Sister Kim Maria Youngmi   Pope Francis has chosen “Pilgrims of Hope” as the motto of the Jubilee with the following explanation:  “the forthcoming Jubilee can contribute greatly to restoring a climate of hope and trust as a prelude to the renewal and rebirth that we so urgently desire; that is why I have chosen as the motto of the Jubilee, Pilgrims of Hope.”  It led me to reflect on what we have been doing for the future of our congregation.  We, the members of the Sisters of Divine Providence, I believe, have always struggled to figure out how to fulfill God’s mission entrusted to us, in accordance with the needs of the times, while paying attention to the reality of the congregation and still making every effort to understand what Providence is telling us through our wisdom, knowledge, insight and concerns. I often feel more frustrated or disappointed than hopeful, whenever I see the socio-political reality around me, or unprecedented natural disaster, or various shocking accidents and inhumane incidents.  And I have a lot on my mind to figure out how we could move towards the direction where our Provident God is beckoning or how we could find ways to actualize Providence in this dire reality.  In a very rapidly-changing world where there are a lot of options and ways, it is not easy to recognize what God wants us to choose.  It takes time to make decisions about where to go with any hope.  It is even harder to have the courage to take risks personally.   ...........................  To read the whole, please see the attachment .....................

    To All Sisters and Associates of Divine Providence, The Sisters of Divine Providence mourn the passing of Pope Francis who has led our church with humility, compassion, justice and mercy.  He brought hope to a wounded world, and sought to have a more just, open and synodal Church.  We pray in thanksgiving for his witness over the years of his papacy to just treatments of immigrants, to the care of the poor, to care for all of creation and the common good of all people around the globe.  As a Congregation committed to justice, compassion, and care of creation, we are deeply grateful for his witness to the Gospel. We pray now for the upcoming Conclave and the power of the Holy Spirit to guide an election of a new Pope who will follow in the footsteps of Pope Francis.  May our Provident God welcome Pope Francis home with loving arms.    Sister Barbara McMullen, CDP Congregational Leader

Photo: https://x.com/pontifex   Prayers for Pope Francis: Eternal Rest Grant Unto Francis, O Lord!   Prayer for a Deceased Pope  God, Who, in Thine ineffable providence, didst will that Thy servant Francis ... should be numbered among the high priests; grant, we beseech Thee, that he, who on earth held the place of Thine only-begotten Son, may be joined forevermore to the fellowship of Thy holy pontiffs. Through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.Amen.        - Source: Roman Missal   Requiem Aeternam (“Eternal Rest”) V. Eternal rest grant unto Francis, O Lord.R. And let the perpetual light shine upon him. And may his soul, and the souls of all the faithful departed,through the mercy of God, rest in peace.  Amen.  

Easter, 2025   Dear Sisters and Associates, Have you ever heard the phrase: “Seeing is believing.”  Anyone not knowing Jesus, or having been in his presence while he was alive, might not believe the empty tomb.  The followers of Jesus, however, see something very different when they behold the empty tomb.  For them it is proof of life!  Jesus lives!  They had witnessed all that he had done; they had been shaped by his words and deeds, and the seeds of hope he planted within them.  The Risen Jesus now invites his followers to see who he is and proclaim it in their actions.  What follows, as we know, is the disciples healing and teaching in Jesus’ name, even to those who had never seen him.  They become witnesses to the power of life over death.  Isn’t that who we are now – post-resurrection witnesses?  We put our faith and trust in Providence as together, step by step, we make choices now that will create our future.  We dream, we plan, we set goals even though we don’t have all the answers now.  But we do know that we are God’s Beloved and that is what gives us courage to forge a future together.  There is a prayer that I was taught in my Novitiate:  An Act of Abandonment to Divine Providence.  There is a line in there that says: “Peaceful and contented in all, I will allow your Providence to govern my life without worry or over-eagerness.”  I wish I could say I live this way all the time.  Regretfully, I cannot.  However, there are moments when I do feel the presence of God strongly and I know that in anything I do, God will be with me, and God will love me, and that will be enough.  In those moments of peace and contentment I have a loving encounter with God that shifts the worry because God is enough.  Those moments carry me through any difficult times and allow me to engage the present moment step by step.  Maybe that is what happened for the post-resurrection disciples, and what happens for us today.  We are His witnesses, because as Tony Gittins says: “The mission has us.” In all that we are doing to look at our future, to engage our members, to create new structures…. all is for the sake of mission, that we can continue to be disciples who have seen and believe! I’m sending a short article with my letter, in the hope that you will not simply read it, but will ponder it.  There is a deeply reflective question in this article that needs pondering: “Do we {you} have enough fire in our {your} heart to let the world know that it is loved?”  That’s the passion we need through engagement and presence “to be living witnesses of what God is doing through us” – to continue making Providence visible in our world.  Sisters and Associates, we are on this journey together.  It might be a different landscape than we have known, and we might have some anxiety about the unknown, but we can remain steadfast in the knowledge that God has us, and we have one another, and that is enough! Happy Easter to each of you! Sr. Barbara McMullen Sister Barbara McMullen   Article:  “We Don’t Have a Mission.  The Mission Has Us” by Paula Cooney, IHM.  LCWR Occasional Papers—Winter 2024. 

  "The cry of Jesus on the cross at the very end was, therefore, the cry of awareness that all was indeed accomplished, brought to its consummation.  He knew that he could, at last, give back to the One he loved the unshackled fullness of love, and in so doing carry with him on the surge of that passion the love which is the essential being of all creation.  This is, in a sense, the love moment of resurrection, or rather it is the moment event but the ever-expanding 'outflow' of the energy previously dammed up by the power of sin and death." - Rosemary Haughton, The Passionate God, p.153, (1)

    "Enter into the mystery of being master and servant." Alma L. Maish, "Master and Servant,'" (4)

    The Women of Providence in Collaboration (WPC) held its annual Spring board meeting in Melbourne, KY at the motherhouse for the Sisters of Divine Providence there. The Board met beginning March 25(Tue),  through 27(Thur). The purpose of this meeting is to review the work of WPC's groups, approve a budget, and plan for the coming year. Leaders of other Providence groups make up the composition of the board.     the Chapel of the Sisters of Divine Providence in Melbourne, KY. 

      Irish Blessings   May all God's blessings descend upon you. May peace be within you, may your heart be strong. May you find what you're seeking wherever you roam. May the strength of God pilot us, may the wisdom of God instruct us. Amen  

Lenten Letter March, 2025 Dear Sisters and Associates, I’ve often heard it said that the season of Lent is a season of the heart because it asks us to check our pulse, to review what needs to be healed, and to see what quickens our heart to reclaim our identity as God’s beloved.  Lent is that time of a six-week preparation that allows us to peer into the heart of our own humanity.  There we can examine our life, its sorrows and sinfulness, its experiences of Jesus present to us in forgiveness and healing, and ultimately it is a time to bring us from the desert to joy.  It is a time to stir our imaginations, to think about how we are living, how we can become freer to love as Jesus loves.  “St. Benedict of Nursia admonished those who wished to follow in the footsteps of Christ to be vigilant, always—to listen with the ear of one’s heart.”  (Barbara Ann Mullen, CSJ).  I would like all of us across the Congregation to read the article accom-panying this letter.  It is entitled: You ARE Mission: Listening with the Ear of One’s Heart by Barbara Ann Mullen, CSJ. I was especially touched by that phrase: “listen with the ears of one’s heart.”  In our Congregation, through our Constitutions Commission’s work, we have been asked to do just that!  In participating in the National Meetings and the International Meetings, those Sisters have listened with the ear of their hearts, shared their thoughts with one another about the various elements of new governance structures, and opened themselves to the unknown future with trusting hearts.  Many Sisters wonder why it is necessary to look at new governance structures.  It is not just about our demographics.  It is about mission.  All of us, no matter our age, are called to be mission, to respond each day to God’s call in our lives as Providence people.  That call changes with each day’s changing realities.  Our congregation’s realities have changed too.  Religious life is evolving.  There are new challenges on the horizon that require us as vowed religious and covenanted Associates to live with a certain amount of risk.  There is no set or clear path.  We are on a journey together, through our engagement with one another, to create something new for the sake of Christ’s mission.  New structures will allow us to continue serving God’s people and to be witnesses to a world in need of love.  I ask this question of all of us:  Are we on fire with mission?  Do we have enough passion for mission, to be a compelling presence of love in a world wounded by hate?   Are we willing to take the journey forward together – to let go of what needs to be let go of, to discern together what needs to be in place for mission to continue, to truly listen with the ear of the heart?  I believe this Lent is an invitation to heed the words of Pope Francis: “We are in a change of era.  Let our lives not be a closed system incapable of generating questions, doubts – but be alive, be unsettled, enlivened.  Recognize the shift in consciousness that the Gospel asks of us.  Our search has a face that is not rigid, it has a body that moves and grows, it has a soft flesh – it is called Jesus Christ.”   Do not be afraid—listen with the ears of your heart.  Blessings to each of you, Sr. Barbara McMullen, Congregational Leader   *** Reading material “You ARE Mission: Listening with the Ear of One’s Heart', please see attached. image: https://pixabay.com/ko/  

Ash Wednesday Talk image: https://pixabay.com/ko/   Sr. Barbara McMullen   “Henri Nouwen once described Lent as the season during which winter and spring struggle with each other for dominance.”  It feels right to think of Lent in this way because we see how the darkness of winter and the coming of more light give way to springtime.  Lent, which actually means springtime, begins today with Ash Wednesday.  We are blessed with ashes to remind us that now is the time to return to God and to renew our desire for closer communion with our God.  Lent is the time to let God into the ashes of our lives so that we can be transformed. It is a time of re-focusing our spiritual lives so that we may draw closer to the One who continually loves us with an overwhelming, undeserving, reckless love.   Let your heart be open to this boundless love and see where God takes you this Lent.    Watch a video,  go to https://youtube.com/shorts/QPvRVksreeU