Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Bringing Christ's love to the world

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So Happy Together!

On Saturday, October 25, several Cabrini Lay Missionaries (CLMs) and Missionary Sisters came together to share an afternoon of sunshine, conversation, fun and games and prayer. Sisters Christine Marie Baltas, Eileen Currie and Roselle Santivasi opened their lovely home in Radnor to CLMs Angela Campbell, Susan Pierson, Lorraine Campanelli, Marianne McGowan and Adela Jarquin Soza where they were warmly welcomed with a delicious lunch of pizza and salad.

Sister Christine read a beautiful reflection in which she shared the love she and the other Sisters have for us. I know I speak for all the CLMs in saying that love is returned in huge measure. We are so grateful to have the opportunity to walk in solidarity with the Missionary Sisters as we try to live the Cabrinian charism in the work we do every day, bearing the love of Christ to the world.

Sisters Christine, Roselle and Eileen spoke of some of their experiences in Rome, where they met as a group of 95 for a special Assembly. While speaking of challenges navigating the airport and streets of Rome, they also talked about how wonderful it was to have Sisters who spoke 4 different languages together, not only in spirit, but in the same meeting room! Each of the CLMs had an opportunity to talk about some of the work they are doing and what it means to be part of the Cabrini family.

We had so much fun together, especially outside on the patio, playing silly games Lorraine brought with her from New York. Sister Christine, like the good sport she is, agreed to wear the “Cabrini pants” for a funny game of ball toss. Everyone tried ring toss too.

Later, we were joined by Karol Brewer, of the Cabrini Formation Office, who was just in time for our prayer service at 3. Those CLMs who were unable to join us in Pennsylvania, came to a ZOOM meeting where we shared thoughts about the power of community along with prayers of gratitude for our time together. Despite some technical issues (as always) we were able to use two phones to enable those online and those seated in the Sisters’ living room to hear and see each other.

After a dessert of coffee, cookies and chocolate, the CLMs departed with wonderful memories of the day. Thank you so much to Sisters Christine, Eileen and Roselle for making it possible for all of us to be together. We hope to be back sometime in the future.

Jubilee for Consecrated Life

The Holy See has designated a number of Jubilee Days throughout 2025 to recognize and celebrate different groups of people and various ministries in the Church. The Jubilee of Consecrated Life will be held from Wednesday, October 8, to Thursday, October 9, 2025.

Consecrated life is the permanent state of life in which a person deepens their baptismal consecration through profession of the three evangelical counsels: poverty, chastity, and obedience (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 915-930).

Consecrated men and women, “like the Apostles… have left everything behind in order to be with Christ and to put themselves, as he did, at the service of God and their brothers and sisters” (Pope John Paul II, Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation, Vita Consecrata, no. 1).

Through a commitment to a form of life patterned on Christ, “the consecrated life thus becomes one of the tangible seals which the Trinity impresses upon history, so that people can sense with longing the attraction of divine beauty” (Ibid., no. 20). Consecrated persons, in a “spirit of the beatitudes,” visibly witness to the Church and the world the invisible reality of heaven (Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen Gentium, no. 3).

In lives engaged in active ministry or in hidden prayer, consecrated men and women perpetually proclaim the Gospel by virtue of their consecration.

Next week, Missionary Sisters from across the worldwide Cabrinian Institute will travel to Rome for the Jubilee. There will be 25 Sisters from the Guadalupe Province alone in attendance. ~ USCCB website

To learn more and to access resources about the Jubilee of Consecrated Life please click here

Renewal of Vows on Canonization Anniversary

On Monday, July 7, 2025, Cabrini of Westchester celebrated the 79th Anniversary of the canonization of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini. During a special Mass in the Cabrini Chapel, some of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus who reside in the nursing home renewed their vows in front of all who gathered. Live music was provided and a blessing was bestowed on all by Fr. Ron Galt, Vice President of Pastoral Care and Mission. After the Mass, a festive luncheon, prepared by Cabrini’s Food Service Department, was held in the Board Room for the Sisters.

A wonderful day was had by all! Please keep the Missionary Sisters in your prayers this day always as they serve the people of God.

Happy 175th Birthday, Mother Cabrini!!

Francesca Cabrini was born on July 15th 1850 in Sant’Angelo Lodigiano, a small town of Lombardy not far from Lodi. The tenth of eleven children, Francesca was baptized on the same day.

She took her place with two sisters, Maddalena, age 17 and Rosa, age 15 and three brothers, Francesco, who was 9, Giuseppe Santo, a 7-year-old, and Giovanni Battista, 2. The parish records of Sant’Angelo list eleven children, seven of whom met early deaths.

Her mother, Stella Oldini, was a God-fearing woman of unshakable faith, as was also her father Agostino Cabrini. Both parents know how to pass on those timeless values which are the inheritance of every Christian.

Her family played an important role in the formation of Francesca’s personality. The loving atmosphere of the home developed in her an affectionate nature and a strong self-identity.

Francesca’s father had his livelihood in the land. Sant’Angelo, situated in the fertile “Low Country” of Lombardy, is irrigated by tributaries of the Po River. The young Francesca, who was raised closed to the land, became familiar with the region’s abundant fruits and flowers and she learned early to value nature. Throughout her life she would be acutely sensitive to cloud formations, birds, and the variegated hues and aromas of harvest.

A brief summary of the years 1850 – 1870 in which Maria Francesca Cabrini grew to maturity attests to the fact that the times were tempestuous. Rising political aspirations ushered in a decade of dissent. Even in the pastoral and relatively isolated setting of Sant’Angelo, the contending forces of liberalism and conservatism were locked in conflict.

With the polarization of Sant’Angelo’s townspeople, Francesca Cabrini was made acutely aware of the historical realities of her time. This awareness, influenced by the intense Christian piety of her immediate household, contributed to the development of a personality open to examining the broad social and religious currents of the day, while staunchly maintaining the traditional practices of faith inculcated in her from childhood.
~ excerpts from Mother Cabrini, “Italian Immigrant of the Century” by Sr. Mary Louise Sullivan, MSC pp. 1-18

Sacred Heart Feast Weekend at Mother Cabrini Shrine

Mother Cabrini Shrine in Golden, Colorado, marked the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus with a weekend of meaningful events centered on faith, tradition, and community.

On Friday, visitors gathered to celebrate the Feast Day with a special noon liturgy, which included the renewal of vows by our beloved Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It is always inspiring to witness their recommitment and service to the church and the Shrine community.

The celebration continued on Sunday as a group of traditional, Hispanic, Matachines Dancers arrived at the Shrine, walking and dancing their way up the road in thanksgiving to Mother Cabrini for her intercession.

Later that morning, Mass was celebrated in the chapel by Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila, bringing together the Shrine faithful during this Jubilee Year of Hope.

Together, the two days reflected the Shrine’s ongoing role as a place of prayer, devotion, and hospitality in Colorado.

Cabrini Australia Observes the Feast of the Sacred Heart

On June 27, Mass was celebrated in the Chapel of Cabrini Hospital Malvern to mark one of the most significant days on our local calendar, the Feast of the Sacred Heart. The Chapel was filled with representatives of departments and services Cabrini wide who witnessed the moving moment that Sr. Theresa Cervasio MSC, the only MSC Sister in Australia, renewed her religious vows in front of Fr. Tony Kerin, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Melbourne and Cabrini Board director.

In his Homily, Fr. Tony described Cabrini Health as ‘extensive and profound’. He described how Mother Cabrini’s ‘love of the Sacred Heart sustained her to overcome many obstacles.’ Group Director Identity & Mission, Margaret Stewart, expressed her hope that experiencing today’s Mass would be ‘…a source of strength for us so that we remain a living reflection of the spirit of the Sacred Heart in all we do.’

Occasions such as the Feast Day are made even more special by the involvement of so many staff in the parts of the Mass, the beauty created by the music of the Cabrini choir and the hospitality extended by our food services team.
~ submitted by Margaret Stewart, Group Director, Identity & Mission,

Sacred Heart Feast Day Celebrations

Cabrini Lay Missionaries Renewal of Commitment

The Cabrini Lay Missionaries (CLMs) renewed their commitments on the Feast Day. Julia Attaway, Angela Campbell and Kaitlyn Franzone renewed their pledge for 1 more year. CLM Director Lorraine Campanelli renewed for 3 years. We thank the CLMs for making this pledge to live their lives in harmony with the Cabrini charism

Gathering in Wayne, PA

During Mass celebrated in community in Wayne, PA, the Cabrini Lay Missionaries renewed their commitments. CLMs Dr. Angela Campbell and Dr. Susan Pierson were joined by Anne Schwelm, formerly of Cabrini University, Nancy Costello, following the Mass celebrated by Fr. Carl Janicki, former Cabrini University chaplain. during which Sr. Christine Marie Baltas, MSC and Sr. Roselle Santivasi, MSC renewed their vows.  A festive dinner followed.

 

 

Our Grand Feast

Today it’s happening in Asia, the Americas, Europe and Africa. Yes, on this Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Missionary Sister of the Sacred Heart, wherever they may be, are making new again their vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. No doubt, at some time of the day their thoughts will fly back to the very first time that they committed themselves to the love of Jesus in a very special way.

For some who celebrate 50 or 60 years in religious life as well as those sisters who recently made their first vows, each one of us comes before the Lord today with hearts filled with gratitude. We are overflowing with a great sense of being loved and cherished. We did not choose to be religious, but rather, we responded to a divine call that we could not deny, so I suppose you could say it’s all His fault.

We were gifted by the call to be religious in the community founded by St. Frances Xavier Cabrini and we try to follow in her footsteps. Cabrini responded with tremendous zeal in a way that we lovingly refer to as “disponibilita.” Though her heart was set on China, only a word from Pope Leo XIII changed her long dreamed of plans.

Today we pray that the same spirit enflames each of us so we may be willing to reach out to those who are hurting, those who are victimized and suffering and those whose lives are marked by poverty and desperate circumstances. We must strive to bring the same passionate love of Christ which urged Mother Cabrini’s missionary vision of reaching out to a world that was too small.

May this missionary fervor incite all of us, sisters and laity to respond with great courage and boldness in making real the strategic vision of our last General Chapter. Together we are all challenged to make sacrifices and to engage in hard work to transform these dreams into reality.

1260 Upper Gulph Road, Wayne, PA 19087
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