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Geelong Deanery |
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A Retreat Day with Joyce RuppOn Tuesday, 7 September, 70 people from throughout Victoria gathered at St Bernard’s hall in Belmont to spend the day with Sr Joyce Rupp, a well-known and widely acclaimed author. The theme of the day was ‘Your Sorrow is My Sorrow’.* What a wonderful day it turned out to be for all of us! We began by looking at the Seven Sorrows of Mary: the prophecy of Simeon, the Flight into Egypt, The Loss of the Child Jesus in the Temple, Mary meets Jesus carrying his Cross, Mary stands at the foot of the Cross, Mary receives the dead body of her Son, and Jesus is placed in the Tomb. By entering into these sorrows we saw how Mary questioned and grappled with what was confusing and unclear, how she needed others to be there with her in her pain, how she reacted to her life experiences in order to find meaning in them. We also saw how her faith sustained her and how deep was her love for her Son; it was this love that gave her the strength to endure her suffering. As we walked with Mary in her sorrows we discovered that we are not alone in what is most difficult for us. In Mary we found we have a mother, a sister, a mentor and a friend. We had questions posed to us such as: When have you stood beneath the Cross? Where do you find your inner courage and strength? What is most helpful for you when you are supporting another who is suffering? Sr Joyce shared with us how much she had learnt from her mother Hilda, a woman whose inner radiance has blessed her life. We sang and were taught some simple movements and each of us met some great new people with whom we shared. We even managed to attend an East Timor rally in the middle of it! A great lunch was prepared for us and I felt everyone who shared that day was sorry when it came to an end. The most important thing I learnt was that our lives need little pieces of light and darkness to enhance our personal growth. I was reminded that even though all of us can live in a world with much darkness, there is a strong light within ourselves and within others that will serve as a comfort and guide when the road becomes bleak and barren. Brenda Murphy, St Bernard’s Parish *Editor’s Note: The retreat was based on Sr Rupp’s book, Your Sorrow Is My Sorrow: Hope and Strength in Times of Suffering (Crossroad, 1999). |
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