The door to the Mayfield Chapel, where founder of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus Cornelia Connelly is buried, was designated a Holy Door for the Year of Mercy.
The chapel, located at the Mayfield School for Girls in East Sussex, is one of three Holy Doors in the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton.
Most of Cornelia’s life as founder of the Society was spent at St. Leonards-on-Sea, which is about 45 minutes from the town of Mayfield.
National Catholic Sisters Week (NCSW) takes place March 8 – 14, 2016. It celebrates the remarkable contributions and devoted lives of Catholic sisters, in tandem with National Women’s History Month.
NCSW was created in 2014 to recognize and celebrate the profound impact Catholic sisters have had historically and presently on the communities in which we live.
“Take a sister to get a cup of coffee, ask her a question about her life, her vocation” suggested Sister Mary Soher, co-executive director of NCSW. “Events large and small are welcomed for NCSW. It’s never too late to celebrate sisters.”
Partnering with NCSW, Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities (FADICA) released a study called “Understanding U.S. Catholic Sisters Today” and the website WeAreSisters.net. This report promotes the vitality of religious life, encourages more vocations, and attracts enhanced engagement and support with sisters. We invite you to read the report at WeAreSisters.net.
About National Catholic Sisters Week
National Catholic Sisters Week is headquartered at St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minn., and supported by a three-year, $3.3 million grant the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation awarded to the university in late 2013.
About the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation
The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation was created in 1944 by international business pioneer Conrad N. Hilton, who founded Hilton Hotels and left his fortune to help the world’s disadvantaged and vulnerable people. The Foundation currently conducts strategic initiatives in six priority areas: providing safe water, ending chronic homelessness, preventing substance abuse, helping children affected by HIV and AIDS, supporting transition-age youth in foster care, and extending Conrad Hilton’s support for the work of Catholic Sisters. Following selection by an independent international jury, the Foundation annually awards the $1.5 million Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize to a nonprofit organization doing extraordinary work to reduce human suffering. From its inception, the Foundation has awarded more than $1 billion in grants. The Foundation’s current assets exceed $2.2 billion.
March 9, 2016
Last week we celebrated the 70th anniversary of the schools Holy Child School, Cape Coast and Holy Child College of Education, Takoradi, which were founded by the SHCJ.
The celebration began with a Mass presided over by the Archbishop of Cape Coast Diocese, Most Rev. Dr. Matthias Kobena Nketsiah, with two Monsignori and three other priests con-celebrating. Among the priests were the chaplains of the Holy Child School, Cape Coast (Rev. Fr. Atta Baidoo George), and the Holy Child College of Education, Takoradi. The Monsignori are Very Rev. Martin Essilfie, the Assistant Chaplain of the University of Cape Coast and Very Rev. James Robert Myers, while the third priest is a lecturer at the Saint Peter’s Regional Seminary, Cape Coast.
The students, alumnae, teachers and past headmistresses of both schools were present at the Mass. Among the attendees were two outstanding past headmistresses of the Holy Child School, Cape Coast, namely, Rev. Sr. Michelle Puma SHCJ who is the only surviving expatriate headmistresses and Mrs. Alice Agyeman, who was the longest staying headmistress; she had headed the school for twenty-three years. Sr. Michelle had come from the USA to participate in the celebration. Everyone present was very happy that Sr. Michelle was able to attend the program.
Sisters of the SHCJ were joined at the celebration by their contemporaries from other Congregations including the Sisters of the Society of the Infant Jesus (SIJ) and the Sisters of Our Lady of Apostles (OLA).
The headmistress of the Holy Child School, Cape Coast, Rev. Sr. Josephine Anto SHCJ thanked all who were present at the Mass and noted that the Holy Child School, Cape Coast, was the only SHCJ founded school in Africa that has maintained the SHCJ presence from the beginning in 1946. She explained that at any point in time, since 1946, there has always been an SHCJ on the staff of the school.
After the Mass, everyone was treated to a sumptuous meal in the school hall.
The Society of the Holy Child Jesus is a member of UNANIMA International, a non-governmental organization advocating on behalf of women and children (particularly those living in poverty), immigrants and refugees, and the environment.
You can read UNANIMA’s monthly update for March below.
The Society of the Holy Child Jesus will hold the Delegate Session of its 27th General Chapter from March 23 to April 11, 2016 in Nemi, outside of Rome, Italy.
Delegates from the African, American and European provinces will gather to renew their understanding of the spirit and mission of the Society in a constantly changing world.
The theme of the 27th General Chapter is Joyfully Proclaim the Good News. The delegates will set direction for the Society for the next six years and elect a new Society leadership team.
March 23, 2016
The Eighth Annual Holy Child Awards Dinner was held on March 10, 2016 at Battery Gardens Restaurant in New York City. See all photos from the event.
The honorees for the Faith in Action Award were Meg and Tom Healey. Meg and Tom have had successful careers, and their lives exemplify the generosity, love and service characteristic of Cornelia Connelly.
The Holy Child Spirit honoree was Alexandra Hellmuth. A 2006 graduate of Oak Knoll School of the Holy Child, Summit, NJ, Alex is passionate about the opportunity for the private sector to bring business solutions to challenges of poverty, economic development, and gender equality.
By Philomena Grimley, SHCJ
Lenten Reflection: What stirs in your heart on this Spirit-led journey?
March 30, 2016
By Elizabeth Mary Strub, SHCJ
“And you, little child, you shall be called prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare the way for him. To give his people knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins; this by the tender mercy of our God who from on high will bring the rising Sun to visit us.” (Lk 1:76-78)
“The tender mercy of our God ….” Zachariah is inspired to say that his little son John, only eight days old, will be the prophet of this mercy which is, at the same time, knowledge, salvation, and forgiveness. God’s mercy is tender because it rises gently, respectfully, gradually, almost imperceptibly, in human hearts and softens them. It “visits”, it doesn’t impose itself. John will witness to the supreme mercy – the dawning of the Messiah.
The word mercy is better expressed in Latin languages. The Spanish word “misericordia” makes it a quality of the heart, a disposition at the core of the person. It’s cordial, not aloof or impersonal. It reaches out to touch the other and its touch is healing. Another word for mercy is love.
Let’s turn to Cornelia to see where and how mercy dawns for her. There is a prophetic Little Child in her story, too, clearly represented by her three surviving children. Are they John or Jesus? I like to think that it was during her very first retreat in Grand Coteau, December 21-24, 1839, that she met Jesus face to face. She made the first three days of the Exercises alongside the Religious of the Sacred Heart who would continue without her for the full eight days. So she would have been introduced only to the Principle and Foundation and the First Week and perhaps the Call of the King. Surely she would have made eye contact with Jesus on the cross asking her what she has done, is doing and will do for him. We know from her notes written the day after Christmas how seriously she entered into the experience and made resolutions for the rest of her life, but the notes have more to do with the “mechanics” of the Exercises and the Examen than with the substance. She didn’t yet have a vocabulary to describe her inner experience of consolation and desolation, but she said later that this first retreat marked her conversion. Why? If the First Week held the mirror up to her own sinfulness, the sight would have filled her all the more with gratitude for the merciful love of God for her personally. In fact, the colloquy that ends the meditation on personal sin is a sort of explosion of gratitude for life, for pardon, for salvation, for the gift of all creation, for love. Cornelia’s “history of sin” is matched by a corresponding “history of mercy” so that the climax of the week is not sin but mercy – a mercy that drives a lifetime of grateful love and service.
Michael Ivens, S.J. in his commentary on the Exercises says: “All the foregoing considerations lead to a new appreciation of God’s gratuitous mercy…The entire language in which Ignatius describes the colloquy of mercy is suggestive of intense consolation”. It’s my guess that Cornelia, making the Exercises for the first time was overcome by mercy and was made permanently aware of God’s merciful attention to her in all the details of her life.
Ursula Blake in the Positio has ventured the opinion that Mercy is the predominant charism of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus. It’s not simply because Cornelia claimed that the Society was founded for all the works of spiritual mercy that she holds this view. She sees mercy running like a spiritual river through all the “windings” and trials of Cornelia’s life story. Ursula notes that by July, 1840, “Cornelia was contemplating Christ’s all-embracing mercy: ´Misereor super hanc turbam´ [Cornelia wrote in her journal] which was to be the outstanding impulse of her second vocation as an apostolic founder.”
Other examples span the years. For her irresponsible son Merty at school at Stonyhurst, Cornelia pleads mercy. In 1844, Cornelia is at the Trinita pondering her future and that of her children. Her dismal spirits are raised by the merciful suggestion of Cardinal Vicar Patrizi that Frank should remain with her until he is five years older. She is merciful toward the scheming Emily Bowles and she mercifully pays the court costs of a husband who betrayed her. Her alienated children are lovingly received on their once-in-a-lifetime visit to their mother. The Preston cabal all but broke her and the subsequent intervention of Bishop Dannell and his alien rule tested her to the limit, but she remained firmly united to her merciful God and at one with the Mother of sorrows.
The break with the religious of the Sacred Heart came about because Cornelia did not want a cloistered life with all its restrictions. She wanted to “help souls” actively, like Ignatius. The spiritual works of mercy were more in harmony with her own natural calling but she certainly drew from their devotion to the merciful heart of Jesus a deeper understanding of mercy and a wealth of spirituality that she brought with her to the SHCJ. The other strong influence came by way of the Salesian tradition that witnessed to the sweetness and tenderness of God. Her devotion to the Holy Child is more allied to that tradition.
Perhaps the clearest references to the possible centrality of Mercy in the SHCJ are found in Cornelia’s rule text of 1853, now enshrined in our Foundation Texts: “Mysteries of the most sublime teaching are to be found in the humble, hidden life of the Holy Child Jesus in which God manifests in the most wonderful manner the treasures of his mercy and of his boundless love.” And “Contemplating the Eternal Wisdom in the lowliness of his humanity we are to seek to attain the knowledge of our own nothingness and misery and that of his infinite love and mercy.” It sounds even better in the original French: “Et quel enseignement plus sublime pourront-nous trouver que le mystère de l’Incarnation? C’est ici que Dieu nous manifeste de la manière la plus merveilleuse les trésors de sa Miséricorde y de son Amour immense.”
Even up to the end of her life, (1875) Cornelia was encouraging her religious to “judge of things as our good and merciful God judges them”. A lifetime of yearly Spiritual Exercises would have overwhelmingly confirmed that first direct contact of “creature with creator” as a merciful exchange. Finally, the one she had learned as a Protestant to call “the almighty” received her at the last as Mercy. Her repeated death-bed cry was “My Jesus have mercy on me.”
April 8, 2016
(L to R) Pauline Darby, Veronica Openibo, Marie Ursino, and Cecilia Nya.
The Society of the Holy Child Jesus is delighted to announce that the Leadership Team for the years 2016-2022 has been elected at the Delegate Session of its 27th General Chapter in Nemi, Italy.
Veronica Openibo, SHCJ, was re-elected Society Leader by the delegates. She was elected to her first term in 2010.
Born in Nigeria, Sr. Veronica entered the Society in 1973. She has worked as an educator and in pastoral and social work. She is also on the Executive Board of the International Union of Superiors General (UISG), and serves as Vice President of the Board of Service of Documentation and Study on Global Mission (SEDOS).
Joining Sr. Veronica on the Society Leadership Team will be:
Every six years, the Society Leadership Team is formed from the community’s three Provinces (African, American and European) to promote a spirit of mutuality, collaboration and interdependence. The Leadership Team is elected by the Sisters to provide spiritual and administrative leadership. They foster unity and mission of the Sisters throughout the world. The Team also works with other religious congregations on issues related to justice, peace and human development.
“Dear Sisters, thank you very much for believing in me and putting your trust in me by calling me forth to continue to lead the Society for another six years,” Veronica Openibo, SHCJ, said to General Chapter delegates after her re-election. “Thank you again for giving me this opportunity to serve. I look forward to working with the new Society Leadership Team. We will rely on your continuing support and prayers. Thank you and showers of blessings.”
“We hope that at the end of this Chapter, we will leave with our hearts burning within us to go out courageously to joyfully proclaim the Good News of Jesus and to ‘meet the wants of this age’ calling for our attention,” Sr. Veronica continued.
By Terri MacKenzie, SHCJ
Earth Day, April 22, 2016, marks the 46th anniversary of the first Earth Day, arguably the beginning of the environmental movement in the United States. We celebrate Earth Day during the season of spring in the Northern Hemisphere and the time of liturgical celebrations in several religions that mark new life and exodus from bondage to freedom.
Those interested in Earth Day are aware of the many threats to our interconnected Earth. It is an appropriate time to pause for reflection and prayer.
Pause for a few moments’ quiet reflection on the wonder, variety, individuality and “interbeing” of Earth’s existence in our solar system and universe.
Let us join in thanking the Source of Life for the gift of Earth. Take turns reading the following litany.
Response: Source of Love and Abiding Faithfulness, we give thanks.
– for revealing creative love from the first flaring forth, when Earth’s story begins, Source of Love and Abiding Faithfulness, we give thanks.
– for Earth’s continuing evolution from stardust through its 5 billion year story so far, Source of Love and Abiding Faithfulness, we give thanks.
– for Earth’s ability to create, to heal, to diversify, to adapt, to be intrinsically interconnected, Source of Love and Abiding Faithfulness, we give thanks.
– for the colorful and nurturing gifts that developed in our era: flowers and trees, fish and mammals, human beings who collaborated and bonded to further their species, Source of Love and Abiding Faithfulness, we give thanks.
– for the gifts of water, soil, air, climate, flora and fauna, and the bioregions that developed over millennia, Source of Love and Abiding Faithfulness, we give thanks.
– for the challenges that Earth has encountered during her long story, and for the creative ways she developed to heal them, Source of Love and Abiding Faithfulness, we give thanks.
– for the Spirit that inspired Senator Gaylord Nelson to establish Earth Day: one person’s commitment now motivates people to action in nearly 200 countries, Source of Love and Abiding Faithfulness, we give thanks.
– for Pope Francis, whose commitment to care for our common home inspires people and organizations throughout the world, Source of Love and Abiding Faithfulness, we give thanks.
– Add as you wish.
Let us deepen our commitment to care for Earth. Take turns reading the following litany.
Response: Help us give life to the world.
– Because stockpiles of nuclear weapons threaten all life whether or not they are ever used, help us give life to the world.
– Because climate change already causes massive damage to all life on Earth, help us give life to the world.
– Because multiple causes are resulting in a Sixth Major Extinction of life on Earth, help us give life to the world.
– Because mono-crops and farming with harmful chemicals result in inferior food and spoiled soil and water, help us give life to the world.
– Because pollution, especially from plastics, is trashing so much of our planet including our oceans, help us give life to the world.
– Because deforestation ruins soil, water, air, and the life lose when trees are destroyed, help us give life to the world.
– Because human greed exploits humans and other species and resources, help us give life to the world.
– Because so many suffer from problems caused by, or causing, environmental damage, help us give life to the world.
Pause for a few moments’ quiet reflection. Share if you wish: What can we do, alone and/or with others, to enhance Earth’s future?
Closing prayer: Loving Source of Life, we, being of Earth and blessed with the Spirit living and acting within us, join together this Earth Day to renew our awe and appreciation of our precious planet. May our awe and appreciation result in actions that witness to our concerns for Earth. We ask that your presence within us will empower us to co-create a thriving planet now and into the future.
Amen.
Socialize.
Some music suggestions:
Let All Things Now Living
What a Wonderful World
Touch the Earth with Gentleness (Kathy Sherman)
How Great Thou Art
By Veronica Openibo, SHCJ
Mark the Evangelist, whose feast day is celebrated on April 25, is traditionally known as the author of the Gospel of Mark. He is the preacher of the Christian faith in Africa and is said to have founded the Church of Alexandria.
Some scholars say he is Mark the cousin of Barnabas (Col 4:10), who went on a missionary journey with Barnabas and Paul and was a companion of Paul during his later missionary journeys (Philemon 1:24). Others say he is the same Mark in Acts 12:12, 25; he is referred to as Peter’s son ‘…so does my son Mark’ in Peter 5:13. At some point, it is believed that at a certain time, Mark was Peter’s interpreter and travel companion and he wrote down the sermons of Peter, which became the gospel according to Mark.
His symbol is the winged lion. Mark is depicted as a Lion among the evangelists, because he was seen as a person who had courage and monarchy. Some Christian legends refer to Saint Mark as “Saint Mark The Lionhearted” in which he was thrown to the Lions, who refused to attack or eat him. Instead the Lions slept at his feet while he petted them. When the Romans saw this, they released him, impressed by this sight.
As the first of the evangelists, one of the writers of the Synoptic Gospels, his accounts were very vivid. I will mention only four: The story of the rich young man in Mk. 10:17-22 Jesus looked steadily at him and he was filled with love for him, and he said, “You need to do one thing more…?” 10:21. The cure of the woman with hemorrhage and the raising of Jairus daughter Mk. 5:21-43 especially the drama around “Who touched my clothes?” The calming of the storm Mk 4:35-41 “…But he (Jesus) was in the stern, his head on the cushion, asleep.” He told the account of Jesus’ encounters as it was, with no embellishment, for example, the sons of Zebedee make their request directly to Jesus not through their mother as the other two synoptic gospels wrote, “James and John…Master allow us to sit one at your right hand and the other at your left in your glory” Mk. 10:35-40.
Mark was humble to write about himself during the arrest of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane, Mk. 14:51-52, “A young man followed with nothing on but a linen cloth. They caught hold of him, but he left the cloth in their hands and ran away naked.” He knew how to fly from danger.
What aspect of the story of Mark the Evangelist inspires you?
Elizabeth Loomis, SHCJ, the first principal of the high school
May 11, 2016
On April 29, 2016, Holy Child Academy, Old Westbury, in New York paid special tribute to the Holy Child Sisters at the school’s annual spring gala. Special recognition was given to Jean O’Meara, SHCJ, and Eileen McDevitt, SHCJ, for their extraordinary service over many years.
Mary Ann Buckley, SHCJ, accepted an original painting specially commissioned to honor the Sisters; the painting will be hung in the school’s administration building.
The next day, alums from HCA’s first four classes of the high school honored Elizabeth Loomis, SHCJ, the first principal of the high school.
Even the children had a creative word of thanks, which you can see in the video below.
May 11, 2016
Founded in 1988, the Society’s Community Development Investment (CDI) Program provides small loans (up to $25K) to organizations that serve the poor.
In order to share the wonderful works enabled by these loans, the Society we will run a series of short stories highlighting these.
Today we start with Project H.O.M.E. in Philadelphia, PA.
CDI supports Project H.O.M.E.’s mission: “…to empower adults, children, and families to break the cycle of homelessness and poverty, to alleviate the underlying causes of poverty, and to enable people to attain their fullest potential …”
Three current initiatives funded by the CDI loan are:
For a complete list of the groups the CDI currently has loans with click here.
Email Generalate@shcj.org to receive the Our Cornelia newsletter in your inbox!
Para poder recibir el boletín Nuestra Cornelia o para solicitar información acerca de Cornelia, envíe un correo electrónico a Generalate@shcj.org.
By Monica Adigwe, SHCJ
The account of the visitation to Elizabeth by the Blessed Virgin Mary is a well-known story that could easily be described as one of the best-loved stories in the bible. If for nothing at all, we are reminded of this event practically every time we sing or recite the Magnificat, the same song Mary sang when she visited her cousin, Elizabeth. Besides, we are offered the opportunity to reflect on the account every time we pray the Joyful Mysteries of the Holy Rosary. What more could be said then about this account from the Gospel according to Luke 1 : 39 – 56 ?
There is one aspect of the visitation that I find particularly relevant to us on this occasion. It is a trait that seems to unite the two women in the account. The first to speak, Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cries out in a loud voice and utters words which we could only consider prophetic: “Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb” (Lk 1 : 42). The other, Mary, responds to this word of prophecy in her song saying: “All generations will call me blessed” (Lk 1 : 48). So why does Luke at the beginning of his Gospel present us with this story and what is the point of their prophetic utterances?
A closer reading of the Gospel of Luke chapters 1 & 2 clearly indicates that the evangelist took the question of prophetic utterance seriously. Zechariah prophesies when his tongue is loosened (Lk 1 : 68 – 79). Simeon prophesies (Lk 2 : 34 – 35), and so does the prophetess Anna (Lk 2 : 38). However, one thing unites these three – all of them in one way or the other are connected to the temple. Zechariah was a priest (Lk 1 : 5); Simeon was in the temple (Lk 2 : 27); Anna never left the temple (Lk 2 : 37). The place of prophecy of Mary and Elizabeth is however quite different. It is in the home of Zechariah and Elizabeth out in the Judean countryside.
Why is this significant? It seems to be the beginning of a series of events that happen in Luke’s Gospel and in the life of the early church. The Pentecost event takes place not in the temple but in the upper room, a private household. The preaching of the faith to the gentiles begins in the household of Cornelius (Acts 10) in Joppa. And when Paul arrives for the first time in Europe, it is in the house of Lydia that the first church would gather (Acts 16 : 14 – 16). It would seem that Mary and Elizabeth, in Luke 1, have set in motion an irresistible chain of events, a firm paradigm of the proclamation of the word in the early church, which finds its matrix in the home.
I turn to the life of SHCJ founder Cornelia Connelly, a woman who best exemplifies in her life, the struggle between “temple” and “home”; the tension between the church as an institution on the one hand and the domestic church on the other. These were played out on every page/stage of her life. Cornelia did not spurn the one, but she understood the power of the other and she brought the full force of her experience of the home to bear on the Society (SHCJ) she founded. This led her to say that ‘the feast of St. Edward [1840] was the beginning of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus. And that it (Society) was founded on a breaking heart.’ (This quotation comes from the biography by Mother Mary Francis Bellasis, written in the early part of the twentieth century and was never published: it only existed in typescript, p. 42). The church in every age needs prophetic voices, but sometimes it just matters as much that she speaks as loudly from the temple as she does from the home!
June 8, 2016
Carmen M. Chavez, Esq., Executive Director, Casa Cornelia Law Center
Casa Cornelia Law Center is a ministry of the Society of Holy Child Jesus.
Dilkhwaz Ahmed was a women’s rights activist in Iraq when she began fearing for her life and sought asylum in the United States. Dilkhwaz became a client of Sr. Ann Durst at Casa Cornelia Law Center (CCLC) several years ago, and together they successfully won her asylum case. Now she is the proud Founder and Executive Director of License to Freedom, a non-profit that provides counseling to victims of domestic violence, trafficking, and sexual assault in the refugee community of San Diego and beyond.
Dilkhwaz returned to Iraq just last month to provide assistance and work with Yazidi women who have been victimized by ISIS. She is an exemplary woman, and the staff and volunteers of CCLC are proud to know her.
On Saturday, April 16, Sr. Ann Durst was honored with the Ignatian Volunteer Corps Madonna Della Strada Award. Dilkhwaz spoke at that event about the incredible impact that Sr. Ann and CCLC have made on her life and the lives of so many others who have survived human rights violations. Dilkhwaz is a true embodiment of “paying it forward,” as she is now assisting so many other women in the San Diego community as well as in Iraq.
We are grateful for the incredible support of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus in helping us to further this humanitarian mission, and Dilkhwaz exemplifies each and every woman whom CCLC has assisted. Thank you for helping us to create such a positive ripple effect in the lives of women who have escaped violence and seek hope.
June 9, 2016
By Jeanne Marie Hatch, SHCJ, Vice President for Mission, Rosemont College
Every year the feasts of Pentecost, the Blessed Trinity, Corpus Christi, and the Sacred Heart arrive on the calendar very near to Commencement, week after week. I noticed that fact many, many years ago when I was a student myself. Those feast days were a sign that summer was close at last! Then as a young Religion teacher, I missed the chance to talk with students about these feasts since they were either gone or on the way out. If still there due to an early Easter, they were not willing to humor me telling them how deeply the Spirit lived within them and how amazing – to believe in one God with three natures, yet united and connected as one Love. A love so great that only a God could imagine how to remain and always be with us through the Eucharist, long after the Ascension and through the image of a loving heart!
These big feasts were also not lost on Cornelia Connelly, a century or two before me. Her schools celebrated the feast of Pentecost big time with a holiday the Monday after the feast. The children chose the site for the whole convent and school to take a picnic for the day!
One particular year they visited the ruins of the abandoned Palace of the Archbishops of Canterbury in Mayfield (pictured). It was then and there Cornelia was challenged by her wealthy and unpredictable friend, the Duchess Louisa of Leeds, to restore these Mayfield ruins and open a school for young women. Undoubtedly she drew strength and courage from the Holy Spirit at that moment and took up the task. Undaunted by the humongous challenge, she raised funds all over Europe through auctions and raffles. Today, the restored buildings are the heart of a most prestigious boarding/day school in England, the Mayfield/St. Leonard’s School.
On the feast of Corpus Christi, Cornelia had the students celebrate the gift of the Eucharist with a special procession all over the grounds of the property at St. Leonard’s by the sea. Such a display of processing children amid garlands and garlands of flowers was not appreciated by the local bishops, which of course did not deter Cornelia. I imagine she invited them to participate in the long walk and celebrate together back at the convent.
Photo of Cornelia, St. Leonards-on-Sea
A favorite quote of Cornelia at this season of the Church year was “Give the Holy Spirit many smiles today…” And again regarding the Eucharist: “Be willing to sit before the Lord more willing to listen than to speak…” Also, “Unite your heart with the heart of God.”
As we move into summer weeks may there be an opportunity for many smiles during vacation and time with family and friends. May we also take the time to sit more ready to listen than to speak! May we experience the depth of God’s love Then as Cornelia reminds as we prepare for the fall semester, “Let us never say we have done enough!”
About Rosemont College
Founded in 1921 by the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus and rooted in the educational principles of Cornelia Connelly, Rosemont College is a private, co-educational Catholic institution with 1,000 undergraduate and graduate students. It focuses on the benefits of the POWER of small by nurturing the strengths of each student. Rosemont values trust in and reverence for the dignity of each person, diversity in human culture and experience, and persistence and courage in promoting justice with compassion.
22 June 2016
By Caoimhe Devaney and Nicola Kenny, Holy Child School Killiney
Click here to see more photos.
Last October 13 students and two staff visited our sister Holy Child school in Mayfield, Sussex. We were there for the special Cornelian Spirit Day celebrations on October 15th to mark the founding of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus. Following a Mass with the whole school community we participated in the Inter-House tournaments: the four Mayfield Houses competed in various events including sports such as hockey, volleyball, whist card games and even a whole school singing competition. Every Holy Child Killiney girl was adopted into the House of their 6th form buddy. We wore face paint in the different House colours and engaged in some friendly competition.
We all had a wonderful day, and this inspired us to bring the idea back to Holy Child Killiney. We all agreed that there are so many benefits to having Houses, including breaking down barriers between years, and encouraging school spirit. On our return to HCK the Sixth Years put together detailed proposals regarding House Names, membership, colours, activities, and characteristics. We were delighted when the Board of Management, the Parents’ Association, the Staff and the Students’ Council agreed with the proposal.
On Sport’s Day, the House System was introduced to school for the first time, after many weeks of planning and preparation. We were honoured to welcome three of our House Patrons to HCK. Sr. Madeleine Mulrennan, Sr. Geraldine MacCarthy and Sr. Mary Hilary Daly are all past Principals of Holy Child, and were really pleased to be invited to be House Patrons. Ms. Cluskey and her team had prepared a leaflet with the House Characteristics and details of Cornelian Celebrations, and had also sourced wrist bands in the House Colours. We began with a lovely Prayer Assembly led by the Chaplaincy Team, and the winners of the Cornelia Connelly Competition were announced. Then Ms. Cluskey unveiled the new House Shield.
Our Teacher House Heads were introduced to the school body and every girl’s name and staff names were called in their respective houses.
The House System Notice Board was unveiled, and we gathered in each of our House groups to hear some words from our House Patron, and prepare our chant. We all got into the spirit of things, using everything from drums, banners to face paint. Everyone was in great spirits as we played various games during sports day and participated in a series of house activities, including performing our House chant.
It was so exciting to see our idea become a reality and we were delighted that there was such a positive reaction to it. Congratulations to Madeleine House who won the House Shield for the very first time, but we know the competition will always be strong as girls build up Connelly Points for their Houses. It was such great fun and we hope that this new system unites the school body for many years to come.
