sisters of our lady of la salette: prison ministry and orphanage

Orphanage and Other Ministries of the Sisters of Our Lady of La Salette in the Philippines

A hungry child is humanity-deprived. And orphans are the most helpless around us. Simple faith allows us to see Christ on the faces of the hungry. - Frank de Leon, Pres., And You Gave Me Food

Meeting Sister Eva Marie

We met sister Eva Marie of The Sisters of Our Lady of La Salette, Philippine Province during our novena last June 18, 2011. She introduced us to the ministries and projects her congregation is doing in the Philippines and asked everyone to help them with our prayers, our talents and our financial support. Sister Eva Marie also gave emphasis on the Sisters’ prison ministry, bringing hope to the dismal conditions of the Philippine jails:

According to The Asia and Pacific Prison Forums , in Manila, a prison built to hold 800 detainees has more than 5,000. The prison in Quezon City is meant to cater for 815 people, but its population has reached nearly 3,500 inmates. This means each detainee has less than 0.3 square metres of space compared to three square metres per detainee stipulated by the United Nations. Detainees die of tuberculosis, chickenpox and other simple diseases that spread rapidly. Many prisoners die before their trial.

Sisters of Our Lady of La Salette in the Philippines

In the Philippines, the Sisters (of Our Lady of La Salette) are present in the provinces of Isabela, Bulacan, Cavite, and in Quezon City. Since education and professional training is an important part of their formation, the Sisters engage in various ministries: from teaching to administration, guidance and counseling in schools, from catechetical instruction in parishes to the formation of Basic Christian Communities in the barrios, animating Bible studies and prayer groups.

Social services have become an important part of their ministry and vocation. They are involved in family-life education and pro-life promotion and counseling. They manage the Marthe-Marie Center for Women, an intervention center for abused and battered women. Taking an option for the poor and marginalized, they go to the barrios and isolated villages where they help the poor farmers organize themselves into self-reliant families and communities. They are involved in health care, coordinating medical missions and directing organizations for the physically handicapped.

Working closely with the la Salette Missionaries at the National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette in Silang, Cavite, the La Salette Sisters facilitate retreats and weekend reflections for the Religious, seminarians, and laity. They help in the administration of the Shrine and the Youth Center. Truly missionary in spirit, they have reached out beyond their homeland.

Prisoners at a church service in a Philippine prison. Officials say a programme of activities has calmed inmates' mood. Photograph: Romeo Ranoco/Reuters

To help the Sisters:

Sisters of Our Lady of La Salette
Philippine Province
24 Maryland St., Cubao,
1109 Quezon City, Philippines

Contact Numbers: (2) 584-8658, 0915-206-6543
Email: sndsprovad2011@yahoo.com

Read more about the Sisters of Our Lady of La Salette

Sources: Photo: Cross International Catholic Outreach,guardian.co.uk Articles: The La Salette Sisters, The Asia and Pacific Prison Forums