The jubilee celebration took place on Saturday, April 25 th . The chapel at the Motherhouse was filled with a huge crowd of people—family and friends of our sisters—who came to give thanks. Father Richard Lukaszewski, Vicar General, who presided over the ceremony, announced that our sisters had accumulated a total of 915 years of religious life: “It’s almost dizzying,” he added!
Homily by Father Richard:
I ask myself a question, my sisters: what is left for you to do after 50, 60, 70, or 75 years of religious life? What remains to be done? That is the question I ask myself. The Second Vatican Council reminds us that the supreme rule and foundation of religious life is to follow Christ, according to the teaching of the Gospel. Following Jesus: certainly, with St. Francis de Sales, it is easy. We have learned that the call to holiness concerns all the baptized. We are all called to follow Jesus; this call is not addressed only to the consecrated life.
But through your consecrated life, you are the memory of the Gospel for all the baptized, inviting us to follow Christ. You are the memory of the Gospel. You are also a sign—as the Gospel just said—to help us always point to Christ, and you are the freshness of the Gospel through your fidelity to loving Christ ever more deeply. You are the memory, the sign, and the freshness of the Gospel today. Even after 50, 60, or 70 years of religious life, you embody these three dimensions.
Jubilee Celebration
When we celebrate 50 years of religious life, that is a golden life—a golden jubilee—a life that shines brightly and endures through time. And a great treasure—more precious than gold—from your life in the school of St. Francis de Sales is humility (as mentioned in the first reading). 60 years of religious life is a diamond life, a solid life; not without trials, but one that withstands trials “with the strength of faith.” The diamond of our life is our faith. The diamond is also a sign of eternity in the service of the Lord. 70 years of religious life is a life of platinum (a material rarer than gold); platinum marks the uniqueness of each of our lives, lives that are grounded and balanced, deeply rooted. This, too, is religious life: an invitation to stand firm. And finally, 75 years of religious life is a life of alabaster, a white and precious stone that evokes gentleness—so dear to Saint Francis de Sales. Like alabaster, religious life allows the Lord’s light to pass through gently, a diffused light. This stone is also fragile, as a consecrated person may be after 50, 60, 70 years of religious life. So, my sisters: what remains for you to do after 50, 60, 70, 75 years of religious life? Do we retire? The answer—Jesus’ answer—is found in the Gospel: “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature.” That is what remains for you to do. I invite you to continue to be the memory, the sign, and the freshness of the Gospel today, through your lives of gold, diamond, platinum, and alabaster—humble and steadfast, deeply rooted and gentle. Amen.
The jubilarians leaving the chapel
A Message from Sr. Brigitte-Espérance, Jubilant of 50 Years:
How does one experience a jubilee of 50, 60, 70, or 75 years of religious profession? In jubilation!
With deep emotion… In immense thanksgiving… With a heart overflowing… When we give ourselves to the Lord through our first profession, the page is blank; it calls to us. Today, many pages have been written; the notebook is nearly full…
How many hours spent in prayer, in meditation, at the celebration of the Eucharist… How many songs of praise and supplication have risen from our hearts to our Father, through Jesus, in the Spirit… How many deeds accomplished with the greatest possible love in service to others, offered through the direction of intention… How many people we have met in our professional and apostolic lives… How many people we have accompanied on the path of discovering God… contemplation nourishing our action, and vice versa… And this under every sky, for the spirituality of Saint Francis de Sales—entirely evangelical, marked by gentleness and humility—knows no borders. What a union among us who are gathered at the Motherhouse for this celebration: 2 from France, 1 from England, 1 from Colombia, 3 from Ecuador, 1 from Africa. We are animated by the same breath.
The jubilee celebration took place on Saturday, April 25 th . The chapel at the Motherhouse was filled with a huge crowd of people—family and friends of our sisters—who came to give thanks. Father Richard Lukaszewski, Vicar General, who presided over the ceremony, announced that our sisters had accumulated a total of 915 years of religious life: “It’s almost dizzying,” he added!
Homily by Father Richard:
I ask myself a question, my sisters: what is left for you to do after 50, 60, 70, or 75 years of religious life? What remains to be done? That is the question I ask myself. The Second Vatican Council reminds us that the supreme rule and foundation of religious life is to follow Christ, according to the teaching of the Gospel. Following Jesus: certainly, with St. Francis de Sales, it is easy. We have learned that the call to holiness concerns all the baptized. We are all called to follow Jesus; this call is not addressed only to the consecrated life.
But through your consecrated life, you are the memory of the Gospel for all the baptized, inviting us to follow Christ. You are the memory of the Gospel. You are also a sign—as the Gospel just said—to help us always point to Christ, and you are the freshness of the Gospel through your fidelity to loving Christ ever more deeply. You are the memory, the sign, and the freshness of the Gospel today. Even after 50, 60, or 70 years of religious life, you embody these three dimensions.
Jubilee Celebration
When we celebrate 50 years of religious life, that is a golden life—a golden jubilee—a life that shines brightly and endures through time. And a great treasure—more precious than gold—from your life in the school of St. Francis de Sales is humility (as mentioned in the first reading). 60 years of religious life is a diamond life, a solid life; not without trials, but one that withstands trials “with the strength of faith.” The diamond of our life is our faith. The diamond is also a sign of eternity in the service of the Lord. 70 years of religious life is a life of platinum (a material rarer than gold); platinum marks the uniqueness of each of our lives, lives that are grounded and balanced, deeply rooted. This, too, is religious life: an invitation to stand firm. And finally, 75 years of religious life is a life of alabaster, a white and precious stone that evokes gentleness—so dear to Saint Francis de Sales. Like alabaster, religious life allows the Lord’s light to pass through gently, a diffused light. This stone is also fragile, as a consecrated person may be after 50, 60, 70 years of religious life. So, my sisters: what remains for you to do after 50, 60, 70, 75 years of religious life? Do we retire? The answer—Jesus’ answer—is found in the Gospel: “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature.” That is what remains for you to do. I invite you to continue to be the memory, the sign, and the freshness of the Gospel today, through your lives of gold, diamond, platinum, and alabaster—humble and steadfast, deeply rooted and gentle. Amen.
The jubilarians leaving the chapel
A Message from Sr. Brigitte-Espérance, Jubilant of 50 Years:
How does one experience a jubilee of 50, 60, 70, or 75 years of religious profession? In jubilation!
With deep emotion… In immense thanksgiving… With a heart overflowing… When we give ourselves to the Lord through our first profession, the page is blank; it calls to us. Today, many pages have been written; the notebook is nearly full…
How many hours spent in prayer, in meditation, at the celebration of the Eucharist… How many songs of praise and supplication have risen from our hearts to our Father, through Jesus, in the Spirit… How many deeds accomplished with the greatest possible love in service to others, offered through the direction of intention… How many people we have met in our professional and apostolic lives… How many people we have accompanied on the path of discovering God… contemplation nourishing our action, and vice versa… And this under every sky, for the spirituality of Saint Francis de Sales—entirely evangelical, marked by gentleness and humility—knows no borders. What a union among us who are gathered at the Motherhouse for this celebration: 2 from France, 1 from England, 1 from Colombia, 3 from Ecuador, 1 from Africa. We are animated by the same breath.
