22 July 2023: The Feast Day of Mary Aikenhead
Sr Libbey Byrne
On this day… 22nd July 1858.
In the week leading up to her death at Harold’s Cross, two of Mary Aikenhead’s last sentences have taken on great significance in the one hundred and sixty five years since her passing.
A few days before her death, Mary reflected:
I shall die happy, for the Congregation will flourish when I am gone.
And on the eve of her death, as the penitent women were getting ready to celebrate the Feast of Mary Magdalene at Donnybrook:
If I die tomorrow, do not tell the poor penitents until the day after, as it would spoil their pleasure.
These are her last recorded words, words of thoughtfulness and kindness towards others, reflecting the spirit of the foundress, like a “yeast” baked into “bread” which sustains us as Sisters of Charity in our lives of service of the poor.
I’ve always thought that Mary knew the importance of celebration, especially in the lives of those who had so little. This “yeast” of her life and work, adds to the “bread” of the lives of those whom she touched through her prayer, ministry, collaboration with and encouragement of others.
Over the years a sense of celebration continues to be at the heart of the life of the congregation – the great feasts of the liturgical calendar, jubilees, sisters’ feast days, the milestones in the lives of those whom we serve, and so much more.
In June this year I was privileged to attend the Mary Aikenhead Ministries Pilgrimage to Ireland and to celebrate with pilgrims and sisters in Ireland as we blessed the newly-refurbished graves in the cemetery at Donnybrook. We prayed, we blessed and, of course, we shared morning tea together.
Mother Mary Aikenhead’s grave at Donnybrook in Ireland, surrounded by the recently rededicated graves of Sisters of Charity
As we travelled to the various significant sites, we were treated to the warm hospitality of the sisters and their co-workers. We prayed together, ate together and we experienced the living legacy of Mary Aikenhead and the many sisters who have gone before us.
The Heritage Centre, the Sanctuary, Focus Ireland, the Mary Aikenhead Trail in Cork, the town of Foxford, and the schools we visited are testament to the Providence of God at work in the lives of those we met. School children sang “Hello everyone… we’re glad that you have come!” and in Foxford we were told, “We will never forget the Sisters of Charity in this town”. The yeast unfolds, and each of us who is given the bread of service, kindness and inspiration allows it to grow and to be shared with all.
On this day in 2023, we will celebrate the living legacy and spirit of Mary Aikenhead in a live-stream webcast around the world. Sisters, co-workers, associates, the Friends of Mary Aikenhead, our Australian RSC Companions and others will gather on this day to celebrate through a short prayer and some refreshments appropriate to the time zone where we are gathered.