Legacy was enshrined by the care and compassion of the pioneering order ‘walking nuns’ who became the heart of N.L. health care for decades
Image: Peter Jackson, Saltwire
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. — Sister Diane Smyth remembers the family dinner her mother cooked the night before Smyth joined the Mercy Convent in St. John’s in 1964.
“My uncle said to me, ‘It’s just like you’re dying,’” she said.
“He said, ‘No daughter of mine is going to join the convent,’ as if to say, now that they’re taking you away, you’re going to be locked up for the rest of your life. That was the image of the cloister.”
In fact, the Sisters of Mercy was never an order to shy away from engagement with the community. Quite the opposite.
“In Ireland, we were called the walking nuns,” says Sister Charlotte Fitzpatrick — who recently wrote a book about the local order called “Standing on Their Shoulders” — “because most of the congregations of women in religions at the time were enclosed, they didn’t go out among the people as much…
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Since 1842, the Sisters of Mercy had been ministering to the sick, poor and needy of St. John’s, thus when this established tradition of care was redirected toward hospital patients it was not difficult for St. Clare’s to live up to the motto “Mercy Above All.” Accordingly, St. Clare’s became home to Newfoundland’s first alcohol and detoxification centre and its first palliative care unit, and absorbed the chronic care of tuberculosis patients following closure of the city’s sanatorium; from 1922 until the obstetrics unit closed 70 years later, 83 000 babies were delivered…”
The Pope was expressing his appreciation for the attorneys’ commitment to developing a legal framework aimed at protecting the environment.
El Papa estaba expresando su aprecio por el compromiso de los abogados para desarrollar un marco jurídico destinado a proteger el medio ambiente.
At this time St. Bride’s College, Littledale, established in 1884 by the Sisters of Mercy as a boarding school for young women interested in the teaching profession, was becoming increasingly important in the educational and cultural life of Newfoundland. The need for highly qualified teachers for Littledale was a constant concern for the bishop. Consequently, he was quick to welcome Sarah to the diocese, not for the Presentation Sisters but for the Sisters of Mercy.
rights. The theme for this year is Indigenous Youth as Agents of Change for Self-Determination. 
derechos. El tema de este año es La juventud indígena como agente de cambio para la autodeterminación.
The theme for World Day Against Trafficking in Persons 2023 is “Reach every victim of trafficking, leave no one behind”. It aims to raise awareness of disturbing developments and trends identified by the latest 
This day is intended to encourage people to adopt behaviors that reduce their impact on the environment. It urges all humankind to take action to protect our natural resources and save plants and animals facing the threat of extinction.