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The
Many Faces of Charity
By Sister
Janet Gildea
Sisters Mary
Bookser, Mary Kay Bush, Janet Gildea, Monica Gundler, Maureen
Heverin and Mary Ann Humbert joined the Company of Charity
Formation Personnel (CCFP) for the annual meeting hosted by
the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth in March. Multicultural
perspectives on our Vincentian charism were welcomed, explored
and celebrated in panel presentations, discussions and
liturgy. "Caritas Christi Urget Nos!" proclaimed in
many voices and languages created a profound awareness of our
common charism bursting forth in diverse cultures.
S. Shalini
d’Souza, SCN, offered keynote reflections that reviewed the
external and internal dimensions of "culture" and
challenged us to reverence and welcome "different ways of
living, thinking and being." Tracing the journey of
Vincent de Paul’s rule through the centuries and around the
globe, she presented a strong case for a charism that
"pushes us to radical, prophetic and especially
intercultural relationships and mission." For formation
personnel this means traveling, literally and figuratively, to
the edges of our cultures and beyond. We are called to live in
the tensions between pilgrim and homemaker, to discover,
invite and accompany those in whom the charism of Charity has
already been set ablaze.
S. Sandy Howe
and Associate Mary Jo Borgman participated on panels with
temporary and perpetually professed Sisters and Daughters of
Charity from Korea, Vietnam, Belize and Peru. The women shared
the richness and the struggle of learning the cultures of our
congregations. With reverence, sensitivity and passion they
expressed gratitude as well as challenge to those of us from
"dominant cultures": "Be patient with those of
other cultures and languages. Listen to us. Try to learn and
understand internal values. Listen to our silence even. Be
sensitive to what might not be said. Be flexible. Advocate for
us."
Coming from a
history of colonial domination, "we hunger for mutuality
in relationships. Decisions have been made for us, not with
us. It will take time to build trust. Rejoice in the newness
that we bring to the congregations as we rejoice in the
traditions you have held for us." One young Sister summed
it up eloquently: "What do I ask of you? Live your
vocation as Sisters and Daughters of Charity because we know
that there is in God only one culture: the culture of
Love!"
What was so
clearly evident in the gathering was the multicultural
diversity that not only has been our history but will be our
future. Can we allow ourselves to be changed, transformed, not
just by the presence of Sisters from other cultures joining us
but by waiting in joyful hope to see how they carry the
charism in ways we cannot even imagine? The charism and even
the Congregation will look different and will be different as
we welcome the "other." Lest it take our breath
away, Vincent would remind us, "As long as charity,
humility and simplicity exist amongst you, one may say: The
Company of Charity is still alive." |
