The celebration itself was well documented, with its speeches, tributes, prayer service and elegant luncheon. The Board had done much to ensure a lovely celebration, and Olga and Eluiza overlooked no detail in the planning. For me, the highlights were the moments of reconnecting, with neighbours, former Board members, many of whom had been extremely helpful to us in our first days and years in Le Puy. Those threads of connection remain strong, including those with some of the Sisters, and neighbours who are no longer with us. We are still one.
Of the speeches that were given, the theme that reached out to me was when Father Chamaly, former pastor of Les Carmes, the parish we attended, spoke of how our presence, the Centre, and its many international guests had widened the vision of the parishioners, helping them to envision and experience a bigger world. The Mayor of Aiguilhe and the delegate of the Bishop also spoke of the broader vision brought to the tiny town of Le Puy by our presence and that of our global programs. That felt like something worthwhile to have been about.
Globally, we are all experiencing the declining numbers of Religious and the increasing role of lay persons in all aspects of what we saw as “our mission”. Truth be told, the mission is that of Jesus, “that all may be one”: love of God, love of neighbour without distinction. This is at the heart of the Gospel, and so not intended as our property at all. From the beginning, Father Medaille saw our collaboration with “all persons of good will” as essential to our mission and our existence. The woman protestant minister, a Biblical scholar, who spoke to the Global Coordinating Group about the Eucharistic Letter, spoke of self-emptying, or anéantissement, as really being, “making room for the other”, not taking up all the room and attention for yourself. It seems to me that our call at this moment in time is to make room for the laity, to let them take on responsibility for much of what we have called our mission.
Will the Centre survive into the future? We do not know. As we interacted with our neighbours, with Martine, with the parishioners, with Board members and even the staff of the hotel where we stayed, I could not help thinking that if there is to be a future for Centre International St. Joseph, we need to “make room for the other” and take up less room for ourselves.
-Sister Mary Diesbourg, CSJ
