Mission
“Community is for mission.” We strive to bring the healing spirit of God into our world. Learn more about how we serve.
Interchange never sleeps.” This was always Mary Ann McGivern’s motto as an Interchange editor. Many Loretto members heard that statement from Mary Ann, along with, “Why don’t you write it up? Readers will want to know the details.” She also often pointed out that Interchange is contributor-driven, meaning that it could not exist without contributions…
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For three weeks this past July I worked with the seven English teachers at the Belga School in Guatemala City, taught some of the English classes and helped the faculty evaluate ways to improve the English program at the school. The Holy Family Sisters, our sister community in Guatemala, had asked Loretto to help them…
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This past May when I attended the meeting of the Union of International Superiors General (UISG) in Rome, I was at the table with Claire Sykes, a Faithful Companion of Jesus (FCJ) sister from London. She asked me if there was a connection between John Nerinckx, who was significant in their community’s history, and Charles…
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As a follow up to our Assembly Proposal 7 to raise the wages of our employees, our Community Group 16 decided to take the next step. First, we celebrated the fact that Loretto leadership acted on our Assembly proposal and approved raises in the 2019 budget for $1.50 an hour across the board and a…
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The Loretto Mission Activities Team represents the Community committees, networks and some offices. They met at the Motherhouse to share their work and develop strategies to do it better. They reviewed Loretto’s five-year goals and recent Assembly resolutions on immigration and sustainability. Representatives of the Pakistan, Guatemala, Peace and Latin America/Caribbean committees, the Earth and…
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Every year we grow different vegetables and share them with our neighbors. Last year when I was at the Motherhouse, Nancy Wittwer very generously offered to help me to buy good seeds, which are now giving life and strength to many. We never use any pesticides in our garden; it is organic. We are very…
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Six young women from outside Lahore and ten teachers from our school joined the Loretto sisters for a three-day discernment retreat. The first day began with these questions: Why am I here on this planet earth? What is the meaning of my life? Where is God calling me? What gives me energy and joy? What…
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Mary Ann McGivern opened the first day of the August Loretto Link gathering relating a story from her novitiate days that taught her that solemn times can include the delight of friendship and celebration. By the last day we knew that 31 people had been shot and killed in El Paso and Dayton, Ohio. Our…
Read MorelIia Delio muses on the future of religious life: “I anticipate religious life in the 21st century will be more provisional and local than institutional and permanent. … What form will this new type of religious life take? Many forms, for love and compassion know no bounds.” Ilia suggests “our challenge is to make a radical shift in our thinking…
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As a participant in LCWR’s Collaborative Leadership Development Program (CLDP) in 2013-2014, I recently was invited to attend this year’s Leadership Collaborative Biennial Conference in Chicago as a participant on a panel. The Leadership Collaborative (LC) was created to support the vowed, associates and co-members who had completed CLDP. It was designed, in the words…
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We aspire to be inclusive. We work for justice. Today, these core Loretto values call us to develop an understanding about gender identity as an element of individual identity. For many of us, this is new. For many in our society, especially members of generations younger than ours, this is neither new nor unfamiliar. Learning…
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How do retreat centers support transformational change? I was among the diverse group of retreat center directors and social movement leaders invited to discuss that question during a three-day meeting in June. Convened by the Fetzer Institute, whose mission is to “help build the spiritual foundation of a loving world,” ours was the last of…
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