{:en} This concludes our series of stories written by our Dominican Sisters around the world, who have so beautifully shared their experiences of life in the midst of the pandemic. We hope that this has provided an opportunity to deepen our solidarity with one another as Dominican Sisters. With each publication, we have chosen an image that represents the beauty of Creation. Hopefully, this served as a reminder that despite the darkness, we…

{:en} Community of Tomelloso (Ciudad Real)Dominicas de la Enseñanza de la I.C. The «state of alert» due to the coronavirus meant for us a sudden halt in our daily activities. As a community, we felt fear and a lot of anxiety. For Tomelloso, this health crisis has been such a blow that it has been described as the «Wuhan of la Mancha». It has had a strong resonance at the national level; we…

{:en} Sr. Mª Josefa Mollar, OPDominicas de la Enseñanza de la I. C., Spain 13 March 2020. And then it all stopped. School activities, gymnasiums, cultural and recreational assistance and activity centres, cinemas, bars, theatres, shopping centres, churches, almost everything, have ceased. Plans, personal projects, schedules, medical appointments, shopping, improvement works and a long list of what was on personal diaries were put on a waiting list. But life did not stop. We…

{:en} Sr. Mª del Prado Garrido, OPDominicas del Santísimo Sacramento, Spain On March 14th, when we were notified that the « state of alert » would begin the next day, there was no indication of the events that occurred from that point on. As LENT had just begun, we entered it thinking that we had in our favour all the necessary conditions to overcome these forty days in the desert with Jesus and,…

{:en} Sr. Mª Sagrario Díaz, OPOn behalf of the Community of Saint Catherine of PamplonaDominicas de la Enseñanza de la I.C. In the communities of elderly sisters of our congregation, we have instituted a feast called the Gift of the Years, which takes place on the fourth Sunday of Easter, the Feast of the Good Shepherd. We are a community of 11 elderly sisters with an average age of 80 years, the youngest…

{:en} Sr. Mª Jesús Fdez. LlameraCommunity of Vallecas (Madrid)Dominicas de la Enseñanza de la I.C. During this pandemic I realised that I was distracted by many things that I thought were essential; but a tiny virus called « Coronavirus » brought me back to the reality of who I am and gave me the opportunity to stop, to stop quickly. So began a wonderful time, a time to turn more inward, to the…

{:en} The Community of Tetuán, Madrid, in Home ConfinementCommunity of Tetuán (CRSD), April 2020 The community began Lent with an invitation to pray, every Monday in our house on the proposals of Pope Francis’ encyclical « Laudato Si ». The first prayer took place on March 2nd, and a good group of people took part in it, as well as on the 9th. However, from March 11th, because of the confinement related to…

{:en} Sr. Virginia Chukwuemeka, O.P.Dominican Sisters of St. Catherine of Siena, Gusau Nigeria. Covid-19 pandemic has left me with lots of memories that I would like to share. The memories are both pleasant and unpleasant. One of the beautiful memories is that peoples, nations, and communities sought the face of God like never before. I have never seen or heard people call on God the way they did in the face of Covid-19…

{:en} The experience of our college Our Lady of the Rosary Fesd (Beaterio), Spain At the beginning of the school year, there was no sign of the turning point that our lives would take at the end of the second term. Class work, laughter in the corridors and bustle in the courtyard gave way in mid-March to a silent, empty and sad college. Anger, uncertainty and fear surfaced in our Educational Community, but…

{:en} Saint Catherine’s Dominican Convent, Belfast, Northern Ireland Compiled by: Sr Eileen O’Connell OP, Congregation of Dominican Sisters of Our Lady of the Rosary and Saint Catherine of Siena Greetings from Belfast! For 150 years, sisters from the Congregation of Dominican Sisters of Our Lady of the Rosary and Saint Catherine of Siena have lived on the Falls Road, first in St Dominic’s Convent and now in St Catherine’s Dominican Convent. At present,…

{:en} H. MVSUDominican of the Anunciata Deep in my heart, there are many mixed feelings, many shared lessons (I don’t know if this is what this situation teaches us all), there has been reflection, prayer, indignation, admiration…; as in each of our communities. We prayed and celebrated the Resurrection of the Lord and the Easter season in confinement. During all these days, we were able to live concretely what the Lord said: «I…

{:en} Sr. Mª Teresa López AguilarSanto Domingo CongregationSpain On March 16, 2020, I began to experience discomfort and abdominal pain that kept increasing. A doctor and a nurse from 061 took care of me at home but it was not possible to stay there because the pain was getting worse. In the evening, an ambulance took me to Santa Ana de Motril hospital. I was alone with the paramedic who accompanied me to…

{:en} Sr. Perpetua Agu, OP One of the devastating effects of the Corona virus pandemic is the undesired isolation and compulsory quarantine experience it brought on the whole world; especially the victims of the deadly virus. Why this experience is so bad is that it has hindered mutual friendship among people which is one of the beautiful social phenomena of life. Everybody longs to love and be loved as it is a fragrance…

{:en} Sr. Cristina Antolín TomásPrioress of the Congregation of Saint DominicSpain This is my first time working as a doctor in Spain. Every day I heard on the news: many deaths, contaminated doctors, overwhelmed medical staff…my heart was pounding. Why didn’t they call me when I had sent a CV as a volunteer to the College of Doctors? And finally, one day the phone rang… It was great news that filled me with…

{:en} Sr. Nery Sori, O.P.Adrian DominicansBani, Dominican Republic In Dominican Republic the impact of COVID-19: in relation to my family, it can be said that although it has physically separated us, the family unit has not been affected. As a family we have kept in contact through virtual means, and we have had moments of more intense prayer, praying to God for the pandemic to end. This family prayer prepared us for the…

{:en} Sr. Ines Evangelista S. Manuel, OP Our gathering and socialization were freeze. Programs offered to them by benefactors were cancelled. Following the protocol of the government on how to avoid being affected by corona virus. But our merciful God had shown his mercy to everyone, even in this time of pandemic. For us and the persons with disabilities grateful to god for his loving presence through generous people continuously support our ministry…

{:en} Sr Chiara Mary Tessaris, OPEnglish Dominican Congregation of St Catherine of Siena (Cambridge) I see my experience of lockdown as one good example of how God is able to write straight on crocked lines.  When lockdown started in the UK in late March 2020, I was at the end of the last term of my two-year noviciate and I was engaged in pastoral placements at St Dominic’s School, a Sixth Form College…

{:en} Sister Patricia Simpson, O.P.Dominican Sisters of San RafaelStockton, California Four Dominican Sisters live together at St. Joseph’s Convent in Stockton, California. Two sisters minister at St. Joseph Medical Center and two are involved in volunteer ministries. Well, this is the way it was before COVID-19 became part of our lives in March of this year. During these past months one sister continues going to the Medical Center on a daily basis while…

{:en} Sr. Marie Ritkatmwa Wakdok, OP & Sr. Stella Udeh OP.St. Anthony Ann Hospital-Donyina Sr. Marie Ritkatmwa and Sr. Stella shared with us their experience as Health Workers at “St. Anthony Ann Hospital, Donyina. Coronavirus is a newly identified strain of the virus. SARS-CoV-2 has caused a worldwide Pandemic of respiratory illness, called COVID-19. This disease began from the seafood market at Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The first two cases of corona…

{:en} Sr. Macu S.SEDEP (Secretariat of Dominican Sisters of Spain and Portugal) It is a whole process which, from the outset, does not allow us to see the true dimension of what is happening. It was only when the state of alert and confinement arrived that I realised that we were going to experience Lent as I had never experienced it in my entire life. I accepted this situation and I tried to…

{:en} Sr. Maria Goretti Nguyen Thi Tam, OPDominican Sisters of St. Catherine of Siena, Thanh Tam, Vietnam I am writing this sharing on the 23th day of September, 2020 when Ministry of Health in Vietnam just declared the triumph of the last patient in Đa Nang epicenter over Covid-19; and in the whole country, there is only one serious case left. Of course this is a good news for millions Vietnamese; however, in…

{:en} By: Sr. Agnes Lien DoDominican Sisters of Bui Chu, Vietnam The current issue of concern for each and everyone in the world, no matter who we are, where we are living, and to which religion we belong, is COVID19. This global concern affects us all in so many ways. According to the Worldometer, up to now (November 6th, 2020), there have been 1,241,878 deaths among 49,171,281 coronavirus cases.[1] The whole world is…

{:en} “I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink.” (Mt 25:35) By: Dominican Sisters of Go Vap – Viet Nam   When the whole country had been in “social isolation”, difficulties came to all people, especially to those who earned income through their daily work. Virus coming from Wuhan had changed everything, not only the way to see each other but also the way to…

{:en} Sisters Janice Thome and Roserita Weber, OPDominican Sisters of Peace Garden City, Kansas USA Dominican Sisters of Peace Sister Roserita Weber and Sister Janice Thome serve the economic poor in the Dominican Sisters Ministry of Presence in Garden City, Kansas.  This is a direct ministry with the person or family no matter who they are or why they are poor.  We respond to the families referred to us by other persons families…

{:en} By: Mónica MarcoMember of IDYM Team With the arrival of the Coronavirus and a few days after the state alert decree, the deterioration of the situation in the neighbourhood began to become evident. It is a «life-long» neighbourhood, which is reflected in the presence of elderly people, immigrants (mostly from Latin America) and many families who get by on precarious wages. Today, many of them have little or no income. In our…

{:en} Sr Nathalie Roberge, opDominicaine Missionnaire AdoratriceQuébec, Canada We have been living a confusing adventure since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, to say the least. I had already experienced confinement since, I was walled up inside my cell for a few years to complete a doctoral thesis! But this new episode of confinement was going to lead me down unpredictable paths, on a personal, fraternal, and missionary level. Being assigned to an…

{:en} Sr. Rita Schwarzenberger, OP Dominican Sisters of Peace My response to COVID-19 in Nigeria is colored by other personal experiences at the onset of information on the disease here in Nigeria. I was in the hospital recovering from surgery when the government began to speak about COVID-19 and the need to engage in protective measures against the disease. A national task force was set up, and nightly on the news there was…

{:en} Sr. Mary-Comfort Onyinyechukwu Okoro, OPCongregation of the Dominican Sisters of St. Catherine of Siena,Gusau, Nigeria.  The COVID-19 has had a lot of both positive and negative impacts on my life as follows: A.  Family:  Within this period, I discovered that my concerns care and love for my family has increased. I prayed for them more consistently and placed calls also. Besides, I sent my little personal allowance to them to assist them…

{:en} Sr. Mary Jean Williams, OPAdrian Dominican SisterHenderson, NV USA During the past 6 months I have not been able to visit with family members and I have had minimal contact with Adrian sisters in the area with whom I minister. I have a 93-year-old aunt, an Adrian Dominican, who lives in Santa Cruz, CA. I usually visit during the summer. Due to COVID-19 restrictions I have not visited my aunt since last December….

{:en} Sr Juliana Ekwoanya, OPDominican Sisters of St. Catherine of Siena, Gusau, Nigeria. The impact of COVID-19 on me is overwhelming. At first, it raised so much fear especially when the first case was reported in Nigeria. What I am sharing here is just a pinch out of my experiences which includes keeping conscious distancing self from persons I would have given handshake or hugs, wearing of facemask whenever I am with someone,…

{:en} Sr. Lillian Gehlen, OPDominican Sister of PeaceWichita, KS USA Many memories flooded my mine of experiencing epidemics of the past which throughout life helped me experience and recognize God’s presence in pain and healing during the pandemic. As a child polio closed our church for one month. I saw the sadness of relatives and friends afflicted with the disease. I realized strength that comes from people trusting God to heal and comfort….

{:en} Sr. Mary Ann Dixon, OPAdrian Dominican Sister The death, destruction and scale of this pandemic are stunning to me.  Now, at 207,000+ I’m afraid of our growing numb to the horror.  I read this saying, ‘Statistics are human beings with the tears wiped away.”  I want the tears to remain.  I can’t even fathom the experiences of first responders, the poor, those with special needs children who are not equipped to teach…

{:en} Sr. Joan Meerschaert, O.P. Adrian Dominican Sister Adrian, MI USA It is a beautiful, sunny, fall morning, and the leaves are just beginning to turn shades of gold and red. At first glance, one thinks “All is right with the world”, and then the memory of the presence of COVID-19 in our daily life returns. Since March of 2019, the world has been quite different. The days and months have been challenging….

{:en} Sr. Mette Andrésen, OPCommunity of St. Katarina in Oslo In order to broaden my personal reflection on the impact of COVID-19 a little, I consulted some members of a Bible group that I lead.They are adult women, married or widowed, and therefore with a different experience from mine. But we all agreed that coming together around the Word of God helped us during this difficult time.So, I take the starting point in…

{:en} Community «Sagrado Corazón»Vistabella, Tenerife – Spain These months of confinement have been «a special time» for the community during which God has taken the opportunity to speak to us. We are a community of 20 sisters dedicated to working in an infirmary.  These were days during which we experienced something new in our lives: Our life together was favoured in those days when stress was not a protagonist. Although confined, we experienced…

{:en} Sr. Ana Belén Verísimo GarcíaDominican Sisters of the Annunciation This is the first question that came up inside me, and it has been with me since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic until now. In the face of everything that was suddenly falling upon us due to the force of an unknown disease which was spreading with incredible speed, and to which we had not given enough attention in spite of its…

{:en} Carefully listen to the Word of God and the voices of the world. Orient our gaze towards the new wounds of humanity. Visualize new paths for the future Imagine a renewed humanity Dare to un-learn, in order to learn again For this we have: 1 path to discover and to travel 9 months to give life to the new world God dreamed of. {:}{:es} Camino de búsqueda, a la escucha de Su…

{:en} Sr. Veronica Madziva, OPDominican Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Zimbabwe I was in quarantine in March for fourteen days when I came back from Washington DC and in August for another fourteen days soon after my eight days of retreat. I had  prepared myself for the first quarantine, knowing how vulnerable my community is but I still felt the pinch because I wanted to share my experience of DC with…

{:en} Sr. Pat Twohill, OPPrioress Dominican Sisters of Peace, USA For me, and I think for many of the Sisters in the Congregation, the confinement has been the most difficult aspect of our response to the coronavirus pandemic. I have realized how important my friends are to me, and how much I previously relied on them to restore my resiliency which is not possible in the same way now since connecting in person…

{:en} By: Sr. Sandra Winton, OPPrioress of New Zealand Dominican Sisters New Zealand is a small, island nation, so far at the bottom of world maps that it is often left off entirely. All of this stood to our advantage when it came to COVID 19. We do not border any other countries and we had the time to see what was happening in Spain and Italy before the first cases appeared among…

{:en} By: Sr. Meliza Arquillano, OPAdrian Dominican Sisters, Philippines This pandemic that we are all encountering right now is quite new to us. The first impact of this pandemic to me is the feeling of hopelessness― being controlled and manipulated by the protocols mandated by the government because of the situation. In terms of relationship with my family, I learned now to value more my family in terms of giving them my time whenever…

{:en} By: Sr. Patricia Hannan, OPNew Zealand Dominican Sisters Life for me during these months of COVID has been an ever-deepening experience of “Be still and know that I am God.” I joined the Dominicans when I was seventeen. For many years I worked in educational ministries, then, with canonical qualifications, worked for the New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference, often in advocacy for people who worked for the Church, with Maori whanau issues,…

{:en} By: Sr. Elizabeth Sukamdo, OP It is undeniable that COVID did bring great sadness, fears, and anxieties. However, there are many other things that breed gratitude and admirations. – Pandemics, lockdowns, and maintaining social and physical distancing have made the dynamics of life really changed. There are walls of life being renewed, there is something new. The Indonesian OP Sisters looked at the bright blue afternoon sky. Reduced pollutants, clean air. The…

{:en} Sr. Julianna Drobik O.P.Dominican Sisters of Eastern Australia and the Solomon Islands. When COVID – 19 broke out in Wuhan in January it took time for most Australians to absorb the emerging pandemic crisis. It was not until the rising cases in Europe followed by the US that the enormity of this global crisis began to impact on Australians in March. A national lockdown was put in place. Our prime Minister declared…

{:en} Sister Barbara Kane, OP Dominican Sisters of PeaceNew Haven, CT USA The week that the Corona Virus became real in New Haven, CT was the week I started CPE (Clinical Pastoral Education). Each day as more patients arrived with this strange new virus, the hospital sent out a new directive – no visitors… no volunteers… masks at all times… no chaplain visits … and on and on. Staff chaplains were challenged each…