The first Assembly of the Federation of “Our Mother of Perpetual Help of the Order of the Most Holy Redeemer” met in the Redemptoristine Monastery in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand, aka Korat, from 29 September to 5 October.
The Federation is comprised of the English-speaking Monasteries in the Philippines, Australia, Canada, Ireland, United States and Thailand.
The assembly elected the members of the Council: Sr Lucy Conway, President, Sr Alice Agosto, Councilor, Sr Mary Fides, Councilor.
Sr Chantal Lussier was elected as the Federal Bursar, and Sr Maura Walsh was elected as the Federal Secretary.
Sister Lucy, the president of the Federation, shared about the atmosphere of the meeting: “To gather together is a gift; to pray together and dream together, enjoy the community and charism and be together. This time together is a gift for the future of the Order and our Federation. A time of synodal listening and sharing.”
Sr. Lucy also commented on the vision and mission of the new Federation: “The Federation of our Mother of Perpetual Help is about unity respecting diversity. The process of federation hopes to help us renew our life – our contemplative life. Through these supports, we hope to bring our charism to life again. To return to our first love, the joy of our consecration. Sometimes, while trying to maintain structures, we can fail to live the joy of our life. The Federation is a tool to help us to contemplate”.
The Redemptorist Nuns (Order of the Most Holy Redeemer) have created three Federations based on geographical and language criteria:
- Federation of the Blessed Maria Celeste Crostarosa with monasteries located in continental Europe, Latin America, and Africa).
- Federation of the Most Holy Redeemer comprises four monasteries located in Japan.
- Federation of Our Mother of Perpetual Help, with monasteries located in Australia, Canada, Ireland, the Philippines, the United States, and Thailand.
Federation is a form of cooperation between monasteries of contemplative nuns sharing the same charism that the Holy See has requested for many years.
Pope Francis’ 2016 Apostolic Constitution “Vultum Dei” on women’s contemplative orders emphasized the need for networks of monasteries in contemplative life. It states that “the principal aim of a Federation is to promote the contemplative life in the member monasteries, in accordance with the demands of their proper charism, and to ensure assistance in initial and continuous formation as well as in practical needs, through the exchange of nuns and the sharing of material goods” [nb 30].
Two years later, the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Society of Apostolic Life published the Instruction “Cor orans,” which provides the norms and procedures to guide the process of creating federations composed of individual monasteries, though autonomous, connected either through a similar charism or through the geographical location.
Scala News
(Courtesy: rednuns.com)
