“You are a spark of the Divine”.

These words spoken to Rob, by her mother, sum up her life. ‘You are a spark of the Divine’ On Sunday, 1st October, in Dublin, Ireland, our dear Sister, Robyn was totally enfolded by the all-powerful love of the Divine: her God, her love, her light, her friend, the one who called her into life 80 years ago, and whom she had lived for faithfully and lovingly as a Daughter of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart for nearly six decades.

This year, August 30, 2023, commemorates the 149th Foundation Day of the Congregation of the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart. In honour of the commencement of our Jubilee Year, the Province of Australia has prepared a Jubilee Year opening video tribute titled "Our Mission is Love" dedicated to the Province of Australia.

The Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart along with NATSICC have released a video message for the Feast of the Sacred Heart. The video message connects the Sacred Heart with the Uluru Statement of the Heart, shedding light on the importance of the upcoming referendum.

As Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, with Mary, moving forward in the Spirit and called to be ‘His Heart on Earth,’ we stand in special solidarity with NATSICC (National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Council) whose vision is to 'promote and celebrate the cultural identity of our peoples across the nation by living and expressing in all its endeavors the spirituality of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people'.

The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Council (NATSICC) has launched a new website called “One Journey, Together” for Catholics to learn about the Indigenous Voice to Parliament. The website hosts stories and anecdotes from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities and organisations, Catholic figures and Catholic organisations.

This Action Plan seeks to drive an OLSH ecological conversion. Simply put, this means recognizing that all things within God’s creation are connected, and seeking to transform ourselves and our Province in ways of loving which will make our communities sustainable and regenerative.

The 2015 Encyclical Letter LAUDATO SI’ of Pope Francis on ‘Care for our Common Home’ is the focus of the Australian Province’s steering committee on climate justice, a group that was created in response to the Province Assembly held in April, 2022 to help facilitate ‘OLSH ecological conversion’ through exploration of and reflection on this extraordinary encyclical, and a commitment to action for our struggling mother earth.

We are a nation that is at once ancient and adolescent. A nation made unique by age-old cultures and yet a nation still growing into itself, still maturing.

The upcoming referendum for an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice is our next great rite of passage. It will mark an important stage in the life of the nation, the transition from exclusion to inclusion, but also a respectful co-existence and celebration of the coming together of Australian peoples old and new.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples have lived in this land for many thousands of years. Their custodianship, however, is not recognised in the Australian Constitution. This is an omission which needs to be rectified. A constitutionally enshrined Indigenous Voice to Parliament is proposed as a way to achieve this.

As a vote on an Indigenous Voice to Parliament nears, Australia’s bishops have encouraged Catholics to read and discuss the Uluru Statement from the Heart – the document from which the Voice proposal emerged.

During their plenary meeting in Sydney this week, the bishops considered how they might assist Catholics in preparing for the referendum to enshrine the Voice to Parliament in the Constitution, with a vote due in the second half of 2023.

'This is my beloved in whom I am well pleased’

These words from the Gospel of Luke are a beautiful summary of our Sister, Catherine Mary’s whole life: a rich life of 94 years, lived with Jesus and for Jesus. On Sunday 11^th December our dear Sister, Catherine Mary, gently and peacefully breathed her last breath as she surrendered to her loving God whom she had served lovingly and faithfully as a Daughter of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart for 73 years. 

'This is my beloved in whom I am well pleased’

These words from the Gospel of Matthew capture well the driving force behind Sr Theresa’s life. She had an absolute trust and deep faith in God. On Tuesday, 8th of November she came face to face with her God whom she had so lovingly and faithfully served as a Daughter of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart for over seven decades.

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me.”

These words from the Gospel of John were chosen by Terie for her Funeral Mass a few weeks ago. They speak of Terie’s absolute trust and deep faith in God. On 21^st June, just five weeks after Terie had been diagnosed with terminal Cancer she came face to face with the God she had so lovingly and faithfully served as a Daughter of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart for over six decades.

It is with great joy that we learn today that the amalgamation of St Agnes Catholic Primary School, Matraville and Our Lady of the Annunciation Catholic Primary School, Pagewood has been brought forward to the start of the 2023 school year with the school to be named Sacred Heart Catholic Primary School, Matraville.

This new name celebrates the Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart as the founding religious order for both schools.

“So long Thy Love has led me, surely it will lead me on”

As Yvonne looked back over her life’s journey, she realised how this prayer had helped her to accept the challenges, joys and difficulties of the many and varied apostolates she carried out as a Daughter of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart. On Sunday 13^th March, Jesus gently took Yvonne to himself. She was 87 years old and 67 years professed.