by Nadia Ramoutar,  MMM Communications Coordinator                 Ireland                16.09.2026

For much of our work with the MMMs in community, we are working against what may seem like insurmountable obstacles that are often physical like poverty, violence, political unrest and drought. But there are other levels of challenges that go along with this which are emotional, mental, physical and spiritual too. We have a human capacity for accepting what seems “normal” because it has been this way for a long time. At the heart of the “healing charism” of the MMM work, is the ability to see how things can be made better and create a place for healing to flow in.

This is not as easy as it sounds.

Not for the people who have been down trodden and oppressed by others or life circumstances for a very long time. The mission workers too are challenged to keep going in the tiring face of so many odds. As we got ready for our 2026 MMM Yearbook, we were reading accounts from around the countries were the MMMs are active. Some stories offered some light on dark situations where efforts, care and love really paid off. It is important that we not just create these situations but that we also share these stories.

Hope is a tricky word really as it is has both an up and down side. It speaks to what has yet to be experienced but is already desired. There are times though when it almost seems that hope is all we really have to build upon fuelled by faith in the unseen. As Romans 8:24 – 25 illuminates, the nature of hope is that we don’t yet have it.

“For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.” – Romans 8:24 – 25

The harder part about this often is the “patiently” part.

When I look at the issue of maternal death in Sub-Saharan Africa for example it accounts for 70 percent of all maternal deaths. Often many women who don’t die are left with life destroying conditions like obstetric fistula which causes a tear in the vaginal wall making like impossible for girls and women due to leakage with urine and faeces. It’s unthinkable for most of us in the Western world that child birth is so risky for women in other parts of the world. It is a massive injustice.

So, we roll up our sleeves and get to work with hope in our hearts that things can be made better for the girls and women in these areas. That the statistic that a woman in Nigeria dies every seven minutes in childbirth can be changed to 8 minutes, 10 minutes and on and on till it is no longer such a horrific commonality. It is important that we use our imaginations to see a better world for all people.