There is a quote attributed to Abraham Lincoln which is that “most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be”.
The current times challenge that concept. Whether it is the shocking attack on an MP, the despair over the uncivil public discourse over immigration, the potential for AI to take our jobs (and our lives!) or algorithms that push anger buttons within us, choosing happiness and remaining hopeful can be a test.
The core value that speaks to me most in these challenging times is hope. It may be small at times, but it is there. Whether it be the bystanders that assist with no thought of themselves or their safety, or the steady and faithful actions of people who continue to care, serve, forgive, create, and work for a better future.
The MMC team recently visited the Mary Glowrey Museum in Fitzroy, which celebrates the life and legacy of Venerable Mary of the Sacred Heart Glowrey, a Victorian born and educated doctor. It was a surprisingly local story, as she worked as a doctor at St Vincent’s and the Eye and Ear Hospital in Melbourne before spending more than half her life caring for the sick in Guntur, India. She oversaw the care of hundreds of thousands of patients, most of whom would not otherwise have received medical treatment. Mary Glowrey led and trained others in healthcare provision. In 1943, she founded the Catholic Health Association of India (CHAI), whose members today care for at least 21 million people annually.
That story of one person making such a difference resonated with one of the core values of MMC, hope. For Catherine McAuley, hope was not passive optimism. It was a deep confidence in God that gave her the courage to respond to the needs before her. Hope was expressed in practical Mercy: taking the next careful step, accompanying others, and trusting that small acts of compassion could open new possibilities. In our own time, Catherine invites us not simply to speak of hope, but to become people who create hope for others.
The task is not simply to wait for hope, but to notice it, nurture it and become signs of hope ourselves. In the words of Pope Francis, it is truly noble to place our hope in the hidden power of the seeds of goodness we sow, and thus to initiate processes whose fruits will be reaped by others (Encyclical Letter Fratelli Tutti Of The Holy Father Francis On Fraternity and Social Friendship 196).
That theme of being messengers of hope is reinforced by Pope Leo who asks us “to share that message of hope with one another – in outreach, in service, in looking for ways to make our world a better place – gives true life to all of us, and is a sign of hope for the whole world.” (Pope Leo XIV, 14 June 2025.)
Hope is our challenge, our core value, and our opportunity.
Anthony Loschiavo
Executive Officer
Mercy Ministry Companions