Context and Approach:

This topic of the laity being part of “the new spirituality of life and hope for all” will be situated in the context of Australia/New Zealand. My examples and insights will come from my belonging to an Australian Order founded by Blessed Mary MacKillopand Rev.Julian Tenison-Woods …the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart commonly known as  “Josephites”.

 I will present this “laity strand” in terms of the challenges and opportunities it brings to our Congregations at this time to enhance the reign of God and God’s mission through the sharing of the charisms of each of our Orders.  The charisms are recognised in and by “the laity” so that the ecclesial community is alive with the fullness of God’s Spirit.

 My focus is that of an Apostolic Congregation which is already involved in ‘partnerships’ with various lay groups that share in the Josephite charism. 

 Underlying Assumptions/Beliefs:

The assumptions/beliefs that underpin this presentation can be summed up in the following three quotes.

 A central conviction of the group on Partnership with the Laity at the Congress was

that new relationships of genuine mutuality and autonomy between religious Congregations and the laity are invigorating for consecrated life, the Church and the world.  Congress  Rome 2004 : Passion for Christ and a Passion for Humanity:  Group Notes

 A Religious Life or Congregation that is sufficient unto itself is no longer appropriate for these times. 

In reality, it lives “enclosed” in its proper charism, in its own tradition, in its works, in its apostolic movements, its own associations of laity, its vocational pastoral activity, in its internal research (Chapters, assemblies, community meetings). 

We believe that such religious life is no longer possible, not only because of the drop in numbers experienced by many congregations, but also because it would no longer be faithful to its foundational dynamism that is part of its being: to live in the world, decentred from itself.

UISG No. 132  2006 :  What Religious Life for this “other possible world? Sr. Maria Pilar Wirtz Molezun O.D.N. Sr. Maria Jose Torries Perez Ap.C.J.

 In our Josephite Chapter in 2001 we recognised that at this point in our history there is evidence of a movement of the Spirit calling us to new ways of imaging and living the Charism of our Congregation. 

There is a new energy as people respond to the charism in a variety of ways.  The urgent needs of our time impel us as a Congregation to travel with those whom God is calling in new ways to recognise the charism in themselves.  We are called to be bold (courageous, take risks) in honouring and nurturing the charism alive in the hearts of many lay people.

 Sisters of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart Chapter Document  Forward in Hope 2001 Australia

 

 A Challenging Journey…

For Leadership

As a Congregational Leader I believe strongly that our Congregations have a ‘window of opportunity’ at this time in history

to be changed gradually by the lay movement,

to be given a chance to have our Congregational charisms blossom in a new way,

to have our particular spiritualties shared, lived and developed by lay groups and

to have new communities and ministries challenged to be inclusive, diverse and honouring of difference ….

all for the sake of the new frontiers of God’s mission and the Reign of God in the fractured world of our time. 

 There is an opportunity also through the charisms of each of our Congregations to strengthen and support the ‘laity strand’ so that it is woven into the new spirituality of life and hope for all

 As Congregations I believe we need to continue, simultaneously,

to release the belief that we have to be sufficient unto ourselves and

to walk compellingly with those whom God is calling in new ways to recognise the charism in themselves.

 If our Congregations really believe this then it will be reflected in our energies and our structures.

One small step Josephites have taken “structurally” is that Laity (those who share our charism) is the “portfolio” of one of the General Councillors who is responsible for keeping the Josephites in an ongoing interaction and dialogue with the laity through processes, events, and formation together.

 The leadership of the Sisters of St Joseph initiated a four year collaborative process across the Congregation to look at the “Congregational Shadow” of our Josephite culture.  This is an ongoing transformation journey to assist the Congregation in articulating our gifts and recognising the patterns of fear, arrogance, conformity, ignorance, lack of truthfulness that are blocking us from changing and moving as a Congregation towards a new future.

 

Challenges facing Leaders:

What energy and commitment can Leadership give to promoting the interaction of the Congregation with the laity?  How is this commitment reflected in our Congregational structures, and the initiating or supporting of significant events, initiatives, processes ?

 What processes can Leaders set in place to bring about “shifts” in the mentality of the members of the Congregation towards the lay expressions of our Congregational charism?

 

For Membership

Some years ago Sandra Schneider in Finding the Treasure(P.95/96) suggested that congregations were being

‘called to undertake the ministry of promoting the emergence of the laity into that full adult spirituality and ministry to which the Council called them but which the institutional church is often enough unequipped and/or unwilling to promote.’

Over the last thirty years our Congregation, like many others, has formed a Josephite Association (3,000 +) entered into ‘partnerships’ with other lay groups around the mission, been involved in formation in the charism for parish leaders, staffs, Boards, students, and children of our organisations, institutes and Colleges or wherever our Sisters minister as well as offering hospitality and prayer in our communities.  Through our associations, affiliations, Boards and other “partnerships” we are providing for lay people with a similar spirit to have as Marcahel says:

a particular story to enter

a language to speak

a group to which to belong

a way to pray

a work/ministry to undertake

a face of God to see.   

Toward an effective partnership between religious and laity in fulfilment of Charism and responsibility for mission.   The 56^th Conference of the Unione Superiore Generali, Rome 2000

 

Theological beliefs around the call to holiness and assumptions around ‘belonging’are gradually changing within the Congregation and within laity.  For example our theology in both Sisters and laity has moved from believing that Religious Life is the ‘state of perfection’ to realising that there is a whole range of opportunities in which to pursue Christian holiness.  Also the Josephite Charism is now being seen at the centre rather than the Sisters of St. Joseph at the centre with all lay people seen in the ‘helping-role’. We are gradually recognising that this Josephite charism is in lay people too and may be expressed through lay groups in a variety of ways. All of us are viewing the gospel through the lens of the charism which inspires and supports us to live this call to discipleship.

Challenges facing Members and Leaders:

What processes could we continue to create (separately and together with lay groups) to deepen       

our ongoing theological-spiritual understandings

our  particular spirituality

the different expressions of the charism

the changing reality of our world and mission

so that we all are assisted in seeing that God is doing something profound through the laity and that together we will more effectively respond to the needs of our world?

Further Challenges Emerging

Leaders of Religious Congregations know that we need to continually foster our charism beyond our own structures as mentioned above. Sometimes however I feel that the way forward is not very clear and feel anxious that too many groups are aspiring to be “Josephite”, that we need to have more formal structures of belonging to safeguard and channel this ‘new energy as people respond to the charism in a variety of ways.’

 At other times I am challenged to think quite differently.  An Australian theologian, Rev.David Ranson[1] in his session with our Congregation says that in this pluralistic and global 21^st century we are on the

‘threshold of a new expression of the charism-atic life. That Religious Life will retreat in the form it is and new forms of the “charism-atic irruption” will come to the fore in a way that will be dominant for the next few centuries.

 The rise of the new ecclesial movements possibly intimate features of the new way that the “charism-atic impulse” is breaking into the world at this time.  Whilst these new movements are not without their problems and difficulties there are two features of them worth considering:  Many of the new movements are

inclusive of many states of life – single, married, clerical, religious

one does not have to leave what one is doing to live the particular charism.

A robust charism is strong when it has the ability to be flexible and include and adapt itself to many lifestyles fired by the passion for God and the passion for humanity.

 

Towards Supporting Autonomy and Mutuality

These insights have encouraged the Josephites to walk with groups that reflect these features It is calling us as a Congregation to truly allow genuine lay autonomy in expressing their lives and mission through the lens of the Josephite Charism and spirituality.

 Josephite Community Aid is a young adult volunteer group founded by a Federation Josephite Sister which is now run and organised by an Incorporated Committee of mature lay adults who have bought property, purchased vans and appointed a lay co-ordinator to run this volunteer ministry to refugees and people with mental disability living in boarding houses in parts of Sydney.  The Sisters have no ownership of this ministry but remain in a supportive role.

 Josephite Associate Network Incorporated is a group of Josephite Associates in Queensland. It is a civil entity separate from the Congregation but with a Memorandum of Understanding.  This group has been recently established and they aim to do good works under the Josephite charism working co-operatively with the Congregation in some ministries while remaining financially and civilly independent.

 This variety of different lay groups emerging as autonomous expressions of the Josephite charism keeps challenging the Sisters in the Congregation to realise the contribution of the lay people to enhancing God’s mission through the inspiration of Blessed Mary MacKillop and the charism of the Josephites. Not only is this new energy in laity something we need to support but it is also integral to our clarifying who we are as Religious(identity). We need the other, the interaction with difference, the different expressions of our charism in order to know who we are as Religious in this Movement and in the way we express the charism.

 New Imaging: Josephite Movement

 The idea of a “Josephite Movement” is one of the new images we are exploring. A Movement focuses on the shared charism and spirit.  It allows for different levels of belonging, for a variety of independent ways beyond the Religious Institute, its associations and affiliations. A Movement can hold all these groups in relationship around the shared charism.  It may even be possible for a Josephite lay group to include members of other faiths and religions who experience the charism as similar to their own spirit.

 

Further Challenges

What processes could Congregations set in place to move themselves towards promoting genuine lay autonomy around expressions of their Charism?

 There is no doubt that this journey continues to be fraught with issues and challenges that have to be worked through separately and together as Religious and Lay groups.  However, I believe that God’s mission today will be truly enhanced if religious congregations give considerable energy and focus to recognising this ‘sign of the times’ breaking through within our midst.  It reminds me of the sand within the oyster gradually forming a pearl within its environment.   Indeed, ‘see, God is doing a new deed’ in our midst

 

 

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[1] Religious Life: Where to from here and for whom?  An Address to the Leadership of the Religious Sisters of St. Joseph, Sydney, Australia  May 2005  by Rev. David Ranson Catholic Institute of Theology, Sydney