Welcome to this first edition of Connections for 2026! May the year bring many blessings to all within Mercy Ministry Companions.
In MMC’s Identity Statement we are reminded that MMC “continues the Mercy Tradition, providing Community Service, Education, Health and Aged Care ministries enlivened by the spirit of Catherine McAuley.” The Statement goes on to say that “we are open to the voice of the Spirit as we reimagine the charisms of our founders.”
The acknowledgement and celebration of significant events (often those with a zero attached!) enable us to look back in gratitude, to be attentive to the present and to envision a future born of our fidelity to the mission of Jesus. In the tradition of Catherine McAuley, we give expression to different ways of being women and men of mercy. This Reflection highlights some significant events which have occurred within the past three months. There is more information about some of the events elsewhere in this newsletter.
- January 8, 2026, marked 180 years since the arrival of Ursula Frayne and her companions to Fremantle and Perth in Western Australia, the first Sisters of Mercy to come to Australia. They brought with them a particular way of being mercy, as God’s mercy had long been present in this land through the life and culture of our First Nations peoples.
- On December 3, 2025, the Sacred Heart College Community in Geelong gathered to mark 166 years of Mercy presence, and to acknowledge the departure of Joan Wilson rsm, the last Mercy sister attached to the College.
- The Opening Mass for the new school year at Catherine McAuley College, Bendigo, on February 12, began a year of celebrations marking 150 years since Aloysius Martyn and her companions arrived in Bendigo in January 1876.
- During 2026, St Joseph’s College in Mildura will celebrate 120 years since its commencement by the Mercy sisters in 1906.
These examples from an education context show many similarities to the beginnings of our health and community services ministries. What are we celebrating? The founding sisters had a vision for providing the care and services needed by the local people. They worked alongside others, within and beyond the local Catholic communities who had invited them, to bring their vision to life. If they were reading Connections today, I suspect they would be affirmed and inspired by the ways their founding efforts and influence, their ways of living the Mercy charism, have enabled new mercy leaders to emerge and effect changes so that the needs of people in our day are met. They would be thrilled to see what continues to emerge from such humble beginnings.
The Works of Mercy have a broad scope and God’s Spirit permeates to the depths and the breadth of creation. If we are to reimagine the charism of our founders, we are called to listen intently, especially to those whose voices struggle to be heard; to notice what is happening around us locally and globally; to involve others in discernment and decision-making about future directions; to respond to all with compassion and love; to tread lightly on our fragile land.
Working together, dreaming of what might be possible when we collaborate as women and men of mercy, creates a new energy – the Spirit is among us. In the words of Catherine McAuley, my hope for you, for us as Mercy Ministry Companions in 2026, is that we ‘be shining lamps giving light to all around us.’ [Retreat Instructions, p. 155]
Annette Schneider rsm
(Photo of Ursula Freyne on the grounds of Mercedes College, Perth. Courtesy of Carmel Ross.)