SND superior general hopeful for future of religious life |
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Written by LAURIE STEVENS, Chronicle Writer
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Friday, 04 January 2008 09:23 |
TOLEDO—The superior general for one of the largest congregations of vowed women religious in the world believes religious life is changing, but says she has “absolutely no fear” that it will die out.
“The vocations will continue to come, that I believe — because it’s God’s work. People are always there to respond to that, all through history,” says Notre Dame Sister Mary Sujita Kallupurakkathu, a native of Kerala, India, who has served as the elected superior general for nearly 2,400 Sisters of Notre Dame in 15 countries since 1998.
“But we have to change our pattern of thinking,” she continues. “God is making something new.”
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Sister Mary Sujita Kallupurakkathu (Chronicle photo by Laurie Stevens) |
Sr. Mary Sujita cites smaller families, increased opportunities for women and a more empowered laity as factors that have contributed to the decline in religious vocations around the world.
Shrinking membership has forced the sisters to shift from thinking in terms of big institutions to consider new ways to be present in the church. She suggests religious may increasingly play a role as the “leaven” in society, responding in smaller groups to the needs of the poor.
“It’s not only a matter of number of sisters, it’s not a matter of doing something we always did, but it is a matter of giving our energy where we are needed the most,” says Sr. Mary Sujita.
“God doesn’t need huge numbers,” she adds. “God needs people with the hearts to respond.”
During November and December, the superior general and two of her councilors visited sisters of the Toledo Province who serve in a variety of ministries in the Diocese of Toledo and elsewhere in Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Florida, Louisiana and South Carolina.
She makes her canonical visit to a province once every six years to meet with individual sisters, learn about their ministries and discuss the emerging needs they see in their communities.
Across the international congregation, the superior general has observed a growing desire to reach out to the poor, especially women, in the fields of education, health care and social services. She notes this development is not new for the sisters, rather a return to their roots.
Sisters from the Toledo Province serve in parishes and teach in Catholic schools, but have also branched into ministries like Double ARC, a nonprofit they founded in 1992 that provides specialized services to children at risk for classroom failure, including children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders.
At Women Blessing Women, a nonprofit founded by women religious from area congregations including Notre Dame, the sisters and other volunteers work to provide job, education and empowerment skills to women living in poverty.
The congregation has also applied for non-governmental organization status at the United Nations so they can advocate for women and children in need throughout the world.
Sr. Mary Sujita says the sisters continually challenge themselves to see what more God is asking.
“I like that search and quest for more,” she says. “I always call it the holy restlessness inside.”
The Sisters of Notre Dame serve under a variety of conditions in different countries, but Sr. Mary Sujita says their mission remains the same: to be Christ to the world today.
“The heart of the mission is to see the individual and the society through the eyes of Jesus, and to give a response that is fitting,” she explains.
She is careful to avoid comparing the countries where sisters serve, because she says poverty must be “understood in the context of the country’s situation.”
The conditions she witnessed while working among the poorest people of India for many years were far more extreme than anything she would ever encounter in the United States, Sr. Mary Sujita acknowledges. Yet, in the more developed nation, poverty and subtle racism still persist and must be addressed.
Sisters in the United States have made concrete steps to be with those people living on the margins of society, she says.
“We cannot change the world, but there is something beautiful that we can contribute to that transformation,” says Sr. Mary Sujita.
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Last Updated on Monday, 28 July 2008 08:45 |
