We celebrate with joy and gratitude the birthday of our Founder (1793 – 1861)
October is a month of great joy because we celebrate the birth day of our dear Founder, Pierre Bienvenu Noailles, and it is an appropriate time to recall with gratitude the important events of his life: He was born in Bordeaux on 27 October 1793, at the height of the French Revolution. As a young man, he wasoptimistic, enthusiastic, and passionate; he was also a dreamer.  Having tried various occupations, he entered the Seminary of Saint-Sulpice in 1816 and was ordained a priest three years later on 5 June 1819. 
In 1820 he founded the Association of the Holy Family of Bordeaux, whose members, lay or religious, are called to imitate the virtues of the Holy Family of Nazareth in all their activities.  The Association spread and Father Noailles founded various branches in response to different needs.  At his death in 1861, he left a large and structured Association. Today, the Holy Family is established in Europe, Africa, Asia and America, and counts among its members: Associates – lay and priests, as well as consecrated secular, contemplative and apostolic women; we affectionately call it ‘the PBN Family’.
Thus the “Good Father’s dream” was fulfilled:  ‘He saw the Association as a gigantic tree, with flowers and fruits of all seasons, birds of all colours and countries, each with its particular song, but with one voice proclaiming ‘Glory to GOD ALONE in Jesus Christ through Mary and St. Joseph!’, highlighting in this way our openness to INTERCULTURALITY as an integral part of our being Holy Family from its inception; he has left us a legacy and a task to embrace this ‘beautiful diversity as richness’ so that we can live our charism of Communion.
The image of the tree that our Good Father describes to us refers us to another very current theme that touches life itself, ‘Ecological Harmony’ which he so much admired and deeply desired for his beloved Family. It includes learning the art of living in harmony with all created beings. With profound gratitude, we thank God for the gift of his life for our Spiritual Family and for the whole of humanity. 
Sister Rubeni Pejerrey Campodónico
Perú
 

MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS
FOR THE 110th WORLD DAY OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES 2024
(Sunday, 29 September 2024)”God walks with his people”
Dear brothers and sisters!
Last 29 October 2023 marked the conclusion of the First Session of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly
of the Synod of Bishops. This session allowed us to deepen our understanding of synodality as
part of the Church’s fundamental vocation. “Synodality is mainly presented as a joint journey of the
People of God and as a fruitful dialogue between the charisms and ministries at the service of the
coming of the Kingdom” (Synthesis Report, Introduction).

Emphasizing the synodal dimension allows the Church to rediscover its itinerant nature, as the
People of God journeying through history on pilgrimage, “migrating”, we could say, toward the
Kingdom of Heaven (cf. Lumen Gentium, 49). The biblical narrative of Exodus, depicting the
Israelites on their way to the promised land, naturally comes to mind: a long journey from slavery
to freedom prefiguring the Church’s journey toward her final encounter with the Lord.
Likewise, it is possible to see in the migrants of our time, as in those of every age, a living image
of God’s people on their way to the eternal homeland. Their journeys of hope remind us that “our
citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Saviour, the Lord Jesus
Christ” (Phil 3:20).

The images of the biblical exodus and of migrants share several similarities. Like the people of
Israel in the time of Moses, migrants often flee from oppression, abuse, insecurity, discrimination,
and lack of opportunities for development. Similar to the Jews in the desert, migrants encounter
many obstacles in their path: they are tried by thirst and hunger; they are exhausted by toil and
disease; they are tempted by despair.
Yet the fundamental reality of the Exodus, of every exodus, is that God precedes and
accompanies his people and all his children in every time and place. God’s presence in the midst
of the people is a certainty of salvation history: “The Lord your God goes with you; he will not fail
you or forsake you” (Deut 31:6). For the people who came out of Egypt, this presence manifested
itself in different forms: a pillar of cloud and fire showing and illuminating the way (cf. Ex 13:21),
the meeting tent that protected the ark of the covenant, making God’s closeness tangible (cf. Ex
33:7), the pole with the bronze serpent assuring divine protection (cf. Nm 21:8-9), manna and
water (cf. Ex 16-17) as God’s gifts to the hungry and thirsty people. The tent is a form of presence
especially dear to the Lord. During David’s reign, God chose to dwell in a tent, not a temple, so
that he could walk with his people, “from tent to tent and from dwelling to dwelling” (1 Chr 17:5).

Many migrants experience God as their traveling companion, guide and anchor of salvation. They
entrust themselves to him before setting out and seek him in times of need. In him, they find
consolation in moments of discouragement. Thanks to him, there are good Samaritans along the
way. In prayer, they confide their hopes to him. How many Bibles, copies of the Gospels, prayer
books and rosaries accompany migrants on their journeys across deserts, rivers, seas and the
borders of every continent!

God not only walks with his people, but also within them, in the sense that he identifies himself
with men and women on their journey through history, particularly with the least, the poor and the
marginalized. In this we see an extension of the mystery of the Incarnation.

For this reason, the encounter with the migrant, as with every brother and sister in need, “is also
an encounter with Christ. He himself said so. It is he who knocks on our door, hungry, thirsty, an
outsider, naked, sick and imprisoned, asking to be met and assisted” (Homily, Mass with
Participants in the “Free from Fear” Meeting, Sacrofano, 15 February 2019). The final judgment in
Matthew 25 leaves no doubt: “I was a stranger and you welcomed me” (v. 35); and again “truly, I
say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it to me”
(v. 40). Every encounter along the way represents an opportunity to meet the Lord; it is an
occasion charged with salvation, because Jesus is present in the sister or brother in need of our
help. In this sense, the poor save us, because they enable us to encounter the face of the Lord (cf.
Message for the Third World Day of the Poor, 17 November 2019).

Dear brothers and sisters, on this day dedicated to migrants and refugees, let us unite in prayer for
all those who have had to leave their land in search of dignified living conditions. May we journey
together with them, be “synodal” together, and entrust them, as well as the forthcoming Synod
Assembly, “to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a sign of sure hope and consolation to
the faithful People of God as they continue their journey” (XVI Ordinary General Assembly
Synthesis Report: Proceeding Along the Journey).
PrayerGod, Almighty Father,
we are your pilgrim Church
journeying towards the Kingdom of heaven.
We live in our homeland,
but as if we were foreigners.
Every foreign place is our home,
yet every native land is foreign to us.
Though we live on earth,
our true citizenship is in heaven.
Do not let us become possessive
of the portion of the world
you have given us as a temporary home.
Help us to keep walking,
together with our migrant brothers and sisters,
toward the eternal dwelling you have prepared for us.
Open our eyes and our hearts
so that every encounter with those in need
becomes an encounter with Jesus, your Son and our Lord.
Amen.

From his seminary days Fr.Noailles had conceived the idea of founding an association open to all vocations. He started realizing this desire in his first parish of St.Eulalie by starting the Catechism of Perseverance with lay people. In this rich soil of lay commitment, was planted the first religious community. Caroline Romain, Seconde Giraudet and Catherine Aimée Noailles came together with the desire to consecrate themselves by religious vows, to live in community and to be engaged in the service of others. They started their community on the eve of 27th May 1820, the feast of Holy Trinity, having for all their resources only 80 francs. As time passed, they received more members, moved to other places, and responded to many needs. Fr.Noailles guided the members spiritually and wrote their Rule of Life.  As new needs were seen and ministries increased they were organised into different branches. The Consecrated Seculars, Priests and Contemplatives were also founded.  The Lay Associates who had been present since the beginning became more active and were solemnly received into the Association. 
We need to remember that what Fr.Noailles wanted to found was not a religious congregation as such, but an Association open to all vocations. The Apostolic Religious Group was part of that Association. However, as it evolved and expanded numerically and geographically the Association experienced a tension between what the Founder intended and what the Church demanded. There are three key moments when this tension was strongly felt.
1. Spain demanded that the congregations working in Spain had to be canonically approved by Rome. Sisters had to accept it even though it was not quite in keeping with the idea of Fr.Noailles. However this approbation made it possible for the Holy Family to survive. As a negative outcome other vocations within the Family received less attention.
2. When the missionaries were called to distant lands, it was the Religious Sisters who responded to that request. As a result they grew faster in the mission lands while other vocations were not promoted in the new places. In the new places it was not easy to keep the identity of the Branches.  However the different vocations continued to be there in France and in some other European countries but they did not get equal attention as part of the same Association.
3. In 1957 there was a call from Rome to change the structure of the Religious Congregation by dividing it into Provinces and Delegations. Once again the leaders were faced with the question of the original idea of the Founder and the demands of the Church. At the General Chapter of 1957 the new structure was accepted.
These three moments weakened the Association as one Family with five different vocations. However the members tried their best to safeguard and live the spirit of the Association.
The moment of grace was the second Vatican Council. It invited all the Congregations to go back to the original founding inspiration and make it relevant to the present day. Our congregation took this invitation very seriously and worked hard to revive the original inspiration both in the spirit and in the structures of the Association. This was important because the very structure is an integral part of our charism. A great deal of hard work was done to study the writings of the Founder, classify them, translate them and to present them in forms that are easily accessible and readable for everyone. While this work was going on at the General level the different Provinces and Delegations started promoting all the vocations of the Holy Family. It was a moment of research, discernment and untiring efforts. It was a journey without a road-map. After all the hard work, difficulties surfaced once again. The Church had no formal structure to deal with associations composed of different vocations, so it could not approve a Family with five vocations. The possible alternatives were proposed. After another process of discernment, the Family opted for the present structure of Religious Institute of Apostolic and Contemplative vocations, Consecrated Secular Institute and the Priest Associates and Lay Associates. This is the canonical structure, yet in faithfulness to the original intention of the Founder we live as One Family with five vocations. Today the Council of the Family and its Permanent Committee help the Family of Pierre Bienvenu Noailles to journey together, living its spirit and mission.
At the General Chapter of the Religious Institute held in 2021, we asked ourselves a crucial question, which we kept before us throughout the preparation and the actual Chapter process.
“Can we still live our purpose as we begin our third century?
We believe we can but how? At the General Chapter itself we have proposed for ourselves six audacious steps. It all depends on each one of us. Are we ready to own them and live them in the true spirit of transformation? Are we ready to let go what needs to go and give ourselves selflessly and fearlessly in order to be transformed into something new? Can we live the specificity of our Vocation as Consecrated Religious, while being conscious that we are equal members of a Family with five vocations? Can we be conscious of the fact that we are Apostolic and Contemplative Associates in the Family of Pierre Bienvenu Noailles even though we are called Consecrated Religious according to the canonical requirement of the Church?
In the nineteenth century, Fr. Noailles was seen as a man ahead of his time. In the 21st century, he is still ahead of his time. The Church still does not have the provisions in Canon Law to approve the beautiful project Fr. Noailles conceived, even though at every stage it has been appreciated and encouraged by the Church.
Winifreda Wasalathanthrige
Kitumba, Uganda

“Called to sow seeds of hope and to build peace”
Dear brothers and sisters!
Each year, the World Day of Prayer for Vocations invites us to reflect on the precious gift of the Lord’s call to each of us, as members of his faithful pilgrim people, to participate in his loving plan and to embody the beauty of the Gospel in different states of life. Hearing that divine call, which is far from being an imposed duty – even in the name of a religious ideal – is the surest way for us to fulfil our deepest desire for happiness. Our life finds fulfilment when we discover who we are, what our gifts are, where we can make them bear fruit, and what path we can follow in order to become signs and instruments of love, generous acceptance, beauty and peace, wherever we find ourselves.
This Day, then, is always a good occasion to recall with gratitude to the Lord the faithful, persevering and frequently hidden efforts of all those who have responded to a call that embraces their entire existence. I think of mothers and fathers who do not think first of themselves or follow fleeting fads of the moment, but shape their lives through relationships marked by love and graciousness, openness to the gift of life and commitment to their children and their growth in maturity. I think of all those who carry out their work in a spirit of cooperation with others, and those who strive in various ways to build a more just world, a more solidary economy, a more equitable social policy and a more humane society. In a word, of all those men and women of good will who devote their lives to working for the common good. I think too of all those consecrated men and women who offer their lives to the Lord in the silence of prayer and in apostolic activity, sometimes on the fringes of society, tirelessly and creatively exercising their charism by serving those around them. And I think of all those who have accepted God’s call to the ordained priesthood, devoting themselves to the preaching of the Gospel, breaking open their own lives, together with the bread of the Eucharist, for their brothers and sisters, sowing seeds of hope and revealing to all the beauty of God’s kingdom.
To young people, and especially those who feel distant or uncertain about the Church, I want to say this: Let Jesus draw you to himself; bring him your important questions by reading the Gospels; let him challenge you by his presence, which always provokes in us a healthy crisis. More than anyone else, Jesus respects our freedom. He does not impose, but proposes. Make room for him and you will find the way to happiness by following him. And, should he ask it of you, by giving yourself completely to him.
A people on the move
The polyphony of diverse charisms and vocations that the Christian community recognizes and accompanies helps us to appreciate more fully what it means to be Christians. As God’s people in this world, guided by his Holy Spirit, and as living stones in the Body of Christ, we come to realize that we are members of a great family, children of the Father and brothers and sisters of one another. We are not self-enclosed islands but parts of a greater whole. In this sense, the World Day of Prayer for Vocations has a synodal character: amid the variety of our charisms, we are called to listen to one another and to journey together in order to acknowledge them and to discern where the Spirit is leading us for the benefit of all.
At this point in time, then, our common journey is bringing us to the Jubilee Year of 2025. Let us travel as pilgrims of hope towards the Holy Year, for by discovering our own vocation and its place amid the different gifts bestowed by the Spirit, we can become for our world messengers and witnesses of Jesus’ dream of a single human family, united in God’s love and in the bond of charity, cooperation and fraternity.
This Day is dedicated in a particular way to imploring from the Father the gift of holy vocations for the building up of his Kingdom: “Ask the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest” (Lk 10:2). Prayer – as we all know – is more about listening to God than about talking to him. The Lord speaks to our heart, and he wants to find it open, sincere and generous. His Word became flesh in Jesus Christ, who reveals to us the entire will of the Father. In this present year, devoted to prayer and preparation for the Jubilee, all of us are called to rediscover the inestimable blessing of our ability to enter into heartfelt dialogue with the Lord and thus become pilgrims of hope. For “prayer is the first strength of hope. You pray and hope grows, it moves forward. I would say that prayer opens the door to hope. Hope is there, but by my prayer I open the door” (Catechesis, 20 May 2020).
Pilgrims of hope and builders of peace
Yet what does it mean to be pilgrims? Those who go on pilgrimage seek above all to keep their eyes fixed on the goal, to keep it always in their mind and heart. To achieve that goal, however, they need to concentrate on every step, which means travelling light, getting rid of what weighs them down, carrying only the essentials and striving daily to set aside all weariness, fear, uncertainty and hesitation. Being a pilgrim means setting out each day, beginning ever anew, rediscovering the enthusiasm and strength needed to pursue the various stages of a journey that, however tiring and difficult, always opens before our eyes new horizons and previously unknown vistas.
This is the ultimate meaning of our Christian pilgrimage: we set out on a journey to discover the love of God and at the same time to discover ourselves, thanks to an interior journey nourished by our relationships with others. We are pilgrims because we have been called: called to love God and to love one another. Our pilgrimage on this earth is far from a pointless journey or aimless wandering; on the contrary, each day, by responding to God’s call, we try to take every step needed to advance towards a new world where people can live in peace, justice and love. We are pilgrims of hope because we are pressing forward towards a better future, committed at every step to bringing it about.
This is, in the end, the goal of every vocation: to become men and women of hope. As individuals and as communities, amid the variety of charisms and ministries, all of us are called to embody and communicate the Gospel message of hope in a world marked by epochal challenges. These include the baneful spectre of a third world war fought piecemeal; the flood of migrants fleeing their homelands in search of a better future; the burgeoning numbers of the poor; the threat of irreversibly compromising the health of our planet. To say nothing of all the difficulties we encounter each day, which at times risk plunging us into resignation or defeatism.
In our day, then, it is decisive that we Christians cultivate a gaze full of hope and work fruitfully in response to the vocation we have received, in service to God’s kingdom of love, justice and peace. This hope – Saint Paul tells us – “does not disappoint” (Rom 5:5), since it is born of the Lord’s promise that he will remain always with us and include us in the work of redemption that he wants to accomplish in the heart of each individual and in the “heart” of all creation. This hope finds its propulsive force in Christ’s resurrection, which “contains a vital power which has permeated this world. Where all seems to be dead, signs of the resurrection suddenly spring up. It is an irresistible force. Often it seems that God does not exist: all around us, we see persistent injustice, evil, indifference and cruelty. But it is also true that in the midst of darkness something new always springs to life and sooner or later produces fruit” (Evangelii Gaudium, 276). Again, the Apostle Paul tells us that, “in hope we were saved” (Rom 8:24). The redemption accomplished in the paschal mystery is a source of hope, a sure and trustworthy hope, thanks to which we can face the challenges of the present.
To be pilgrims of hope and builders of peace, then, means to base our lives on the rock of Christ’s resurrection, knowing that every effort made in the vocation that we have embraced and seek to live out, will never be in vain. Failures and obstacles may arise along the way, but the seeds of goodness we sow are quietly growing and nothing can separate us from the final goal: our encounter with Christ and the joy of living for eternity in fraternal love. This ultimate calling is one that we must anticipate daily: even now our loving relationship with God and our brothers and sisters is beginning to bring about God’s dream of unity, peace and fraternity. May no one feel excluded from this calling! Each of us in our own small way, in our particular state of life, can, with the help of the Spirit, be a sower of seeds of hope and peace.
The courage to commit
In this light, I would say once more, as I did at World Youth Day in Lisbon: “Rise up!” Let us awaken from sleep, let us leave indifference behind, let us open the doors of the prison in which we so often enclose ourselves, so that each of us can discover his or her proper vocation in the Church and in the world, and become a pilgrim of hope and a builder of peace! Let us be passionate about life, and commit ourselves to caring lovingly for those around us, in every place where we live. Let me say it again: “Have the courage to commit!” Father Oreste Benzi, a tireless apostle of charity, ever on the side of the poor and the defenseless, used to say that no one is so poor as to have nothing to give, and no one is so rich as not to need something to receive.
Let us rise up, then, and set out as pilgrims of hope, so that, as Mary was for Elizabeth, we too can be messengers of joy, sources of new life and artisans of fraternity and peace.
Rome, Saint John Lateran, 21 April 2024, Fourth Sunday of Easter.
 
 

Pascal DJEUMEGUED – Priest Associate from Cameroon, currently studying in Canada.
Over the last few days, I have received many images and a video from the people of Mora, Kourgui and Amchidé, where I worked as a priest. I have kept in touch with those who have access to an Android phone to exchange information via WhatsApp. The images bear witness to the water shortage during this dry season. This situation is cyclical and recurs every year. The conditions they face are extremely difficult. This situation prompts us to reflect on the climatic consequences of the Anthropocene (the time during which human activity has had a substantial impact on our planet). It is also an opportunity to pray for our government, asking for greater social justice and respect for human dignity. 
I’m sharing this information with you so that you can pray for our country, which is on the brink of implosion, and for these people.​
                   
 

Dear all,
It is Easter! The Risen Jesus is in our midst and says to us: “Peace be with you… do not be afraid”.
Beyond, or rather, through everything that we, and all humanity is currently experiencing, the Risen One is our assurance that life is always reborn from self-giving love and that it lasts forever. Death has no power over it.
Only with Easter eyes will we be able to see life always being reborn, and like the disciple, “see and believe” that life steals in through the cracks of fragility, of suffering, of cries of pain… of solidarity, of compassion, of reconciliation, of unwavering hope….
The Risen Jesus, alive and living, embraces and reconciles all, gifting peace and new hope through unexpected and unimagined forms of presence to each person in all dimensions of reality, inviting us to new beginnings. Nothing can arrest the flow of Life and the power of Love streaming from the luminous wounds of the Crucified and Risen One.
This is the reason for our hope in a “new heaven and a new earth” (Rev. 21, 1-5) that we are building together, as co-workers in God’s Project.
May the peace and joy of the Resurrection be in each one of us.
HAPPY EASTER!

The Passage between death and new life or resurrection needs very little space.
From seed to plant…
from caterpillar to butterfly …
From foetus to human being …
From human-centredness to ecocentrism …
from being selfish to planetary awareness 
and from being Jesus of Nazareth to the Universal Christ …
But it is a process by which the Universe became more conscious with the emergence of the human species.  This little space is designated by the context and the being with which he or she is fed.
Jesus’s context was the same as that of all the other Jews of his time but his interpretation of the scripture was different from the scribes and teachers of the law. Structured or closed minds could not understand his message of liberation or freedom from within. He touched the very essence of all being, the original blessings, goodness, Love, the divine-self deep within. He strongly spoke about his inner experience of God, every way he could, and witnessed to it through his very life.
“Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’  The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” (John 3: 6-8)
Jesus’ conscious, free choice, allowed him to be killed, communicating the message of the Spirit who was hovering over the very inception of the Universe as the Genesis first account tells us. Having understood the co-existence of darkness and light, his invitation was to live in the light where one can see oneself as one really is, not as others say or as a false-self depicts. This is where inner transformation happens and the outer changes occur.
As renowned theologian Karl Rahner says, “Easter is not only about the resurrection of one individual, but it is also about the whole of creation.” Easter is not only significant for us human beings alone. By our very participation, Easter becomes an everyday reality for the planet earth.
Today, in the midst of wars, the destruction of the common home, violence, consumerism and various other manifestations of brokenness we, the conscious beings are trying to bring harmony, love, generosity, peace and creativity for a better life. The space between death and new life calls for perseverance, inner freedom and getting touch with the originality of human nature.
May our celebration of Easter encourage each one of us personally and all of beings collectively to share our common, pristine nature for life!
Jesmin Fernando
General Councillor, Rome

This year, 2024, has been declared by Pope Francis a year of prayer. Prayer is the centre of our Christian life. Prayer also helps to connect us with the whole world, which is going through tremendous hardships due to war, poverty, and misery. Our Founder, too, wanted prayer to be the cornerstone of our lives as Holy Family Sisters. Complying with the wishes of the Pope, we are all joining in this year of prayer, together with Laity as they are engaged with different groups.
The Bible is the centre of our Christian faith; therefore, we endeavoured to make Bible Week meaningful, together with the laity, including the school children.
Below is a description of how the Week was celebrated in the parish and in the school.
On 28th January 2024, Bible Week at St. Joseph’s Convent, Kohat was celebrated with the Christian children in the school and parish. It was a great event, calling for our efforts to instill in the children a love for the Bible. The deeper meaning of the word of God and its implementation in life were very much appreciated by all. The Bible is not an ordinary book like the text books, it is a life-giving source for all.
The children were well prepared with clear instructions from the Word of God. The hall where the event took place was beautifully and meaningfully decorated with lighted lamps, indicating that the Word of God is light for our life’s journey. Each child carried a bible with a lighted lamp and entered the hall very solemnly, singing the hymn in Urdu, ‘Your word is a light to my path”.
The ceremony started with the lighting of the lamp by sister Angelina, the Principal of the school. She also gave a very meaningful and effective talk on the Word of God. She explained the three important words: faith, service, and witness, because they are the core values of our Christian life:
Faith: Faith is the foundation of our Christian life. It is trust and belief in the only One God, his beloved Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Through reading the Word of God, we know God loves us and has a plan for us. During this year, we are encouraged to deepen our faith through prayer, reading of the Bible, reciting the rosary, coming every Sunday for Mass, and receiving the sacraments.
Service: We are followers of Jesus. Jesus’ whole life was for others till the last breath. So service is seen in our faith in action, especially through our good works, feelings, and being with others. This aspect is open for the other church activities too. You children put them into practice; you are already taking part in the service of altar boys and girls, the Holy Family Children, the Holy Family Rosary Group, the church choir, and catechism classes. Do your best with all your capability.
Witness: witness is what you believe, and it becomes your evidence of faith through words, deeds, and actions. These will definitely attract others to trust in Jesus and his teaching. During the year of prayer, help all the members of the Church to be witnesses of faith by living like Christ and sharing your faith with others.”
She also stressed the need to become familiar with the word of God so that our lives would be transformed. Since we are surrounded by a majority of Muslims, our lives have to speak deeply of the Word of God. We must “walk the talk”.
At the end of her address, the children performed a beautiful tableau on the Word of God.
We have also organized different activities this year with all the classes in order to make our children’s faith strong, as we face a lot of challenges as Christians. I feel it is our inmost duty to make every effort to be a sign and leaven of our presence to spread the Word of God wherever we are.   
Sr. Angelina  Sohan
Pakistan
               

Everyone has something special in their personal life or family that they cherish and share with others.
As the Big Family of PBN, we have something unique and special to cherish and treasure from generation to generation, and Jesus blessed us with the Miraculous Benediction. What a privilege! What a blessed people we are.
God, who walked with the people of Israel, protected them and led them by sending the prophets on their journeys. Looking back on our Holy Family history, we see how God led our Founder and Early Mothers through their struggles. February 3, 1822, was a grace-filled and special day for our Big Family, where Jesus appeared and blessed our Family during the Miraculous Benediction that lasted for twenty minutes. Due to the pastoral work in St.Eulalie, our Founder had to attend to other needs, and he sent one of his fellow priests, Fr. Delort, to expose the Blessed Sacrament on his behalf. The priest, altar boy, and Sisters witnessed Jesus appearing in the monstrance as a young man with a radiant face. He graciously bowed to the congregation and assured us that He is always with us. Today, we are blessed to live in this Family and experience the Lord’s blessings in our personal lives.
Every year when we celebrate our Triduum (February 1st–3rd), we are reminded of three important aspects of our lives: the presence of Jesus, His blessings, and His words. The Miraculous Benediction is not an exaggerated story but a real experience that brings joy to everyone in our Big Family and beyond.
Sister Marie Louis Francoise Peychaud, who did not see the apparition but had her eyes closed in deep prayer, heard these words, which still echo in our hearts as we celebrate the Miraculous Benediction in our era.
 
“I am the One who is
and there is no other.
Honour and the esteem of creatures
are but smoke
and I am the One who is.
Their friendship is but dust
and I am the One who is.
Wealth and pleasure
are but mud
and I am the One who is
and there is no other.”
God is greater than power, fame, wealth, and everything else. He says, ‘I am the One who is, and there is no other.’ The Miraculous Benediction gives hope to our hopeless world. May the blessings of the Miraculous Benediction overflow like a river into the lives of those who suffer physically, mentally, and spiritually every day.
GLORY TO GOD ALONE!!!
Mercy Rani Jebamalai
Generalate, Rome

The word Epiphany means “manifestation.” Jesus, who was born in the manger at Bethlehem, revealed himself first to the shepherds through the angels, and secondly, he revealed himself to the Magi who came from the east to adore him and offer him their gifts. The feast  of the Epiphany indicates God’s desire to reveal himself to the people who search for him continuously.
What does this feast, Epiphany, mean for us?
The three astrologers, or three kings, who found something different happening in the sky, took daring steps to follow the stars, they were even ready to travel to unknown places. Their journey wasn’t easy, but their continual thirst, their determined search, led them to their destination. These kings represent all the peoples of the earth, and they also represent our search for Jesus.
This feast is not only for the believers who continually seek the Lord’s presence. It is for those who are striving to seek the Lord in their everyday lives in various circumstances – each one of us in the different stages of our faith journey. The Spirit inspires and accompanies our quest, leading us deeper into God, the ultimate goal of all our searching.
The theme of our 20th General Chapter echoes in our hearts: “Can we still live our purpose as we begin our 3rd century?” It invites us to reflect on the word of God, “Let us go over to the other side” (Mk4:35–41). It is connected to the feast of today and reminds us of our search and purpose to live in this Big Family ‘to bring all the scattered children of God into one family’.
Happy Feast
Mercy Rani Jebamalai
Generalate, Rome