Mags Gargan
The Sisters of Bon Secours are an international religious congregation of Catholic women based in seven countries who bring to the world “Good help to those in need”. The congregation was founded by a group of 12 women, led by Josephine Potel, who came together in Paris in 1824 to nurse the sick and the dying in their own homes, demonstrating the healing presence of Christ through their compassionate care. Although the congregation’s work has broadened since the early days, the core intention stays the same, to bring the healing hand of Christ to all those in need.
Today sisters minister in healthcare, social services, pastoral and community based ministries.
In Ireland Sisters of Bon Secours are based in Cork, Dublin, Galway, Tralee and Knock.
“The Sisters of Bon Secours have always been in a caring ministry, and that care has traditionally been seen as a physical one. But their ministry includes more than just the physical; it is the holistic approach which includes their spiritual, psychological and emotional needs,” says Anne-Marie Whelan, Evangelisation and Vocations Officer with the Sisters of Bon Secours.
Diversifying
Based in Cork, Anne-Marie has been in this new role since last November. The appointment of an Evangelisation and Vocations Officer is an example of how the congregation is diversifying and reaching out to young people in new ways.
Anne-Marie’s role is to spread the “work and mission of the Sisters of Bon Secours through faith-based programmes for young adults”. She also works closely with the congregation’s Vocation Director, Sr Bridget O’Sullivan and Sr Fedelina Berru Peña, a sister from Peru now living in Ireland. “There is definitely an upturn of interest in vocations,” Anne-Marie says. “There may be a slight hesitancy among young people to go down that route, but there is also an upturn in lay people like myself working with congregations, being that link between congregations and lay people who may be in discernment.”
Anne-Marie says she has received a very positive response from young people since beginning in her new role and recent events such as Lenten reflections and a Lenten Retreat Day in Cork were “all very well attended”. “Young people certainly have a search for faith and spirituality. They like to meet and to talk to each other in an informal way. It is our role to facilitate that and to help them come to a discernment in their lives. Many of them are not sure of their choices or how to go about discerning, so it is important to have people who are willing to help them through that process.”