Mother Maria Rosa Muscarella writes, within Circular No. 42:
“It is nice and meaningful that we could be in Besançon today, on this 11th April, here in our «Family Home», in the land where Saint Jeanne-Antide Thouret received the call to follow the Lord and to spend her life in the spiritual and temporal service of the poor.
Together with you, on the occasion of the 225 years of foundation, I wish to take a closer look at Saint Jeanne-Antide, our Foundress. A woman who marked her time’s history with her brave commitment to live the Gospel of Charity. Jeanne-Antide lived fully her difficult historical time: she did not remain aside, as a spectator of a passing scene, on the contrary like a true protagonist she faithfully interpreted the aspirations and deep expectations of humanity, which she always felt to be part of.
Observing her life we can say that Jeanne-Antide was a woman of action, always ready to get involved, to ask for respect and justice for the poor, to go to the end of the world … and, at the same time a woman of prayer and contemplation. That is why we can define her an authentic woman of God, well rooted in the history of her people, her time, her culture. In fact, she lived and witnessed, together with the daughters God gifted her, to a particular aspect of the mystery of the merciful love of God, which became a life-commitment at the service of the poor of her time. […] In Her we can see the “eldest keeper” of the charism, the woman on whom God placed His hand. If we look at Jeanne-Antide, as a Foundress, we can truly state that she is our “Mother”: she knew it and said it often in her writings
[…] Dear Sisters, heirs of the rich and meaningful “Family’s history” that continues with us, today, let us feel invited to live with trust and enthusiasm our vocation as Sisters of Charity.
Trust invites us to look at today’s time guessing the future, this is not a way of escaping from reality. Trust is dynamic, not static, it moves, explores new ways, does not adapt to the present world as it is; as believers we know that trust guesses a new world that is rooted in the promise of the Risen Lord.
If we trust in the God of Jesus Christ we may experience the possibility of a new way of looking at the reality, at others, at the future and at ourselves: with gratitude, hope, and knowledge of the discreet yet active presence of the Risen Lord who, once again, tells each one of us: «Do not be afraid» (Mt 8: 26).
Therefore, dear Sisters, strengthened by the presence of the Risen Lord, may this event of the 225 years of our Foundation be the occasion to be closer to Jeanne-Antide who is our “Mother for eternity”.
With the Councilors, I wish all of you to continue the journey, knowing that the presence of the Risen Lord will always be with us!
Sister Maria Rosa Muscarella, SdC
