A Letter from the SSMO Superior General
Dear Friends, Family, Sisters and Brothers,
Blessings to you. July is upon us and we thank our Lord each day for all the goodness He offers us.
We enter ordinary time in the Church calendar with many wonderful Saints to celebrate. We especially honor Saint Junipero Serra, priest and patron of the Knights of Columbus on July 1. At the end of the month, on July 26, we have the feast of Saints Joachim and Anne, parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon have our annual silent retreat from July 5 to 11 with Fr. Peter Walsh, C.S.C. Father Peter is a Holy Cross priest who resides at the University of Portland.
Our annual summer retreat allows the Sisters to hear the Word of God in a deeper meditative atmosphere. We have this period of time set aside for reflection, prayer and spiritual growth. Our Retreat Director helps us ponder our spiritual journey. In this year as Pilgrims of Hope on the Journey, we deliberately withdraw from the noise and distractions of daily life and focus on God’s direction.
This July, our Sisters will be praying for peace in our world. We pray as Saint Francis prayed:
Lord, God of Abraham, God of the Prophets, God of Love, you created us and you call us to live as brothers and sisters. Give us the strength, daily, to be instruments of peace; enable us to see everyone who crosses our path as our brother or sister. Make us sensitive to the pleas of our citizens who entreat us to turn our weapons of war into implements of peace, our trepidation into confident trust, and our quarreling into forgiveness.
Let us remember peace begins with me. Our Lady, Mary Mystical Rose pray for us.
We invite your prayer intentions which our Sisters are honored to pray for on your behalf.
Yours in Christ,
Sister Michael Francine Duncan
Sr. Michael Francine Duncan
SSMO
Superior General
The New SSMO Leadership Team:
SSMO Superior General
SSMO Vicar General
SSMO General Councilor
SSMO General Councilor
These four Sisters were installed at a special Mass on Sunday, June 29 at 9 a.m. at the Sisters’ Our Lady of Perpetual Help Chapel inside the SSMO Motherhouse. Visit ssmo.org/ssmo-announces-new-leadership-team/ to learn more about the Sisters’ elections and General Chapter Meetings.
