PAGES OF HISTORY
Live Theatre — Living History
Voices of Faith series tells stories of Catholic social visionaries
The dramatic stories of two Catholic women whose faith changed the lives of millions around the world will be portrayed onstage
WHERE: St. James Catholic Community, 369 Amboy Ave., Woodbridge,
WHEN: Thursday, July 21, 7 PM
Actress Lisa Bansavage presents two half-hour plays by playwright L.E. McCullough on Sisters of Mercy foundress Catherine McAuley and Sister Frances Warde, who brought the Mercy order to America from Ireland in 1843.
- Heart Centered in God is a day-in-the-life glimpse of Catherine McAuley (1778-1841) and her early struggles to establish the visionary "Houses of Mercy" that gave shelter and job training to thousands of women in 1830s Ireland, then one of the most impoverished and politically oppressed societies in Europe.
- Bringing Mercy to America tells the story of McAuleys disciple, Frances Warde (1810-84), who led seven Sisters of Mercy nuns to rough-and-tumble Pittsburgh from Carlow, Ireland in 1843. By the time of Wardes death, she and her fellow Mercy nuns had created more than 300 health and educational institutions in 25 states from coast to coast. They also took active roles in fighting for justice on behalf of immigrants, slaves, Native Americans, women and the poor.
Ms. Bansavage is performing the plays at Mercy International Centre in Dublin, Ireland, in the Fall. This is an opportunity to see them in a beautiful sanctuary setting. The public is invited; a free will offering is encouraged.
The plays are part of the Voices of Faith series produced by Pages of History, Inc., a non-profit educational theatre group.
http://www.pagesofhistory.org
