Are you tired of hearing public radio say, "and the annual financial support of our listeners"? Or public television, "thanks to the annual financial support of viewers like you"?

Little about MSA is public and we surely get no support from government agencies or foundations. More than most non-profits, we are heavily dependent on the support we get from those who know us best--our participants.

Ordinarily, MSA appeals to you for financial support only one time per year. It is only if we did not hear from you at Thanksgiving time that we sent a reminder notice about the importance of annual financial support to you.

Every gift is appreciated and well-stewarded here. No gift is too small. It is much more important that we be able to show our corporate sponsors and potential granting agencies that EVERYONE who participates in our programs is also a financial supporter.

So, please, if you got this year's reminder about a pledge or donation to MSA, take a moment to send a gift that embodies your support. We are grateful for each and every gift. They speak to our hearts. And, they serve to get the attention of others who may want to support our ministry.

This year, an extraordinary legacy gift will come to us from the estate of Vera Guttmann. It is so humbling and appropriate that this pillar of the community would leave us with a concrete gift in addition to the spiritual presence that will always be with us in her memory. Additionally, about $5,000 in cash gifts came to Mount Saint Agnes in Vera's memory. Attending to the particular affairs related to our deaths is not something we like to think about but if you are inclined to remember this work of ministry in your estate planning, Susan Spence, ESQ, chair of our board, will be happy to advise you about many vehicles to help you achieve such a wonderful gift. You cannot imagine what gifts like that mean to the community.

Since 1997, MSA has been sponsored by the Sisters of Mercy, Regional Communities of Baltimore and Saint Louis. This summer, in July, these two Regional Communities will go out of existence as the Sisters of Mercy of Baltimore and Saint Louis join the Sisters of Mercy of Cincinnati and North Carolina to form the South Central Community. All who benefit from this theological center for women are indebted to the original sponsors, who took a risk on an untried idea. The new sponsor, South Central, will inherit and carry forward a ministry that is gaining in reputation and in strength of purpose. Please keep in prayer all the ministries of this newly forming Community and those who take responsibility for the works of mercy that go on through them.

2008 marks fifty years since Mary Aquin O’Neill, RSM entered the Sisters of Mercy at Mount Saint Agnes in Baltimore, Maryland. The Regional Community of Baltimore celebrated all jubilees on April 5th with a special liturgy--presided over by John R. Donahue, S.J.--and a festive meal. Looking out at the jubilarians, Fr. Donahue said that he stopped counting when he reached a cumulative 1,200 years of religious life and service represented by those celebrating. "Sunrise, sunset; sunrise, sunset" … ah, yes, "swiftly flow the years."

The following have been honored by a donation to MSA:

In honor of Natalie Barringer
   Sana and Andy Brooks

In honor of M. Christopher Bourke, RSM’s Birthday
   Pat Smith, RSM

In honor of Mary Aquin O’Neill, RSM’s Jubilee
   Helen Amos, RSM
   Louis Mary Battle, RSM
   Marie Yolanda Burns, RSM
   Sharon Burns, RSM
   Barbara DeLateur
   John Donahue, SJ 
   Margaret Downing, RSM
   Sharon Ann Euart, RSM
   Bernadette Gregorek, RSM
   Mary Harper, RSM
   Karen McNally, RSM
   Lois O'Brien-Cronin
   Pat Thompson

In honor of MSATCW's Writing Women
   Roberta Hucek

In memory of Marie Lively Gentle & Roland P. McLellen
   Kiri Cardegna

In memory of Rita McLaughlin
   Ann Wilson

In memory of Joseph & Marie Neumann
   M. Agnese Neuman, RSM

As announced last month, Diane Caplin was interviewed for a Missouri radio program called Elder Care on the topic of her spring class, "The Grace of a Happy Death." The program aired on KWOS AM radio on March 9, 2008. MSA is happy to announce that recordings of this broadcast are now available on CD at the MSA offices by request.

Elizabeth Johnson's latest book, written for a broad audience, identifies new possibilities for finding God's presence and activity in today's differing and competing cultures. She names and describes familiar experiences of suffering, poverty, discrimination, racism, religious pluralism and diversity. Within each of these circumstances, she describes how people led by God's Spirit manage to confront such deep seated problems with grace and commitment. The author reminds the reader that, "Christian faith…finding itself in strange situations, seeks the active presence of Divine Spirit precisely there, in their midst." Naming God as "The Living God" a biblical designation, supports this conviction. Relying on people's ordinary experiences and her practical wisdom, Johnson encourages a cooperative effort to map new theological frontiers with courage and hope. (Mary Jane O’Brien, Ph.D.) (Click here to see the full review.)

Granny D: You're Never Too Old to Raise a Little Hell. Doris Haddock & Dennis Burke. Villard, 2003.

In 1999, at the age of 90, a brave and spirited woman named Doris Haddok (A.K.A. Granny D), sickened by corrupt campaign finance practices in Washington, DC, decided to make a protest march from coast to coast. This inspirational book tracks her experiences over the course of this 3,400 mile journey in her own words. It gives hope to those of us who feel helpless to change the powers that govern us and reminds us that it is never too late to stand up for what you believe in. (Sacha Ludwig)

Hail Star of the Sea!

Hail Lady Mary, our gentle candle in the darkness!

Send us the light when we are falling into sorrow; when we are cast about by waves of fear and anger; when we are drowning in despair.

O Mother of Holy Hope renew us with the child-like trust and joy of your son Jesus.

Amen.