Our Father/Mother who envelops us with the beauty of your creation You speak to us with the language of polyphony and diversity. Your breath of life vivifies us and moves us to embrace each being. We contemplate how the blossoms of hope grow secretly. The humble mystery of Mother Earth nurtures your fruitful love. How can we not unite ourselves to the sacred symphony of creatures! How can we notRead More...

THE LORD HAS TRULY RESURRECTED HALLELUIA!!! Easter this year had a different flavor. The risen Christ is still alive in our lives. The Resurrection is not a theory or event of the past, but an experience that every day and every year we celebrate, not only to remember or fulfill the liturgical calendar, but to celebrate it as a foundational experience of faith that renews our commitment to the lifeRead More...

To better understand this great topic, it is necessary to understand the difference between empowerment and entrepreneurship. According to the UN, female empowerment consists of creating an environment that provides women with professional growth opportunities for both men and women. And female entrepreneurship is the set of businesses idealized or led by women and also includes the presence of women in leadership positions. The idea is that it becomes moreRead More...

It is with great joy, satisfaction and gratitude to God that we, the novices in the canonical year of the inter-African novitiate, in Angola, wish to share our experience at the beginning of our journey in the novitiate. From the first moment of our arrival at the formation house, we felt welcomed by the sisters and the other formation companions.  On the day of our arrival, we were welcomed withRead More...

We are the novices of the 2nd year, we begin the novitiate on February 24, 2022, Feast of Our Mother Foundress Ascension Nicol. In February 2023, we started our second year of novitiate with great expectation and illusion. We hope that at this very time of our journey, it will offer us opportunities to continue our vocational journey with enthusiasm. During the previous year, many experiences were lived, such as:Read More...

What a joy to know that Jesus Christ guides us at all times in this great mission which is to make him known and loved. In this Easter season, Jesus reveals himself even more and sends us to proclaim the Good News, to all  saying: how good it is to follow the risen Master and how good it is to be part of this family that proclaims the Savior, followingRead More...

Religious life is a continuous discernment. My great desire is to be a Sister, but for that it is necessary to go through different stages such as Aspirancy, Postulancy and Novitiate. I will talk about my experience in the stage of conscience, the “Postulancy”. A practical example that I use to define it: women who choose the vocation of marriage go through stages such as falling in love, courtship andRead More...

From my work experience at the Milange District Hospital, I have accompanied many cases of children who lose their mother before the age of one year due to various diseases or complications of childbirth, which if they had arrived in time could have saved their lives. But long distances, difficult and impassable roads especially in rainy weather easily lead to traditional treatment and delay in getting to the hospital. ThatRead More...

The postulancy is the stage that precedes the novitiate, another stage of religious life. Like any other life, those who decide to follow Jesus live many beautiful experiences of the encounter with the Risen One, in this Easter season, as well as in other liturgical seasons that the Church offers us. And at this stage one lives several experiences; these are the ones I am living as a postulant, startingRead More...

Easter 2023 was different from all the others that each one of us has already lived, because everything pointed us to the newness of Jesus Christ Dead and Risen, who passes through the life of these suffering people! We thought we should give a different tone to our Easter celebration and so it happened. The children entered into a scenic space, as this year the pastoral ministry gave them aRead More...

Whenever the month of February or May 14 arrives, the day we celebrate the Beatification of our MOTHER ASCENSION NICOL, sentimentally, we feel our umbilical cord united to this great woman. The desire to know her in depth grows more and more and the happiness of walking with her is even greater. In the perspective of reviewing our life, passing through the teachings of her virtues she left as aRead More...

There are several ways of understanding death. Generally, we understand death as a temporary end of life, a non-existence. In the days of the pandemic, this was one of the words that we tried not to verbalize, to avoid rumbling in our environment, we avoided recognizing and even without realizing it, we were already in it by saturation in all forms of information and life where we were. Truly, weRead More...

I write from the Barrio de la Graça, in the outskirts of Benguela, a neighborhood difficult to access in the rainy season, with a high rate of juvenile delinquency, where the Mosaiko team, (NGO of our Dominican Friars in Angola) composed of three people, including myself, are facilitating a training with the theme: “Defending, protecting and restoring the victim of sexual abuse”. The training aims to contribute to improve theRead More...

Knowing and recognizing oneself as a woman is truly a source of energy that generates vitality and the desire to fight more and more to achieve dignity and fulfillment in personal, family and social life. When this experience is lived in a group of reflection and debate, it revives the awareness that we are inhabited by an inner strength capable of overcoming difficulties and our own limitations, because at theRead More...

It is not easy to describe what the passage of a hurricane meant in the life of a city, the city of Quelimane in Mozambique. It took almost three days to suffer the devastating effects of its destructive force. Intense rains as no one remembered to have lived and hurricane-force winds that reached a speed of over 200 km/h. Every possible imagination, even the most productive, will be dwarfed byRead More...

We do not speak of seeds without a sower, we cannot think of sowing if there is not first a fertile soil, so that the seed does not scatter. Before we go deeper into our reflection on Blessed Ascension Nicol our mother and foundress, let us be guided by the word of God, the life that makes us live: “Many people from everywhere following looking for Jesus. When there wasRead More...

The sisters at Nicol Bhavan, Kawant, Gujarat India are glad to share their noble work with women. The community is situated at the tribal areas- indigenous people. The tribe is called “Rathwa Tribes” they are economically and socially backward community as they are illiterate and are caught up in their traditional taboos, magic and social norms which do not allow them to develop or empower their community. The sisters ofRead More...

Dear Sisters and Friends, I am writing this letter from Quelimane where I have come for a few brief days to visit the sisters and their families in this situation of sadness and desolation in which all the people of Zambezia find themselves. I do not know if I will be able to reconcile my thoughts to be able to succinctly share the suffering that all these people are goingRead More...

“I will win, not immediately but definitely”. Indeed, with such encouragement aspiring to find God in ordinary episodes of life. The Nicol Bhavan boarding day was celebrated along with the Feast of Bl. Mother Ascension Nicol on 19th February, 2023 with the theme, ‘Udaan’.   Sr. Zita was the chief guest of the day. Jamliben, who has been rendering her service in boarding for 26 years was the guest of honor.Read More...

“You have to dream before your dream comes true”., said Abdul Kalam. The tribal belt of Kawant dares to dream breaking their stereotypical societal barriers by educating their daughters. We the Dominican Sisters join hands with them by providing the facility to stay at Nicol Bhavan Boarding and study. The boarding began on 12th June 2022 with ninety-seven girls from different villages studying from grade 2 to 10 of GujratiRead More...

Today, Matruchhaya had International Women’s Day celebration. Sr. Meena Dhabi, our Provincial Coordinator, was the Chief Guest and Sr. Zita de Souza, our Vice Provincial was the Guest of Honour. There are 100 women from different villages who participated in the celebration. The cultural program added colour to the celebration.  The group composed of 21 students who completed Shivan classes and Beautician course were honored with the certificates. Sr. MeenaRead More...

Luisa Perez (Humbelina) after 40 years working as a schoolteacher and at the age of 56, decided to come to Monte Plata and together with Carmen Cuadrado and Tere Pagan, founded a community of insertion in this town, one of the poorest in the country, in 1985. After an assessment of the situation, the priority was to work with women, due to their marginalized situation, their subjection to machismo andRead More...

Pilar Baratech was one of the first Missionary Dominican Sisters of the Rosary who arrived in Guatemala more than 50 years ago and became a Guatemalan citizen. And together with other sisters, they opened breaches in a different reality and culture. Several of them remained planted in these sacred lands. She and the other sisters have accompanied the different historical moments of the country and in the same way sheRead More...

Let us climb the mountain with you, our humanity  longs to be transfigured, embraced in its wound illumined in its night sheltered in its homelessness listened to in its groaning caressed in its limit healed in its heartbreak transfigured in its desolation. May the faces disfigured by war and hunger be transfigured by you. May the disfigured faces of migrants at the borders be illuminated by your hope. May noRead More...

The children of 5 villages were gathered at Nicol Bhavan today. Today is the day to appreciate the efforts made by these kids to continue their studies. It is also a day to honor the educators who worked hard to make the dream of promoting quality education to these kids, their families and community. The kids were given prizes for the various competitions conducted during year and an educational kitRead More...

This afternoon Faustina arrives at our house with great enthusiasm because she is starting an online course on Feminist Theology. In spite of her interest in the subject, she comes with many doubts and above all a concern: How will a course of this type be? Today, seeing her with this interest, self-confidence and openness, my thoughts take me back to years ago: Faustina, a widowed woman with a son,Read More...

“Blessed women who in their daily walk make history a cry of freedom, of love and hope, of love and hope.” In the south of the country, there was a team that accompanied the peasants of the region in the knowledge and demand of their rights. They were pleased to see that women, and also religious women, felt this call to accompany the doubly exploited peasant women, as Bishop Zubieta spoke toRead More...

As part of our options as Missionary Dominican Sisters of the Rosary, from our origins we have prioritized the accompaniment of women, their growth and empowerment. In this month of March in which we commemorate the International Women’s Day, we want to share with you from the community of Puerto Rico, the work of a center that we have been supporting since 2015 in the presence of one of ourRead More...

What does St. Joseph mean or has meant for your life? We ask our sisters who pertains to this Province of Central America and Caribe because Sr. Josefina Sarrazin had the inspiration to put the Province under the protection of St. Joseph. What I do remember, and many sisters will remember is that during the years I joined the Congregation in the Novitiate of Pamplona, in 1963, there was aRead More...

“There is the martyrdom of those who are put to death for not denying Jesus Christ…. But there is also the daily martyrdom, which does not entail death, but which is also one type of “losing one’s life” for Christ, fulfilling one’s duty with love, according to the logic of Jesus…!” Pope Francis, Angelus of July 4, 2013. – “Hurry up, the bus is coming!”, Sister Teresa shouts from theRead More...

The Buddhist Monastery in Fo Shan Guang was situated on top of the mountain where you can see the big Buddha on both sides, the landscape and the architectural design was so great. The place has two big monasteries, one for the female monks and the other for the male monks. They have their own schools, library, temples museum, cemetery, a big dining hall that accommodates hundreds of people. TheRead More...

I am Maribel Cintrón, alumna, teacher, mother and member of the Lourdes School management team. I share with you my experience with the community of the MDR Sisters. The Missionary Dominican Sisters founded the Lourdes School in 1958, oriented to the education of girls and young women. Later, at the request of the parents, the school became coeducational. The sisters have always distinguished themselves for their genuine and selfless dedicationRead More...

What does St. Joseph mean or has meant for your life?  Since I was a little girl, the figure of St. Joseph was projected to me as it was traditional at that time: the Jewish carpenter, husband of Mary, putative father of Jesus, etc. In a word, what the Gospels tell us and what is understood as a historical event. In my house, St. Joseph was celebrated as a familyRead More...

When we read the Bible with the eyes, mind and heart of a woman, we realize that we have many “chingonas” women as they say in Mexico, that is women who are brave, tough, who taught us to speak and not to remain silent when someone wants to take away something that belongs to us. By this, I mean to the family inheritance of land or other material goods. TheRead More...

What does Saint Joseph mean or has he meant to your life?  My first memory of Saint Joseph is that as a teenager I liked to collect prints of virgins and saints. I remember one of Jose carrying the Child Jesus. He is dressed in green and brown, and the child in white. He was the father of Jesus, a carpenter, quiet, I knew little else about him. Already atRead More...

God’s hands are visible in the hands of so many women who care, who caress and heal wounds with tenderness. Even in our times, the economy of care is still in the hands of women. Mothers, sisters, friends, caregivers, hired or volunteer women are present in the care of the most vulnerable, offering their knowledge, help, companionship and listening. To show those hands of God that come at the rightRead More...

Sister María Jesús Mompó was born and raised in Ollería, a town south of Valencia, Spain, along with her three brothers, she was the eldest. She arrived in the islands of Puerto Rico in 1961 with the Congregation of the Missionary Dominican Sisters of the Rosary to carry out her mission as a registered nurse. She worked for almost six decades at Pavia Hospital in Santurce, Puerto Rico.  In additionRead More...

To what can I compare the strength of a woman? I mean, the inner vigor and zest for life… The courage to face danger to promote and uphold the dignity of such beautiful life. Where can I find a good model of a life-bearer than a mother ready to give even her very own to bring new life into this planet? To which can I attribute the unknown sacrifices manyRead More...

It is my privilege to have this beautiful chance to be with these children in Catechism Class. Being with them is my joy because they make me feel the joy of caring (as that of motherhood), but a real nurturing of life that was gifted in me. Their presence allows me to see beyond that they are the hope of the Church, especially for Taiwan.   In the famous words of Jesus,Read More...

Heavenly Father, our Almighty and ever-living God, we praise your name and glorify you for you have caused all things to existence and have fashioned all to bear the grandeur of your love for all of humanity. You have shown to women and men down the generations that we are the apple of Your eye and You readily treat us with mercy and undivided love. In your plan to saveRead More...

Ascension Nicol, you are the beautiful flower that stands out in the morning; you are the joy that God send into the world 155 years ago. In your early life you inspired the people, attracted them with your capacity, gave such fragrance as a rose, and made people feel free to approach you. Your beautiful eyes became the light to guide you and others in the darkest time. Your sweetRead More...

Right after our final commitment to the three Evangelical Counsels, we have been sent to different fields of mission.  I, with one of my companions, Sr. Nelia, were sent on a new mission, which is to teach in the Dominican International School of Kaohsiung. Personally, I am so humbled, and my heart is filled with gratitude for the wonderful privilege to be in this Mission which was entrusted to meRead More...

On this occasion of the feast day of our Mother and Queen of the Holy Rosary which is also the feast day of our Congregation, as we entrust to her all the needs of our Institution and acknowledge the Blessed Mother Mary as protectress and model to each one of us in our calling, I am humbled and honored to share with you my response to the Lord who calledRead More...

Mark 4:22-23 shows the life of Jesus as a coexistence, “among people”, he used to leave the borders and crossed seas and mountains for the preaching of the Gospel, showing how the Kingdom can be lived, highlighting day by day the priority of the Father’s will. Jesus as model and inspiration is our Way and Life. He calls us to take steps, by his example we feel impelled by hisRead More...

Christmas is the encounter with the child who is born, it is a sign of Hope, of personal and community renewal.                    In fact, this season reminds us that no one should be excluded from human fraternity. The carpenter’s son who offers his life as a ransom for many, who prefers to “serve and not be served” and to give life and dignity to all the crucified of this world. EvenRead More...

At a time when doubt and uncertainty seem to be the usual commodity in our society, we seek refuge in the One who has created not time, but eternity…  KEEP GOING…  We put a mark in history as we age and witness the passing of time, the celebration of silver and golden anniversaries and even diamond celebrations–of weddings or religious professions. I think it is important to be part ofRead More...

Milage is the most populated district in the Zambezia province, twice bigger than the provincial capital with 619,275 inhabitants. Among them 331,822 are women, that is to say, they are more than 50% of the total population. The population is predominantly young and rural, very dispersed, with hard and impassable roads, especially in rainy season. Bikes are the only mean of transportation of the population. There are primary schools upRead More...

Thursday, June 9th, we celebrated a homage in honor to sister Mariluz due to her dedication and love towards missions Thursday, June 9th, we met in Casa Hispana to homage Maria Luz Pacheco for her retirement. For over 20 years she has been the loving voice and the first person to welcome all those people who became interested in supporting the work of the Dominican missionaries. During the event, inRead More...

From the land of mojenos and trinitarios, in San Ignacio de Moxos, Beni Department, Bolivia, is where I feel that God has sent me to live as a Dominican Missionary of the Rosary, fulfilling the Centenary dream of the Congregation: “To search for new Maldonados.” This place has a lush vegetation and is a land rich in spiritual and cultural spaces. There are many colors and sounds, very typical fromRead More...

I remember in September 2013; we were faced with such dark nights that lasted months although the firing and bombing lasted a week-long. Zamboanga was devastated. Yet, our faith made us lift our eyes through invocations seeking the aid of Our Lady of the Pillar, to lead us to Jesus´ boundless love. Such trust has led most of us Zamboangueños to have mercy and forgiveness for those who abused powerRead More...

During our visit to the native community of Maranniato, in the Kugapacori territorial reserve, in Alto Camisea, we were asked about the situation of the first-grade children, who did not have a classroom to study. What they had, already in a pitiful state, had finally been totally undone. The community, which had wood and some calamine, asked for support to the Kirigueti mission to build a new classroom to receiveRead More...

“And she answered YES I will go; I will go to the Jungle”  Blessed Ascension Nicol was a woman of faith and trust. She was so silent in her words and actions. Her first call was to be a Cloistered Religious Nun. She dedicated her whole life to serve God in the convent for many years. She was also teaching in the school for over 28 years. However, her desireRead More...

When I was a novice, we had the chance to watch a movie entitled “Departure”. From the title itself it sounded like aeronautics thrills, flights, or airports. But, surprisingly it was about the noble task of preparing bodies for burial. It portrayed the care, respect and entering into that scenario of paying last respect to a body created with dignity. That was the very time I began thinking and ponderingRead More...

The fact that we are born in a certain place, people know us as we are, what we do for a living or merely one of those who live in that place. Our origin speaks a lot about our ways, our intonations and sometimes our thinking. Like in the Gospel today, a phrase tells us of people who were marveling (or could be questioning) the ways of Jesus, He isRead More...

In history, we have seen and surely, we have had the inspiration of so many people beginning with the apostles, disciples and those persecuted for believing in the Gospel of Jesus. The goal is the life that Jesus taught and showed us to live, the conviction to follow and trust the life that he gives us, and the strength that sustains us both physically and spiritually. Everything is presented toRead More...

Lunar New Year, Tết, is a special celebration for countries utilizing the lunar calendar, Vietnam, is one of them. Everywhere, from the city to the countryside, from the roads to houses, from schools, markets to offices, the peach blossom flowers, red papers are there announcing the start of spring season. It is time to go home for the celebration. The children are happy with new clothes, the adults would cleanRead More...

Very dear sisters: We hope that you are in good health and in good spirits in all the communities. In this privileged time in which we prepare to celebrate our XXI General Chapter, recalling our Foundress takes on an even more special significance. The person of Ascension Nicol has within herself a testimonial force that always pushes us forward. Deepening in the traits of her rich personality, has in usRead More...

“Religious life won’t mean a thing if one doesn’t encounter God in the Convent” On the first day on 2013, I decided to enter in the convent I did not know what it means to be a Religious Missionary. All I knew was that I will be with Christ. During the aspirancy and postulancy, all I thought was that being a Religious Missionary is enough, if one knows how toRead More...

I was staring at you, yes, I am, without ceasing.Oh, what a beauty is this, that my soul is at PEACE.In the silence of the night,I whisper my sorrow and hardship in His ears.Oh, what a gentle Lover who holds me peacefully. What else do I look for;I have everything now;I have you, Jesus, my Divine Prisoner of Love.His embrace is my LIGHT.His silence is my rest.His calmness is myRead More...

This is my very first-time celebrating Christmas in the Philippines. My co-novices and I were so excited and curious about how the celebration of Noel will be. Although we made Belem and made decorations in our community to bring forth the spirit of Christmas. We wished to see the decoration around the city, too. It was so nice that on 26th December, three communities in Manila gathered to celebrate Christmas.Read More...

December 10 is popularly known as International Human Rights Day. East Timor joins in this important day to give honor, recognition and to salute to those who silently work for the common good.  In the recently concluded Sergio Vieira de Mello Awards, the President of the Democratic Republic of East Timor, Francisco Guterres Lú Olo awarded four winners based on Social, Economic and Cultural categories which promote, defend, and continueRead More...

On December 1st and 2nd, I joined the novice’s common study, where I met many novices from different Dominican congregations. We are from different parts of Asia -East Timor, Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, and Myanmar.  Set aside the diversities, we gathered under the roof called “Dominican Family”. This great family invites us to continue to live in fraternity and build up friendship among its members. Thus, to better understand true friendshipRead More...

Fifty-seven years after the death of our sisters Maria del Buen Consejo, Maria Candida, Maria Justa, and Maria Olimpia, the blood of our martyr sisters watered in African lands is still very much alive among us. Their spirit is very present in our midst. As they say “blood of martyrs, seed of a Christian” that is exactly what we contemplated on November 28th, the wonders of the Lord, here inRead More...

Our hearts overflows with the songs of praise and thanks for the wonderful and precious gift of our Father Founder Ramon Zubieta.  The month of November 2021 was with our father founder, our faith journey with him, as we reflected on his life and the inspiring missionary writings that depict his struggle, adventurous journey and his determination to spread the kingdom of God on earth.    Paying tribute to thisRead More...

We are happy to begin our new journey in Philippines. It is our joy to share our life and activities in the Asian continental novitiate. We are a mix group in cultures and nations. Four of us are from Vietnam, three from East Timor and one from Myanmar. Our activities were as follows: On October 1st is the arrival of Novices to the Asian Continental Novitiate after completing their tenRead More...

Dear sisters, I wanted to share with you the experience that I am having in the province of San MartIn de Porres, precisely in the provincial house. My time of experience is full of various activities, such as: community tasks, different courses on the life of Santo Domingo, the history of the Congregation, the apostolate at the Lisungi Hospital Center … I arrived at the Provincial House of the DominicanRead More...

Books play a great role in our lives. Today, reading is less and less popular with young people and adults. Young people have lost their reading habits due to the influence and impact of social networks. They prefer to consult a Facebook account, check Twitter, send WhatsApp messages, see the photos of friends, publish their own content … in short, they prefer to be up to date instead of takingRead More...

The Jubilee in the tradition of the Church is a great religious event. It is the year of the remission of sins; It is the year of reconciliation between adversaries, of conversion and of sacramental penance and, consequently, of solidarity, hope, justice, commitment to the service of the Lord in joy and peace with the brothers. The Jubilee Year is above all the year of Christ, bearer of life andRead More...

We had the usual gathering of religious men and women. But this Sunday was very special because it was a moment of relaxation to get to know each other better as well as our different congregations. The meeting took place in the house of the Sisters of the Holy Union. The start of the activities was scheduled for 3:00 p.m., after the installation of the members, we began with aRead More...

This was my goal when I arrived at the place of my apostolic practices in Batcham-Fiela on April 21st, 2021. In fact, my pastoral work was very broad (hospital, parish, neighborhood) and in all this I only wished the good for my brothers and sisters through my evangelical witness. In the hospital I was in charge of receiving the sick to take their parameters, I made an effort to beRead More...

How can we define “COMmunity?” Within the normal, of everyday life, an unusual situation appeared, which made us tremble, makes us restless. We were locked in, nervous and scattered because of the Covid. With this situation, I turned my head towards my heart; I look for the light, an answer, in something that I can understand how fear can enter our apparently stable and organized life. We were united andRead More...

Being a teacher and a student in this time of pandemic is very challenging. As a teacher, it is not easy if one is not knowledgeable enough in technology. “New Normal” way of learning is not easy at the beginning, because of the needed connectivity between teachers and the learners is not guaranteed virtually. When it comes to this form of education, this requires more effort from students and moreRead More...

Having lived the Covid threats for several months with Spain as one of the third highest death reports in the world, was so alarming and left us almost paranoid at times. It was so when I lived those days either in the university or among the roads going back home in Madrid. It was a very challenging experience from hygiene, care for others and keeping distance from friends and evenRead More...

 Initially, I find this topic nothing stimulating, palatable much less interesting to write on particularly during this pandemic time ushered in by covid- 19 into the global world, given the fact that this unwelcomed guest and most dreaded, enemy brought into our lives almost every bad omen and disaster we could have thought of and had never expected. Nevertheless, allow me to glean positive factors that certainly would be moreRead More...

The overstaying pandemic is still with us for more than a year, it has affected rapidly our day-to-day life… Waking up each day in this ambiance of quarantine and lockdown days come along uncertainties and several questions keep coming into our minds and hearts: Where have all those dormers gone, that they left all rooms empty? Where are all those smiles from their innocent faces? Where are all their greetingsRead More...

Privileges and benefits shattered? We can face these if we have the right values and concern for each other. “Evil is powerless if the good is unafraid.” (Pres. Ronald Reagan) Be of the higher or lower bracket of society, many of us have experienced living comfortably in our means without depending or relying on charity. The poor are the most vulnerable level of society and as we know, financial struggleRead More...

Christians often speak of having a “vocation” or being “called”. Many of us are likely familiar with stories of “call” and how an individual was led to become a religious. We, the Dominicans, profess obedience, and embrace a life of poverty and chastity for the sake of the Kingdom. Embracing one’s vocation is done in God and not only for oneself, but also to serve others. The workplace where aRead More...

“The One who calls you is faithful, and He will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:24). I would like to share my experience right after our Canonical novitiate in Manila, Philippines where we also made our temporal profession last 8 of September 2020. Prior to our profession, we were told by our Provincial as to what would be our assigned task. It so happened that, my assignment would also be inRead More...

COVID-19 has brought school closure from meeting students and teachers face to face physically. Although schools began partially, re-opening virtually five months later in August of last school year, far-reaching restrictions remain in place and any predictions as to when closures will be, seems to be hardly possible now. Consequently, teachers face significant challenges in adapting to online teaching and maintaining at least a minimum of communication with students andRead More...

As this covid19 hit the wold in its utmost it has caused so many changes at almost everything in the globe. Coping with the challenges that we are all confronted with the world and the geniuses / intelligence of man are in constant battle. One of the many changes and coping that had caught my attention is the coining or forming of words following new lifestyle that the world namesRead More...

 What does all this mean to me? The washing of the feet -for an Asian person like me- has always been an important act of the Holy Week, an almost unforgettable and indispensable ritual in the parish of my birth as in the universal Church. I had no idea of European customs or cultural interpretations of everything that the act of “washing” expresses, because in Asia it is “kissing theRead More...

As a missionary belonging to San Luis Beltran Province, am called for a new mission. God sent me four years ago to Vietnam as a new member of the Province of Reina de China. Vietnam is a place ideally dreamt of by our Founders. It is a place where freedom of speech is curtailed, and our apostolic activities are limited and being monitored by authorities of the land. To beRead More...

Yes, in our world and the reality of our environment and the society we live in, we are as a species or weirdos. Our presence “seems” a way of the old normality causes a contrast but a shock to the society in which we live, the coexistence with the young and even more, in Europe. It is true, there are different ways of seeing reality, but what marks life itselfRead More...

Our life is a journey filled with lessons, hardships, heartaches, joys, celebrations, and special moments that will ultimately lead us to our destination, our purpose in life. The road will not always be smooth, in fact, throughout our travel, we will encounter many challenges. Some of these challenges will test our courage, strength, weaknesses, and faith. Along the way, we may stumble upon obstacles that will come between the pathsRead More...

The Missionary Dominican Sisters of the Rosary is a religious congregation with a purpose, helping people who are in need. One of those people they were able to help is my father named Apolonio D. Solis. They were the helping hand and the door to my father’s success in his career. Without them, my father would not have been able to finish his studies and became who he is now.Read More...

Coming home is always a joy to anyone, especially when you spent some good years away from family, community, and friends. Excitement crawls instantly and takes you like a whirlwind and even leaves us out of context! Suddenly faces of loved ones, of friends and even places set us adrift. In fact, right on the first day of April, I started thinking how it would be to travel these days.Read More...

When I study about your life I was amazed at how you comforted the natives who need your comfort amidst the hardship that you face. You embrace the mission with all your heart even it includes moments of laughter and tears, works and struggles and by all means, you use your heart in a special way. You share the fruits of your contemplation with the natives by uplifted their dignityRead More...

Gathered in our first Plenary Session of this year 2021, the Catholic Bishops of Mozambique, with hearts full of sadness, as every Mozambican citizen who identifies with the good of the country; we deplore the tragic situation experienced by the population of Cabo Delgado. We regret the prevailing insecurity among the population in the center of the country and we are unhappy with the food insecurity and hunger that affectRead More...

From “Bambo Ramon” community, Milange, Mozambique, I want to share a bit of my experience of less than a year. We are an intercultural and intergenerational community made up of five sisters, four in perpetual vows and a junior who is sharing her experience with you. The first thing I did was integration to make good community coexistence possible, knowing that we are all people of values, but also ofRead More...

This project aims to welcome homeless people who live on the streets, offer a daily meal and guide them to rehabilitation alternatives. The Apostolic Nunciature began this project, but it was co-responsible for different religious Congregations, parishes, and lay people in the Archdiocese. Personal hygiene services are offered daily for all users who present themselves and require this service, in the project’s facilities. They can also enjoy a daily mealRead More...

Inhassunge is an Island and a suburban area located in the south of Zambézia province. The population lives on the basis of agriculture, fishing and informal trade. There is a lot of lack of employment and little motivation in school education. Most of the population belongs to and attends the Christian church. And they are very dedicated to church activities. It has been very difficult to travel from Quelimane toRead More...

“After telling Monsignor Zubieta’s life to kids from 6 to 9 years old from our school “Colegio Flori” in Porto, we asked this question: What did you like most about Ramon Zubieta’s life?  As representation of all the aswers the children gave, we chose the drawing that you can see here and the following statement: “It was to know that he was a missionary Father who helped the world withRead More...

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The “ASCENDING LAY PEOPLE ” – LEA – is a little bit informal group linked to the Congregation which was born in 1994 based on the love and experience that unite several people to the IMDR. This group meets three times a year (almost always in Fátima, a very special place for everyone) and, throughout the year, it feeds on its unity, friendship and family spirit through phone calls andRead More...

Residents said goodbye to the last two stalls in the 6 de Maio neighborhood in Amadora. The last two tents began to be demolished in the early morning of June 8TH, 2021, in a process that lasted for several hours and was accompanied by the Public Security Police and the municipality of Amadora. More than 20 years later, the eradication process is finally complete. The last house to be demolishedRead More...

The world has been affected by a sanitary crisis, the same one that has hit heavily various sectors. One of them is education, that has gone through difficult situations, affecting public as well as private schools. The private school “Santa Rosa” from Huacho city, has also suffered these hits, but through the work of its members; teachers and administrative and supportive staff have all make efforts to moving forward ourRead More...

I am Mariana de Jesus Oñate Bayas, an Ecuadorian woman who has been part of the Santo Domingo de los Tsachilas Community for the last 9 months. Briefly, I will share what has influenced me to start the family urban kitchen gardens: I was raised in the countryside. Mi mother cultivated and loved her land. In this year, the Centenary of our Founding Father, we have focused on his experience:Read More...

In-person classes suspension due to the sanitary situation we are currently living and the necessity of guaranteeing the continuation of our students’ learning have imposed challenges on teachers and families. These challenges belong to a curriculum implementation and actions of socio-economic support to families and school staff; new forms for developing pastoral projects; prioritization of competencies; use of technological tools; interactive methodologies; style of organization-communication and adaptation of activities inRead More...

I assumed the commitment of accompanying girls and adolescents in the project “Promocion de la mujer” (“Woman promotion”) of the Dominican Missionary Sisters of the Rosary in the Boarding School Santa Rosa in San Ignacio, Cajamarca, because we value countryside girls’ education, since the importance it has for their development in relation to all the dangers that they face. I arrived at the boarding school on March 10th, a weekRead More...

To talk about my experience as principal, is to talk about a place that opened its doors to me many years ago: The Educative Institution “De Jesus.” This community -located in Lima, Peru- is about to celebrate its 102nd anniversary during this June. This school is an educative work of the Dominican Missionary Sisters of the Rosary Congregation, which looks for educating children and teenagers through a Christian human vision.Read More...

My name’s Maria Eras, I am married, and I have three children. For me, participating in creating vegetable gardens has been important. To know the land, prepare it, fertilizer it, planting seeds and then taking care of them to harvest them is a huge process. Nature teaches us to practice the virtue of patience. At the end, we harvest our own vegetables, for our family, for the community. The contactRead More...

I am Erlitha Trajano Conde. My student life in primary school were at the Sepahua boarding school, which is administrated by the Dominican Missionary Sisters of the Rosary. Then, I attended Lambeyeque’s residence, which is also dependent of the sisters. Here, I studied business administration. I have lived a very beautiful experience and, I have had the opportunity of preparing myself professionally in Sepahua as well as in Lambeyeque. SomeRead More...

I have been asked to write some lines about my experience in the Quinindé community in Ecuador and since I love sharing, that is what I will do. I arrived to Quinindé on September 16th, 2020, after my lockdown in Quito for six months. I came searching for a bigger commitment with the impoverished faces of Ecuador and I have found it here in the “Nuevos Horizontes” neighborhood among afro-EcuadorianRead More...

“It is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me” (Gal 2:20) “The novitiate is a fundamental stage in the process of formation to the consecrated life. It aims at deepening the specific values of religious life, a life of prayer, as a response to the call of Christ incarnate in the history of humanity”.   We are first year novices, we are enjoying the new experienceRead More...

Novitiate experience – 2nd year “The Lord is my light and my Salvation, whom I shall fear (Ps. 27)”. By this we mean that the Lord is the source of everything and, therefore, we place all our trust in Him at every moment of our life and vocational journey. Dear Sisters, We, the second-year novices, are happy to share with the sisters of the congregation our experience of two monthsRead More...

https://youtu.be/V_XTL-k5CJk San Ignacio de Mojos (Beni), May 2 (ANF). – The atmosphere of the Beni population of San Ignacio de Mojos is continuously impregnated with spirituality and religiosity, of what once were the Jesuit reductions of Mojos, back in the XVII and XVIII centuries. But, unlike what happened to several of them after the expulsion of the Jesuits from America, in Mojos the traditions cultivated by the natives and missionariesRead More...

In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.Read More...

  Sister Maria Fernanda launched a call some time ago inviting us to write something to share it on our web page of MDR. The difficult part of that is to sit and organize the ideas of what we expect to share with the sisters due to our “excess” of duties. Meanwhile, I encourage myself to write this brief article to talk a little bit about my experience with communitiesRead More...

On February 8 of this year, I went on mission to the community of Nzagi, in the province of Lunda-Norte as a request of the provincial council to accompany the two junior sisters, due to the absence of the coordinator for health reasons. After all, where is the Nzagi community? Nzagi is located 80 km from the city of Dundo, capital of the province of Lunda – Norte, in theRead More...

In this fable a rich farmer -who was conscious he was living his final days- called his children and says: “Be careful” he says, “do not sell the inheritance that our parents let us.” Since he had become a farmer, what he inherited from his parents and forbids his children to do, is to sell the land. If he became a rich Farmer was due to his work. However, longRead More...

After spending my holidays with my family and integrating myself to the novice community, I started my missionary experience in the Lisungi hospital. I found it a little bit strange to work among these people, who have plenty of experience in the field of medicine. What I worried most about was to know what my contribution would be.  What could I contribute to the mission I was trusted? By theRead More...

I arrived at Betania community and some months later I was visited by young people from Xaveri movement asking me to join them. I did not doubt to submerge in this adventure of working with young people from Saint Jean-Baptiste parish, so then together we could trace our lives following Christ’s example. Xaveri movement was born in Bukavu on September 7th, 1952 by an initiative of revered Father George Defour,Read More...

Our community of novices has the postulancy of supervising children under thirteen years of age of our neighbor, most of them are not catholic; our main worry is to contribute to their growing by spiritual and moral formation. Our motto is: prayer, service, sharing, and entertaining. We meet every Saturday from 3:30 pm to 4:30 pm. On the days of our meetings friends are very satisfied: they share school lessonsRead More...

The idea of a community within the land of our hospital Simbok in Yaunde has been around our minds for about 10 years, but during all this time, the brave sisters challenge the bet of distance (about 3 kilometers) in limit dangerous conditions due to the disrepair of the highway for many years. Thanks God and the pavement of the highway, the situation has significantly improved. Population has grown atRead More...

My dear sisters, it is with great emotion that I take advantage of the opportunity of our web site to share with you the event that took place during the night from December 29th-30th in our community of Betania. Imagine dear sisters that I was sleeping in the middle of the night when about 1 am a group of thieves broke into our plot: two in front of my windowRead More...

Dear sisters, it is a pleasure to share with you our diverse encounters celebrated in 2020 about reflections sent by the sisters of the formation team. We met in the community of novitiate of the borough of Mont Ngafula in Cite Pumbu. The community of novitiate forms the frontier between the Diocese of Kinshasa and Kisantu, where the sisters perform their pastoral work.  We reflected about three topics: The roadRead More...

Looking to live to the fullest our evangelizing mission, we fully dedicate to take care of patients through our center located in Simbok, a few hours by car from our community. To do this, the sisters -who are responsible of our formation- wanted that us, the postulants, would also try to be immersed in this project. Therefore, we work three days one week and six days in another week withRead More...

This is the main topic in a visual communication sign developed by the Episcopal Conference of Cameroon (ECC) and that I found in our new health center since September. Since I was not present there during the moment it was installed, I am unaware of the circumstances in which the ECC decided to spread such message, which in addition is shown in the middle of a hospital environment. Rapidly, IRead More...

Dear sisters, with great joy I want to share with you my experience in the Betania Community (Bumbu). After completing a year and a half in the novitiate, I was assigned to Betania for my communitarian experience. Once I arrived, I was received by the elder sisters. They help me to integrate myself here and, as main task in this community, being secretary. The secretary task was to make notesRead More...

On the third Sunday of January, we participated in the retreat held by the Discalced Carmelites that had as motto: MAN, IMAGE OF GOD (Genesis 1, 26 &ss). We started this day of meditation with praises followed by the conference and it ended with the celebration of the Eucharist. To know better the topic, the orator of the day divided his teaching into two sub-topics: To feel loved by God.Read More...

Coronavirus, as it has been everywhere, has affected a lot our habits. Among them, the closing of churches. In fact, one of the measures taken to protect people was to forbid public reunions. It was not easy to accept it and to live that strong moment, we lived six months of anguish without Eucharist in the parish. On August 15th, 2020, we celebrated our first mass with believers in theRead More...

Our work of Simbok has been working for 12 years: THE CATHOLIC MEDICAL CENTER NUESTRA SENORA DEL ROSARIO. Our Lady of the Rosary, the protector and mother of our Congregation has accompanied us in everything we have been doing. Little by little the hospital has grown until today we have more than 17 services such as: Cardiology, ECG, Echocardiogram, Dental Office, General Surgery, ORL, Pediatrics, Pharmacy, Operating room, Radiology, Dermatology,Read More...

“Sick people are our reason for being.” The dispensary where I work is commonly known in the neighborhood as “Hospital of the Sisters.” This means so much that this is a place of first resource, private and managed by nuns, which is a synonym of good reputation in general. It has been opened since 2008 and it is managed mainly by two Dominican nuns (Sisters Marie-Claire and Carine). Both areRead More...

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me…” Luke 4, 18   Jesus continues calling us to be sowers of hope, justice, love, joy and solidarity…   We are eight novices. Two of us in the confrontation stage: Angelica (Mexican) and Onelia (Guatemalan) and six in the projection stage: Leticia and Matilde (Guatemalans) Frania, Georgina, yaneth and Eveling (Nicaraguans).In this process we have been accompanied by our sisters Estibaliz LadronRead More...

It is a fact that Covid-19 has affected in different forms to everybody. It might also be that to some people it has been harder than others, but consequences can be noticed more and more and this is forcing us to change many life schemes.   We are worried to see hundreds of people infected and each day that number increases. It hurts for everybody to see those who wereRead More...

Santo Domingo, The Dominican Republic   For a year and a half, I have been working in Ciudad Alternativa, an institution originated in the Social Pastoral and the Ecclesiastic Communities of the Catholic Church. With more than 30 years of experience working for a more habitable city from everybody’s rights, Ciudad Alternativa has not only fight for the right to housing, but also for the right of basic services, suchRead More...

To lose and to win are not two antagonistic poles, both -from the idea I want to express- are complementary and illuminate each other mutually. As Dolores Aleixandre expresses so well “to win losing, to lose wining.”   It can be said that life has its contradictions, for that reason for wining we must know how to lose. What I mean about losing in this piece of writing is theRead More...

I am Maria del Carmen Cahuec Ixtecoc, a Guatemalan novice now living in Sabana Perdida in The Dominican Republic. In my first year of novitiate, I have had the opportunity of participating in the Political Formation School “Mama Tingo”, which accompanies young communitarian leaders by providing them reflection spaces in topics that help them to analyze social reality from a critical constructive conscious. In this process, I’m accompanied by MarisaRead More...

“My Spirit will always be with you”. November 19, 2020 is the feast day of Fr. Ramon Zubieta, as usual, the whole Congregation is preparing videos, and songs to remember him. We, in the Philippines, also celebrated this feast in respective communities. Each sister in their mission land has come together in the spirit of Fr. Zubieta to praise God and thanking Him for being a great father and Founder.Read More...

As we celebrate this year a centenary year of departure of Our Founder Msgr. Ramón Zubieta who passed away in Huacho, Peru, due to pneumonia in 1921, we would like to share with you some traits of His Missionary Spirituality. The Text is taken from the book “Mons. Zubieta y Les. Reflection about his Life, Chapter III. by Cecelia Valbuena, OP; Ed. Vicariate Apostolico de Puerto Maldonado. We believe thatRead More...

It has been more than thirty years back when as an aspirant, I started listening about Mons Ramon Zubieta y Les, one of the founders of MDR Congregation.   Yet, those stories told, of pictures and history presented along the years of formation (amid the passion of many story tellers and formators) remained “foreign” to me for it has not taken me into the roots of his very person, hisRead More...

“I can do all things in Christ who strengthens me” “Thank you Lord for the life” Dear Sisters: At the beginning of the Centenary of our Father Founder, the possibility of communicating with all of you is something we consider very great, so we would like to share with great joy and enthusiasm our first steps in the Congregational Juniorate. We moved to the Juniorate community on July 22nd andRead More...

This article has been written for publication in the bulletin of the Dominican Laity in Portugal. We, Dominican Missionaries of the Rosary, are once again living a Jubilee Year. A little more than 2 years ago, we celebrated the Centenary of the Foundation of the Congregation and now we are beginning this year which brings us to the Centenary of the death of Monsignor Ramon Zubieta y Les. OP, ourRead More...

I resume the appealing that Pope Francis made to young people in the World Youth Day in Panama: “Young people, you are not the future, you are God’s now.” With this, we could strengthen and put into practice the meaning of accompanying the vocational awake from a vocational culture revitalized by the young-vocational pastoral, which this year has been relevant due to the sanitary contingency that we have had toRead More...

The novel corona virus disease (Covid-19) that has been ravaging the world has thrown normal life out of gear for millions of people in India too with mounting number of infections and casualties.  National lock down was clamped on 24 March in a bid to protect the country and the citizens from the virulent virus. The national lock-down helped significantly to containing the spread of the virus and preventing theRead More...

In the middle of this sanitary crisis of Covid-19, a group of young people who study at DUOC UC (Higher education institute in Chile) keep their decision and option to maintain their preparation to get their sacraments in an online way (Baptism, First Communion and Confirmation). For them it was a time of great challenge, and above all, a commitment with their sacramental formation, since they had to find balanceRead More...

“Education and evangelization are today -more than ever before- interrelated” O.P. We are in the middle of a pandemic, which undoubtedly will remain in our retina for many more years; the pandemic has brought a series of adaptations within society, such as knowing adequately our emotions, reflecting on a social level, questioning our educational commitment and to recognize the responsibilities that we as educators cannot overlook. Today, in times ofRead More...

We all have experienced the passage of the pandemic in our lives, communities and mission throughout the year.   In Kirigueti (Peruvian jungle) we have had time at the beginning of the year to make a good planning of the pastoral work for the two parishes and to visit native communities of lower Urubamba. When we tried to carry out what we had planned and make our first trips, confinementRead More...

Compromise with the plurality Or what is the same, with the novelty of the Spirit. This is the moment in which consecrated life should be educated in one of its clearer vitality principles to overcome inertia that is always present. It is still perceived the belief that determined cultures answer to the charismas, while others are incapable of doing it. Religious families’ decentralization -which is evident from the quantitative pointRead More...

The wonderful experience I lived as teacher in Santa Rosa school in Puno, south of Peru at 3,824 meters above sea level is a milestone in my professional, missionary and personal life. Paraphrasing Mother Ascension Nicol “I have never felt so close to God as in those sixteen months in the mountain.” From that place I embraced the educational project “To educate from life for life” as a consolidation ofRead More...

The great professor Luis Jaime Cisneros said: “…few people talk about learning quality and the learning quality depends on the teaching quality and the teaching quality depends on the work with teachers.”   What Luis Jaime Cisneros states is undoubtedly a great truth, but for achieving it there are many factors that intervene, which must be combined correctly to mark our students and for us to be unforgettable teachers. ItRead More...

Dear sisters, every time that we share our experiences by sitting around a table, in our house, in a hall, in a road or walking on the street, we weave friendship and we grow in listening attitudes.   In this pandemic time shared by the whole world, we miss all the spaces for free that means of communication used to provide us. I do not know if these spaces haveRead More...

From 7th – 11th September, all the novices from 1st and 2nd year participated in a formation about human rights for a week. This formation was delivered by by Mosaiko, an institute for citenzenship. Mosaiko is an institution that belongs to the Dominican friars that facilitates seminaries about Human Rights to diverse social groups as well as schools. Its objective is to raise awareness among citizens about their rights. TheRead More...

For us, the Dominican Missionary Sisters of the Rosary, the year 2020 in Quilengues mission started just like any other year. We had a planning already done and we were with good spirit, hoping of course that God’s mercy and the Holy Spirit’s presence were with us all year long, so then all of our good purposes related to the mission would become true. Surprised by the restrictions imposed byRead More...

Would it be coincidence or God’s Providence! It was in July that a group of young people composed by explorers and committed acolytes with God and the church, who belong to different parishes of Luanda, Angola’s capital city, that call to our door sent by Fray Jacob OP to share their spirituality, dream and wish to help people in need during this phase of the pandemic. Their motto is “doRead More...

This is a Project that is part of the Caritas Archdiocesan of Malange. It started in the time of the armed conflict that devastated Angola during years and keeps working until these days after the conflict finished due to its relevancy in peasant women, who are the reason for its existence.   At the beginning of 1996 and as an answer to the necessities that displaced families by the civilRead More...

Before I share with you the form in which Jesus seduced me, I would like to greet all the sisters and I ask our founders’ spirits to accompany us, especially in this time of COVID-19.   I am Fatima Yambi, I was born in Huila province in Quilengues. I am 20 years old and I am a candidate of the Sao Martinho de Porres community in Viana.   I amRead More...

“God saw that the best way to help man was getting into our heart, getting into our nature, being one of us and walking with us, that is how God marked humanity” (Fray Joao Domingos OP)   God did not find another way to perceive and to get closer to us, thus to get into our reality and to become one of us and walk with us, giving us supportRead More...

According to William Arthur Ward: “Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgiving, turn routine jobs into joy and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.” I was struck this line because since when I was a child my parents taught me to say thank you when I received gifts or any other presents given by family and neighbor be it small or big thing, we need to say thank you.   TheRead More...

At The beginning of the pandemic of COVID-19, the whole world immerse itself in an enormous “fear”; sadness was visible on every face, mouths did not express anything but dismay. Means of communication transmitted terrible messages all day long: thousands of people were dying every day and hundreds of thousands got infected. The future seemed the worst. Finally, we were getting closer to the end of the world. Scientists, inRead More...