Province AO: Perpetual vows of Sister Marie-Josée GOSSE
On Sunday 17th January 2021 in Abidjan (Ivory Coast) we had the great joy of participating in the Final Profession of our sister Marie-Josée during a Eucharistic celebration presided over by his eminence, Cardinal Jean Pierre KUTWA. Here she shares with us her journey and her joy of belonging to Christ in the Congregation!
Marie-Madeleine
Sharing of Sister Marie-Josée
My sharing is based on five points, namely vocation, walking with the Religious of the Assumption, formation, my mystery and my word.
My vocation began when I was in the Cours Moyen 2 class. I was carried away by the generosity and simplicity of a religious who came to see one of our neighbours who had a physical handicap. So this is how I nourished my desire to become a nun. But my brothers didn't take this desire seriously. At a certain point, I ended up believing that it was not my path.
My walk with the Assumption dates from January 1, 2006, when I had the project of meeting a family with whom I was planning to walk. But to my great surprise, things didn't turn out as I thought they would. I will say that this surprise made my choice easier. In fact, at that Mass, I only found one religious family represented by Sister Guillemette, a Sister of the Assumption. From then on, I stayed with the Religious of the Assumption.
During the stage of formation, I discovered the truth that liberates, that together we are strong and intelligent; the importance of prayer above all else, the gift of self without reserve which is a way of giving back to God what he has given us.
My mystery, the experience of the novitiate, a stage of formation, earned me the choice of the mystery of the Cross. I understood on September 14, 2013 that love is free and that this love can be accepted as well as refused. This experience made me overcome the contradictions of daily life. On this day, I praise the Lord for having had this experience that allows me to be with others where I am.
My word: "...Mercy has been shown to me..." 1Tm 1:3.
Looking back on my life from childhood to the present day makes me say that my life is a thanksgiving to the Lord for the fact that he has looked upon me. After taking vows, I was surprised to discover some of my incapacities, which discouraged me a lot. But God has given me back my life to the point that I say yes forever until my death following the Assumption. It is from this whole life experience that my word was born, He was been merciful to me, yes the Lord loved me as I am and through this love he never abandoned me. As a witness of the Lord's mercy towards me, I want to live this mercy towards my brothers and sisters.
May the Lord bless our Congregation and may He give us many holy vocations. Coinciding with our desire, at the end of the Mass, the Cardinal asked that all the young girls under the age of 25 rise and he addressed this message to them. "May she who feels the call to consecrate herself to God in religious life courageously respond to it".