Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation An Expression of our Sacred Heart Charism and Spirituality Report of the Esperanza Commission JPIC Ad Hoc Commission II Guided by the Spiritual Journey, we prayed and reflected, shared with each other and celebrated what impassions us and what calls us to respond. Expressed in varying ways and lived distinctly according to our different contexts and cultures, we reaffirm that commitment to JPIC has been an integral aspect of our life and mission as RSCJ, at the personal, community, and province/ district/area levels. Through the Society of the Sacred Heart JPIC Spiritual Journey from Lent to Pentecost (2012), RSCJ and the family of the Sacred Heart embarked on a journey to help us name, connect, nurture, and illuminate (Wheatley & Frieze, 2006) how we live the mission and the spirituality of the Society of the Sacred Heart in light of the challenges in the world today. Responses sent to the JPIC Ad Hoc Commission by our Provinces/Districts/Areas showed not only the diversity and breadth of our experiences and engagements, but also the depth and intensity of our shared commitment to justice, peace, and integrity of creation. Entering into suffering and vulnerability, both our own and that of persons, groups, and communities with whom we live or work, has allowed us to touch the depths of our spirituality. Impelled by our charism and energized by the compassion that flows from the Heart of Jesus, we have found creative ways by which to respond to the cries of humanity and of the earth. Wherever we are sent and whatever we do, whether in ministry or in community, in prayer or in interaction with others, relationship is our way of being and proceeding. Done with care and sensitivity, in dialogue and reciprocity, and nurtured by fidelity and mutual challenge, it is in relationship that we walk with persons, groups, and communities, and carry out our mission of education and promote JPIC. Society of the Sacred Heart 1 2012 JPIC Ad Hoc Commission
All our JPIC efforts, in whatever form they may be expressed, are geared toward transformation. We harness our energies and resources in view of transforming persons and social structures, and of effecting changes that would further justice, peace, and integrity of creation. At the same time, we acknowledge that in participating in this work of transformation, we, too, are challenged and transformed. Our attitudes and behaviors, our choices and our lifestyle, and the quality of our relating both in community and in ministry, with ourselves, with nature, and with God, are transformed as we as engage fully in this transformative mission. Through the reflections shared by our Sisters from the different Provinces, District, and Areas, and some of members of the Sacred Heart Family, a JPIC framework emerges: For the Society of the Sacred Heart, commitment to JPIC. flows from COMPASSION. is lived through RELATIONSHIP. and is directed toward TRANSFORMATION. Some Excerpts: from Compassion! Commitment to Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation through Relationship toward Transformation We found that we were all passionate about the lives of love and service we are striving to live right now. Some had found that in their reading, or re-reading of the Constitutions, so many parts of their lives lit up. We are all involved in some way in assisting others in our local parishes and neighbourhoods. We find this life-giving, inspiring and enabling, while it confirms our own calls to live the love of the Heart of Jesus. (ANZ) I feel passionate about our being women of communion, compassion, and reconciliation. I have a strong desire to build community wherever I am. My pastoral ministry of many years has made me aware that community is the answer to the loneliness of modern day life with all its tensions. I promote peace by fostering elements that build bridges instead of walls. To do this, the essential cement is compassion and reconciliation. (India) It is with great joy that we share how we participated in the La Cumbre de los Pueblos ( The Forum of the Peoples ). Held on 15-23 June 2012 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the forum touched concerns raised in Rio+20. This experience strengthened our hope and our continuing commitment to the struggle for a world where social justice and the principle of Buen Vivir (Right Living) give life to and for all. (Brazil) Society of the Sacred Heart 2 2012 JPIC Ad Hoc Commission
HOW DO WE EXPRESS OUR COMMITMENT TO JPIC Our contexts and cultures shape and color how we respond to the call to pursue JPIC. Although a more detailed mapping of our specific ministries and engagements will need to be done, here are some examples of the different areas of our JPIC involvement: Centers for Women and Youth Issues Advocacy Parish Work Solidarity Fund Retreat Centers Schools and Universities Community Developnment Work Spiritual Accompaniment Volunteer Programs Teacher Training Human Development Inter-Religious Dialogue Boarding Schools and Dormitories Fair Trade Awareness Hospitals and Health Centers Early Childhoold Education Centers Lifestyle and Choices Active Prayer Interpersonal Relationships Theology We are convinced that to educate is in itself an act of justice (Letter of the General Council, Feast of the Sacred Heart, June, 2006). We take the responsibility to orient all our educative endeavors towards creating relationships of equality, inclusion, non-violence, and harmony, believing that to have life, and life in abundance, is the deepest desire of God. In whatever apostolic activity we may be engaged, our educative mission makes visible our solidarity with those who are excluded. (2008 General Chapter) Credit for the Spiral: http://xahlee.info/specialplanecurves_dir/equiangularspiral_dir/equiangularspiral.html - Used with permission. Society of the Sacred Heart 3 2012 JPIC Ad Hoc Commission
Ongoing Call and Challenge The Spiritual Journey used the language of JPIC as it is commonly used in Church documents. It likewise pursued the intuition of the 2008 General Chapter, and drew from the work of the Sophia Commission and the recent JPIC ad hoc commissions. Listening to responses to this Spiritual Journey, we realize the need for us to have a shared understanding about the meaning of JPIC, as well as of the bases for our common commitment to it. There is also an expressed desire to clearly articulate the connection between JPIC and the Sacred Heart Spirituality. The Spiritual Journey is a significant moment in growing in this shared understanding and in making the connection between JPIC and our spirituality. Said in diverse and different ways, the experiences and reflections shared by the Provinces/Districts/Areas spoke of our passion and our COMMITMENT TO CARE FOR LIFE AND CREATION. This dimension of caring for life, in its different moments and expressions, comes out as a significiant aspect of living our charism, finding concrete and creative expression in our personal lives, in community, in the Province/District/Area, and in and through our different ministry contexts. For many of us, there is a new and rising awareness of the interconnectedness of life, and of our oneness with all of creation. Just as we enter deeply into the pain and suffering of humanity, we are also touched by the groanings of creation. Impelled by our charism, we desire to respond to this emerging call from compassion, through relationship, and towards transformation. Commitment to Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation from Compassion! through Relationship toward Transformation The whole community spoke of the open Heart of Jesus. The personal encounter with the Heart of Jesus allows us to feel our fragility and poverty of heart; this in turn allows us to be sensitive to the needs and sufferings of others. He opens us to the sensitivities and the sufferings of humanity. But, he also gives us a peace with the world, a compassion and a love for others. (Egypt) not to see JPIC just as our relationship with the environment and ecology, but we also as a paradigm, a way of looking at our own life and the life of all. It s a call to have a more integrated vision which touches all of our experiences of life, especially, we said it s a call to transform the way of relations, among ourselves, with things, with people, with nature, with resources..how do we want our relationships to be? (ANAM) Transformative Education invites us not only to emphasize spiritual values, but also to make these a reality where life is threatened. The more rooted our spirituality is in the depths of the Heart of Jesus the more we can experience and integrate the energy, power, and beauty that flow from Creation, the peace and harmony it communicates, enabling us to rejoice in the life that emanates from nature. (Argentina-Uruguay) Society of the Sacred Heart 4 2012 JPIC Ad Hoc Commission
To be able to respond from compassion, through relationship, and toward transformation, the different Provinces/Districts/Areas identified five means: Awareness Raising & Critical Analysis of Reality Knowledge and understanding of the destruction of nature, of its impact on life and our environment, and of possible ways to mitigate the ecological crises Critical analysis of reality (economic, political, social, ecological), using different scientific tools and perspectives Consciousness of the impact of communications technology, social networking, and all forms of media on our lives Contemplative view of life and these realities, ability to see where the Spirit is at work in our broken world Transformative Education Re-affirmation of our mission of education as an act of justice and a way to transform society Integration of JPIC in all our educative endeavors, including our pedagogy and curriculum Making quality education accessible to the less priviledged Exploration of alternative programs that would help educate children and youth Education in values that would counteract consumerism, corruption, and violence in today s world Accompaniment of the youth as they search for the meaning and significance of their lives Advocacy and Networking Identification of and collaborate with groups and networks that share our values and pursue JPIC Taking on causes, like the distribution of wealth and resources, education for all, green schools ; addressing issues that endanger life in all its forms, like war and violence, human trafficking, mining, the use of nuclear energy Solidarity Fund at the service of JPIC Focusing our efforts on one or two issues, and working towards responding with one voice on these shared concerns Society of the Sacred Heart 5 2012 JPIC Ad Hoc Commission
Prayer as an Active JPIC Response Care for the contemplative dimension of our lives; having greater consciousness of the contemplative dimension of JPIC, and sharing this with others Awareness that aging, illness, and diminishment are not blocks to involvement in JPIC; commitment to praying for the needs of the world, individually or in community Sustaining hope, and awakening this in others Celebrating our engagement in JPIC through prayer and liturgy Revitalizing Religious Life: Community, Vows, Formation Living in community the very values we proclaim: compassion, relationship, transformation Congruency in the living of our vows, allowing our commitment to JPIC to challenge our understanding and expressions of our vows Integration of JPIC in on all levels of formation Re-affirmation of our option for the poor Financial realism and living a sustainable lifestyle Expressed in different ways, the hope is that these five means would help us narrow the gap between what we desire in terms of living JPIC and what we are actually able to be and do. A common thread in the responses across all the Provinces/Districts/Areas is the realization that in making compassion, relationship, and transformation a reality in our life and mission, THE GREATER CHALLENGE IS IN DAILY LIFE. We challenge ourselves to create an atmosphere of justice, peace, and oneness with creation in the way we live and relate with ourselves and with each other in daily life. We call on ourselves to maintain the balance between work and rest, between relationship and solitude, between prayer and action. We remind ourselves to practice gratitude and to live simply. We commit ourselves to do small gestures (like buying fair trade; reducing usage, reusing, or recycling resources; doing earth-friendly practices) that remind us of our desire and commitment. We do not forget that this is a long journey that requires much hope. We walk with each other in compassion, through relationship, and towards transformation, remembering not only to analyze critically and to respond effectively, but also to recognize the work of the Spirit, both seen and unseen, in and through us, in each other, and in our broken world. Society of the Sacred Heart 6 2012 JPIC Ad Hoc Commission
New JPIC Structure Hope as the spirit of JPIC engagement. Involvement in JPIC is primarily a ministry of awakening and sustaining HOPE in a broken world. It is for this reason that we have taken on Esperanza Commission as the name of the JPIC Ad Hoc Commission II. The responses sent by the Provinces/Districts/Areas after undergoing the Spiritual Journey give testimony to how we live this ministry of hope, as individuals or in groups. As a Society, we hear anew the call to engage in this work of hope together, as a concrete expression of our cor unum. To facilitate and support the flow of Compassion, Relationship, Transformation in relation to our JPIC engagement, we need a structure that will connect our glocal (global and local) efforts. We realize the importance of supporting the living of JPIC values at the local level and of facilitating collaboration among the many varied JPIC expressions of mission at all levels. Taking into account the recommendations of the 1 st JPIC ad hoc Commission, the results of our dialogues with some of the Society initiatives, and the reflections, needs and emerging calls expressed through the JPIC Spiritual Journey, as well as building on the existing JPIC engagements and structures of the Society, we make this proposal. We propose that we begin simply, with only two goals for the next three years (2013-2016): 1) to strengthen the coordination of local and regional JPIC networks; and, 2) to focus on two calls: the commitment to care for life and for creation; and the challenge to live JPIC in daily life. We envision a structure that would: 1) develop resources and circulate information; 2) connect with existing structures and expressions of mission in order to map out and build up JPIC networks in the regions; 3) facilitate the movement from networks to communities of practice through the sharing of resources; and, 4) organize and animate an annual meeting of JPIC regional representatives. Ongoing Dialogue. We have presented our recommendations to the General Council, and these include a proposed structure and a working paper for the work ahead. A process of dialogue has begun, and we hope that this would help in the discernment of how best to translate into concrete action the intuitions gathered from our shared JPIC Spiritual Journey. Society of the Sacred Heart 7 2012 JPIC Ad Hoc Commission
To end, a reflection on WATER. In a significant number of Provinces/Districts/Areas, a recurring concern emerged: WATER. From the tears of those in anguish to the water that flows from the Pierced Side of Christ from the rivers that give life to the floods that takes lives and destroy property. from water contaminated by mines to the waters that renew arid lands. from the water needed by schoolchildren in Congo to the fishing waters of New Zealand. from the salinated waters of the Pacific Islands to the tsunami that struck Japan. from the water that campesinos in Peru need to protect to the water we drink everyday. it is undeniable that WATER speaks of life as well as of struggle, of energy as well as of peace, of sacrament as well as of reality. Water, too, emerges as a powerful symbol of our desire to live JPIC from compassion through relationship toward transformation. To celebrate our commitment to JPIC, we offer you the enclosed resource for prayer and liturgy. It may be used in Advent when we pray together in hope and expectation. We take this opportunity to thank you for your participation in the Spiritual Journey and for sending us your responses. Through the different experiences and reflections, the questions and challenges, we have been able to celebrate the HOPE that is alive in and through the Society of the Sacred Heart; and it is this hope that we now share with you In cor unum and with gratitude for allowing us to journey with you, The Esperanza Commission (JPIC Ad Hoc Commission II) Carmen Margarita Fagot Caroline Joy Luz Monserrat Prats Sheila Smith Society of the Sacred Heart 8 2012 JPIC Ad Hoc Commission