Spirituality
Catherine’s Spirituality
Catherine McAuley’s relationship with God was characterised by trust, compassion, common sense and the practical application of her faith to improving the lives of the poor. By insisting that her Sisters were to be free to walk the streets of Dublin in their work for the poor, Catherine pioneered a new form of religious life that combined both contemplation and action.
Image: Catherine McAuley – Come Sit A While, by Gael O’Leary
As Sisters of Mercy, we continue to live the charism given to us by our founder, Catherine McAuley, to receive and share God’s mercy through service of the poor, trust in the providence of our generous God and placing ourselves under the care of Mary, the Mother of Mercy.
In addition, since the middle of the twentieth century, a burgeoning renaissance of insights into God has taken place. We are living in a golden age of discovery where it has become customary for theologians to say we are witnessing nothing less than a revolution in the theology of God.
The past beliefs of a short history of creation and a three-tiered world have given way to the findings of science of 14 billion years of evolution and ongoing creation, of life intent on its own development and emerging form, made possible by our God or Divine Mystery drawing us further with trust into an unknown future.
This has implications for how we express our spirituality today. Teilhard de Chardin once said, “You are not a human being in search of a spiritual experience; you are a spiritual being immersed in a human experience”.
Therefore, everything in our everyday lives speaks of our spirituality.
Contemporary Spirituality
In the words of our Chapter statement;
We acknowledge gratefully that we are co-creators with the Divine, in an evolving ‘sacrament of communion’ which includes everything that exists.
As co-creators with the Divine, we are mindful of the ‘cry of the earth and the cry of the poor’ and wish to respond mercifully to both. We enjoy and celebrate Earth’s beauty and bounty and her many species, honouring our duty to love and care for her well-being, living simply and using her resources more sparingly.
We use our energies, gifts and resources to address those suffering poverty and disadvantage. We do this at personal, local and systemic levels, through friendship, direct assistance and advocacy.
As contemplative, active ecclesial women, we reflect on and express these beliefs in our personal, communal and liturgical lives. We continue together to share the joys and struggles of this spiritual journey, allowing ourselves to be drawn deeper into the dynamic Mystery at the heart of life and matter.
