It is slightly over two centuries since the whole human family rejoiced over the abolition of slave trade. It was then hoped that no human being would be subjected to such inhumane treatment and over the centuries this kind of thinking has been emphasised in the human rights discourse. However, what the world is witnessing now is “history repeating itself”. Slave trade is back but in a different form; the form of human trafficking. Just as slave trade was terribly offensive to human dignity and to God, so is human trafficking. According to the 2006 US Department of State Trafficking in Persons Reports, about 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders with many more within national borders annually. Most of these are women and children. Human trafficking therefore is a growing worldwide phenomenon which requires that every opportunity that fosters it, be fought ruthlessly so that human dignity is promoted for everyone.
A reflection on the current Constitution Making Process in Zambia
Many Zambians are anxiously waiting to see the end product of the current Constitution Making Process and are hoping against hope that this end product will truly reflect their desires which are well expressed in the Mungo’mba Draft Constitution. Hence, departure from these desires will certainly mean imposition and will perhaps render the Constitution inadequate.
Foundation Stone laid in Hackney, London
On 1st September 2009 the Sisters of Charity in the English/Scottish Province celebrated an important event in the life of the Province as they gathered to lay the Foundation Stone for their new Convent in Hackney, London. The Sisters have been in Hackney and served the people in the East-End of London since 1900.
USA Religious Education Congress 2010
The USA’s largest Religious Education Congress will be taking place from 18th-21st March 2010 at the Anaheim Convention Center, 800 West Katella Ave., Anaheim, Calif. (just across from Disneyland). The Congress is sponsored by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles Office of Religious Education and is the USA's largest annual gathering of Roman Catholics!
US House of Representatives passes a resolution honouring Catholic women religious.
On 22nd September a resolution was passed in the US House of Representatives honoring the historic contributions of Catholic women religious to the history of the United States.
Report from Prison Chaplains Conference, Tennessee
Sr. Teresa Doherty RSC, of the California/Venezuela Region attended a summer conference August 5 – 8 in Nashville, Tennessee for those working as Chaplains in Prisons, Jails and Juvenile Halls. Sr. Teresa has worked with juvenile offenders at the same facility for 34 years!
Read what Sr. Teresa wrote about the conference:
'Women and Spirit' Exhibition launched in U.S.A.
A major exhibition has been mounted on the rich history and contributions of Catholic sisters in the United States. This exhibition was developed by the Leadership Conference of Women Religious.
Mary Aikenhead Ministries established in Australia
The Religious Sisters of Charity in Australia witnessed an historic day on 1st July 2009 when Mary Aikenhead Ministries became official!
The first Public Juridic Person of Pontifical Right granted to a religious congregation in Australia, Mary Aikenhead Ministries, sets an important precedent for other religious congregations in Australia.
Vocation/Formation team meets in Dublin
On July 22nd, the group in the photo on the left sat around Mary Aikenhead’s desk and chair praying as the International Vocation/Formation Team. A sister representing every corner of the Congregation met July 19 – 24, 2009 in Dublin to search together for a new way of forming women with the heart of Mary Aikenhead and Ignatian imagination.
Australian RSC GAP students visit Ireland
From 2nd-7th July 2009, four Australian students, together with Sr. Virginia Wilkinson rsc, visited Ireland to explore and experience the history of the Religious Sisters of Charity. Clare, Megan, Ros and Becc have already spent three months in Zambia working in various ministries with the sisters there.
Medaille Trust welcomes British government’s anti-trafficking move
The British government’s ratification of the European convention against Human Trafficking has been welcomed by the Medaille Trust, a Catholic charity which aims to help women, young men and children who have been freed from sex-trafficking.
