Books, not bullets, is the plea of Pakistani-born and youngest ever Nobel peace prize winner, Malala Yousafzai, My dream is to empower myself with education, and then it is a weapon.” On that point, she concurs with Catherine McAuley, who saw the education of women and girls as the most potent force for social change.

Nga mihi atawhai - greetings to all in Mercy! A word check through the writings and sayings of Catherine McAuley suggests that service is not a word she often used. But others who witnessed the work to which she and her associates devoted themselves were quick to spot service of the poor and the sick as central to their efforts.

It’s our commitment to honouring Te Tiriti o Waitangi that helps us to see why building right relationships is so important. The broad sweep of whanaungatanga takes us from Te Atua, God, through nga tupuna, our ancestors, to te whenua, land, te taiao, environment and te tangata, other people. To overlook one piece in this interlocking jigsaw of family connections is to risk a major misalignment.

Risen - we are Mercy people, alleluia is our song

The Works of Mercy: How are we doing?

Mercy's climate call: Change this mind-set