Almost ten years ago, in the summer of 2016, the first group of Assumption Sisters arrived in Twickenham on the outskirts of London. The new foundation was made in response to a request from St Mary’s University Twickenham—the largest of only three Catholic universities in the UK—for the sisters to help build up its Catholic identity. What was then the Province of England discerned and decided to take a risk ‘for new life’ with this new foundation.
The heart of our mission is to be a praying presence in the university and to support the work of the chaplaincy. Our role has always been a small but very worthwhile one, with our religious community being a visible sign of commitment to the Christian faith and a place of welcome and hospitality. The house next door to the convent, which fortuitously we acquired in 2019, serves both as a small hostel for female students and has spacious rooms which are ideal to welcome groups and gatherings. The university has adopted the Feast of St Marie Eugenie as a university feast and a highlight of our year is to welcome people to join us after the mass with a celebratory meal, somehow managing to fit everyone into the house!
From the start of our presence at St Mary’s we have been warmly welcomed as part of the chaplaincy team, invited to participate in chaplaincy events, and to propose new ideas. Our first and lasting initiative was directly connected to our spirituality, introducing an hour of adoration followed by evening prayer once a week in the university chapel. We have found that simple invitations to accessible forms of prayer work best. During our first Lent we began Stations of the Cross each Friday in the university chapel, and this has continued ever since, becoming more popular as the years have gone by. Other initiatives have varied from year to year; no one academic year is like another, each cohort of students is delightfully original, and with the chaplaincy team, we try to respond to their requests, including of course, the challenge of the years when COVID prevented most forms of ministry.
While it has been important to us to enhance the range of possibilities for prayer on campus, it is times of social interaction with the students that has been the most fulfilling and fruitful. For us, the best contact with students has been over shared meals, particularly when we welcome them to our convent, and they rejoice in a homely atmosphere and one another’s company. It has become a tradition that any evening meal at the convent ends with Compline, which might well be a new term to many students, but they soon learn how easy and enjoyable it is to pray the night prayer of the Church.
The number of practising Catholics is only a very small proportion of the university population, and perhaps because of this, it is very important for them to make Catholic friends and to be able to share their faith journeys with one another. From our first feast of All Saints at St Mary’s when students came unexpectedly knocking on our door in the evening to invite us to their ‘All Saints party’, we have found the students remarkably open and friendly. Some are very committed to their faith and seek spiritual advice or accompaniment, while others have significant gaps in their understanding of Christianity, and we find ourselves faced with an array of unexpected questions. For others, the challenge of adjusting to living away from home and in student halls can be difficult, and our support is more one of encouragement and kindness. Other students share their concerns and worries, which range from their approaching essay deadline to the social injustices of our world and the climate crisis.
The community which began as four British sisters has become one of nine sisters of five different nationalities, which witnesses to the joys and challenges of living as an intercultural and intergenerational group. Since we moved to St Mary’s, several sisters have studied at St Mary’s, usually on a part-time basis. It is a joy that in the past year two sisters from the Province of East Africa have joined the Twickenham community for their theological juniorate studies as full-time undergraduate students, studying alongside religious sisters from another congregation, seminarians, and young lay students.
Over the years we have become established in the locality and our outreach includes fostering friendship with and care for people who live locally, as well as supporting and welcoming the Assumption Volunteers. Missions of individual sisters include pastoral outreach, care of the marginalised, and supporting the mission of the English Territory and the Province of Europe. But the reason for our presence here in Twickenham remains St Mary’s University, and we give thanks for the many ways God has blessed our presence over the past ten years.
Twickenham Community – England
Province of Europe