Cape Province
since 1937
Lived Charism
Something that has affected us sisters deeply over the years is the high prevalence of child abuse in our society. To respond to this sad reality we Holy Cross sisters have opened a children's home able to accommodate about one hundred children. Together with lay people we accompany these children through a healing process of their deep woundedness and broken trust in people. These children are not only disadvantaged because of the disastrous effects of abuse but also because of their background. Most of them come from broken, badly disturbed families. It is for this reason that we dedicate ourselves to this service which at the present time is a priority for us.
Challenges
We sisters try to respond to the needs in our society. A priority for us is justice and peace issues. We help people to become financially independent. In our retreat and conference centre we provide a place and an atmosphere of silence and prayer. Here people can find God and an answer to their spiritual needs. In such an atmosphere people can experience reconciliation and healing in their brokenness.
Concretely we meet these challenges:
- By visiting families in their homes
- By listening deeply and with empathy.
- By participating in "Shared-prayer" groups.
- Through catechetics.
- Through youth work.
Our main focus is to help each person to find her/his values and self-esteem. In our pastoral work we are concerned to impart and deepen the faith in the young since this area no longer receives attention in public schools. Our Catholic schools are barely able to survive because of lack of government subsidies. We also train lay people in catechetics and to prepare liturgy.
Other engagements outside formal education are literacy classes. Improvement in literacy enables better job opportunities and raises the self-esteem of people. In Langa, a township for Blacks, self-help programmes have been offered already for many years. Adults receive training in a number of skills which enable them to get employment and become financially independent. To enable those who have some employment to improve themselves at the centre classes are offered after working hours.
Some of our sisters are employed in the health services in government hospitals.
Something that has affected us sisters deeply over the years is the high prevalence of child-abuse in our society. To respond to this sad reality we Holy Cross sisters have opened a children’s home able to accommodate about one hundred children. Together with lay people we accompany these children through a healing process of their deep woundedness and broken trust in people. These children are not only disadvantaged because of the disastrous effects of abuse but also because of their background. Most of them come from broken, badly disturbed families. It is for this reason that we dedicate ourselves to this service which at the present time is a priority for us.
