KENYA: ACWECA Prioritizes Future Sustainability of Religious Life in the Region
The Association of Consecrated Women in Eastern and Central Africa-ACWECA has made it a priority to strengthen the sustainability of Religious Life among the Congregations from the member countries. Speaking to AMECEA Online News, ACWECA Secretary General Sr. Eneless Chimbali, SBVM, indicated that the issue of sustainability of Religious life in Africa is of great concern.
Sr. Eneless explained that the ACWECA 17th Plenary Assembly mandated the secretariat to implement the strategic plan which had four areas to handle. These included formation and mission, family and youth, justice, peace and integrity for creation and organizational development.
“Organizational development for ACWECA means making the association relevant to the Sisters in the region through viable programs. This is what formed the choices of the programs we designed for our members,” said Sr. Eneless, adding that based on this, they have been running programs which respond to ACWECA Plenary resolutions.
Besides the programs based on the Chapter resolutions, ACWECA Secretariat has made it a priority to address the issue of sustainability of Religious life in the region in two contexts.
“First, how are we going to sustain Religious life when we ourselves have not embraced it as part of us, meaning having Sisters who are not able to integrate their charism and the ministry? Secondly, having Sisters who don’t have resources in their communities so much that their focus is only on the the money that they receive from whatever activities they are engaged in,” Sr. Eneless remarked.
In order to address the sustainability issue, ACWECA Secretariat has developed a program called Sisters Blended Value Project, where they are blending all the components of formation, leadership, finance and charism.
“In this program we are calling Congregations to enter into a discernment process on the approach towards their ministries and activities. First thing that we ask them is what makes you to go to a particular profession, for instance, teaching? Why does your Congregation run a school, a hospital, or a tertiary college? What difference or extra value do your projects and activities have compared to those run by secular institution: is it just an income generating program or or a pastoral activity?”
With the Sisters Blended Value Project, ACWECA is helping the Sisters to look beyond their communities and to establish the added value of their presence in the communities where they live, which makes them remain relevant as Religious women, thereby making Religious life attractive.
“In making Religious life attractive, people out there would want to associate with the Congregations and even say ‘I want my daughter or my relative to join that group of women’ because they have built something positive,” Sr. Eneless explained, adding that when Congregations become attractive to the community, sustainability of Religious life is assured.
“We are also training Sisters on issues of social entrepreneurship. By this we are saying how can they measure the performance of their ministries? And how do these ministries integrate their specific charism? How can that Charism be integrated into the formation process of the entire congregation so that it brings another life of this congregation based on what they have been doing?”
Sr. Eneless observed although Africa is still vibrant in terms of religion and Religious life, the grim reality of a decline of vocations is staring at the continent and is something that cannot be brushed aside.
“In ACWECA Region, there are already indications that vocations to Religious life are going down; most of the Sisters are aging and some are dying yet many Congregations are still at the comfort zone because at least new students are still coming to their formation houses. But the truth is that the trend may not continue for long if our lives remain the same and communities fail to see any added value in our presence among the people as religious.”
Currently ACWECA is working in collaboration with Santa Clara University in Californian, USA to implement the Sisters Blended Value Project. In addition, the Secretariat is working with some entrepreneurs around the ACWECA Region.
So far according to Sr. Eneless, the analysis of the Congregations that have undertaken the program is that some have been able to identify a vision and draw activities towards it. Others, however, have identified a vision but are afraid to venture into any activities towards the realization of that vision because there is too much work that needs to be done. Other Congregations are still unable to see any vision but they would love to join the process. This she said challenges the Secretariat find out what ought to be done so that all Congregations are able to move together under the program.
~End~
By Pamela Adinda, AMECEA Online News
