Presenting Sr. Elizabeth Davis, RSM
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Meet Sr. Elizabeth Davis, RSM |
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Elizabeth Davis, Congregational Leader of the Sisters of Mercy of Newfoundland and Labrador, was first a high school teacher in four schools in Newfoundland, then
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Administrator of St. Clare’s Mercy Hospital in St. John’s (1986-1994) and President /CEO of the Health Care Corporation of St. John’s (1994-2000).
She is presently pursuing doctoral studies in the Bible at the University of Toronto. She has been a member of the Medical Council of Canada, the National Board of Medical Examiners (USA), the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, the Catholic Health Association of Canada, Regis College, the Canadian Biblical Association,
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the Trudeau Foundation and Dalhousie University’s Management Program for Physicians.
She has received honorary degrees (Doctor of Laws) from Memorial University of Newfoundland and the University of Manitoba, has been appointed as a Member of the Order of Canada and an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, has received the Bread and Roses Award from the Canadian Federation of Nurses’ Unions, has been named Alumna of the Year for Memorial University, has |
the Year for Memorial University, has been inducted into the Order of Newfoundland and Labrador, has received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, and has received the CFPC-Scotiabank Family Medicine Lectureship Award from the College of Family Physicians of Canada. |
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God is Mercy and Justice
Three times in two verses in the first chapter of Genesis, the first book of
the Bible, we are told that humans are made by God in the image and likeness of God - three times in two verses. The writer of Genesis really wants us
to get this important message!
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God as Mercy
The many descriptions of the nature of God are summed up in a few words,"mercy, steadfast love, justice, truth, peace, grace, charity, love,
faithfulness, righteousness, compassion." The most quoted of these
qualities, is mercy.
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God as Justice
There is no doubt that God loves justice and righteousness as the psalmist tells us, "For the word of the Lord is upright, and all his work is done in
faithfulness. He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the
steadfast love of the Lord" (Ps 33:4-5).
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Doing Mercy
When Pope Francis became pope, he took his motto from the Venerable Bede, Miserando atque Eligendo. The last word of the motto means "choosing," but Pope Francis tells us that it is not so easy to translate the first word.
So he created a new English word, "Mercy-ing."
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Doing Justice
After speaking about the lilies of the field which have no concerns about
food or clothing, Matthew gives the only requirement for humans, "Strive
first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things
will be given to you as well" (Matt 6:33).
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Mercy and Justice Together
In his encyclical, Rich in Mercy, Pope John Paul concludes that the
relationship between justice and love is manifested as mercy, "These words indicate the profound basis of the relationship between justice and mercy in
God, in His relations with man and the world. . . True mercy is, so to
speak, the most profound source of justice.
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God as Justice
There is no doubt that God loves justice and righteousness as the psalmist tells us, "For the word of the Lord is upright, and all his work is done in
faithfulness. He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the
steadfast love of the Lord" (Ps 33:4-5).
► Watch the video
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Mary as Woman of Nazareth
Mary, the woman we know as Mother of God, was one like us, a person who lived each day and faced the joys and the challenges of each day. We meet her first in Scripture as a frightened adolescent who is being asked to do an almost impossible thing. The last time we meet her in Scripture she is an older woman, more confident perhaps, yet still being asked to do an almost impossible thing
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Mary as Miriam of Nazareth
In my home province of Newfoundland and Labrador, when anyone meets a stranger, the first questions are “What is your name and who are you called after?” and “Who are your parents?” The first page of our New Testament, the beginning words of the Gospel of Matthew, could well have been written by a Newfoundlander! In these words we find the answer to the same questions about Mary.
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Mary of the Annunciation and Pentecost
At the Annunciation, a young woman whose name is Mary is visited by an angel who tells her that she is to bear a son who will be special in many ways. When Mary challenges the possibility of this ever happening, the angel’s reply is decisive, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you” (Lk 1:35). With this assurance, the young woman replies, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word” (Lk 1:38).
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Mary of the Magnificat
Mary’s response was immediate. She spoke the most words spoken by any woman in the New Testament. She used echoes of words spoken by the women of the Old Testament: Deborah, Miriam and Hannah. In this song, she passionately gave what the theologian Edward Schillebeeckx called “a toast to our God,” which we call the Magnificat.
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Mary as Displaced Person
In the days before Mary was to give birth, she and Joseph were forced to go to Bethlehem to be counted for the census. They had no choice in this matter. The late stages of Mary’s pregnancy and the difficult journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem did not matter to the political leadership of the day.
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Mary as Mother of Sorrow:
On another visit to the Temple to celebrate Passover when Jesus was twelve years old, Jesus remains behind and speaks with the teachers with authority, and then he says these mysterious words to his parents, “Did you not know that I had to be in my Father’s house?” This time the writer tells us that “His mother treasured all these things in her heart.”
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Mary as Mother at the Wedding Feast
The young Jewish peasant girl has become a confident woman, a teacher, a mentor and a commanding presence. She has grown into her calling to be a partner with God in the work of Incarnation and Redemption. Having given life to her son, she now calls him into his new life of public ministry, she remains with him to support and nurture him to the end, and she will remain when he is gone to support and nurture the church which continues his presence on earth.
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Mary and God
“Spirituality is that which gives us the strength to go on for it is the assurance that God is in the struggle. Spirituality spells out our connectedness to God, our human roots, the rest of nature, one another and ourselves.” In this way in 1994 the Third World Theologians redefined spirituality and began our thinking on “right relationships.”
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Mary and the Environment
Let us reflect on Mary in right relationship with the environment. First we must speak to our emerging understanding of ecology, a new sense of how all creation has been created by God, is good and is interconnected. In the 13th century Meister Eckhart said, “Apprehend God in all things, for God is in all things. Every single creature is full of God and is a book about God. Every creature is a word of God.”
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Mary and Self
There are several beautiful passages in the Gospels in which we get an understanding of Mary’s sense of self. At the Annunciation, we see Mary’s poignant inner turmoil in the face of an awesome task being asked of her, “But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be” (Luke 1:29). She then asks outright the question, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” (Luke 1:34)
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Mary and Family
These women ancestors of Jesus suffer indignities and oppression, but live to reflect the face of God, the righteous One, the merciful One, the maternal One, the One who is found in the company of those who are marginalized, oppressed, suffering, poor and powerless. Jesus, the son of Mary, has indeed inherited the qualities of his foremothers.
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Mary and Others
The beautiful prayer of the Magnificat which Luke ascribes to Mary is a powerful description of Mary in right relationship with other people. While the first part of her psalm focuses on Mary in relationship with her God, the second part expresses Mary’s love for people. Mary rejoices in God her Saviour because God‘s mercy is from generation to generation.
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Mary and Faith Tradition
Mary was first and foremost a Jewish woman, a practicing Jew who remained faithful to Judaism. She would have been aware of the Hebrew Scriptures, the sacred books she called Torah and we Christians call the Old Testament. She bears the name of the leader Miriam about whom God said in the book of Micah (6:4), “I brought you up from the land of Egypt, and redeemed you from the house of slavery; and I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.
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Mary as Miriam of Nazareth
In my home province of Newfoundland and Labrador, when anyone meets a stranger, the first questions are “What is your name and who are you called after?” and “Who are your parents?” The first page of our New Testament, the beginning words of the Gospel of Matthew, could well have been written by a Newfoundlander! In these words we find the answer to the same questions about Mary.
► Watch the video
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