The work and spiritual life of women religious in our diocese has been praised by Archbishop Cushley on the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Speaking in his homily at online Mass  he said: “Like our Blessed Lady, our religious women say a perfect and complete ‘yes’ to God when prompted by His inspiration. They bear Christ to the world in their own flesh, by their words, by their actions and by their love for everyone."

There are 16 different female religious orders in our diocese and the Archbishop asked for prayers for a local woman who enters a convent today.

He added: "Many women’s religious congregations have the Feast of the Assumption as the moment when young women enter religious life, take the veil, take their first vows and even profess solemn vows as nuns and religious. It is a beautiful thought to recall how our nuns associate themselves with Our Blessed Lady, assumed into heaven on the day that they give themselves to religious life."

"They follow Christ on His missionary journeys, like Mary they listen to Him, seated at His feet, like Martha they serve Him cheerfully and willingly, like Our Lady they suffer with Jesus as He hangs upon the cross. Like Mary Magdalene they keep vigil with Him in death, they welcome the Risen Lord when He appears, and they hope to reign joyfully with Him one day in the presence of Our Lady and all the saints in heaven.

"As we remember the Assumption of Our Lady today, as she falls asleep and is welcomed into paradise by her Son, we remember all the people of our diocese dedicated to Her, we remember in particular our children, their teachers and all our religious woman – our nuns – as they seek to imitate Our Lady in her love, her patience, in her sorrows and in her joys.”

Read Archbishop Cushley's full homily here.