The nine Sisters in our International Community at Bentleigh are now into their final weeks of their 3 month program. At the moment they are on an 8 day retreat ‘Life’s Healing Journey’ with Fr Chris Chaplin msc.  After this we have a trip to Werribee Zoo, compliments of Mick Renwick… chair of Board at the College.

On January 1st each year the Church marks the World Day of Peace, a tradition begun by Pope Paul VI who held the first such observance in January 1968. This year Pope Francis has chosen to focus his second World Peace Day message on the theme of modern slavery and trafficking, with the title “Slaves no more, but Brothers and Sisters”. 

This past week has been a time of great rejoicing as family and friends gathered with the OLSH sisters to celebrate the remarkable lives of six OLSH sisters.

On 10th January 2015, Sisters Yvonne Berecry and Margaret Jennings celebrated 60 years of Religious Profession and Sisters Rita Clancy, Yvonne Gleeson, Marilyn Knolder, Robyn Reynolds celebrated 50 years of Religious Profession.

Congratulations and Thank You

On the 6th January we celebrated the feast of the Epiphany at St Joseph’s Aged Care Facility and the Diamond Jubilee of Sr Lucy Bange. In 1953 Sr Lucy Bange made the decision to follow that star that led the wise men to Jesus and she found herself in Bowral as a Postulant with the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart. After her first profession in 1955.

When Pope Francis decreed 2015 to be the Year of Consecrated Life, he called on consecrated men and women of the Church to "wake up the world" with their testimony of faith, holiness and hope.

The Year of Consecrated Life began on 30 November and will conclude on the feast of the Presentation of the Lord on 2 February, 2016.

The Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in Australia have invited Sisters from around the world to gather for formation and community, in response to Pope Francis' call for religious to look to the past with gratitude, live the present with passion, and embrace the future with hope.

On Tuesday 16th December, Moya had a farewell by Bishop Peter Ingham of Wollongong and by clergy and confreres with whom she has closely worked over the last 10 years.   There was a Mass followed by ‘High Tea’.

During the course of the Bishop’s speech he announced to all that he had been dealing with the Vatican Nuncio regarding an award which he wished to present to Moya on behalf of the Church, and that she was to be presented with the Cross- Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice -(for Church and Pope).

The Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart are an international Congregation. The Sisters in Australia offer a three month International Community Experience programme to their young Sisters from other provinces.

This year, the programme will run from 1 November 2014 to 30 January, 2015 and Sisters will be coming from Senegal, Cameroon, Congo, Philippines, Kiribati Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Tonga.

Sr Mary Fyfe FDNSC died in Melbourne on 26th June 2013.  Sr Mary Fyfe was the Superior General of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart from 2005 to May 2013 and the Principal of OLSH College Kensington from 1984 to 1995. Thank you, Sr Mary Fyfe for your work, generosity and love for our congregation!

“I exult for joy in the Lord, my soul rejoices in my God, for he has clothed me in the garments of salvation.”
Isaiah 61:10

Her sister, Barbara, has spoken about Mary’s family life and earlier religious life and ministry.  It is my privilege to share, with you, something of the woman Sr Mary Fyfe was and a little of her contribution to our congregation.
In her last letter to the sisters in our international congregation at the time of her resignation as Superior General, Mary wrote of her deep love of the congregation and the great privilege it was for her to be able to serve the sisters in this capacity. She concluded her letter by saying, You will always be in my heart and the joy of knowing every single sister within the congregation is surely one of the richest graces of my whole life.