Sisters of Bon Secours Heed the Call To Give Good Help To Those In Need
Following research by the Diocese of Tzaneen, which has bee nrun by the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart for many years, four Sisters of Bon Secours – Srs. Mary Leamy, Martina Mulcahy, Nora Erlinda Jiminez Cruz, and Rosa Gomez – came to live in Louis Trichardt or Makhado in early June 2008. This is the third largest town in Limpopo, South Africa’s northern province.
The Sisters’ objectives for their mission are:
- To get to know the people of the area assigned to us
- To learn about the reality of the communities visited
- To identify the sick, the orphans and the families in need
- To communicate God’s love through our charism of Compassion, Healing and Liberation
After meetings with the parish priest, some of the Sisters joined the parish-home-based carer team. Monday to Thursday, Srs. Nora and Rosa go with a carer to visit poor and sick people in the 12 outlying townships around Louis Trichardt, and on Fridays, they evaluate their visits. They bring nourishing food parcels once a month to very needy people and spend a little time praying with them. Many of them are Christians of different denominations, but they appreciate the prayers of the Sisters. They say, “The good God listens to and understands the different languages.” The Sisters also visit the drop-in center for homeless people in the town of Louis Trichardt.
The Congregation Team of the Sisters of St. John of God, founded by three Sisters of Bon Secours, visited the Generalate to “walk in the footsteps of the Bon Secours foundresses.” They toured the Motherhouse, visited St. Sulpice where the founding sisters made their vows, saw Rue Cassett where the sisters first lived, visited Montparnasse cemetery and the gravesites of Josephine Potel and Angelique Geay. Their visit culminated with a meeting of the two leadership teams to discuss some form of collaboration in the future.
