School Sisters of Notre Dame Generalate via della Stazione Aurelia 95, 00165 Roma, Italia Tel: +39.06.6652.01 FAX: +39. 06.6652.0234 Circular 29/16 December 20, 2016 O come, Ruler of nations, bind into one the hearts of all humankind; bring our sad divisions to an end, and be for us the tender Prince of Peace. Dear Sisters, We greet you during these final Advent days with this prayer adapted from the O Antiphon for December 22. As we move closer to the celebration of Christmas, we become more deeply aware of all the situations in the world that are in need of our prayer and our active engagement. We recognize that our mission, to direct our entire lives toward that oneness for which Jesus Christ was sent (YAS, C 4), is profoundly relevant to every circumstance in which we find ourselves. We offer our whole lives our prayer, our community life, and our service in ministry so that God s purpose in sending Jesus may be accomplished. With Mother Theresa we long for the oneness of all in God (YAS, Prologue), and we trust in the powerful work of the Holy Spirit even when it is difficult to do so. What a blessed Christmas we can enjoy when we celebrate in this spirit of hope and trust! We can gaze at the crib and see the infinite love of God fully entering our world in the vulnerability of a baby newly-born to poor parents, away from their hometown and without a fitting place to sleep. Only God could come to save us in this way, by becoming so completely one with us. Only God. To anyone else, it would seem impossible and even absurd. Christmas is the feast of the extravagant love of God, a love that is intimately and tenderly close to us and, yet, unimaginably vast enough to contain the whole universe. We wish you a blessed feast, dear Sisters, and assure you of our daily prayer. Celebrate with wholehearted joy, for God is with us! With this letter, we share important information about the life of the congregation. We hope you read it with interest and perhaps use some of the topics for dialogue in your local community. Circular 29/16 Page 1 of 6
CONGREGATIONAL NOVITIATE: UPDATE We know that there is intense interest among the sisters of the congregation concerning the new Novitiate. We are happy to share some information with you about the past months since the postulants arrived on August 1, 2016. So much has happened. We can provide here only a taste of the experience. 1. Transition Phase: August 1 September 17, 2016 This transition time was very full for the postulants. They received orientations to: the generalate: Each postulant had an individual tour of the generalate. During these weeks of transition, the Novitiate community and the generalate community met on several occasions for prayer and meals and we shared a social evening together on the feast of St. Augustine. Italy: The postulants enjoyed classes on the country of Italy, its history and significance, and also on the history of our congregation in Italy and in Rome, (why, how and when we came to be here). In addition, each postulant was introduced to the modes of public transportation to and from the city. intercultural living: The postulants had an 8-day facilitated workshop, orienting them to the gifts and challenges of intercultural living. They engaged in deep personal sharing during this workshop which helped bond them together as a group. the novitiate: Led by Sister Rosemary, the postulants reviewed the purpose and program of the Novitiate and experienced a 6-day directed retreat immediately before Reception. 2. Reception into the Novitiate: September 18, 2016 The prayer service which included the Rite of Reception into the Novitiate was simple, beautiful and touching. The provincial leaders of the four provinces to which the novices belong participated in the ceremony. Their presence was very significant. They called each novice by name and all of us in attendance were moved when each novice responded individually to the question, What do you ask of us? The novices are: Emelia Agana Ayambire (AF); Esther Peter Bassey (AF); Mayara Glayci Lopes Santana (ALC); Maria Teresa Neufing (BY); Grace Marie Nakai (CP). The prayer service was followed by supper in our beautifully-decorated aula hosted by the generalate community. You will find some lovely pictures on the members log-in section of our website: www.gerhardinger.org. The Novitiate Community, and the novices in particular, are deeply grateful for all the prayerful support and for the cards and emails that have been sent to them, especially at the time of Reception into the Novitiate. The novices were amazed at the solidarity in prayer and loving care from sisters in all parts of the congregation. Thank you! Circular 29/16 Page 2 of 6
3. Meetings/Classes with other English-Speaking Novitiates in Rome There are two other English-speaking novitiates in Rome with whom we are collaborating: the Ursuline Sisters and the Missionary Sisters of the Holy Spirit. The three groups meet at least once a month for meetings or classes on various topics. For example, they recently participated in a 2-day workshop on Compassionate Communication and in the new year they will take a mini-course on the theology of religious life at the Angelicum University here in Rome. This course was arranged in five weekly sessions specifically for these three Novitiate groups. 4. Communication with the Congregation The novices plan to write three Newsletters for the congregation: in December, March, and June. Please check the link to the Congregational Novitiate in the members log-in section on our congregational website, www.gerhardinger.org. The December Newsletter may already be posted. If not, it will be there soon. We know you will enjoy hearing directly from them about their experiences of the congregational Novitiate! CONGREGATIONAL COMMUNICATION PLAN: UPDATE As you are aware, for nearly two years we have had an approved Congregational Communication Plan. Implementation of the plan is now well underway. In this update, we share with you three significant initiatives in the area of Communication and Technology within the congregation. 1. One of the priorities in 2016 for the implementation of the Communication Plan was the establishment of the Congregational Communications and Technology Teams (CCTT). These teams are comprised of contact persons from each province and, of course, our two congregational coordinators, Patricia Stortz, Coordinator of Communication and Pamela O Brien, Coordinator of Technology. We think of these teams as the infrastructure that is needed to achieve the goals of the comprehensive Communication Plan. The teams have been meeting regularly via video- and audio-conferencing over the last ten months, guided by Patricia and Pamela, who also work collaboratively with the general council. Their work has concentrated on two important and complex tasks: moving forward the refreshment of our Common Visual Identity and the development of a new congregational website. We are most grateful for the support at the province level, from both the provincial council liaisons and the contact persons. They have done excellent work, particularly when one considers that most of the contact persons have other full-time ministries. If you have not done so, we encourage you to visit the members log-in section of our international website, www.gerhardinger.org, where you will find the Congregational Communication Plan in eight (8) languages. Circular 29/16 Page 3 of 6
2. Another important initiative that has just begun grows out of two of the Action Steps in the Language section of the Congregational Communication Plan. These particular steps are: To create and maintain structures that support and encourage partnerships between sisters who speak different languages; (Language Objective 1, Step a) Create partnerships between those who speak English and those who need language assistance to encourage speaking more comfortably; (Language Objective 3, Step a) We have recently established partnerships between sisters who are willing to serve as tutors and sisters who already have some knowledge of English but want to practice and improve their skills. This will be done via Skype or other means of videoconferencing. We are grateful to the Atlantic-Midwest and Central Pacific Provinces for their sisters who have offered to serve as tutors. Twenty-four sisters volunteered for this service. Already a number of sisters from Europe and the Province of Latin America and the Caribbean have taken advantage of this program by requesting assistance in improving their English language skills. If anyone else would like to follow up with this initiative, please contact Sister Inês Camiran at: icamiran@ssndroma.org. 3. To assist our two congregational coordinators in Communication and Technology, the general council established a schedule for Patricia and Pamela to visit all the provinces to learn more about each province from the perspective of Communications and Technology. On the basis of what they have learned, they are exploring ways they might help the provinces in their implementation of the Congregational Communication Plan. These visits have been eye-opening, welcoming, very rich, inspiring, and extremely important for their future work. Their time in North America and Japan in January and early February will conclude this schedule of visits to the provinces. Pat and Pam will then return to Rome and present a comprehensive report to the general council. This report will include their recommendations for moving forward. Dear Sisters, the implementation of this Congregational Communication Plan is vital for our movement into the future as we go step-by-step to fulfill the purpose of the Plan, which is to support new ways of thinking and acting as one congregation. Thank you for your efforts and your support. TRANSITIONS AT THE GENERALATE On October 15, 2016, Sister Patricia Glinka (AM) completed her term of service as the Assistant to the General Treasurer and returned to the Atlantic-Midwest Province. We cannot express adequately enough the appreciation we have for Sister Pat s service and, in particular, for what she contributed to the life of the generalate community. She was most generous in giving of her time and talent in many areas of our common life. We wish you well, Pat, and continue to miss your quiet, steady presence. Circular 29/16 Page 4 of 6
On November 1, 2016, we experienced another major transition in our generalate community. Sister Mary Willette (CP) completed five years of service as Coordinator of the Local Community and Generalate House, and Sister Joan DiProspere (CP) began a four-year term in this position. Anyone who has visited the generalate knows how important the ministry of the House Coordinator is. The service she provides enables the community to offer the quality of loving hospitality that has always characterized our international home. It involves countless practical details as well as careful attention to the spirit of the house. More than a year ago we asked Sister Mary Willette to stay for a year beyond her term of service so that she could see the project of the renovation of Wing C to completion. Sister Mary willingly said yes. She worked closely with Sister M. Katarzyna and together they did a splendid job of overseeing the work and recommending to the general council changes and additions to the original plan. Mary, please know how grateful we are and will always be for the attention to both beauty and practicality in all you did for this project. In addition, over the course of the past five years we have hosted numerous international meetings at the generalate. While this is always a joy for our generalate community, it is also a lot of work. Your ministry was invaluable for each one of these gatherings and very deeply appreciated. May God bless you. Sister Joan DiProspere has entered into this ministry in a wonderful way. Last year she studied Italian for several months and then in September she refreshed what she had learned by living with our community in Gorizia, in northern Italy. This is a most delightful community of welcome and Sister Joan deeply appreciated her time there. Sister Joan assumed this responsibility at a very busy time. With the beginning of the Novitiate, we now give added attention to the entire building. Advent and Christmas are always busy at the generalate. Sister Joan is doing well and, as always, the generalate community is giving wholehearted and generous service. We welcome you, Joan, and pray that God will bless you abundantly. Sister Joan s email address is: jdiprospere@ssndroma.org. INSTITUTE OF AUGUSTINIAN SPIRITUALITY We are pleased to announce that once again our congregation is participating in the Institute of Augustinian Spirituality, a program created by the Friars of the Order of St. Augustine in Rome to promote on-going formation in Augustinian Spirituality. We have participated in this program since 2012. It has been very effective for members of the larger Augustinian family such as ourselves. Not only has it been important for the on-going formation of our sister-participants, but also these sisters have found ways to share what they learned with their provinces and, sometimes, with the congregation through a specific service. Circular 29/16 Page 5 of 6
The Institute includes course work on Augustinian spirituality and theology, the writings of St. Augustine on various topics, the spirit of Augustine in the contemporary world and society, and a retreat and pilgrimage to historic Augustinian sites in Italy. The language in which the program is given rotates from year to year from Italian to Spanish to English. This coming year the friars invited us to send sisters who are Spanish-speaking to the Institute, which will be held from February 6 to April 21, 2017. Two of our sisters from the Province of Latin America and the Caribbean, Hermana Mirta Ester Cucchetti and Irmã Letícia Antonello, will be our participants in this course. Hermana Mirta is from Argentina and Irmã Letícia is from Brazil. Both are serving now in Brazil. We are grateful for their desire to participate, and also delighted that they will join with us as members of the Generalate community while they are in Rome. Dear Sisters, we wish you a most blessed Christmas and a new year filled with grace. United with you in affection and heartfelt blessing, we are your sisters, S. Mary Maher General Superior S. Maureen McGoey /Vicar S. Carol Jean Dust Sr. M. Dominica Michalke Ir. Inês Camiran Ir. Vitória Marques Circular 29/16 Page 6 of 6