The CNEWA Connection
for
90 years
The Franciscan Missionaries of Mary number among our chief partners working with CNEWA in the Middle East, with a mission that extends into Iraq, Jordan and Lebanon. With the help and support of our benefactors, CNEWA subsidizes the good works of these sisters — most notably, with care of refugee and displaced families from Iraq and Syria. Focusing on families not registered with the United Nations — who thus receive no international assistance and aid — the sisters spend time with the families, assessing their needs, offering help and counsel. Concerned for the welfare of the hearts, souls and bodies of those most vulnerable, the sisters work with women, children and the elderly. In Jordan, the sisters run summer camps, which offer activities and events for refugee children as well as those born in the kingdom. One of the most popular such programs, held at the St. Joseph School in Zerqa, offers sessions every year for hundreds of children from low-income families. The sisters also administer workshops and training sessions for the formation of lay leaders, with classes held at our Lady of Peace Center and at the sisters’ convent in Amman. Spiritual retreats, liturgies and activities designed to develop leadership skills all ensure that these ancient faith communities survive, even under difficult circumstances. These efforts and more have helped ensure that those most in need receive support and hope in one of the most troubled and challenging corners of the world. To continue supporting the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary, call: 1-800-442-6392 (United States) or 1-866-322-4441 (Canada).
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Sister Antoinette helps an Iraqi refugee study at her convent in Amman.
spent many years in Rome, the hub of the community, working in administration. “I love this community and its spiritual mission,” she says with a warm smile. “To be with these people, to listen to them, it gives me joy. If one day, I don’t visit, I don’t feel normal.” The Matti family met with the sisters a few weeks ago and their needs are being identified and assessed, says Sister Seraphina Moon, 47, from Jeju Island, Korea. Sister Seraphina’s white scarf highlights her jet-black bangs as she discusses her journey to the religious life. “I was not Christian,” she says. “I had no belief in God. My family is Buddhist. “One day I went to a church. I was 21. I dreamed that night of Jesus and Mary. I knew them from pictures, but I didn’t believe in any god. But, I felt something good,” she says. Sister Seraphina felt her dream was a sign. In Korean culture, she says, dreams are given weight as signs of the future and symbols of good fortune. Her first response was to play the lottery, she says, but nothing came of it. After finishing high school in Korea, Sister Seraphina went to Sydney, Australia, for college to study English and marketing. It was there that she met a community of Benedictine sisters and stayed in a guesthouse with them for a month during Christmas. “I loved that moment,” she said. “I felt maybe I found a way I can live and what God means to me. I wanted to be a sister.” Initially, her mother did not approve. Sister Seraphina’s father