Nga mihi atawhai! Maori invite us to bid welcome to the season of Matariki, which begins on June 10. It marks the appearance of the Pleiades, the cluster of stars which come into view low on the north-eastern horizon on the tail of the Milky Way, just before dawn. It heralds the Maori New Year.

Nga mihi atawhai. Pope Francis has helped to shape our agenda by naming 2015 as the Year of Consecrated Life. He has called on all religious to ‘wake up the world’ through the witness of their faith, holiness and hope. Sisters of Mercy and those engaged in their ministries are being invited by Mercy International Association to respond to the pope’s call by taking his message to heart.

Nga mihi atawhai The theme for our reflection this month is compassion or aroha, as we know it from our list of Mercy core values. Described within our healthcare facilities as the ability to act with understanding and sensitivity, compassion derives from a combination of two Latin words meaning ‘to suffer with’. It’s a word that is never far from the life and witness of Catherine McAuley.

Nga mihi atawhai - greetings to all in Mercy! Vatican watchers are predicting that Pope Francis is close to issuing an encyclical letter to the whole church on care for the environment, inviting us to be more aware of climate change and its implications for the world’s poor.

Nga mihi atawhai - greetings to all in Mercy! ‘Nothing like Christian courage – the church would not have one martyr to rejoice in without it!’ The words are Catherine McAuley’s, in a letter she writes to a young novice in Galway, encouraging her to be faithful to her call and not to doubt that God will build on her generosity and make it fruitful.

Nga mihi atawhai - greetings to all in Mercy! As Chapter 2014 concludes and a newly elected Leadership team prepares to guide Nga Whaea Atawhai o Aotearoa into the next five years, a new resource entitled Atawhai Mai Atawhai Atu – Mercy Given Mercy Received has been published to guide Sisters of Mercy and their companions in ministry on Mercy’s unfolding path.