Canonical visitation of the Irish Delegation

From the 5th to the 13th of March 2016, the fraternal visit took place in the Irish Delegation of the Disciples of the Divine Master. Sr. M. Celine Cunha, pddm who is the Vicar General of our Congregation, visited our two communities in Dublin and Athlone, carrying out the formative, communitarian and personal encounters. There, she had the opportunity to see the ministry of the sisters and meet their collaborators and friends. You might be wondering what a canonical visitation is!

Well in Ireland, our grouping of our sisters in the two communities in Ireland is known as a Delegation and there is a Delegate Superior who has the mission and task of guiding and animating the sisters in the Delegation to ensure that we are all doing our best to incarnate the mission of our Founder and the values of religious values in the society and Church of today.  The Delegate Superior is helped by a team of two councillors, a secretary and a bursar. Her term of office is usually three years so before that time of service is up our Mother General or some of the General Councillors comes to visit us and together we look at the journey we have made since the last visitation. We met together to plan also for the future three years.A visitation is a powerful and a challenging call to live our life to the full; to live in faith and on the basis of faith; to open ourselves and remain other to the gift that each one of us is to the other.  It solidifies our sense of belonging to a Congregation which is spread through 31 countries in the world, reminding us of what holds us together, moreso Who holds us together.

On the 12th of March, during the celebration of the first Evening Prayer of the 5th Sunday of Lent on the prayer of mandate took place for the sisters who form the new Delegation government. This service has been entrusted to: Sr. M. Brid Geraghty, Delegation Superior, Sr. M. Casimira Mascarenhas (Delegation Vicar), Sr. M. Louise O Rourke (Delegation Councillor and Secretary) and Sr. Kathryn M. Williams (Delegation Treasurer).

Please pray for each one of us as we take up this ministry for the good of our Congregation and for the service of the sisters and the people of God. We rely on the gift of the Holy Spirit to help us make wise and informed choices which seek the Kingdom of God, not our human glory.

On that same day, the Delegation also had the joyous celebration to mark the 90th birthday of Sr. Muriel (Patricia) Fetherston, pddm. Sr. Muriel is the first Irish Disciple of the Divine Master. The celebration of the Eucharist of Thanksgiving was presided over by the parish priest, Canon Liam Devine with our brothers from the Society of St. Paul and other concelebrant priests. The Eucharist was followed by a festive lunch and some songs and poems prepared by the Sisters. It was very fitting that the celebrations took place within the context of the visitation. We continue to thank the Divine Master for the gift of life, of vocation and for the many blessings that He showers on the sisters and our mission in Ireland.