By S. Mary Goretty Akinyi, SSND, Province of Africa
Receive our fondest regards from the smiling coast of The Gambia! Our trinity community here in Bwiam is made up of Sisters Maryanne, Ejura Elizabeth and Mary Goretty. As African women religious, we have nurtured a certain attentiveness towards living out our SSND foundational values with an African flavor expressed in worship, hospitality, respect, empowering of those we encounter, and an “Ubuntu” spirit of community.
As true daughters of the Blessed Mother Theresa of Jesus Gerhardinger, we have lived our relationship with the highest deity with undeniable fidelity. Of the two most celebrated feasts of our congregation, the Feast of Immaculate Conception in 2017 remains special in our hearts. We invited our neighbours into our compound so we could celebrate the day together. The compound was well-decorated and made ready by our Children of Theresa Gerhardinger. By 6pm a crowd had gathered, and soon the program commenced. The crowd was a made up of both Muslims and Christians.
This was a moment to relish and to know deeply that there is a positive power beyond us that comes down to us whenever we are disposed, regardless of religion. The day cooled down well enough to grace the occasion as the program progressed. After presentation of some items of the program, a Muslim girl in the crowd could not hold back her joy but to pelt out her melodious voice in the song Amazing Grace.
This was the climax of the powerful experience of the evening, which saw the rest of the crowd spontaneously joining in the song. It goes back to the song you sing when your spirit is in perfect union with God. What is your song?
Besides our daily experiences of amazing graces of God,we have embodied the community spirit of praying with our neighbours in their compounds during weekly family masses. In order to strengthen this profound kinship of neighborhood bonding, older women of our community have continually sweetly surprised us with either a tempting bowl of a delicious meal or a special visit. During the visits the women burst forth into a song and dance, especially on the important days of our church.
On a recent occasion we, as good neighbours and kin, found ourselves effortlessly hosting a wedding in our chapel. The pronouncement of the mysterious “I do…” still echoes in our hearts, ever reminding us of our fidelity to our vows pronounced on our day of profession.
We thank God for blessing us with Bwiam community as a concrete reality within which we live the Mission of Christ, as shaped by Mother Theresa. This Mission has helped us to integrate the African values with our SSND foundational values.
This reality is palpably expressed in forms of prayer, hospitality and enriching one another culturally. We acknowledge that integration of these values is ongoing, just as the journey of miles begins with a single step.
