Triduum of Celebration in the Generalate, Rome
Wednesday 25th June 2014
Around the world, Sisters of Our Lady of Charity and Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd are preparing for the event of our Reunification by a Triduum of celebration. The ritual committee proposed to us themes for three moments of celebration:
FIRST MOMENT: CELEBRATE THE JOY OF BEING TOGETHER
SECOND MOMENT: REAPING THE HARVEST
THIRD MOMENT: TOGETHER FOR MISSION
First Moment
Celebrating the gift of St. John Eudes and the mission or compassionate love which he entrusted to Our Lady of Charity from 1641 to 1835.
Gathering to the sound of the horn, the Sisters of our Lady of Charity, Good Shepherd sisters and some staff members, were led through the story of creation and St. John Eudes’ life and great work of “co-creation” with God. The program also included a dance led by Sister Elaine Basinger, a sharing on the life of St John Eudes by Sister Angela Fahy, and a reading of the letter of St John Eudes by Sister Brigid.
Read the complete celebration on the PDF file Below.
An excerpt of Sr Angela's input
John Eudes 1601 – 1680
A longed-for child, whose parents dedicated him to God in gratitude for his birth on Wednesday, 14 November 1601. His father was Isaac Eudes from the village of Ri, Normandy. He was the village ploughman as well as the village surgeon! His mother was Martha, a strong and enterprising woman.
John was the first born and had 2 brothers and 4 sisters. He Went to school in Caen with the Jesuits as a boarder. He was Probably not a brilliant student but he had a conscientious mind, and his certificate of studies described him as “a model of moral integrity and great modesty” (Certificate of studies 27 August 1621).
His Parents were not too happy that he wanted to become a priest; however, they accepted and he went to the Oratory. The aims of the Oratory were: unrelenting desire for reform in the Church; evangelical love for the poor; missionary zeal. He was ordained on December 20, 1625, and celebrated his first Mass on Christmas night.
Mercy or compassion: 3 requirements
- Feel the suffering of the other person or persons
- Have a deep desire to do something
- Do something, put the desire into action
Evident in his life
- Twice he went to be with the people who were dying from the Plagues of 1627 and again in 1630. Two anecdotes from these: the little tine box in which he carried the consecrated hosts to the dying; he stayed in a barrel to be near the dying and so as not to infect those who were free from the Plague.
- Generally in France, and particularly in Normandy , a time of great oppression and atrocities, especially of the poor. [Everything was taxed so as to raise funds for war – land tax, salt tax. Soldiers passing through the countryside on the way to war had to be fed and lodged – and it was the country people who suffered huge losses. Farmers went to the towns and added to the poor. Epidemics as well. ] 1639 the revolt of the pieds-nus. Many were imprisoned. He made an appeal to the Chancellor and secured the release of 60 – 80 prisoners.