A World Tour
It was in Bethlehem in 1949, at Christmas, that Little Sister Magdeleine handed over the responsibility of the community to Little Sister Jeanne, ten years after the foundation.
"We spent the day in Jerusalem and arrived in Bethlehem in the evening. We were later joined by Archbishop de Provenchères and Father Voillaume. After the official midnight Mass, the Archbishop will celebrate another Mass in the grotto at Bethlehem, assisted by Father Voillaume. At the offertory I will formally hand in my resignation as Prioress and pass the office into the hands of Little Sister Jeanne."
Little Sister Magdeleine wanted to be free and available to make new foundations, retaining her role as Foundress all her life. She undertook a tour of the world and communities were started on every continent. This led to vocations from every race and culture and rite. In 1948 there were 75 Little Sisters of Jesus living in 13 communities. By 1953 there were over 300 sisters in 100 communities.
Having already travelled to more than forty countries, in August 1953 Little Sister Magdeleine and Little Sister Jeanne undertook a last world tour, crossing the five continents in one year. They travelled across Niger, Camerouns, East Africa, South Africa, then West Africa from where they took a boat for South America and Mexico. From there they went to Martinique, Cuba and Haiti, arriving in North America and reaching Alaska and from there to Asia. They travelled through Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Vietnam, going to Australia and Papua-New Guinea, continuing with Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Pakistan, even entering into Afghanistan. They finished by Iran and Turkey, returnung to Aix en Provence on 30 August 1954.
"You should choose to live among the poorest and most forgotten, where no-one else would go, among nomads or other ignored and disregarded minorities. Look at the map of the world and see if you can find a handful of people scattered over a large territory and difficult to reach... You must really choose to go there, otherwise no-one else may ever come to tell them that Jesus loves them, that he suffered and died for them."
"The whole world calls to us through the voice of the little and the poor and all those who suffer from scorn and injustice" (Letter, October 10, 1953).
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