Recently in my area chapter group, we were discussing the topic of "Community Life." We were reflecting on questions presented to each of us. Why do we live community? What is community? How do we share community with one another? How do we communicate with one another within community exhibiting trust, respect, and love? Today, the challenge for each of us is to answer these questions in a way that reflects the need for community life as a Christian witness to the world in this twenty-first century.
This discussion brought many of us to remember our first experience of being called to the congregation. Not knowing exactly what community life was about, we recalled the enthusiasm with which we responded to live it. We admitted that what drew us to the congregation was the “living of community” that we witnessed among the sisters we met. Regardless of ministry or the year of joining the congregation, the sisters exhibited a special way of being together.
I recalled my first experience meeting the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia as a high school student in Philadelphia. As a fourteen year-old, I was struck by the way in which the sisters interacted with one another. There was a genuine spirit of being “sister”—sharing humor, showing respect, and exhibiting care and concern for one another. In their humanness they exemplified a spirit of joy. In this particular school I was exposed to members of seven different congregations of women religious. Yet, there was something “special” that attracted me to the Franciscans. Six years later I entered the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia to explore the meaning of living community.
I have been blessed to be a member of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia for more than twenty-seven years. Being a member of this congregation has provided me many opportunities to grow personally in my faith life as well as my professional life. I have been supported, challenged, and encouraged to take risks that I might not have taken otherwise. I have discovered what it means to live in community with women who interact with others on a human level, grapple with life issues, engage in deep conversations, and stimulate one another to live the Gospel life.
Working in the field of elementary education, I have been in ministry as a teacher and principal in Catholic schools in Maryland, Delaware, and West Virginia. In addition, I have had the experience of being a Director of Mission Effectiveness at The Catholic High School of Baltimore and Assistant Director of Ministry Services for the congregation. These diverse experiences led me to my recent studies at Alliant International University in Alhambra, California, where I was a doctoral student studying in the field of organizational psychology, the study of human behaviors in organizations. My primary focus was studying the underlying concepts and issues of the many dimensions of diversity and their impact on human interactions.
Over the years, my experiences in ministry and living in community have provided me opportunities to address my own stereotypes and prejudices. I came to realize how my interactions with others different from myself were influenced by my background and stereotypes which led to prejudicial attitudes and at times discriminatory behaviors. Sharing ministry with members of various culture groups, primarily with African American and Appalachian cultures, has definitely enriched my life. Learning about cultures different from my own enabled me to question my own stereotypes and prejudices toward members of groups different from my own. I came to respect the individuals with whom I ministered and grew in appreciation of the giftedness of difference. What I lacked, someone else possessed. Working together with diverse individuals strengthened the creativity and effectiveness of ministry.
Living as a member of the congregation also challenges me to accept diversity. Living community means living and sharing with individuals who have different ideas, different opinions, different backgrounds, different cultures, and different ways of doing things. I have discovered that interactions can sometimes be difficult but that is to be expected when two or more people who are different come together. What is of most importance is the time we take with one another to learn about the differences we experience. It can be as simple as asking questions in a respectful manner in order learn more about another individual. Working together on a common mission strengthens the effectiveness of community.
My educational experience has enlightened me as to the importance of raising awareness for myself and others to being conscious of personal stereotypes and prejudices towards a variety of cultural groups such as race, sexual orientation, age, gender, physical ability, ethnicity, religion, class, socio-economic level, educational level, and geographic locations (just to name a few). It has been both challenging and exciting for me to develop and implement workshops for members of the congregation, hospital employees, and parish members. For me, these workshops are one way of responding to the challenge of Vatican II asking individuals to respect the fundamental rights of persons and overcome and eradicate every type of discrimination, whether social or cultural, whether based on sex, race, color, social condition, language, or religion.
I am deeply grateful to the congregation for enabling me to be gifted with the many opportunities that I have had over these twenty-seven years. As a Franciscan, I have been able to personally live our charism of continuous conversion, striving to make changes each year in order to live authentically as I witness the Gospel life. I appreciate the “yes” I said many years ago to live my vowed commitment with the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia. With gratitude, I remember those sisters who witnessed to me the joyfulness of the Franciscan life. It is a joy for me to live in a community of women who interact with others on a human level, grapple with life issues, engage in deep conversations, and support one another in living the Gospel message.
