Among the often unsung heros today there are a group of women who were true pioneers. Arriving with the first human beings to see and discover our land, religious women such as Marguerite D'Youville were anything but quiet bystanders.
Credited with the foundation of some of the first schools for girls, and with the provision of health care - rudimentary though it was, Mother D'Youville and her band of sisters faced the same harsh weather, hostile welcome and difficult conditions that their male counterparts did. Yet, in the view of many historical accounts, while Jacques Cartier and others figure prominently, the true pioneers of basic services such as schools and health care often go unnoticed.
Even in modern-day these pioneers still live among us. The memory of Catholic priests in many of our schools is only a memory in the minds of those who have long-since completed the regimen of secondary school studies. How many hospitals and schools actually take time today to recognize that their history is owed to the presence, devotion and commitment of religious sisters? In the current-day culture which seems to be calling for amalgamation of resources particularly where hospitals are concerned, it's easy to see how the faith element of health care can be relegated to the shadows.
Enter the voice of Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, permanent observer of the Holy See to the Office of the United Nations and Specialized Institutions in Geneva. In a speech delivered yesterday, he urged the United Nations to recognize the key role that faith-based organizations play in health care, and to protect these groups' right to share in resources.
1 comment:
It is terribly sad that most people refer to the bottom line($)or to the belief that absence of any beliefs protects a person's rights as two of the most important factors to be used in determining whether or not faith-based programs such as education or health-care should continue to provide a much needed service. The cost of losing these programs cannot be measured in $ or in terms of equality. The real loss must be measured in the extent of the undermining of faith for it is in faith that we are given a high quality of life here on earth.
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