ACWECA: Prophetic Role of Women Religious

Sr. Mary Lilly Driciru

Sr. Mary Gitau IBVM, a presenter of the first day took the participants through topic: Prophetic Role of Women Religious.

“As religious we are called to bring good news. “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings glad tidings, announcing peace, bearing good news, announcing salvation, and saying to Zion, Your God is King”( Isaiah 52: 7).

She reminded the participants of being set apart, of being called to be mystics and to discern God’s Will for the present.

“Prophets were people who focused on the present; discerning the will of God in the events that were happening at that particular time. They analyzed what was happening around them. They were fully immersed in the lives of their people. In this way, their message had a context. This immersion did not deter them from being so connected with God that they heard His voice and message and rallied it to the people. This they did in spite of the challenges, rejections, oppositions or the persecutions they faced,” she said.

She continued further by saying that “Religious women today need to do the same with great conviction and ability to withstand what opposes their call to witness Christ in the world. Constantly open to the present times and what is happening in the here and now with regard to the socio – political – cultural – religious world. There is need to continuously discern what the Lord is saying to his people and to be the voice that articulates that message, remain the prophetic call of women religious.”

Sr. Mary thus urged the participants to be clear and knowledgeable than ever arguing, “Consecrated men and women are called – possibly now more than ever – to be prophets, mystics and contemplatives, to discover the signs of God’s presence in everyday life and to become wise representatives who know how to recognize the questions that God and humanity ask throughout history.”

Now the world is faced with the Covid – 19 pandemic. Life has suddenly become fragile and people feel vulnerable and sometimes desperate. As women religious today, what message do we give to the people today? What is the message of God in these times of such challenge? What is the discerning heart saying in the midst of this pandemic?

Concerning the value of witnessing, she emphasized that the prophets were people who gave witness with the life they lived and the actions they did. In this way, they gave witness; this implies having personal knowledge about that to which one testifies. Witnessing implies talking about what has one seen and heard. Witnessing implies living in accordance with what they have known and experienced. Sometimes, the very lives of the prophets was a message sent by God to his people. (Hosea 1: 1 ff).

“As women Religious, to live the call of God in such a way that other people will see that there is more to life than worldly things. Even in situations where religious feel unappreciated and their work undervalued, to take courage and keep preaching the word through their actions. In this way, the message of Jesus becomes fulfilled even today – “you will be my witnesses” she underscored citing Acts of the Apostles 1:8.

Sr. Mary further challenged consecrated persons basing on the prophetic mission saying, “Prophets were fearless people who spoke against the ills of the society at that time including the injustices of the time. Like Jesus, they felt inspired as messengers to the people. “The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me; he has sent me to bring glad tidings to the lowly (Isaiah 61: 1 –3)” and urged all the Religious to take up the challenge.

Citing from New Wines in the New Wineskins no 7 she continued, “In the meantime, new and unprecedented emergencies have caused other needs to explode. They still have not been responded to and continue to knock at the door of the creative fidelity of all forms of consecrated life.”

Sr. Mary thus called the participants to embrace the vows. “The three vows should be lived radically as they ought to be are themselves a prophetic response to the three big challenges which the church meets today. These are challenges with regard to the way people relate to power, possessions and sexuality. Lived in a deep and faithful way, the vows express the commitment to Christ, the center and focus of religious life. The vows become prophetic when they help religious to move from individualism, acquisition of property, false love and manipulations to humility, simplicity and genuine love – agape.”

As witnesses, the religious are bears of hope and joy not without struggles Sr. Mary explained and concluded by calling the Religious to conversion saying, “Religious women are people consumed by the love of God and who witness to the unending love of God. This can only happen if they are first and foremost filled with love. After that, one is able to love others in the same way. When one experiences how God loves her unconditionally, she too will strive to love as much as they can even to those they find it difficult to love. One is able to transcend and like Jesus, wash the feet of his betrayer Judas.”