Here am I. Send me.

The theme given by Pope Francis for World Mission Sunday on 18^th October 2020 is:

“Here am I. Send me”.  (Isaiah 6:8)

Pope Francis says the Lord continues to ask “Whom shall I send?” This call to mission emerges as an “invitation to step out of ourselves for love of God and neighbour” through service and intercessory prayer”, he writes.

“We find ourselves precisely when we give ourselves to others”, Pope Francis continues.

Our mission, our call, our willingness to be sent originates in the vocation of Jesus as “the missionary of the Father”. “Our personal vocation” is rooted in “the fact that we are sons and daughters of God in the Church”.

Nano Nagle (founder of  the Presentation Congregation) was a woman of faith and action. Prayer and relationship were only the starting point.  This woman of welcoming and courageous heart stopped at nothing to love practically, and to address the systemic injustices evident amidst the insurmountable challenges of her time and place (18^th century Penal Ireland).

As a consequence she lit something powerful in the hearts, minds and actions of those who today continue to respond to her legacy of social action, prayer and support, locally and globally for those kept poor by systems and structures far beyond their making.

As Presentation people our vision, like Nano’s, reaches way beyond our local situations and has a universal consciousness and outreach.  We are all inter-connected.

The Presentation Congregation was born from the free gift of one woman [Nano Nagle] of herself to God.

“We are called to awaken to the Spirit of God present and active in all that exists, to a Spirituality of ‘being in Communion’, and to participate in the universal mission of Jesus Christ”. (C3)

Nano’s mission and ours

“My views are not for one object alone.  If I could be of service in saving souls in any part of the globe I would willingly do all in my power”.

Words written in 1770 by Nano Nagle in a letter to Eleanor Fitzsimons.  Nano Nagle is known internationally as the founder of the Presentation Congregation. Through her life she laid the ground work for what would eventually make a global contribution to the education of girls and women, while also articulating a mission to those kept poor.

Presentation Sisters continue to share in the dream of their founder:

To live Contemplatively,
Walk lightly on the Earth
Witness Prophetically.

“Called to live as consecrated women, we strive to witness to joyful, reflective, compassionate service, constantly calling ourselves to be aware of, and where possible to help those who find themselves on the edge, forgotten and neglected”.

What IF … we consciously spend ourselves for those kept poor?

What IF …we consciously love one another?

Presentation Sisters are in 24 countries around the globe.

 

To find out more – see:  Am I called to be a Presentation Sister?

Also: The evolution of a charism