Bridges

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JEAN RABEL, HAITI - Kay Klodin Community

The women at the Atelier in Jean Rabel, have responded to Coronavirus by making masks, which can be washed and used for many a day.

May 24th will mark the 5th anniversary of the publication of Laudato Si, Pope Francis' call to care for our common home. The Holy Father is renewing that call by inviting Catholics everywhere to participate in 'Laudato Si' Week, May 16-24.

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WELLESLEY HILLS, MASSACHUSETTS - Marillac and Elizabeth Seton Residences

This parade - a joyful witness to love - happened on at 11:30 on April 28th, as the sisters living in the surrounding area, associates, and coordinating care team formed a car parade to thank the staff and to “visit” the many sisters at the Marillac and Elizabeth Seton Residences.

Our experience during this pandemic is one of feeling cut off from our people, teachers, children, workers and parents in schools and at the parish level ... Yet, there is an experience of spiritual hunger and thirst by our people, particularly during the Holy Week and now at Eastertide.

VIRTUAL CONNECTING… beyond our borders: "How are we living this historical moment?  In fact, what we are living is kind of 'unreal.' "

In these days of crisis, we are all threatened, few more than those fleeing violence in search of refuge in the U.S.  Let us not fail to act to protect the most vulnerable among us.

Sr. Patricia Brito, Principal of St. Frances de Chantal School in the Bronx, has nothing but praise for the response of her teachers and staff to the challenge of “distance learning” which the current pandemic has imposed.  March 13^th was the first day that St. Frances was closed to students, and the faculty took advantage of the previously scheduled conference day for that Friday to have a five-hour in-service on the tools and practices that would help learning to continue. 

Thevenet Montessori School may be formally closed right now, but nothing can stifle the school community’s spirit and commitment to learning. Through the creativity of its staff, Thevenet Montessori, like its foundress, is taking on a new face in response to the corona circumstances.

A Call to Spiritual Bonding by Elise D. García, OP - LCWR President-Elect: As I write this column, the disruptive impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is rocking our nation and the world. Social distancing is the catchword. We leaders of religious institutes, along with leaders of governments, schools, parishes, businesses, civic organizations, industries, and nonprofits, are challenged with making daily, if not hourly, determinations about the breadth of its application as a proactive form of quarantine.

This month, Women’s History Month, WSG is celebrating its three Founding Spirits: Claudine Thevenet, Cornelia Connelly, (Founder of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus) and Mary McLeod Bethune (Founder of The National Council of Negro Women).