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 Marguerite
O'Brien
What do I do?
My time is divided into service to –
- the homeless and mentally ill
- the terminally ill and
- people living with HIV/AIDS.
Where do I carry out my ministry?
In Sydney:
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at Cana Communities – named after the miracle of water being
turned into wine and where the brokenness of peoples’ lives
became celebration and forgiveness. The Cana Communities have
several fronts mostly run by lay people who operate shelters providing
free overnight accommodation, prepare and serve meals at Café Cana,
accompany members of the community in court, visit community members
in hospital or prison, work for the support and care of dysfunctional
familes and care for children.
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at Sacred Heart Hospice where people
are helped to really live until they die. One aspect is involvement
in its Day Centre where individuals with terminal illnesses come
from their homes to spend the morning having a ‘cuppa’ on
arrival and they are then engaged in activities or relaxed through
massage or physiotherapy before being transported home in the hospice
minibus.
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through
CSN (Community Support Network) which is part of the AIDS Council
of New South Wales. In clients’ homes each person has
specific wants and needs which are catered for in practical ways
by volunteers. Basic
support such as help with shopping, cooking and housework enables
the person living with HIV/AIDS to remain at home longer.
What Franciscan values underpin how I minister?
Sometimes the homeless, mentally ill, and people living with HIV/AIDS
are relegated to the fringes of our society. In my experience these
people have a great capacity to love and, like each one of us, have a
yearning to be loved. I receive my inspiration from the example
of St Francis who was eventually able to overcome his fear, embrace the
Leper and experience a deep joy as he met the real person behind the
disfigured, suffering one. Providing simple services with
love and respect for the individual is a major value for us.
“Let
them be happy to live among the outcast and despised, among the poor,
the
weak, the sick, the unwanted, the oppressed and the destitute.”
Third Order Regular Rule of St Francis
Ch IV #15
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