Sisters of Mercy, Cobh 1850 - 2000

Mass of Thanksgiving - St. Colman's Cathedral,

Friday 26^th May 2000

"Let me sing the praises of the Lord's goodness

and of his marvellous deeds" (Is. 63:7).

My dear Sisters of Mercy, my dear brother priests, my dear sisters and brothers in Christ, when we come to sing the praises of the Lord's goodness to us and use, as we have this evening, the hymn of praise, the "Magnificat", we are made conscious of a fundamental truth. While the Virgin Mary proclaimed the greatness of the Lord from the beauty of her life for all that He had given Her, we, using Her words, do so from the brokenness of our lives for all that He has given and forgiven us. Mary gave thanks that, through Her, His mercy would reach from age to age and for this she, the Mother of Mercy, would be blessed for all generations to come. We, through Mary, give thanks for the gift of mercy which the Lord has given us and for generations to come we will "sing the praises of the Lord's goodness and of his marvellous deeds"(Is. 63.7).

This evening we gather to give thanks for what the Lord has achieved here in this Parish of Cobh, and radiating from here to the Universal Church, through the faithful witness of generations of religious Sisters, drawn by the charism of Mercy and under the inspiration of Mother Catherine McAuley, who at the invitation of the then Bishop of Cloyne, Timothy Murphy, responded to the need of an impoverished people some one hundred and fifty years ago. The famine and its devastating consequences were still very much a reality of every day life in Cobh when the Bishop turned to the newly founded Community of the Sisters of Mercy in Rutland St., Cork, now known as St. Maries of the Isle, seeking help. That help came in the decision to make a foundation in Cobh and four sisters were sent on the 23^rd of May, 1850 led by a native of Carrignafoy, Sr. Josephine McCarthy. Three days after their arrival Sr. Josephine was formally appointed Superior and so today we celebrate the 150 years since the founding of the Sisters of Mercy Community in Cobh. "Let us sing the praises of the Lord's goodness and of His marvellous deeds" (Is. 63.7).

In keeping with the initial charism of the foundress of the Mercy Congregation and her oft repeated admonition: "The Sisters shall be convinced that no work of charity can be more productive of good to society, or more conducive to the happiness of others, than the careful instruction of women; because, whatever be the station they are destined to fill, their example and their advice will always have great influence", the new Mercy Community of Cobh set about immediately caring for the needs of young girls by establishing a Primary School and providing accommodation and care for homeless children. The People of Cobh helped greatly in this endeavour by engaging in fundraising projects to support the work of the Sisters. The Sisters were never daunted by the difficulties of the time or by the enormity of the task before them. They were a dedicated group of young women consecrated in the world and tireless in their service of charity under the Mantle of Our Lady of Mercy. They had their priorities in order for Mother McAuley had instilled into them that they must have an unbounded confidence in God. "Our centre", she used often say, "is God from whom all our activities should spring".

It was because they were ever conscious of being the young branches of Christ, the Vine, that the Sisters of Mercy in Cobh bore abundant fruit which is still with us 150 years later. Their initial work in the Primary School flourished enabling many poor and uneducated girls in the Cobh of their time to come to experience the fullness of life through sound education and trust and confidence in an all merciful and loving God. Generations of young people were nourished and cared for in mind and body by a community of dedicated Sisters, which in ten years grew to 13 Sisters, three of whom were from the Parish of Cobh. The original convent was situated in what was known as Belvedere Terrace and, because each Community had its own Noviciate, the Community in Cobh began to expand rapidly in answer to God's call and to the needs of the local community. The Noviciate became established in what is known as Bella Vista and over the 150 years of its presence in Cobh the Community grew to a maximum of 56 Sisters. This growth gave birth to a new Community in Rushbrooke which was established in 1986. Before that event, with the diffusion of the Sisters of Mercy throughout the Diocese of Cloyne, a Generalate was established in the"Mount” which also eventually served as the Noviciate transferred from Bella Vista. The Lord truly blessed the work of the Sisters in Cobh and from the initial Primary School there developed a Pension School, that is a paying school, for both Primary and Secondary levels for girls. With the establishing of the New Primary School in 1916 and the development of the Secondary level of the Pension School it became clear to the Sisters that the future of education in Cobh lay in providing for all young people that were in need of a good start in life through sound Christian education. It was then that the decision was taken to join with the Presentation Brothers, who themselves had come to care for and educate the young boys of Cobh, in an amalgamated co-educational school in 1976 which gave birth to a new school, Colaiste Muire, built and opened in 1981.

With the opening of the new Secondary School the building previously used for that purpose did not fall idle. The Sisters made it available and provided for the establishment of a Prayer and Pastoral Centre which today is a hub of activity involving Religious Adult Education programmes, home management programmes and courses in cultural skills, leadership programmes, pre-marriage preparation and a FAS programme helping to provide employment opportunities. All of this activity is going on here in Cobh under the guidance and auspices of the Sisters of Mercy and the whole Community of Cobh is benefiting enormously. Indeed we all wish, on this occasion, to express our appreciation of and gratitude for the variety of pastoral activities that the Sisters promote for the good of the people of Cobh. I am delighted to see here present many of the students, both past and present, of the Primary and Secondary Schools as well as those who are benefiting from the extra-curricular and pastoral activities organised by the Sisters. It is a testimony of their gratitude for the witness and dedication of these consecrated women who spend their lives in prayer and good works in building up the Body of Christ, which is the Church in Cobh.

The Sisters of Mercy have, from the very outset, been very much part of and involved in the life of the Parish. They are synonymous with Cobh just as much as this Cathedral is. In fact they are here longer than the Cathedral itself. They have engaged particularly in pastoral visitation to those in need in the Parish and, when unemployment was rampant in the Community, they established a lace-making school and a weaving school to help the mothers of families. This again was in keeping with the charism of Mother McAuley. She herself said that she "never intended to found a religious congregation; all I wanted was to serve the poor", she said. Indeed it was only with the reassurance that she and her companions would be free to work outside the convent amongst the poor, that she agreed to begin training as a Sister and eventually founded the Sisters of Mercy Congregation. To this day her Sisters continue to work outside the Convent, in the heart of the local community and it is for this we give thanks to God this evening. May He reward them all generously.

Not only did the Sisters of Mercy in Cobh work outside of their Convent but they moved further afield over the years to open new houses in Rushbrooke, Macroom and in Rayleigh in the Diocese of Brentwood in England. Indeed I am very pleased to see here this evening Sr. Josephine Burke who it was that went to Rayleigh to open that new Mercy Convent. Furthermore, through the decision of the Generalate of the Mercy Sisters at the "Mount" a group of Sisters from the Diocese of Cloyne went to work in the Diocese of Kitui in Kenya in 1962 and they continue this good missionary work there in Cipereria. I'm so pleased to see here Sr. Marcella who gave herself wholeheartedly to that mission and continues to animate the people of Cobh through a genuine mission awareness programme. She is also a member of our Mission Support Team for our Diocesan Mission in South Africa. "Let me sing the praises of the Lord's goodness, and of his marvellous deeds in return for all that he has done for us" (Is. 63.7), particularly during these past 150 years, through the presence and witness of the Sisters of Mercy in this Community of Cobh and may he continue to bless them as they endeavour, through fidelity to their religious consecration, to serve the needs of our times and to the veritable ICONS of Christ in our midst.

I salute all the Sisters who down through the years have so generously served the people of Cobh and I do so through Sr. Michael O'Connor, the present Community Leader. I salute all the Sisters of Mercy of Cobh this evening and thank the Provincial Leader of the Southern Province, Sr. Collette Cullinan for her presence this evening.

We remember, in this Mass, all the Sisters who have passed to their eternal reward. May the Lord grant them eternal rest in the Kingdom of the Father, the Kingdom which they laboured so much to establish here in Cobh.

I am pleased that we have here present this evening the members of the Cobh Urban District Council, led by the Chairman, thus representing the whole people of Cobh in this moment of thanksgiving and celebration. Let us then as the whole Community of Cobh, the Priests, Religious and lay-faithful, together with the priests who have served in this Parish over the years and who are here with us, let us offer to the Lord our hymn of thanksgiving, uniting it with that of the Mother of Mercy. May we all recognise, as she did, that, were it not for His mercy and love for His people, all that has been achieved could not have become a reality. May He touch the hearts of young women in this Community so that they may respond to His call to dedicate their lives in the service of their sisters and brothers, as have done generations of Sisters of Mercy, and so enable future generations to sing His praises, "for the Almighty has done great things … holy is His name" (Lk. 1.49).