Article by Sr Micheline Lattouf, Province of Lebanon/Syria. For years, Lebanon has been in crisis at all levels. However, since the explosion of August 4, 2020, the socio-economic situation has been in catastrophic decline. Everyone hoped that the revolution would path the way for positive change; yet, unfortunately, the situation is only going from bad to worse: garbage is piling up, power cuts last for 22 hours a day, service stations have long queues, "hundreds" of healthcare products are unavailable, hospitals have shut entire wings for lack of medical products and can no longer receive... more
Newsletter
16-Jul-21
Article from the Province of East Asia. Since 2010, Good Shepherd Phuket Town (GSPT) has been a solitary beacon of hope for the poor in slum areas around the fishing port in Phuket, Thailand. Living in inhumane, unsanitary conditions in squalid encampments, many fall prey to unscrupulous employers in the construction industry or human trafficking. However, through love and education, the GSPT is able to break the cycle of extreme poverty and offer them hope for the future. The GSPT primarily serves the community of migrant workers from Myanmar living in Phuket by offering a learning center... more
13-Jul-21
Article by Chris Herlinger , Global Sisters Report. The Laudato Si' Action Platform invites seven groups on a seven-year journey to take action toward integral ecology. The seven groups are families; dioceses and parishes; schools and universities; hospitals and health care centers; businesses and farms; religious orders and provinces. (Courtesy of UISG) Religious communities are at the forefront of the transition to a more sustainable world but must continue to set an example and expand their efforts, sister advocates said during a June 9 online gathering. "We're stepping up to be in a... more
28-Jun-21
Article by the Sector of Angola and Mozambique (SAM). The sisters have been empowering girls, women, children, and their families in Angola since 1963 and Mozambique since 1995. In 2013, a local Mission Development Office was established to help the mission grow and become more effective. Since then, in partnership with Good Shepherd International Foundation, the sisters have reviewed and improved existing ministries and developed new professionally managed programs. They have improved their initiatives in skills training, adult literacy, formal and informal education, and maternal and child... more
16-Jun-21
Article by the Province of Argentina/Uruguay. On August 13, 1885, during a period in Argentina of notable growth in religious orders, a group of eight sisters from Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd arrived in Buenos Aires. After a short stay at the Monastery of the Visitation of Saint Mary, the sisters - five from Chile and three from Uruguay - founded their first house in the city. Like many of the religious orders that arrived towards the end of the 19 th century, they came to the country to provide welfare and education, filling a gap in the social provisions of the conservative... more
11-Jun-21
On Saturday April 10, 2021, Pope Francis appointed twenty new consultors of the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life, led by Brazilian Cardinal João Braz de Aviz. Cardinal João Braz de Aviz, prefect of the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and the Societies of Apostolic Life. A French monk is among the new consultors in the figure of Dom Dysmas de Lassus. Prior of the Grande Chartreuse monastery and Minister General of the Carthusians since 2014, he is known for his commitment in the fight against abuses within communities... more
28-May-21
Article by the Good Shepherd Community Learning Center, Community of South Africa. Twenty-nine years ago, Sister Colleen Simpson founded the Good Shepherd Community Learning Center in the impoverished Madidi community in South Africa’s North West Province. Since its inception, the center has been providing quality services of education, healthcare, and social welfare with compassionate care to women, children, and youth from the local community and surrounding villages. As a delivery site for the North West Community College, the center offers post-school students from the ages of 16 up to 85... more
21-May-21
Article by the Province of Philippines–Japan It was one festive day after another as Good Shepherd Sunday fell on April 25 – the day after the Feast of Saint Mary Euphrasia. Despite missing the presence of other sisters, family, and friends, the two days brought life and joy to the community – and even beyond – after some time of relative quiet, given the absence of live Masses and gatherings in our Good Shepherd compound in Quezon City in the Philippines. Mass for Saint Mary Euphrasia’s Feast was presided by Fr. Robert Leus, CJM. In his homily, Fr. Robert emphasized how the same love that... more
12-May-21
Article by Ana Isabel Hernández Navarro, lay partner in mission, Province of Central America. As a form of homage to St. Mary Euphrasia, on April 24 the Province of Central America's lay partners in mission submitted videos about how they understood the meaning of this saint's life in our present times. One single video was edited together from these submissions. I would like to share some of the core principles that resonate with us through the various voices and visions that unite us together. The contributions highlight some aspects of a life which was nourished by her experience of God,... more
03-May-21
Article by the Communities of West Africa (Senegal/Burkina Faso). Having arrived in Burkina Faso on December 3, 2011, at the end of this year the Communities of West Africa will celebrate ten years since we established the Bobo-Dioulasso Community in Burkina Faso. From the initial three founding sisters, the community now has nine members of four different nationalities: Burkinabe, Malian, Filipino, and Indian (two of whom are studying in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso). In addition, there are two pre-novices and three pre-postulants living with the community to experience and share... more