Alleluia! Alleluia!! Our hearts were filled with joy as we heard the words “We have a new Pope!” Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost will be known as Pope Leo XIV.

We need to move, to let ourselves be transformed and renewed, so that we can respond from the depths of our being and throughout our lives, remembering who we are and by Whom we are called. (Society of the Sacred Heart, Life Unfolding: Offering the Gift Received)

April 10, 2025, Diane Roche, RSCJ was among seven volunteers recognized by Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington at their annual Caritas! event. Sister Roche received the Father John O’Connor Award for Empowerment and was recognized for her work at the Refugee Service Center. Catholic Charities wrote of Diane:

Be humble, be simple, and bring joy to others. - Saint Madeleine Sophie Barat Our hearts are filled with sorrow as we mourn Pope Francis. Surely, he brought to life the above words of Saint Madeleine Sophie. Francis lived from the conviction that hope is born of love that finds its roots in the pierced heart of Christ.

During the conflict and violence of the French Revolution, Madeleine Sophie Barat founded the Society of the Sacred Heart, now an international religious institution. This biography draws on accounts by Barat's contemporaries and the many letters she wrote, some of which have not been translated before, to tell the story of a woman confronting division with personal integrity and love. This book is available for purchase  through Paulist Press (click here).