Thanksgiving Speech

9th July Mass

SLOUGH 9th July 2006

In thinking about what I should say to you today, three words came to mind: gratitude, mercy and confidence. I should like to say just a few words to you about each of them.

GRATITUDE

Thanksgiving to God first of all, who entrusted the Bernardines with a mission here at Slough 109 years ago, to found a monastery and build up one and then two schools. His love, wisdom and strength have sustained us throughout. He has not failed us, for he is faithful.

To the many sisters, too many to name individually, who have gone before us, and who with love, hard work, a discerning intelligence and a lot of help from others, built up the two school communities with all their richness; human, intellectual and spiritual.

To the present community, and to all the sisters in England, who have travelled in faith with me the hard road of searching and deciding, in a real and deep spirit of unity, that the moment has come to confide this mission to others. For us, it is a moment of truth, of suffering and yet of peace.

Gratitude also to all of you here present today, to our Bishop and the representatives of the diocese, the priests who have helped us so much over the years and the representatives of other monasteries, of religious life locally and far beyond.

The civic and educational authorities, the members of other local schools, many of whom are our friends. Past and present governors, members of the steering group, to whom we and the schools owe far more than most of us realise, oblates, parishioners, family members, past and present staff and all the supporting staff, past and present pupils and so many friends of all ages,

Your presence here today is for us a real joy, and a sign, both of the communion at the heart of a Christian community, and of the unity we share with so many of others faiths, or of none, a unity that is the fruit of our common humanity, and our search for the real values in life.

The support, love and friendship we have received over the last couple of years especially, have been tremendous, all the more so as we realise our departure will bring sadness to many. To you all we say a heartfelt ‘thank you’.

My second word: MERCY.

On the day of our monastic profession, when we make our vows, we ask for the mercy of God and of the order. As life goes on, we realise more and more our need of God’s mercy, and we learn how much we have to forgive one another, to ask for and to accept forgiveness, in things both great and small. But we also learn, in the school of the Lord’s service, that our faults, mistakes and sins are not obstacles to our relationship with God, but in Christ, are the means by which we learn to love Christ and be loved by Him. St. Benedict, whose rule we follow, tells us never to despair of the mercy of God. The two school communities, and many of us here today, have been touched by the tragedy of last week, and none of us can be indifferent to it. On my own behalf, and on behalf of all my sisters, I would like to say that there is nothing we can do or suffer, nothing that can happen to us, that we cannot bring to the mercy of Christ. His death and resurrection, his love for us, which we have celebrated together in this Eucharist, are the source of our healing, and of the unity and loving concern that we have tried to show one another over the last few days, and that will surely continue in the months to come. St. Bernard tells us that the heart of the Lord Jesus overflows with mercy, and in this heart we can take refuge, finding shelter from storms too great for us to bear, and thus renewing our trust.

And so I come to my final word – CONFIDENCE.

In leaving Slough, we Bernardine sisters are trusting that the Lord is leading us, and will teach us to respond to his will in different circumstances. As an Order, we make this act of faith and confidence together, and will continue to draw strength from our life in community, seeking always the God of life, who is the God of surprises.

We are also making an act of faith and trust in the Christian community we are leaving behind; faith in the grace of baptism in Christ, in the gift of the Holy Spirit, that those who will be in charge of the schools share and try to live out in their daily lives. We trust that the values by which we have tried to live, will continue to be lived, albeit differently. Your reserves of faith and commitment, of trust and confidence will be stretched further in the years to come, but the Lord will never be outdone in generosity, and his grace will be there in abundance. I end with the words of St. Bernard once again, and with Our Lady. As you can see in our chapel window, St. Bernard had a wonderful love for Mary, and across the centuries he says to us:

“O you who struggle in this stormy sea, do not turn your eyes from the star that is Mary … When the winds of temptation arise, and you run on the rocks of tribulation, look at the star, think of Mary, call on her by name. If you follow her, you will not go off course; if you cry to her, you will not give up hope, if you think of her, you will not go astray.” (GVM II)

And Mary will sing with us, in just a moment, her song of joy and thanksgiving, her ‘Magnificat’, and she will pray that we may know the joy that comes from serving God in fidelity and quiet perseverance.

Thank you all very much.

Sr. Josephine Mary
Reverend Mother General of the Bernardines of Esquermes