Good afternoon. You notice I couldn't genuflect when I went up there. So, you can tell my age... I was listening to the first reading, and Elisha was wined and dined. And I have been wined and dined here in Pleasant Hill! The priests have been taking care of me.

Before I start, my talk will be short. I learned a ninth Beatitude that says, "Blessed are the brief; for they shall be invited back." I hope to get back. My name is Sister Clare Terrance and I am an Oblate Sister of Providence from Baltimore, Maryland.

The Oblate Sisters of Providence is a congregation founded in 1829. We are the first congregation of African American women religious. Our story began when a flood of black refugees from Santo Domingo, which is now Haiti, poured into Baltimore in the early 1800's. They found no schools for their children. One of these refugees, Elizabeth Lang, established a small school in her home. Later, with three companions, and under the direction of a French Sulpician priest, Rev. James Hector Jourbert, she founded the teaching order called the Oblate Sisters of Providence. At that time, before the Civil War, it was unheard of that a black woman would be a religious, wearing a religious garb.

The Oblate Sisters serve God's people through the tradition established by our founders, in the apostolates of education, social service and childcare. And I have been in all. I'm in high school now. They wait til I get old and decrepit, and put me with these teenagers. But I have been with the little ones in daycare. And I've also worked with the social services in Newark, New Jersey. And I worked with senior citizens, and I really enjoyed that. I would love to go back to that. We minister in five states, the District of Columbia, Costa Rica, and the Dominican Republic. Now, we used to have five houses in Cuba. So, many of our sisters are Spanish-speaking. But, when Castro came to power, he got rid of all the religious. And, so, we had to have a place for our Spanish-speaking sisters. So, that's when they opened Costa Rica, and we have five houses there. And we have one sister in Haiti.

Today, we face new challenges, but with few sisters. Yet, we continue to meet the needs of the people we serve with confidence and trust in the Providence of God, who called us into being and has sustained us for a hundred and seventy-four years. Next year, we will be celebrating our hundred and seventy-fifth. I'm going to invite you all down....

At present, I work in Baltimore City, in the shadow of the Baltimore City Prison. We were the first ones there, but since then, they have built the jail and we are surrounded. I guess it's about five or six blocks long, the penal system. So sometimes when you are passing by you will hear, "Hey, Sister...." I say, "Don't guess. That's one of our pupils..... Don't know..."

I come to you today to ask for your financial help. We cannot continue to provide services for the poor, the underprivileged or the under-educated without the help of God's people. You know, I guess about three years ago, we established a girl's home, and they come from the state. They want to place these kids that run away from home. I haven't worked there, but I go visit them because they are right down the street from us. And it's really sad, some of these kids.... They don't really know who their parents are because they are on drugs. (The parents are on drugs.) We are trying to help these young people. And, if they want to come to our high school (because I think they take them from sixth, seventh and eight grade, and a couple of them are in high school)... So, if they want to come to our high school, we accept them.

Now, there are three ways that you can help us. First, pray for God's blessings upon all religious, for your priests here and for others. We really need prayers. You know, you say sisters and priests pray a lot of times, but we need prayers too. So, we are asking for your prayers. We ask you to encourage religious vocations. Once upon a time, every family wanted to have a priest, brother or sister in their family. I know my family did. I'm from New Orleans, and everybody wanted to have either a priest, brother or sister. Now, my brother was supposed to be the priest but he didn't make it. So, it was my job.

And, thirdly, I am going to ask you to give generously in this collection. Now, what will the Oblate Sisters do for you? We have a Mass said once a month for all those who contribute to us. Secondly, the Sisters in our Health Care Unit (You know when you are elderly and can't work anymore in the classrooms or whatever you are doing, you sit down and you hold your rosary and you pray.).... So, this weekend, they are praying for you. They always ask, "Who is going out to speak for the Oblate Sisters?" And so, they have a list up there and they will say their rosaries for you. So you know you will get prayers.

In closing, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Bishop of this diocese and your pastor (He has been fabulous.... fabulous...!) for giving me the opportunity to speak to you. May God's blessings be upon you and your families. Thank you.