Opening Talk

Catherine Dolan, RSHM

I find it hard to believe that this day has come, and we are about to begin the 20th General Chapter of our Institute. But in fact, this is the day and the Lord has made it, and we have come from far and wide to be here. Thank God we have all arrived safely, in spite of travel and luggage glitches. And we are happy, aren't we, to be with each other for this very important step in our history when we will be finding ways to continue Gailhac's vision, and to promote life in the new millennium? I want to welcome you all with the final words of the hymn we have just sung: Que todos tenham Vida - that all may have life! May our coming together in this chapter be a means of life for ourselves gathered here and for all those who are depending on us for life in this new millennium.

We are surrounded here by symbols of life, in words and music, as in the Hymn, in the striking art around us, in the living water which will be constantly with us, reminding us of God's ongoing gift of life, and in our logo which has accompanied us in our preparation and will be here with us throughout the chapter. Most of all we have the life and energy in this room, the powerful energy of women, of many cultures, of all ages, with the same charism and desire to promote life. How are we going to combine this energy and harness it in order to move us forward into the future? That is a challenge for this chapter.

The task is to find ways of continuing Gailhac's vision. To do this we need to be able to see with his eyes but in our time. We know that Gailhac's vision was two-fold, looking towards God, and looking towards the world, seeing what he could do to respond to the great needs of his time. This is what we want to do in this chapter, to be turned towards God through the reflection and prayer which will permeate our chapter and be a source of creative energy, and to be open to seeing what we are being called to as an Institute in this world of globalization. Through our listening to the Spirit within ourselves and in each other and through our dialogue we will help each other to do the work which each of us has been called to through our election to this chapter or through our position as ex-officio members.

We have a great responsibility, but among all of us in this room we have a wealth of gifts, of experience, of knowledge and of goodness and by putting these together we will be able to do far more than we can imagine. And to help us we have the strength and support of our ancestors, Gailhac, our founder, Mother St. John and our founding sisters, and all those other RSHM who have gone before us for more than 150 years, bringing Gailhac's vision of life for all into their worlds and their time. They are all here with us as we try to see what we are being called to in this 21st century.

Indeed, it is not difficult for us to see in general what we are being called to. In province responses regarding the benefits, dangers and effects of globalization we see very clearly the negative effects vastly out weighing any positive effects. What a weight of meaning in those words "negative effects". They mean injustice, hunger and poverty, unemployment, breakdown in family life and traditional values, lack of respect for life, powerlessness, oppression, exclusion, displacement, death and dying. You have named these and more in your responses. These are the needs that we see, that Gailhac would see, that are calling out for a remedy. But if "negative effects" speaks of these overwhelmingly evil fruits of globalization, surely the "positive effects" have, at least, the seeds of life and goodness which need to be nourished and tended if we want to renew the face of the earth, to bring about the transformation of our world.

One of the positive effects which is growing in strength is that which in your responses you variously named as solidarity, working together, closer relationships among people of all nations and cultures, human interconnectedness, collaboration between peoples, cross-cultural and multi-cultural interaction. It is something to do with growing unity/brotherhood/sisterhood in our world characterised by brokenness. In his message for the 2001 World Day of Peace, John Paul II spoke of the hope that, in the new millennium, relationships between people will be increasingly inspired by the ideal of a truly universal brotherhood, emphazising that dialogue between cultures and traditions is crucial to the pursuit of peace. The United Nations has declared 2001 the "International Year of Dialogue among Civilizations".

I would like to reflect on this in relation to our own situation, our growing unity as one Body for Mission and how this can be a powerful force in bringing life to our world. First of all I would like to go back to our chapter logo, one of our symbols of life. As you know Marilyn Ficht from the Western American Province, who is currently missioned in the Zambezi Region, designed the logo and wrote about it: "we continue to reach out from our seven Provinces/Regions to meet the needs of our world in the year 2001 and beyond". In the logo, we see the various provinces and regions linked together, the point of unity holding them together being our Institute cross. And as they and we are linked, so the different parts of the world we are in are also linked.

Our internationality, our being in so many different countries, from so many different cultures means that we have the means, the ability, the power, to enable life to circulate and to make a difference in many parts of the world. Now is the time for us to use our gift of internationality in our globalizing world, using the new technologies of communication and the comparative ease of travelling, using our experience in networking, not only among ourselves, but with other groups and organizations who have the same concerns. And there are many, in our local areas and on a world-wide scale. We have the possibility, through our networking and internationality, to act globally as well as locally towards eradicating the unjust structures which are at the root of the "negative effects" of globalization.

In your folders you will have seen the declaration which came out of the Plenary Meeting of the International Union of General Superiors which was held here in May, a declaration focusing on the solidarity and collaboration of women religious throughout the world as a powerful means of addressing the urgent justice issues of our day. For many years religious congregations have been talking about collaboration for the sake of mission. Now it is crucial, there is an urgency about it if we wish to effect change.

Looking again at the logo, we are very much aware that what holds the whole image together is a heart - God's heart? the heart of each one of us who are the mercy and compassion of God for our world? It brings to my mind the theme of the UISG meeting, which was: Women Religious:Many Cultures, One Heart. Sent to be a living presence of the tenderness and mercy of God in our wounded world. For me this is an image of what we aspire to be as an Institute and also as a chapter - many cultures, one heart. It speaks of what God wants us to be, what God wants the world to be.

However, attaining this ideal is difficult. It does not happen just by putting people of different cultures together. It needs time, patience, understanding and dialogue. It needs acknowledgement of the truth about inequalities between cultures, about domination and injustice. It may need reconciliation. And this both in our world and in our Institute and communities. It can be a very painful process but as we saw in our logo the uniting point for our internationality is our Institute cross. It is always helpful to call to mind Gailhac's words to Mère St. Jean the day before our foundation: "God is with us, and therefore so is the Cross. But everything will work out. . . . . God will be our support" and to remind ourselves that the cross is part of our history, both recent and past. Given our history and our belief in God's presence with us, we should expect that whatever is important to us in our mission, will be touched by the Cross, including our serious efforts to be truly multicultural. We can be strengthened by the words of St. Paul in Ephesians: "Now in Christ Jesus, you that used to be so far apart from us have been brought very close, by the cross of Christ. For he is the peace between us, and has broken down the barrier which used to keep us apart . . ."

We have this gift that the world does not have - the conviction that our unity, our one heart, is rooted in Jesus who came to bring life. Even though difficulties and pain still have to be faced, this conviction is what gives us the ability to be a source of hope for the world, a prophetic presence which can speak the truth and take the steps needed to bring about change in ourselves and in the world.

So as we begin this chapter, let us recognise the importance of our being international and being one body, of being many cultures with one single heart. This is one of the most valuable gifts that we can bring to our world of globalization. It is a powerful means to effect change, to renew the face of the earth. It is a strength we have. Let us make it a source of life for others.

Before we begin our ritual of calling forth, I would like you to spend a few minutes enjoying the images and sounds of a CD I received at the UISG meeting. It is a meditation which I think is very appropriate for us as we begin this chapter. I invite you to join in the singing if and when you are happy to do so.