"I came that they might have life and have it to the full"
250th Celebration of the founding of the Presentation Congregation
26th April - Church of St. Nicholas', Killavullen
Homilist: Bishop William Crean
Good Shepherd Sunday
My friends,
In Nano Nagle Place on the way down to the Cemetery there is a plaque which reads “In 1775, at the age of 57 she (Nano Nagle) became a nun, founding the Presentation Sisters in order to ensure a future for her schools and the education of poor children, a work she had begun as a young woman in defiance of the law.”
Leaving it till she was 57 – some would say she took her time! Of course, she did – as we know from the trajectory of her life and her vocational discernment there were many options explored by way of her personal spiritual journey and the mission to which she knew she was called. We know of her closeness to the Ursuline Sisters, but their enclosure precluded the mission to the education of the poor for which Nano had a passionate desire to pursue.
It bears further consideration that she hesitated at earlier stages on her path not by way of prevarication but out of trust in Divine Providence, along with a sharp intellect and a sure sense of what was at stake for those she wished to serve. Nano Nagle had a woman’s heart, a heart that knows and feels – the sight of the begging poor that night in Paris, moved her deeply – she clearly pondered that reality in her heart, and her open heart and mind allowed it to interrogate its implications for her life of privilege.
It is hard for us to assess the impact of the deaths of her Mother Ann and her sister Anne, with whom she studied in Paris, yet she moved quickly to reside in Cork with her brother Joseph and his wife – from there began her small beginnings with her schools on Cove Street. We know Joseph was none too pleased with her initiatives and the risk it posed for him and his family. I imagine he wasn’t the last man before whom she had to stand her ground to serve the little ones in need! As Christ Jesus in the gospel declared, “I have come that they may have life and have it to the full.” So too Nano saw her life and mission as an intimate sharing in the work of the Good Shepherd.
So too did her first companions – Mary Ann Collins, Elizabeth Burke and Mary Fouhy. The beginning was fragile to say the least – while quite a few shared in the work at the beginning, the structures were so uncertain and precarious few prevailed.
Hence the Providential discernment in 1775 to found the congregation to quote again the text on the plaque, “to ensure a future for her schools and the education of poor children, a work she had begun as a young woman, in defiance of the law.”
I called it a “providential discernment” it was born of faith, courage, intellect and visionary in its scope. You in the Presentation Family both know intimately the contours of the Congregations development and growth right across the world. What’s more, many of you have embodied that vision and given your life to ensuring it has enabled generations of young people live in dignity and realise their God given gifts.
By any standards, today’s celebration of 250 years of the Presentation mission is to mark a truly awesome achievement. It makes us immensely happy and proud to contemplate the sheer goodness of so many women who in joyful fidelity and companionship in Christ Jesus and Mary, left their families and homes to serve wherever they were called.
Our pride in their accomplishment and yours is tempered only by your humility and gratitude to God.
“My soul thus magnifies the Lord
Our spirits rejoice in God our Saviour
He looks on his servant in her lowliness.” (Magnificat)
What marvels have been accomplished in Venerable Nano Nagle.
My prayer and wish is that the Church recognise that and will soon canonize her a saint – whom in our eyes, she is.
My friends, even in a fast-changing world, 250 years is a significant block of time. A quarter of a millennium! Ours is a time in which technology is king – what was meant as an instrument to enhance human life – it has been instrumentalised at the service of control resulting in creativity and imagination are being corralled in a pattern of dehumanisation.
The Good Shepherd of the Gospel is one who calls his sheep by name, they follow because they know his voice. The threat of our time is that so many feel lost and abandoned, all be it in a different time and circumstances. We need new shepherds for a new age.
The genius of Nano Nagle’s vision was that while anchored in the discipleship of the Lord Jesus, it was marked by a freedom to exercise discretion and initiative in the particular circumstances of a new mission. This generation of Presentation Sister’s have faced many adjustments which have been brave and well thought through. We are indebted to you for doing so. Your prudent transfer of your schools into new structures which enable a new generation of lay people to carry on the mission in a changed Ireland is generous and prophetic.
The public discourse ‘round the role of the Catholic Church in education continues. It is remarkable how ill informed so many of our people are of the contribution of religious men and women have made to this generation of well-educated young people, whose skills and competencies have been much sought after by international companies. No one denies that mistakes were made due to human failure and poor management. However, it would be unfair, unjust not to acknowledge the personal faith, commitment and generosity of so many women given to Ireland of the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries – many have gone to their eternal reward. Many others are in their twilight years. Some I know have suffered greatly with the continued denigration of their life commitment. It is fitting today that we thank you for your fidelity, your generosity and care, Míle Buíochas.
The mission goes on in new forms, in new contexts. Nano made “fundamental the option for the poor” before it was coined by a theologian. She chose it out of sheer love and compassion. We are blessed beyond measure by her life. Her ‘roots’ were here in Killavullen – through good fortune, astute management and a faith filled family she got ‘wings’ through her education and travels. But her ‘wings’ brought her home to her own. And she made her home with them and amongst us. We are glad she did.
Moladh go deo le Dia.
Amen.
