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Catherine mcauley - founder of the sisters of mercy. (n.d.).Retrieved from http://www.olmc.nsw.edu.au/school/about/catherine- mcauley-founder-of-the-sisters-of-mercy

Catherine mcauley's story | catherine mcauley school. (n.d.).Retrieved from http://www.cms.catholic.edu.au/about-our-school/hi story/catherine-mcauley-s-story

Mercy world. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.mercyworld.org/

Priests, prophets, kings | word on fire. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.wordonfire.org/resources/article/pries ts-prophets-kings/477/

Sisters of mercy | beginning with catherine mcauley. (n.d.).Retrieved from http://www.mercy.org.au/history/

Images:

Websitemasters. (n.d.). Brief-history-of-the-college-founders | about us. Retrieved from https://www.aranmore.wa.edu.au/about-us/brief-hist ory-of-the-college

Mercy world - welcome to catherine's house. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.mercyworld.org/the_centre/index.cfm?loa dref=131

Sisters of mercy west midwest community. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.sistersofmercy.org/west-midwest/

Mercy, R. S. O. (n.d.). A history of venerable catherine mcauley. Retrieved from http://www.rsmofalma.org/history/history.html

Mercy hospice auckland. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.mercyhospice.org.nz/

Carlos. (2016). Rerum novarum’s impact 125 years on | english. Retrieved from http://www.cssr.news/2016/05/rerum-novarums-impact -125-years-on/

Mercy world - the suscipe of catherine mcauley. (n.d.).Retrieved from http://www.mercyworld.org/spirituality/index.cfm?l oadref=55

Mercy world - introducing catherine mcauley. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.mercyworld.org/foundress/story.cfm?load ref=49

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The morning consecration prayer is a prayer that Catherine McAuley said to begin her day. It is asking god for his guidance throughout the day so she can be the best person she can, sharing Gods merciful love to all.

It was Catherine McAuley's custom to pray two Thirty Days' Prayers in times of need, for benefactors and co-workers and at the establishment of a new foundation. The words of this prayer (on the left) are an adaption of the words that Catherine McAuley recited. It is asking for gods guidance and presence in rough periods of life in order to continue spreading gods merciful love.

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My God, I am yours for time and eternity.
Teach me to cast myself entirely
into the arms of your loving Providence
with a lively, unlimited confidence in your compassionate, tender pity.
Grant, O most merciful Redeemer,
That whatever you ordain or permit may be acceptable to me.
Take from my heart all painful anxiety;
let nothing sadden me but sin,
nothing delight me but the hope of coming to the possession of You
my God and my all, in your everlasting kingdom.

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Merciful Jesus, you inspired in Catherine McAuley a lively conviction of your enduring love. In times of need she and her companions faithfully entreated your help, and they were never disappointed. In this same confident spirit, we come to you now. Because you walked among us, you know our human experience. You have shared our joys and sorrows. You have healed and comforted us, sustained and renewed us. Be with us now in this time of need. Let us experience your loving presence as you grant us this favor we ask of you: We also ask your blessing on our living and deceased family members, our sisters in community, our associates, companions and benefactors. Show them your loving kindness. Encouraged by your care for us, we will with lively fidelity devote ourselves to the works of mercy. Through our good works, may your people experience your unceasing care for them. We ask all this through the intercession of Mary, your mother and the mother of Mercy. Amen.

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O compassionate Jesus, look on me today with tenderness and give me the grace to walk on the path of mercy marked out for those who follow you. May all I do today reflect your merciful love.

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Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31)

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Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31)

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19 Jesus said, “There was a certain rich man who was splendidly clothed in purple and fine linen and who lived each day in luxury. 20 At his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus who was covered with sores. 21 As Lazarus lay there longing for scraps from the rich man’s table, the dogs would come and lick his open sores.

22 “Finally, the poor man died and was carried by the angels to sit beside Abraham at the heavenly banquet.[a] The rich man also died and was buried, 23 and he went to the place of the dead.[b] There, in torment, he saw Abraham in the far distance with Lazarus at his side.

24 “The rich man shouted, ‘Father Abraham, have some pity! Send Lazarus over here to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue. I am in anguish in these flames.’

25 “But Abraham said to him, ‘Son, remember that during your lifetime you had everything you wanted, and Lazarus had nothing. So now he is here being comforted, and you are in anguish. 26 And besides, there is a great chasm separating us. No one can cross over to you from here, and no one can cross over to us from there.’

27 “Then the rich man said, ‘Please, Father Abraham, at least send him to my father’s home. 28 For I have five brothers, and I want him to warn them so they don’t end up in this place of torment.’

29 “But Abraham said, ‘Moses and the prophets have warned them. Your brothers can read what they wrote.’

30 “The rich man replied, ‘No, Father Abraham! But if someone is sent to them from the dead, then they will repent of their sins and turn to God.’

31 “But Abraham said, ‘If they won’t listen to Moses and the prophets, they won’t be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’”

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Protection for the poor - SECTION 4 , Par 37

Rights must be religiously respected wherever they exist, and it is the duty of the public authority to prevent and to punish injury, and to protect everyone in the possession of his own.

Still, when there is question of defending the rights of individuals, the poor and badly off have a claim to especial consideration.

The richer class have many ways of shielding themselves, and stand less in need of help from the State; whereas the mass of the poor have no resources of their own to fall back upon, and must chiefly depend upon the assistance of the State.

And it is for this reason that wage-earners, since they mostly belong in the mass of the needy, should be specially cared for and protected by the government.

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As a follower of Christ, Catherine McAuley reminded the Sisters of Mercy that “our whole life should be a continual act of praise and prayer”. Catherine McAuley attended mass every morning to show her work and devotion to God. She said specific prayers every day to nourish her spiritual mind.

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Today, Sisters of Mercy, through Mercy International Association, use their resources to respond to issues of global poverty demonstrated in the massive displacement of persons worldwide. The purpose of this Association is to inspire Sisters of Mercy and their Associatesto incarnate the spirit of the venerable Catherine McAuley in ways which are creative and appropriate to the needs of our time. Members of the Association share the passion of their foundress to bring mercy to people who are poor, sick and uneducated.

Just like Catherine McAuley, The Mercy International Foundation use their social status to the advantage of the poor in the Christian community. Today the Sisters of Mercy are in over 40 countries, working in a multitude of ministries with an ever growing group of Associates, volunteers and partners in ministry all continuing in the spirit of Catherine McAuley.
In addition to the Sisters themselves, a vast number of organisations across the globe continue the work of Mercy.

Mercy Hospice Auckland was established by the Sisters of Mercy. Led by Sister Cecilia Maher, the Sisters of Mercy first came to New Zealand at the invitation of local Maori women.
Mercy Hospice Auckland is committed to practising specific core values individually and as an organisation. These values clearly reflect the priestly, prophetic and kingly works of Jesus.

Compassion
Compassion compels us to support one another – patients, families, whanau, friends, staff, volunteers and colleagues. We are in this together.

Respect
Respect commits us to uphold the autonomy of each person and their community. We value one another’s cultures and beliefs. We honour the principles of the Treaty of Waitangi.

Quality
Quality demands excellence in care and compels us to share our professional knowledge in partnership with our related healthcare providers and other Mercy facilities. We are committed to continuous improvement and we strive to exceed expectations.

Advocacy
Advocacy challenges us to ensure that there is equity of access to services for all in our community. It insists that patients have a voice to speak for them when necessary.

Stewardship
Stewardship calls us to honour the Mercy heritage and ethos entrusted to all who are involved in the governance, management and operational life of the hospice. Stewardship also demands responsible use of all our resources, - financial, human and environmental.

As seen above, the mission and values of Mercy Hospice Auckland draw very strongly from the mission of Mercy originally expressed by Catherine McAuley. Their founding identity is Catholic and in the tradition of Mercy they are welcoming to those from every culture and race. The Mercy Hospice are always at service of the poor and marginalised. Through these actions, they demonstrate the priestly, prophetic and kingly roles, just like Jesus.

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6. Priestly, Prophetic & kingly work of Jesus

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6. Priestly, Prophetic & kingly work of Jesus

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Through her work throughout her life, Catherine McAuley followed the footsteps of Jesus’ Priestly, Prophetic and Kingly missions. A classic characterisation of Jesus is that he is priest, prophet, and king. As priest, he sanctifies, that is to say, he reestablishes the lost link between divinity and humanity; as prophet, he speaks and embodies the divine truth; and as king, he leads us on the right path, giving guidance to the human project. Some say that, as priest, he is the life; as prophet, he is the truth; and as king he is the way.

Priestly:

Catherine demonstrated a priestly role of Jesus by sacrificing her time to teach and guide the poor, as well as sharing her spirituality and faith and educating the poor and marginalised. By 1830 Catherine and her co-workers realised that the stability of the works of mercy they performed, including visiting the sick poor in their homes and in hospitals, and their continued appeal to co-workers, called for revision of their lay community. So, on September 8, Catherine they began the formal preparation for founding the Sisters of Mercy. She made sacrifices including using her inheritance to bring people together with the construction of the house of mercy.

Prophetic:
Demonstrating the prophetic roles of Jesus, Catherine McAuley spoke out about injustice for the poor and marginalised, in particular, disadvantaged women and girls. Her faith in the God of Mercy, her commitment to the Good News of Jesus Christ, led her to dedicate herself to serving the poor, sick and uneducated. Throughout her life she was deeply aware of the human suffering caused by social, economic and religious injustice, and knew she could do something about it.

Kingly:
Catherine was an excellent example of the demonstration of the kingly roles of Jesus. The way Catherine used her status in society to the advantage of the poor was remarkable. Catherine dressed up as a lady of fashion to present herself at hospitals and gained permission of protestant officialdom to visit and comfort the dying. She did the same in gaining access to schools. She used her connections with society families to place young women trained at Baggot St. and indeed to attract donations of money and helpers for her work from among them. She used her easy entrance to the company of Church to progress her work among her loyal supporters in the service of her mission and spreading the word of God.

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Rerum Novarum, is an encyclical issued by Pope Leo XIII on 15 May 1891. It was an open letter to all the bishops that addressed the condition of the working classes. It was written in an era of immense social change in Europe about the rights and duties of Capital and Labour.

Parts of this encyclical, apply to the works of Catherine McAuley, and may have even been an inspiration to her actions as a reformer. It has 7 principles, on of which reflects the work of Catherine McAuley. Section 4 Par 37 of the encyclical is titled ‘Protection for the Poor’. The words of this section, clearly reflect Catherine’s works. ‘Protection for the poor’ gives the message that human rights for all must be respected and the poor and disadvantaged have the right to be protected.

Catherine McAuley demonstrated these actions in her work for the poor. She offered a helping hand to people in poverty or people with no education. By building the House of Mercy, Catherine improved the lives of many uneducated or homeless Dublin citizens.

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The legacy and charity left by Catherine McAuley was kept alive through her writings, in particular, her self written suscipe prayer. This suscipe expresses her surrender to the loving Mercy of God. This prayer powerfully expresses the faith and the confidence in God’s providence that characterised her life and her work. She weaves into her prayer her own struggles, the miseries of others, acceptance of the divine plan in all things and a deep desire to be transformed each day into the person God wanted her to be. The suscipe is perhaps the best known prayer of Catherine McAuley. This prayer is applicable to our lives, no matter whether we are young or old, comfortable or in trouble, at peace, in distress, in sadness, in joy. The suscipe of Catherine McAuley offers to anyone who prays it a challenge to trust God completely, and to know that what happens every day is in God’s plan.

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2. Catherine's inspiration from the Bible

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2. Catherine's inspiration from the Bible

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The Bible is always a place for people to go for guidance in their life and that is exactly what Catherine McAuley did as a Christian reformer. The Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31) is a parable story from the New Testament, told by Jesus. He spoke a parable to warn us not to love money more than people.

Biblical Criticism –

World behind the text:
The parable of The Rich Man and Lazarus appears only in the Gospel of Luke.  It tells of the relationship, during life and after death, between an unnamed rich man and a poor beggar named Lazarus. It was written by St Luke as a new testament text. Some Christians view the story of Lazarus and the Rich Man, not as a parable but as an actual event which was related by Jesus to his followers. This was generally the view of the medieval church. This parable is unique in that it is the only parable through the gospels in which a character is given a personal name (Lazarus). By contrast, in all of the other parables Jesus refers to a central character by a description, such as "a certain man", "a sower", and so forth. Giving this poor man a name shows that he has some worth in the story.

World of the text:
It is strenuously denied by most evangelists that this story, as told by Christ, could be a parable. They hold that this is not a parable because it starts out in narrative form. It is argued, because it reads, " there was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day," that Christ is speaking here of an actual incident that took place.
In the parable there is a contrast portrayed between a rich man and a poor man named Lazarus. This beggar was what we today would call a street person. He is portrayed as having no one that could or would help him - he was entirely on his own and had nothing. Note that Lazarus was in so desperate a need that he desired to eat (but did not get) the food scraps that fell on the floor (Luke 16:21). Because of the depth of his plight, he was willing to eat food trash since the wealthy person of the parable would not help him at all. In stark contrast we have a rich man whose house Lazarus is placed in front of. He, however, is so callused regarding the human condition that he won't even let the beggar eat his trash. In time both the beggar and the wealthy man die. Lazarus is "helped by God" to Abraham while the well-off man is still buried and lies in his grave.
Jesus got the immediate attention of his followers by using Abraham as a character in his lesson. Christ is showing that one needs to live his life correctly today, not wait until the next life to make amends. These verses show that it was impossible for Lazarus to do what the rich man wanted because of the circumstances. The gulf shows the striking difference between a righteous spirit being and a pathetic unrighteous human being.

World in front of the text:

Catherine McAuley, just like Jesus, had a vision for helping the poor. Catherine McAuley’s work with the poor and destitute led to her desire a life of total consecration to Our Lord. Just like Abraham in the parable, Catherine was always at service of the less fortunate and dedicated her life to making their lives better. This parable could have quite possibly been an inspiration of Catherine McAuley’s and had an influence of her actions as a reformer. I believe this parable clearly reflects the work of Catherine McAuley as she dedicated most of her life to helping the poor and disadvantaged. This concept is explained in the parable: “But Abraham said to him, ‘Son, remember that during your lifetime you had everything you wanted, and Lazarus had nothing. So now he is here being comforted, and you are in anguish.(Luke 16:25)”

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Catherine McAauley was born Dublin Ireland, 1778, into a wealthy Catholic family. After both her parents passed away she learnt the purifying lessons of personal poverty and daily dependence on the mercy of others, especially the mercy of God.
Catherine then moved in with the Callaghan’s, an elderly couple, to work as their household manager. For 20 years she gave catechetical instruction to the household servants and poor village children. She attended the sick and dying in their homes and walked the streets helping those in need. When both of the Callaghan's passed away, Catherine inherited much of their fortune.

Catherine recognised the many needs of people who were economically poor in early nineteenth century Ireland and determined that she and women like her could make a difference. She realised the much social, economic and political oppression under which they struggled and she had bitter experiences attempting to find shelter for abused servant women and homeless girls who were turned down by bureaucratic institutions who showed little urgency for their situations. These experiences left sorrow and determination in her heart. In 1824, her inheritance now settled, Catherine implemented a longstanding desire: she built a large house on Baggot Street, Dublin, as a school for poor girls and a shelter for homeless servant girls and women. It was known as the House of Mercy. Catherine McAuley, along with two companions, Anna Maria Doyle and Elizabeth Harley, professed their vows and became the first Sisters of Mercy.