“Jesus saves!” said Pope Francis. “These healings, these words that reach the heart, are the sign and the beginning of salvation – the path of salvation for many who begin to go to hear Jesus or to ask for a healing and then come back to Him and feel salvation.” He went on to ask, “What, though, is most important? That Jesus heals? No, that is not the most important thing. That He teaches us? That is not the most important thing [either]. [The most important thing] is that He saves! He is the Savior and we are saved by him: this is the most important thing, and this is the strength of our faith.”

~ Pope Francis (from his homily given at Mass on Friday, January 23, 2015)

Giving thanks to God for being loved and saved by Jesus Christ, we follow His Light and Truth. As we have each experienced the love of God and recognize it in the life, Passion, death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ, we find hope in the Cross. The “T” of the Cross leads us to the Truth which is necessary for human freedom and which is lived fully in selfless, self-sacrificial acts of love (charity). This is evident in the life of Christ and is aimed for in the lives of all Christians.   Religious Brothers and Sisters, Priests and Bishops are totally oriented toward this reality.

This week I visited two communities of Religious Sisters:  The Sisters of the Society of Our Lady of the Trinity and the Carmelite Missionaries of St. Therese of the Child Jesus from Puebla, Mexico.

The Sisters of the Society of the Our Lady of the Trinity (SOLT) live and serve at Holy Trinity Parish and School in Phoenix.  The SOLT Fathers have been in the Diocese of Phoenix for 6 and 1/2 years, and the SOLT Sisters have been here 5 years. Two of the Sisters are school teachers at Holy Trinity.  This community is a Society of Apostolic Life with Priests, Brothers, Lay Members, Consecrated Widows, Missionaries of Mercy and Volunteers.  There are 500 SOLT missionaries around the world in the US, Mexico, Brazil, Belize, Guatemala, Haiti, England, Italy, Ghana, Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Thailand, China and Australia.  Founded by Fr. James Flanagan of Boston on July 16, 1958, SOLT’s headquarters were established in Robstown, Texas in the Diocese of Corpus Christi in 1989.  They are an international missionary community with a Marian-Trinitarian spirituality of discipleship.  A unique aspect of their charism is that they serve in Ecclesial Family Teams.

On Wednesday, January 21st, I visited the Carmelite Missionaries of St. Therese of the Child Jesus or in Spanish, Misioneras Carmelitas de Sta. Teresa del Niño Jesus.  They are from Puebla, Mexico, and they serve in Phoenix both at St. Daniel’s Parish in Scottdale and at St. Anne’s Parish in Gilbert.  This delightful community of missionary Sisters serve in Mexico, Arizona and California.  This Religious Order was founded by Fray Bernardo de Santa Maria, OCD on the Feast of St. Teresa of Avila, October 15, 1940. There is such a sweet simplicity about their charism and manner as they follow the “Little Way” of St. Therese of the Child Jesus who did the ordinary things with great love, which would often go unnoticed.  Her example of humility is embodied in these Sisters who are dedicated to glorifying God in their service and their praise.  Hna. Maria del Socorro is singing her own vocation song to the Lord in the video below (accompanied by Hna. Gloria).

Hasta luego.

¡Que vayan con Dios!

Tu Hermana en Cristo,

Sister Anthony Mary Diago, RSM