In this link the photos of the meeting will be published
Dom Guillaume, a Trappist monk, helped us in the reflection of the last day with a conference dedicated to religious life and its transformations in Europe today. After a time of personal work on how we dream of the Assumption of Europe, we shared in pairs.
We began the afternoon by sharing different experiences of life and mission from our various communities. After the break we divided into groups of sisters aged over 50 and under 50, to write each other a letter with best wishes for the journey we are continuing to make together in Europe. These letters were read in the evening. After the festive, fraternal, fun and international evening, we said goodbye until the next meeting, which we hope will be soon. We continue to work together on different projects and international missions, but above all, to live communion in our common vocation.
We began the day with the prayer of Lauds and the celebration of the Eucharist of the Holy Family. We are enjoying the beauty of the international liturgy, which always ends with singing the joyous Christmas carols of Spain. We pray for all families who, regardless of their way of life, help people to grow because love and the transmission of social virtues reign in them. We also pray for those families that do not live easy times.
The day was marked by the deepening of reality. At first, there was a conference by the Jesuit José Ignacio García, from the RSJ, who helped us to reflect on the social changes that are taking place in Europe, from which we worked in groups to define the challenges that these transformations present for religious life. Each person in the group wrote their thoughts on a star, and we defined a common challenge that we captured on a puzzle card. In the afternoon, divided into four groups, we visited four communities in Madrid, where lay people and sisters presented their projects and we were able to live a time of joyous fraternity.
From December 28th – 30th a meeting is taking place in Madrid bringing together more than fifty European sisters from Lithuania, England, Belgium, Italy, France and Spain. After the welcome of Cecilia Manrique, Provincial Superior of Spain, we began work by going deeper into the sources of the Congregation, thanks to our sister Veronique, archivist of the Congregation. In the morning she spoke to us about the internationality lived at the beginning of the Congregation, and in the afternoon about the challenges for the spiritual and community life that come from the writings of Mother Marie-Eugénie. After both presentations, there was an exchange in small groups and in assembly, where we continued to reflect upon the mission of the Assumption in Europe, how our charism can continue to address the challenges of today.