During the coming months the preparatory sessions for the 2023 General Chapter of the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart are being held online. The second of these online conferences on June 20 and 21, will deal with the first of a series of important documents to come from our MSC entities across the world. This first document entitled “Jesus came up and walked with them”, is a compilation of congregational feedback.
During the 2021 General Conference, which was also held online due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of matters were brought forward for the consideration of all members across the congregation. The Conference felt it was important that these conversations continued among the members of the congregation in the interregnum leading up to the General Chapter of 2023.
In response the General Leadership Team compiled a small booklet containing two sections: the first section being on the process of a Spirituality of the Heart and the second containing steps to be taken for using the Communal Wisdom process. It was hoped that all the members of the congregation would use these processes to help them reflect upon the topics that the general Conference had highlighted as important.
The second section of this booklet introduced each of these matters of consideration and offered some questions and points for reflection. Provincial and Union Chapters, Assemblies, and Conferences were encouraged to contribute to these topics as well as community consultations in order that they might be successfully implemented. Topics included; Constitution and Statute changes to be presented at the 2023 General Chapter, possible changes related to congregational structures or matters related to leadership and governance in our Society; commitment to train a member in each of disciplines of safe-guarding and canon law by the 2023 General Chapter; possibility of international novitiates or formation houses; training of ongoing formation facilitators for each entity; conversation and study on appropriate formation for aging; clericalism, MSC identity and personnel challenges; Europe as a place of Mission; formation in internationality; JPIC and our MSC commitment to the Laudato Si 7 year plan.
The document “Jesus came up and walked with them”, a Compilation of Congregational Feedback, is the fruit of that whole process.
Delegates will reflect on this text in preparation for the coming June online sessions. Please keep them in your prayers.
We are sincerely grateful to the Committee who compiled this document for the Chapter; the convener, Fernando Clemente, MSC, together with Bob Irwin, MSC, and Johanis Mangkey, MSC. Thank you for your generosity, perseverance, and linguistic skills.