Sr. Benedicta Yeo, 69, was appointed superior of the Jinja community, Generalate District, and was installed on January 20. She began her aspirancy in Daegu and was sent as a postulant to the Philippines to take up Bachelor of Science in Nursing at St. Paul’s College,

Manila. She returned to Daegu after her studies. Just before her final profession she opted to try life outside the convent. Three years after she re-entered in Rome where she made her final profession on September 8, 1991.

She was then sent to Jinja, Uganda as pioneering member of the community.

www.livestrong.com September

Volume VI Issue No. 1 January- February 2018

M. Angela Strobel conducted the Torres Novas Priory Election Chapter on January 6-7. She

was accompanied by Sr. Caridad Choi. Sr. Elenice Aparecida Ferrari, 51, who hails from the Diocese of Presidente Prudente, in the interior of the State of São Paulo, Brazil, was elected as the new prioress for a term of five years. .

She entered the novitiate in Sorocaba in 1985. From 1989 to 1992 she studied accounting in Sorocaba and worked as treasurer of Santa Escolástica College. In July 1993 her preparation for perpetual vows was interrupted because she was sent to the Region of Portugal for a period of three years. She worked with the elderly and animated the mass of the children in the parish.

She had her perpetual profession in Torres Novas on September 24, 1994. She then went to Rome and from there to Norfolk, to learn English. Due to her spine problem she returned in October 1995 to Brazil where she was assigned in Cunha Hospital. As a legal requirement of the country she had to take up Hospital Administration and Public Health. She dedicated 22 years of service in the hospital of Cunha and provided professionalism, the completion of construction of the Surgical Center and the expansion of the maternity sector. Currently she serves as superior of the São Bento Community. Her installation as Prioress of Torres Novas Priory will be on May 27, 2018.

NEW LEADERS EMERGE

Sr. Elenice Sr. Benedicta

Sr. Rosann

Sr. Pia Sr. TimoteaSr. Pia Portmann, prioress of Norfolk for eight years.Sr. Timotea Kronschnabl, prioress of Torres Novas for eight years. Sr. Rosann Ocken, superior of Jinja/Generalate District for two years until her election as prioress of Norfolk.

From November 2017 and spread out until May 2018 a series of 6 afternoons of lectures on the topic of integral ecology is offered in cooperation by the pontifical universities in Rome.

Hopefully you have all read the gripping and very readable encyclical “Laudato si’” of Pope Francis by now. It is often called an environmental encyclical, but it goes much deeper than that and justly has to be classified as a social encyclical. It deals both with the outcry of our “common home” planet earth and the outcry of the poor and vulnerable population.You are likely to know the predicted consequences of climate change: more extreme weather events, droughts and desertification, disappearing of islands and glaciers (the latter often causing water supply problems), floodings and hurricanes, impact on future harvests – the harvests may improve somewhat in the “developed” countries while a deterioration is likely in developing countries – and finally migration due to these issues. Climate change is mainly caused by the emission of greenhouse gases like CO2. The 1 billion richest people of our “common home” earth are responsible for

50% of the total greenhouse gas emissions, the next 3 billion for further 45%, and the poorest 3 billion for only 5% because they have no access to affordable fossil fuels. At the same time these poorest 3 billion will suffer from the worst consequences of climate change. This may give you an idea of the immense injustices we are facing on a global scale.

Let us now turn to an ethical and theological perspective of the ecological crisis: As Christians we believe that God created the world and in particular the earth with all that it holds. Creation is in a certain sense a sacrament, i.e. a sign and a medium of God’s self-revelation and of his gift of himself. Out of love God has entrusted his creation to humankind whom he created in his own image, but God remains the owner of his creation and we are responsible to him for th way we deal with it. The gift of creation to the care of humankind can be compared in a graphic illustration to a rose that is presented by a young man to his girl-friend: It is a gift out of love. When we imagine the feelings of the lover, when his girl-friend takes the rose out of his hand, throws it to the ground and tramples on it… Of course he would expect her to receive the rose lovingly, care for it and treasure it, because it is a sign of his love. – This may make us think, when we consider how humankind especially in the richer countries has grown into the habit of seeing nature merely as a collection of resources to be exploited, not caring about the harm done to the rest of creation or even to other human beings.

The basic root of our maltreatment of creation may be the spreading belief that there is no creator God and the consequent lack of consciousness of sin or of responsibility. Where God is lost, there remains only the “ego”. Sin may be seen as the breaking of a three-

JOINT DIPLOMA, Page 3

Congregation Lifestream 2 JOINT DIPLOMA IN INTEGRAL ECOLOGY BASED ON THE ENCYCLICAL

“LAUDATO SI’”BY SR. JEANNE BOTT

Congregation Lifestream 3 JOINT DIPLOMA, from page 2

dimensional relationship: - with God, - with the others, - with creation.

The following attempt of a confrontation of the seven cardinal sins with some “ecological sins” (in inverted commas) has made me very thoughtful: the cardinal sin of Pride may be confronted with the negation of God as creator, Greed or Avarice with a deviated anthropocentrism that sees only the self as the centre of everything, Envy may be confronted with pollution and environmental degradation,

Gluttony with the greed to have ever more and better things, Sloth or Acedia with the indifference in the face of the hunger in the world which may show itself in the thoughtless throwing away of food. The cardinal sin of Lust may correspond to the inappropriate and insufficient use of the earth, for example the inappropriate cultivation of the soil, not making sufficient use of solar, wind and water power or failing to collect rainwater. The latter two ecological sins are hereby sins of omission.

Abt. Guillermo

The blessing of Michael Archangel Pre- and Primary School in Ndanda took place on January by VG Fr. Patrick Mwaya, delegated by Bishop Titus Mdoe. The school was opened the following day, 25 January 2018

The name of the school was St Michael. But as there were so many problems with the Ministry of Education the name had to be changed to Michael Archangel Pre- and Primary School. The school could not be opened in 2017, but only 2018 because the full registration was necessary and that process turned out to be extremely difficult. One bloc is named Rufina, because of a donor from Korea, after a lady who died there in young age by cancer.

We thank the Lord for unceasing support and encouragement to continue. We thank our friends of different organizations and thousands of persons of good will who supported us faithfully. Proudly we can say: there are no debts of capital investment. The institutions are self-sufficient concerning running costs.Anna Fund and other donations help needy Aquinas Students with bursaries,St Michael Fund helps needy students in the Primary school with bursaries.So far the foundation is sound and strong to offer an excellent contribution to EDUCATION in Tanzania, Mtwara Region, open to all citizens

whatever creed or background as centres of excellence.And the people have seen what was built up and started to entrust their children to the care of the Missionary Benedictine Sisters with high expectations.

There is much reason to give praise and thanks to God who has entrusted us with so much seeing our littleness and poverty in any aspect. All what happened is a miracle and the work of God Almighty. May He be praised and see us worthy to continue to entrust us with his children.

With this background the blessing and opening of Michael Archangel School is a big milestone in the history of Ndanda Priory and the realization of the broad vision. Deo gratias

BY SR RAPHAELA HAENDLER, OSB

Sr. Raphaela during the inauguration

MICHAEL ARCHANGEL PRE AND PRIMARY SCHOOL BLESSED

Congregation Lifestream 4

SILVER JUBILEE. The celebration of the silver jubilee of religious profession of Sr. Regina Tesch and Sr. Marie Bruno Shin started as early as December 21, 2017 when they attended Pope

Francis’ mass at the chapel of Domus Sanctae Marthae, Vatican. This continued in another eucharistic celebration with renewal of vows at the Casa Santo Spirito Chapel, Rome on February 10, feast of St. Scholastica.

Pope Francis greets Sr. Regina (l) and Sr. Marie Bruno (r)

Fr. Musa blesses the Stations of the Cross hanging on individual trees

CASA SANTO SPIRITO, ROME

BLESSING OF THE V I A CRUCIS. Fr. Musa of the M a r i a n h i l l M i s s i o n a r i e s blessed the stations of the cross at the yard of Casa Santo Spirito on February 6. The sisters pray the stations at the yard during the whole season of lent. Sr. Lumen Gloria Dungca designed and painted the stations on slabs of a 40-year old pine tree trunk in time for lent.

RB CONFERENCES. The RB conferences of Sr. Aquinata Böckmann are now available on pen drive or usb. The commentaries cover the Prologue up to chapter 2. Each conference last for seven minutes.

RB COMMENTARY. The book of Sr. Aquinata Böckmann, Tools of Good Works to the Heart of Hunility, a commentary from chapter 4-7 of the Rule of St. Benedict is now available and may be ordered online through Amazon.com.

Congregation Lifestream 5

Therefore, each of us is called to discern in his heart and examine whether he is threatened by the lies of these false prophets. We need to learn not to stop at an immediate, superficial level, but to recognize what leaves a good and more lasting impression within us, because it comes from God and is truly worth our good.

A cold heartDante Alighieri, in his description of hell, imagines the devil sitting on a throne of ice; [2] he dwells in the chill of suffocated love. Let us ask ourselves then: how does charity cools in us? What are the signs that indicate that in us love risks extinguishing?What extinguishes charity is above all greed for money, "the root of all evil" ( 1 Tim 6:10); to it follows the rejection of God and therefore to find consolation in Him, preferring our desolation to the comfort of his Word and the Sacraments.  [3]  All this turns into violence that turns against those who are considered a threat to our "certainties": the unborn child, the elderly sick, the passing guest, the stranger, but also the neighbor who it does not correspond to our expectations.Even creation is a silent witness to this cooling of charity: the earth is poisoned by waste thrown out of carelessness and interest;   the seas, also polluted, must unfortunately cover the remains of many castaways of forced migration; the heavens - which in the design of God sing his glory - are furrowed by machines that make instruments of death rain.Love also cools down in our communities: in the Apostolic Exhortation  Evangelii gaudium  I have tried to describe the most evident signs of this lack of love. They are: selfish sloth, sterile pessimism, the temptation to isolate oneself and to engage in continuous fratricidal wars, the worldly mentality that induces to deal only with what is apparent, thus reducing the missionary ardor. [4]What to do?If we see in our intimate and around us the signals just described, here is that the Church, our mother and teacher, together with medicine, sometimes bitter, of truth, offers us in this time of Lent the sweet remedy of prayer, of alms and fasting.

By dedicating more time to prayer , we allow our hearts to discover the secret lies with which we deceive ourselves, [5] to finally seek consolation in God. He is our Father and wants life for us.The exercise of  almsgiving   frees us from greed and helps us to discover that the other is my brother: what I have is never mine alone. How I would like alms to turn into a real way of life for everyone!  How I would like, as Christians, to follow the example of the Apostles and see in the possibility of sharing our goods with others a concrete testimony of the communion that we live in the Church. In this regard I make my own the exhortation of Saint Paul, when he invited the Corinthians to collect for the community of Jerusalem: "It is a matter of advantage for you" ( 2 Cor.8.10).  This is especially true in Lent, during which many organisms collect collections in favor of churches and populations in difficulty. But as I would like even in our daily relationships, in front of every brother who asks us for help, we think that there is an appeal of divine Providence: every almsgiving is an occasion to take part in God's Providence towards his children ; and if today He uses me to help a brother, as tomorrow he will not also provide for my needs, He who does not allow himself to be overcome in generosity? [6]The fasting eventually weakens the power of our violence, disarm us, and represents a major opportunity for growth. On the one hand, it allows us to experience what they feel, those who lack even the most necessary and know the daily bites of hunger; on the other, it expresses the condition of our spirit, hungry for goodness and thirsty for the life of God. Fasting awakens us, makes us more attentive to God and neighbor, re-awakens our will to obey God who, alone, satisfies our hunger.I would like my voice to reach beyond the confines of the Catholic Church, to reach all of you, men and women of good will, open to listening to God. If, like us, you are afflicted by the spread of iniquity in the world, if you are worried the frost that paralyzes the hearts and actions, if you see the sense of common humanity fail, join us to invoke God together, to fast together and give us as much as we can to help. MESSAGE, PAGE 6

MESSAGE OF POPE FRANCIS FOR LENT 2018(EXCERPTS)

Congregation Lifestream 6

• Sr. Cristina Eloy da Rosa, 89, who died in Sorocaba on December 27, 2017

• Sr. Mary Benedict Pilosas, 79, who died in Manila on January 13.

Sr. Ambrosia Sr. Hermann, Sr. Marissa Sr.Eva-Maria

• Sr. Ambrosia Lee from Generalate District back to Daegu, her home priory

• Sr. Hermann Lee from India to Rome• Sr. Marissa Piramide from Ndanda to

Manila, her home priory• Sr.Eva-Maria Zierl from Tutzing to Haus

St. Benedikt

INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION

WINDHOEK. The Council of Health Service Accredita- tion of Southern Africa (COHSASA), the only internationally accredited quality improvement and accreditation body for healthcare facilities based in Africa, has granted accreditation to the Roman Catholic Hospital (RCH) in Windhoek for a period of two years, from November 24, 2017 to November 24, 2019. With this accreditation, RCH joins the ranks of healthcare facilities in the African continent that provide quality and safe healthcare services to patients. The COHSASA approach teaches healthcare workers how to monitor improvements using quality improvement methods, internationally accredited standards and web-based information system. (Source: Windhoek Priory Newsletter)

MANILA. The World Architecture Festival (WAF) spotlighted the most innovative and laudable architectural designs from all over the globe.  Eight Philippine entries made it to the WAF Awards shortlist . Among these eight is the chapel of St. Benedict and St. Scholastica, Pambujan, Philippines under the Religion subcategory and Best Use of Color category.

Chapel of St. Benedict and St. Scholastica, Pambujan

MESSAGE, from page 5References:[2] "The 'mperador of the painful kingdom / from the middle of the chest goes out of the ice" ( Hell XXXIV, 28-29).[3] «It is curious, but so often we are afraid of consolation, of being consoled.   On the contrary, we feel more confident in sadness and desolation. Do you know why? Because in sadness we almost feel like protagonists. Instead in consolation the Holy Spirit is the protagonist "(   Angelus   , 7 December 2014 ).[4] Nn. 76-109.[5]   Cf.   Benedict XVI   , Lett. Enc.   Spe salvi, 33 .[6] Cf. Pio XII , Lett. Enc. Fidei donum , III.

A BLESSED LENTTHE GENERALATE