New Staff Induction 2021

Welcoming and inducting our new Kildare Ministries staff is an enjoyable time. This year, on the 17th March, twenty-seven of us gathered online for the first of two days. The vibe was upbeat and the contributions from individuals were rich and plentiful – we did our best to get to know each other even from a distance, in breakout groups and all together.

We began to explore the idea of ministry and mission by sharing and exploring our own individual stories. We shared our symbolic representations of important ‘moments’ along the way and in each group, we noticed the prevalence of important relationships that sustain, restore and transform us. We noticed how interconnected we all are by common types of relationships and how they become our touchstones in our ongoing journeys – many of our symbols are displayed on our desks.

We then considered the relationship that God desires to have with us, where all the barriers between us are broken down and we considered a reading from Mark 16 which helps illustrate Paul’s musings in Romans 8, ‘that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.’

We then turned to consider our relationship with the story of Kildare Ministries – a vast web of its own with multiple intertwined stories traversing history and geography that have formed our Catholic Tradition and our KM mission of transformation. We talked about there being no ‘church’ and no mission without community, rather it is a ‘living out’ of our mission with each other in relationships, an expression of our desires for God’s mission for justice and ‘fullness’ of life for us all.

We investigated our Kildare Ministries Values and the Living Justice Living Peace Charter and identified the touchstones within these frameworks of mission and our continuing journey of bringing the marginalised into the centre.

We finished by explaining how to access the relevant tasks available online – an investigation and reflection on our founders’ stories, St Brigid, Daniel Delaney, and Nano Nagle.

We are looking forward to Day Two on the 9th of September – thanks to all involved! Thanks for registering and taking part in this important day of learning and relationship building.

Some feedback from our New Staff:

"Hearing more about Kildare Ministries was helpful and interesting in understanding my school's context. Knowing the links to other schools was also interesting as I've previously taught in an Edmund Rice school in QLD. The reminder to 'think back to what Brigid, Nano, or Daniel would do; their values' was really helpful in thinking through how to approach teaching and pastoral care in my work setting."

"Relationships bring justice and fullness to life. Justice is about changing hearts and minds not just charity. Kildare is an inclusive community, where justice, wonder, courage, hospitality, hope and compassion are the ways in which we relate to each other."

"I would say that it was nice to meet others in the same community sharing stories and learning about the foundations of Kildare which impacts us on a daily basis. I found more of a spiritual feeling and learnt more about the values which are important to us all in our lives.

Executive Assistants, Personal Assistants and Registrar Seminar 2021

On the 15th March, twenty-one EAs, PAs and Registrars joined online to meet their counterparts in the KM network, to unpack the Living Justice, Living Peace Charter and to become orientated within the Kildare Ministries organisation.

We contemplated our roles and careers within the larger context of the story of Kildare Ministries and reflected on this part of our lives as pilgrimages of relationship building. The symbols we chose testified to the deep importance of relationships in sustaining and inspiring us and giving us opportunities for possibility and potential. We also shared ideas about compassion in the midst of trial and difficulty; a key gift for those caring for people the way EAs, PAs and Registrars are called to do.

Invited feedback was helpful & instructive, and will help shape the future direction of this network and formation for its members. Thanks to all who took the time to respond to the session and for all that you do for each of our ministries.

Kildare Ministries Newsletter

Issue 2 · 31 Mar 2021

In this issue