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Heart and Soul: An ‘Encore’ for Jesus

Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo

29/03/2024 GMT

An ‘Encore’ for Jesus

BBC World Service - Heart and Soul, An ‘Encore’ for Jesus

The older women taking vows and becoming nuns in their 50s and 60s.

The Eudist Servants of the Eleventh Hour is a Catholic order of nuns made up of mature women called to a religious life in their later years.  It was founded by Mother Antonia Brenner – a twice-divorced, former Hollywood socialite and mother of seven, who ministered to the incarcerated for three decades in the notorious La Mesa prison in Tijuana, Mexico.  At first the Catholic Church declined to support Mother Antonia – indeed, as a divorcee, she was unable to take Holy Communion herself for many years.  Then Pope John Paul II gave her his blessing, and Mother Antonia began the process of forming a religious community. 
 
The order was founded in 1997.  Mother Antonia died in 2013.  But her work continues on both sides of the US/Mexico border through women who have vowed to dedicate the remainder of their time on earth – in the eleventh hour of their lives – to uplifting the poor.  For these nuns it’s a kind of ‘encore’ dedicated to Jesus Christ.
 
So, who are the women in their 50s and 60s who leave their often comfortable and privileged lives behind to minister in La Mesa prison and work with people who find themselves at the bottom of everyone’s pile?

[Photo Credit: Sister Viola, one of the Eudist Sisters of the Eleventh Hour, in the women’s section of La Mesa prison in Tijuana, Mexico. The sisters visit the prisoners every day to pray with them and provide spiritual support. They also bring toiletries and treats. Photo by Tim Mansel]

Producer/ Presenter: Linda Pressly
Producer: Tim Mansel
Producer in Mexico: Ulises Escamilla
Series Producer: Rajeev Gupta
Production Coordinator: Mica Nepomuceno
Sound:Tanzy Leitner

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