How is it possible?

Some stories are devastating to live through. Some stories are carried through generations. Some stories live through decades or even centuries with little noticeable change.

Cindy Blackstock, Canadian Activist

And then we hear the words of Cindy Blackstock.

Ms. Blackstock is a member of the Gitksan First Nation and has 25 years in the field of child protection and indigenous children’s rights. She has worked tirelessly at the level of United Nations and collaborated with indigenous youth, UNICEF, and the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues to produce a youth-friendly version of the UN Declaration on the Rights of the Child.

She has seen the darkest side of the adoption system. She has witnessed over and over the devastating effects of child protection services on indigenous families. She has known the resistance to change of elected officials and the non-engagement of a settler population.

And yet….and yet…this is what she said recently,

“If we can raise a generation of First Nations kids who never have to recover from their childhoods, and a generation of non-indigenous kids who never have to say they’re sorry, then I think we have made a major step in co-creating a society that our ancestors always dreamed of, and that our great, great, great-grandchildren would be proud of.”

Nothing rational explains how one arrives at an authentic belief in a radically different future. While it is relatively easy to understand the presence of cynicism or rage or disillusionment in our lives,  we have a more tenuous grasp on persistent resilience and even more than resilience, a rather luminous hope or gratitude.

It makes no sense and it will be what saves us.

-Sister Margo Ritchie, csj

What you can do:

The I am a Witness campaign invites people to learn about the case on First Nations child welfare and Jordan's Principle and to decide for themselves whether or not they think there is discrimination against First Nations children and youth. Visit the Tribunal Timeline and Documents for the latest on the case.

70 Years as a Sister of St. Joseph

Our Jubilarians - celebrating 70 years as Sisters of St. Joseph

70 years as a Sister of St. Joseph - now that’s something to celebrate! And we did just that on Sunday, September 27th.  The five Sisters pictured here entered our congregation at Hamilton and London in 1950 as beautiful young women eager to give their lives entirely to God through loving service to the dear neighbor without distinction.  Throughout the years, they have lived their vows of poverty by sharing all things in common, chastity seen in self-emptying love, and obedience in discerning God’s call in the depths of their hearts and in collaboration with the needs of the congregation.

“We praise God for the unswerving dedication of our jubilarians these 70 years.”

This generous group of jubilarians puts their vows into practice in loving service to God’s people these many years through their various ministries in healthcare, education, and leadership of the congregation to name a few. They served throughout Canada and abroad in mission territory in Guatemala and Jamaica.

In her welcome at Eucharist, Sr. Nancy referred to the 70th anniversary year as a platinum celebration. Our jubilarians have displayed in their lives the qualities of platinum: unique, strong, steadfast, flexible, and gifted.  These traits, along with their deep faith throughout the years, make them our special wisdom women. Happy Anniversary, Sisters!

The Power of One

No doubt you know, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States died on Friday, September 18. May the “Notorious RBG” now rest in peace after her years of loving labours fighting for justice for all. 

What is it with Fridays?  They keep tripping me up.  Here where I am, we first went into lockdown on Friday, 13 March.  RBG died last Friday, just as our Jewish neighbours were ushering in Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. As of Friday 24 September we are once again back in lockdown.

My latest lockdown is of little significance compared to the significance of the phenomenal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg dying on Rosh Hashanah.  Immediately after her death, “A number of prominent Twitter users began to circulate the notion that, when a Jew dies on the holiday, it is testimony to the fact that he or she is a zaddik [or a zaddika] a righteous person.” (washingtonpost.com)

““All deeds are right in the sight of the doer, but the Lord weighs the heart.  To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.” (Proverbs 21:2) ”

I started these scribbles on Tuesday, and it so happened the Scripture reading from the Old Testament that day was from Proverbs, “All deeds are right in the sight of the doer, but the Lord weighs the heart.  To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.” (Proverbs 21:2 NRSV) This verse, in a nutshell, describes what the righteous RBG did all her life. From all we have learned this week about this incredible, tiny wisp of a Jewish woman, I would say she can easily be summed up in these few words: she lived and breathed justice and equality for all.  “Rabbi Lauren Holtzblatt, who leads the Adas Israel Congregation [where the late RBG worshiped], eulogized Ginsburg at a ceremony in the Capitol's Statuary Hall where the late justice became the first woman and first Jewish person to lie in state.” Among other things that the Rabbi said about her was, "Justice did not arrive like a lightning bolt, but rather, through dogged persistence, all the days of her life. Real change, she said, enduring change, happens one step at a time." (thehill.com)

I would say this phenomenal, living legend of a woman personified the human being the great Abraham Joshua Heschel describes in his words, “…God is absent, invisible, and the task of a human being is to represent the Divine, to be a reminder of the presence of God.”  Tiny, polite, with a soft-spoken voice belying a steely mind, she was a reminder of the presence of God.  Was she ruthless in her work for justice throughout her many years as a Justice?  Certainly, but never without compassion.  Ruth is a perfect example of the power of small. Small as she was, she is a huge inspiration, a hero to many, especially to women of all ages.  Women may now feel “Ruthless” but undoubtedly many are inspired to take up the torch from her. 

-Sister Magdalena Vogt, cps