From Jubilee to Journey: Stories from 2025

It is a once-in-a-lifetime experience to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of our Congregation. This is why we invited our Sisters and Associates to reflect on last year's events.

Over the next few weeks, we are going to share with you individual stories and the reflection questions these stories invite us to consider.

Stay with us. Journey with us. Let’s journey together.

Below is a glimpse of the thoughts shared starting with the poem shared by Sr Rita Apura, our Provincial Leader.

Carrying the Flame

One gift I gather from this sacred 150th year,

A quiet flame that draws my spirit near—

Not loud, nor bright to dazzle passing sight,

But steady, warm, a faithful, guiding light.

Through jubilee days, rich in grace and song,

In pilgrim steps where hearts to God belong,

In simple joys of sisters’ hand in hand,

I learned anew to listen and to stand.

With Jesus, Mary, Joseph as my guide,

Their hidden life my shelter and my stride;

And Blessed Mary, of Jesus the Good Shepherd kind and true,

Still leads my heart to follow and renew.

From distant roads that led our souls to Rome,

To Australian paths where love has made its home,

Each moment held a treasure, softly pressed

Into the depths of memory and rest.

A hundred fifty years now gently speak

Through lives once strong, through hearts once mild and meek;

Frances Siedliska’s vision still aflame,

Calls forth in us the courage of her name.

With Blessed Stella brave and Ten who chose to give

Their lives so others in God’s peace might live;

The martyrs’ witness, steadfast, clear, and deep,

Still sows a harvest love alone can reap.

And Malgorzata Banas, faithful in her way,

A quiet light that shines through night and day,

Reminds my soul that holiness can grow

In small acts of love, we daily sow.

The gift I carry is not mine alone—

It lives in seeds that others too have sown;

A call to tend, to nurture, and to grow

The love that only faithful hearts can know.

So I will walk, though ordinary days

May seem untouched by jubilee’s bright blaze;

For in the quiet, God is still made known—

In small acts of love, His grace is sown.

And thus, the flame, once given, I extend,

Through every step, through each new turn and bend—

A living thread from all that came before,

Still weaving hope forevermore.

REFLECTION QUESTION: What "Jubilee flame" are you carrying with you to the future?