Saskatoon, Canada

I am now back in Saskatoon after having spent so many years in Jerusalem, both at the Ecce Homo convent as well as in Ein Kerem. My interests have been shaped by that experience: the Biblical Land, the peoples of the Land, living there today, Israelis and Palestinians. Now that I am back in Saskatchewan, these interests take another form, mainly multi-faith activities and some teaching.

 

 

The photo taken of me was taken here in Saskatoon where I am now living and involved in ministry on the parish and diocesan level. I returned here, to my roots, four years ago. It has been a wonderful journey that the Lord set me on since the time that I left Saskatoon, in the late sixties, inviting me, through my provincial..Sr. Kay...to go to Jerusalem for one year of study. That one year extended finally to over 25 years. I lived in Jerusalem over that period of time, serving both in the communities of the Ecce Homo as well as in Ein Kerem. What a privilege that was, to live in Holy city and in the convents dating back to the origins of Sion. I also came to know both the Palestinian and Jewish Israeli community who for years have been struggling over rights to the Land. In the Ecce Homo I met and shared life with the Palestinian community. In En Kerem, now a suburb in the Israeli section of Jerusalem, I met and shared life with the Israeli Jewish community, many of whom visit our convent and feel very welcomed there. But after 25 years, I felt that it was time to return to my prairie roots in Saskatoon. However, on my way back to Canada in 2000, I was attracted by the simple life style of our sisters in Montreal . It was also a way of returning to Canada but slowly...spending some time in a milieu that was multi-cultural and rich in history, as I had spent so many years being surrounded by different languages and living in the richness of the Biblical Land. I spent 7 years in Montreal and found it to be a graced time. I was able to be trained as a spiritual director through the Montreal Ignatian Centre, a training which serves well in parish work where one spends time with people experiencing the joys and sorrows of life. Now, back in Saskatoon for the past 4 years, I am once again feeling part of the community here and the rich life of the parish and diocesan church. However, it has taken time to feel “at home” again. The diocese has grown, expanded, and over the years, has initiated some very fine programs for the training of the laity. The city of Saskatoon has also grown, in every direction. The population, too, has not only increased but one sees in the streets and in the neighbourhoods, people of every race and color and wearing apparel. One finds here also Hindu and Buddhist temples , mosques..a rich variety of faiths and places of worship. All of that was new for me. And now I am here, really here, experiencing again the cold of the prairie winter, the immense sense of new life when spring finally arrives, enjoying the brief summer and the beauty of the fall..and the immenseness of the prairie sky... and the kindness and simplicity of the prairie people. And Lord, it was a wonderful journey...A big toda (Hebrew) , shukran (Arabic) , merci and thank you.