Birmingham: Jubilarians celebrated at Day for Religious

L-R back row: Fr Stephen Wright, Sr Joanna Currie OP, Sr Anna O'Connor, L-R front row: Sr Teresa De Maria Gomez, HSH, Archbishop Longley, Sr Joseph Wallace LSOP, Sr Monica Mary LSOP

St Chad's Cathedral saw the annual celebration of the Mass for Religious on 4 February and around 120 religious were present. These included four sisters celebrating jubilees: Sr Joanna Currie OP and Sr Monica Mary LSOP celebrating their Golden Jubilees; Sr Teresa De Maria Gomez, Hospitallers of the Sacred Heart, and Sr Joseph Wallace LSOP their Diamond Jubilees.

Archbishop Bernard Longley of Birmingham, was the Principal celebrant and preacher. Concelebrating with Archbishop Longley was Fr Stephen Wright, Episcopal Vicar for Religious, and others priests of the diocese and Religious Orders. The congregation was full with representatives from all the various Religious Orders across the diocese. As well as recognising the Jubilarians the Mass also gave an opportunity for renewal of Religious vows, recalling the day when these commitments were first made.

Preaching from the First Reading of the day from Hebrews 13:21 Archbishop Longley began with and based his homily on, 'May God make you ready to do his will in any kind of good action'. 'This blessing' he stressed, 'was not about making us do God's will but enabling us to do God's will and this blessing in turn opens up the meaning of obedience' explaining, 'Obedience is a disposition of life to which you have made a life-long commitment as Religious..., it is not submissiveness but a joyful disposition to be where the Lord needs us to be'.

He further added, 'Obedience involves listening..., drawing closer to Christ so that we can hear what he is saying to us in the Scriptures, through the sacraments, in the needs of others and in the experiences of our lives...' Thus we need, 'the obedience of sheep who instinctively trust the shepherd to lead them to good pastures'.

Preceeding the Mass, Ellen Teague of Columban JPIC gave a talk to the religious on 'The Mission Imperatives of Laudato Si'. The imperatives included an understanding of the ecological crisis as a moral and spiritual crisis, recognising the impact of environmental problems on the poor, and working towards ecological conversion as a summons to renew our relationships with God, one another and the rest of the created world. After the Mass there was a meal and social time, providing opportunity for engaging across the Religious Orders. Sr Anna O'Connor, the Episcopal Vicar for Religious, chaired the day and thanked everyone for their participation.