Maryknoll Sisters

At Sacred Heart of Jesus School in Ilemela, Tanzania, outside the town of Mwanza, children are taught that water is so precious that the school is capturing rain drops from the heavens.

Sister Mary Frances Kobets, Kansas State’s newest Distinguished Alumna, teaches the wisdom of the land.

It isn’t just poverty that is destroying families in southeast Africa. A disease called AIDS wipe outs body and spirit, too. Sister Fran’s goal is to help heal people’s souls and also to nourish their bodies, too, and her skills in agriculture and economics did just that for a generation of young people left scarred by an epidemic of AIDS deaths.

Even while studying agricultural economics at Kansas State University, Sister Fran knew Africa was for her. She was one of the first two women to ever earn a bachelor’s degree from the program. This week, Kansas State is honoring Sister Fran with this year’s Distinguished Alumna Award.

“There were great professors and an opportunity to take subjects that were practical,” Sister Fran recalled of her Kansas years.  “I had the opportunity to work on farms in the summer periods, so that this city girl could be more relevant.”

On Friday, Sister Fran attended an awards banquet at Kansas State after sharing with students what people in Zimbabwe face. The country has been racked by high inflation and a declining economy that is making the poverty worse.

In the face of this, said Kansas State’s David Lambert, head of the agricultural economics department, “Sister Fran has combined her knowledge of agriculture with her calling to help people.”

What if your young daughter suffered an injury that could affect the rest of her life?

That’s what happened to Srey Mom Ngoun, who lives in a low-lying neighborhood of Phnom Penh, Cambodia’s capital. Earlier this year, Srey Mom was playing and broke her arm. The area is dangerous enough. Each rainy season her home is surrounded by several feet of water, which explains why all the houses here are built on stilts.

Getting medical care in Cambodia isn’t easy. In Cambodia, health care for the poor isn’t supplied by the government. So when Srey Mom broke her arm, her family turned to a traditional healer. A week passed, but Srey Mom’s arm still hurt.

A broken arm can be a serious injury. If a broken limb isn’t treated properly, its negative effects can be permanent, especially if you’re a child.

“We have so many poor people here who don’t know how to access medical care,” said Sister Mary Little.  “Life here is so uncertain because the poor especially feel the effects of a slumping economy and rising food prices.”

Like many of their neighbors, Srey Mom’s parents raise morning glories that grow in the lake nearby. They’re a favorite vegetable in Cambodia.  The whole family gets up early to pick the morning glories so Srey Mom’s mother can sell them.

“They live day to day,” Sister Mary said.  “You survive on what you earn today.”

So when disaster strikes, families here need a helping hand. Srey Mom is one of them. Sister Mary discovered that Srey Mom wasn’t getting the right treatment for her arm, and she moved into action.

Sister Mary brought Srey Mom to get x-rays and a proper cast for the broken arm.  Srey Mom was grateful for something just as important: Sister Mary’s reassuring presence throughout.  “She was so afraid,” Sister Mary said of the girl.

Srey Mom’s arm is still not healed.  “She has trouble raising her arm and sometimes needs help getting dressed,” Sister Mary said.

Meanwhile, Srey Mom is doing exercises to improve the use of her arm.  Srey Mom’s faith in people’s goodwill and kindness has already grown immeasurably.

In prayer we hold close those devastated by the loss of loved ones in the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and in Pennsylvania, in war and violence everywhere.

God of our life,

You gather us close in this time of memory. Eleven years ago, an ordinary plane ride and an everyday morning at work became altered by unimaginable violence and destruction.  Our lives changed forever.

You came into that moment, holding our tears, numbness, grief, anguish and death. Unexpectedly, You were present in all who ran up the stairs to save others, who helped us scatter to safety, who seized our hand as we stumbled toward shelter, who wiped away tears and ash and who fought to thwart an attack on the U.S. Capitol. No one was a stranger.

With your closeness today, we are able to look back. We see your blessings in the easing of our suffering and in the building of these memorials. We recognize You by our side and yearn to live fully into a future of abundant life for all. We know your unfailing challenge to live peace, not hatred and war.

Oh, God of our life, with your faithful love, help us re-dedicate ourselves and our nation to healing and peace. Give us courage to open our hearts to cherish your gifts among all peoples. Guide us, as one world family, into a lasting peace and a genuine love and understanding of one another. Be with us always as we live fully into your Reign. We pray this in the name of Christ. Amen. Amen. Amen.

Ask the average person in South Sudan why there’s so much tension there right now, and you’ll get a variety of responses: tribalism, corruption, ethnic conflict, and military abuse of power.

Recently, though, young people there got a chance to work out their fears, and the outcome was surprising. They found ways to solve everyday conflict on their own, with coaching from a Maryknoll Sister.

“Their stories were incredible,” said Sister Janice McLaughlin, who spent part of July and August in the new east African nation formed this summer. She gave peace-building workshops among college students who shared their concerns for the future.

Everyone Sister Janice met had lost members of their family in the 20-year Sudanese civil war. With wounds still fresh from the conflict, forgetting can only happen through disarmament and reconciliation, she says. A few areas of territory remain contested, and fighting still goes on. About two million people are reported to have lost their lives in the conflict.

Yet the country’s future was decided by the people themselves. In a referendum earlier this year, the Sudanese people voted for independence from the north. The result is the new Republic of South Sudan, which officially became a separate nation in July. You can send your own prayer for the new nation right from our website.

“It is critical to provide skills training and employment possibilities for former fighters so they have means of making a living and contributing to rebuilding the nation,” Sister Janice said in a published interview.

Over half of all people in the new country are younger than 18. They may have faint memories of the Maryknoll Sisters who have served in Sudan since the 1970s. This summer,  Sister Janice, a former missioner in Kenya, Mozambique and Zimbabwe, helped build a nation as part of marking her fifty years as a Maryknoll Sister in 2011.

Sister Janice entered Maryknoll fifty years ago this summer, right in the middle of the Maryknoll century. Indeed, the Maryknoll movement is 100 years old this year, and the Maryknoll Sisters begin celebrating their Centennial in only a few months.

For young people in South Sudan, the future can be just as bright–if they believe in the goodness in themselves. Sister Janice said most young people she met have never looked back and realized how much they had overcome in their lives and how strong they were.

Said Sister Janice: “These young people had known nothing but war, and they are hungry for peace.”

Two months after her son was born, Catarina Julian ran into Sister Barbara after Sunday Mass at San Andres Apostle Church.

Santos has a cleft lip, which means the two sides of his upper lip physically split at birth. Catarina talked with Sister Barbara about her son, and right then and there in rural Guatemala, Santos’ life was about to change.

Some people turn their heads at the sight of a child with a cleft lip. “Clefted” kids have trouble speaking and eating. Many are told not to come to school or play with other children because of their disfigured faces. They are lovable just the same.

Who would sustain a growing baby if not his own mom? For Santos, it’s been a long road to recovery. He’s not even 2, and he’s had five trips to the hospital to correct his cleft lip.

Santos is not alone. More children are born with cleft lips in developing countries. In places like Guatemala, indigenous women often lack proper nutrients during pregnancy.

“Through education, their diet improves somewhat,” Sister Barbara said, “but is limited because of a lack of availability and poverty.”

San Andres Apostle parish has been especially hard hit. When the church pastor baptized several children with cleft lips, all within only a few months, Sister Barbara knew that something had to be done.

The good news is that cleft lips and other birth defects can be prevented. In basic education classes for rural women here, Sister Barbara suggests the best foods to eat when a baby is on the way. She recommends foods high in folic acid: leafy green vegetables like spinach, broccoli and asparagus.

In a place like Guatemala where nearly everyone struggles to have enough food to eat, we can make a difference.

A recent New York Times article described protests by survivors of Japan’s March 11 earthquake and tsunami, including a mother with a three-year-old child clad in a shirt reading “please let me play outside again.” Survivors gathered in the streets of Tokyo in mid-June to express their anger over the government’s handling of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant meltdown. While protesting is not a typical part of the Japanese culture of conformity, people are questioning whether the government can be trusted; in the ongoing uncertainty, many worry about their food and health.

According to a Pew Research Center survey of 700 adults, 79 percent said Prime Minister Naoto Kan’s management of the crisis was poor. His public support has plunged, and he faces pressure to resign. Kan says he will do so once a renewable energy bill and a disaster assistance bill are passed. The executive branch of the government recently approved a bill to help the Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco, the company that owns the Fukushima plant), compensate disaster victims. The bill must next be passed in parliament for official approval.

Since the disaster, Tepco has announced losses of $15 billion; its shares have fallen 91 percent. The government’s bailout plan would consist of contributions from other nuclear power operators and private contributors which Tepco would eventually have to repay. According to a June 28 Reuters report, “The proposal faces weeks of challenges, however, with both ruling party and opposition lawmakers intent on scuttling the legislation or demanding amendments in return for their support. Some critics have urged the government to allow a court-led bankruptcy and rehabilitation, which would wipe out the equity of shareholders.”

The massive tsunami, which struck one hour after the earthquake, hit the power plant, flooding the generators and destroying the outdoor fuel tanks of the emergency generators. This caused all power to be lost, so normal cooling systems stopped working, temperatures rose and water evaporated. When reactor temperatures exceeded 1,000 degrees Celsius, the reaction of water and zirconium createed hydrogen, which collected near the ceiling of reactor buildings, causing explosions. More than two months later, the heat, radiation and hydrogen have yet to be contained, according to a story by Jun Tateno, a professor at Chuo University specializing in nuclear energy.

Over 600 square kilometers of radiation has leaked from the plant. On May 31, a gas tank exploded and oil was reported to have poured into the ocean. On June 13 excessive levels of highly toxic strontium have been found in the seawater and groundwater near the plant’s number one and two reactors, according to the Wall Street Journal. Strontium accumulates in bone and bone marrow, causing bone cancer and leukemia. Six more workers may now have exceeded radiation exposure limit, bringing the total to eight, the government reported on June 13. Tepco predicts that the reactors will be brought under control by October at the earliest.

According to National Public Radio, Tepco has been continuously pumping water into the plant since the disaster hit in order to keep the reactors cool; at this point, the radioactive water could fill 40 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Several companies have been hired to build a water decontamination plant. The cleaning is expected to take a few months and afterwards, depending on the results, the water may be dumped back into the ocean.

According to reports, about 100,000 evacuees still sleep in gymnasiums. There are 1,670 children living within 12-20 miles of the Fukushima power plant, the emergency preparation zone. While the government recommends that pregnant women, children and people who require medical care not remain in this area, it has not mandated their evacuation.

Please pray for the well-being and recovery of those affected by this devastating event.