Celebrating 400 Years of Mary Ward
Rome Jubilee Event 4- 9 October 2009
Up to 2000 international Loreto friends and colleagues have just completed an inspiring week of Pilgrimages to Mary Ward sites and a Mary Ward Jubilee Event in Rome. Although most have not yet returned to Australia, participants have reported an exciting array of events, joyful reunions with friends, the formation of new friendships and a strong sense of unity and celebration.
Above: Welcoming ceremony. Marian Moriarty ibvm General Superior and Mechtild Meckl cj General Superior. Photo by Jablowsky/Haseneder 2009
Chris Burke ibvm said, "...we joined thousands of pilgrims who descended on Piazza del Popolo at 4.00pm. Each lot gathered around their flag... so many flags to show where Mary Ward's influence has been planted. We're a mixed bunch: women in habits, women in everyday clothes, men who are partners, teachers, co-workers. Lay and religious , all part of this family, all claiming some deep and growing connection with a woman from 400 years ago".
Above: Loreto's sea of yellow enthusiastically greets Pope Benedict in St Peter's Square. Photo by Jablowsky/Haseneder 2009
The celebrations in Rome have included welcoming walking pilgrims from Liege, concerts in the Churches of S. Ignazio and S Eustachio, a Papal audience in St Peter's Square, a Symposium on Mary Ward, visits to Mary Ward places and lots of opportunity to meet up with friends and make new ones.
Downloads available:
Response by Marta Zechmeister cj
Photos (pdf - around 70 with labels) Photos by Jablowsky/Haseneder 2009
Photos (website -around 1000 photos unlabelled) As above
International n ews coverage:
Altöttinger Liebfrauenbote 18 October 2009 Nr. 42, page 17
The Universe 11 October 2009, page 5
Rome Jubilee Contacts
A Jubilee Action Group (JAG) was established to co-ordinate international events. This group consists of Frances Orchard CJ, Maria Helena Gabai CJ, Renata Rohleder CJ, Sandra Perrett IBVM. Email: JAG2009@congjesu.org
Rome Jubilee Event local co-ordinators in Australia:
NSW: Emma Rossi |
emma.rossi@optusnet.com.au |
General Congregation 2009
Members of the IBVM General Congregation IBVM “Stand Up Against Poverty”
On October 17th 2009, International Day for the Eradication of Poverty members of the General Congregation taking place in Arricia Italy, stoodup against poverty.
Since the introduction of the Millennium Development Goals, following the Millennium Summit , the IBVM has committed itself to respond to this world wide challenge. Representatives from all the Provinces, at the education meeting in Loyola in 2002, promised to make the Millennium Development Goals a priority for justice education in the schools. In September 2005, in New York, the JPIC Coordinators of all the Provinces made a commitment to promote the MDGs. In Lima, the delegates to GC 06 made a similar commitment to “endorse the UN MDGSs and the Earth Charter and allow ourselves and our ministries to be transformed by what they require”.
At the General congregation the members made the following statement:
"We are standing here on this symbolic day, the international Day For the Eradication of Poverty because we refuse to accept more excuses from world leaders who allow 50,000 people to die every day as a result of extreme poverty.
We are standing here today because we want our leaders to honour their promises to meet the Millennium Development Goals by 2015 and even to exceed these “minimum” Development Goals."
What's on - international Provinces
International Mary Ward Events Newsletter March 2009
Kenya Tree Planting in Kenya - 400 Trees for 400 years of Mary Ward (view letter). View photos of the event.
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