What does You Are Sent have to say to associates? “You Are Sent . . .for Mission” was Sister Rosemary Howarth’s message to AMSSND associates who gathered by Zoom on June 13 and 14. In the initial session, Sister Rosemary placed the current Constitution within the context of the evolution of the original Rule. Associates were delighted when Sister Rosemary spoke in the voice of Blessed Theresa, telling of her struggles in getting approval for the Rule. As one associate said, “the personalized life of Mother Theresa through Sister Rosemary brought me closer to her strong faith and trust in what God engineered and planned for SSND. It gives me hope for the future.”
Associates were given the opportunity to ponder the deep desires reflected in the Foreword to You Are Sent: the desires for the transcendent God, for being with others, and for being for others. In small groups they shared the patterns of these desires in their living as SSND associates. Finally, Sister Rosemary prompted them to create messages of hope, encouragement, and affirmation for their fellow associates. These moving affirmations were shared in the final prayer, concluding with a blessing from Sister Mary Roy Weiss, liaison Councilor for associates.
In the final session of the two day gathering, Associate Kathi Barth facilitated “Stepping into the Future as SSND Associates,” a conversation focusing on surfacing needs and plans for the coming year and beyond. Noted one associate, “the suggestions that participants presented were creative, practical, and very much in touch with what should be happening in the future. As they were presented, I felt energized—we can do this.”
