August 29, 2025

And finally, my friends, a word from the youngest!
Hello. My name is Eliza Curtin
… Sister Mary Angela to you.
Do you believe that I too was born in Cork!
Quite a hotbed of Mercy, yes?

I was only fifteen when I came to the Sisters of Mercy.
They said I was a pure, young soul.
My fingers were never still.
I was a handywoman and artist.
It was my dream to be a saint and so to honor God.

I think as I look out at you, my sisters in the audience
You too came to Mercy as pure, young souls.
What a precious gift you gave …
each one of you – each one of us.
That simple gift is the foundation
Of God’s mighty works.

Not so young now, some of us?
But still, the pure young gift thrives.
How is that?

Prayer, my sisters, my friends.
It is the fountain of our spiritual youth.
No work … no exercise is more important
To the vitality of mercy.

It is through prayer
that we grow eternally young even as we age.
It is through prayer
that we can transcend our burdens
and are enfolded in the Providence of God.
In prayer, we become free.
In prayer, we become whole.

It is our elders, who have prayed the longest
who pray best.
They carry all the rest of us within their web of grace.
Their prayer, and mine, has fallen like pure white snow
On the landscape of your petitions,
Lifting your need in simplicity and confidence
Into God’s listening heart.

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For Your Reflection

• What feelings or reactions do I have after reading this reflection?
• Do my feelings or reactions remind me of any passage or event in scripture, especially in the life of Christ? 
• What actions might I take today because of my response to these readings?

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Suggested Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 5:12-18