The joint intensification program before final vows participated in by 10 temporary professed sisters from South Korea, South Africa and the Philippinesm concluded last March 15. The sisters include: Sr. Loreen Granada, Sr. Leah Ann Espina, Sr. Diana Madulara, Sr. Angelita Clemen (Philippines); Sr. Yacobo Lim, Sr. Hyoju Park, Sr. Theresa Kim, Sr. Adriana Kim, Sr. Clara An, (Northeast Asia, South Korea) and Sr. Laurine Rennick (South Africa). Below are the reflections written by Sr. Leah Ann Espina and Sr. Laurine Rennick).
Nuggets on the Vows
By Sr. Leah Ann Espina RGS
Nuggets on the Vows
By Sr. Leah Ann Espina RGS
“To love
unboundedly and yet to choose what to love or who and how one chooses to
love….” This statement may appear at first as conflicting. Yet, this is the
challenge I was able to ponder deeply during our session on the Vow of
Chastity. It is quite providential to start on this vow for our last full week
of the series of Intensification sessions because indeed it is the Vow of
Chastity which is the heart of Religious life. At the end of the day, after a
very rich sharing of experiences, I have become truly convinced that to love
beyond borders, to be the heart of the “world” which has no heart, one has to
really know oneself and has to strive to seek union with Christ, the One who
has chosen us, through prayer and contemplation. Only then will we always be
reminded to Whom we truly belong.
own and who owns me” these words by Daniel Conway captures my reflection on our
session on the Vow of Poverty and Stewardship. Knowing our identity that God
loves us and that our life is a gift lent only to me together with creation,
for which I am just a steward, is the core message of the session. Constant
awareness of the real Owner of the gift received, being grateful for the gift,
not misusing or abusing it, could be reason enough so that everyone will have
life in abundance. Inspired by this message, I was challenged to make some
changes on the poem we recited after our session keeping in mind how to make
this ideal image become a reality…
Only to a handful – life is a painful
pilgrimage
To millions - life is a tourist’s paradise
Only to a handful - it is an exodus with an ever receding goal
To millions – life is a promised
land
you to obey only from love,” SME’s words from her conferences challenged me to
live out our life of consecration for mission. The morning had been a bit dramatic
for me as I looked back on my childhood days and how I struggled to live in two
environments – one that is quite free and the other strict and rigid – which
manifested on how I am in community life and how this influenced me on the vow
of obedience. We ended the day in jubilation as we tried to experience being
delegates of a provincial chapter, electing our own provincial and councilors.
And yet, the greater challenge that I carried with me throughout the day is that,
“our fundamental task in obedience is to become who we are, finding the
appropriate niche where the potential that lies within us can be placed at the
service of life by God’s holy work.”
gives rise to mission and mission is accomplished in Communion” as stated in
Christifidelis Laici. A consecrated person who is so absorbed in his or her
ministry that he or she has no time for his or her community possesses an
ambiguous identity. The realities I’ve seen in community life gave me a deeper
realization on the reflections we shared during our session on the vow of zeal.
What matters most is not what we do, no matter how small or big these things
are, it is really how much love we put into all of these especially in our
relationships that makes a lot of difference.
the greatest challenge faced by each of us, with all the formation we received
in all these sessions as we prepare for our Perpetual vows, is how to live out
our reflections so that those who share life with us would say, “Oh, they are
truly God’s shepherdesses!” And Mother Foundress would proudly acclaim, “Yes,
indeed, they are my daughters!”
Looking Forward Together
By Sr. Laurine Rennick RGS
Euphrasia shepherding meant going beyond borders and breaking traditional
structures that restricted and limited the mission. During our session on Lay Partnership we
began our talk by changing our vocabulary from Lay Associates/Partners to
Mission Partners. This changing in
vocabulary gave enough grounding to emphasize that our relationship is not just
functional, but indeed a gift from God. Madame Tess Barsaga, a Mission Partner, shared her experiences with us in a deep and
honest way.
of the Good Shepherd together with our Mission Partners we are bringing the
Good Shepherd presence in the world, shepherding the poor, the oppressed, and
the unjust. Young people are searching for meaning in their lives and are often
bogged down by uncertainty and worthlessness. Our Mission Partners with their varied experiences and expertise can
contribute and assist in those areas in the mission. Can we as Sisters of the Good Shepherd build
on a mutual trust with our Mission Partners and adopt a role of sharing our
giftedness with each other respectfully?
to Tahanan community brought us to the reality that authentic partnership is
possible. We visited the houses in the
urban poor area and personally met the Mission Partners. The Sisters of the community and the Mission
Partners share their experiences on a weekly basis and through Basic Ecclesial
Communities relationships are formed to widen scope of evangelization. Our greatest challenge today is to be like
St. Mary Euphrasia, in taking the risk to trust in the power of the Spirit by
creating authentic partnership in terms of involvement in deepening our Good
Shepherd Spirituality and continuing God’s saving work.
to Tagaytay and visiting our apostolic and contemplative communities were
indeed welcome experiences. The
inspiring talk on the spirituality of St. John Eudes by Fr. Ron Bagley (Eudist
Priest) deepened our understanding of the heart of Jesus and Mary. The heart according to St. John Eudes is the
deepest core of the person. It is a
symbol of love and this love is manifested in the heart of Mary. Jesus is present in the heart of Mary. Jesus is the heart of Mary. Thus one can say that as heirs oft that love
we reflect on Jesus’ incarnation in our own hearts. When we do this reflection,
we let Jesus be reborn in our hearts again. Our call is to be transformed so that we become more apostolic, more
practical in our relationship with God and others rather then just merely
devotional. It is evident that SJE in
his writings on the heart of Jesus and Mary wanted to reveal the merciful love
of God so that the world can be transformed totally to God. Our vocation is to become one with the heart
of Mary and Jesus. It is a call towards
transformation.
to Bukid Kabataan, a residential home for girls and boys was indeed a memorable
occasion for all of us. We could sense that there were much pain on these
little faces, yet the care and concern of our Sisters and Mission Partners are
never lacking. This is an expression of God’s merciful love. A love which knows no boundaries. The children entertained us with performances
in song and dance. Can they rock!
challenge of being a religious today, we were reminded that God’s merciful love
is not isolated from the critical situations in which we find ourselves, and it
cannot go unnoticed. We strive to be
authentic, believing in the power of truth and to trust in the creativity of
the Spirit. Our yes means that we are
committed to a cause. The cause is to
follow Jesus, and to participate in the prophetic mission through our
involvement in the local and global activities beginning from where we
are. We proclaim ourselves to be weavers
of compassion and reconciliation witnessing to God’s merciful love for all
people.
integration and ending of the sessions took place in
People - New Generation of Religious”, compiled by 600 religious from around
the world who met together in
scripture text: Ex.3:1-8; 13-15. Can we like Moses take off our shoes, going
barefoot before God and identify ourselves as beggars of Grace? The mission demands of us to put on another’s
shoes, and to get involved in the daily struggles of the people around us,
giving our full attention and abandoning our set plans. As a means of integrating the experience of
the whole month, each of us created a mandala to depict our learnings. This enabled us to accept with humility our
own barefoot experiences before our loving Shepherd God.