Fall News from the Sisters

CLICK HERE to read our Fall Newsletter and pass it on to your friends.  We are happy to share with you God's blessings in our mission.  

Our Postulant, Emily Lattouf

Emily Sharbela Lattouf  entered the Maronite Servants of Christ the Light on September 19th at the Convent Chapel of St. Maron.  At the end of the Ramsho prayer, Monsignor James Root gave a blessing to Emily and Mother Marla Marie presented her with a medal of Our Lady of Lebanon and a formal welcome into the community.  Emily enters religious life from St. Theresa Maronite Church in Brockton.
I am so happy to be starting my new life as a Maronite Servant of Christ the Light postulant. Our greatest calling in any vocation is to love, as Saint Teresa of Calcutta says “the fruit of love is service.” It is with great joy and honor that I start this incredible journey of serving God through serving you.

Growing up in the United States I have seen a need for Maronite religious sisters. I have been attracted to this congregation for quit some time (around seven years). I have enjoyed going on spiritual retreats hosted by the sisters, and volunteering in their various ministries such the summer Bible camp, visiting the elderly, attending wedding and funeral services and much more. The sisters are involved in the lives of the parishioners and they accompany them in their journey of faith. We laugh, cry and grow with you and with one another. I look forward to serving you and living a life of prayer and service along side such wonderful sisters.”

Reflection on my Trip to the Holy Land

By Sr. Therese Maria, MSCL

The week of September 8th, I along with twenty others from diverse backgrounds were given the unique opportunity to visit the Holy Land on the Philos Catholic Tour. A gift that I am grateful for and will always treasure, especially the meaningful encounters, and interactions we had with the local residents and each other.

There are so many layers to unpack from this trip as we met with Christians, Jews, Muslims, government officials, Church leaders and journalists who are working on the local ground with the Philos Project to help promote dialogue, positive engagement and peace in the Middle East. One of the things I observed first hand was the pluralistic landscape of Israel and the intricate and complex situation, and dialogue that is occurring between Christians, Muslims, Jews, Palestinians and Israelis as they “strive” to peacefully co-exist.

In addition to visiting the holy sites of Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Nazareth, and Magdala to name a few, our focus for this trip was to learn more about the Christians and their role in the Middle East. Unfortunately, due to the lack of political stability, persecution, ongoing discrimination, and poor job opportunities thousands of Christians are leaving Israel and other places in the Middle East to seek security and stability. Today, Christians are a minority of less than 2% of the population in Israel, and after hearing from Christians in their own villages about their daily struggles, I have come to see even more why we need to materially and spiritually support Christian families. Their impact and presence in the Middle East is a much needed witness, especially in the areas of education and healthcare.

Each day, I found myself switching gears as a tourist visiting the holy sites to a pastoral/service mode in visiting various places such as the Saint Rachel’s center for undocumented refugee children. Also, being present in attentively listening to the difficulties of Christians who seek to be free, to be seen, to be healed, to be accepted and to have their human dignity and rights recognized and respected. In these vulnerable and raw moments, the group bonded, as various people expressed their heart-breaking stories. I assisted to translate from Arabic to English so that the group could better understand their narrative and enter into their plight. 

During the trip, I felt that I was truly living out my spiritual motherhood as a Maronite Servant of Christ the Light, leading prayer, answering questions on the faith, and letting those sharing their stories know that they are being heard, seen and loved. Let us continue to intensify our prayers for peace in the Middle East and for our fellow brothers and sisters, and those whose voices need to be heard.

On a final note, it was such a blessing to take your prayer intentions with me as we remembered each of you and your loved ones in our Liturgies and prayer times. 

At the IDC Conference – Washington D.C.

The Maronite Servants participated in the 6^thannual In Defense of Christians (IDC) Conference in Washington, D.C. on September 10-11.  IDC was founded in 2014 in response to the tidal wave of violence towards Christians in the Middle East. One of the main goals of IDC is to advocate for policies that preserve Christianity in its ancient homeland.

The IDC Leadership Conference commenced on the evening of September 10^thwith the Solidarity Dinner featuring a number of congressmen, ambassadors, dignitaries and religious leaders, among them our own Bishop, His Excellency Gregory Mansour. We heard from Mr. Samuel Brownback, the Ambassador at Large for International Religious Freedom. Mr. Brownback encouraged all participants to keep up the fight for religious freedom, predominantly through constant prayer, as God is the source of all freedom and unity. 

Towards the close of the evening, we heard a moving and poignant testimonial by Mrs. Mona Rizk Rowan who shared her harrowing story of surviving the Damour Massacre in Lebanon 1976. 

The next day on September 11, the sisters joined Mr. Steven Howard from IDC and the Massachusetts constituents, among them were Mrs. Rowan and her family, to advocate for the Coptic Christians in Egypt and recognition of the Armenian Genocide.  We visited the offices of Congressmen William Keating, and Joseph Kennedy, as well as, the office of Senator Elizabeth Warren.  

These were two very grace-filled days for us, as we witnessed to the importance of religious freedom in the Middle East and provided a voice for the voiceless. We are grateful to the President of IDC, Mr. Toufic Baaklini and his dedicated Board of Directors for their ongoing efforts of fighting for equality, freedom and security for religious minorities in the Middle East.