Over 1,300 kilometres apart, a different language, but the same Spirit, the same inspiration, the same desire to experience the Jubilee Year together to move forward with hope. Recently, the Congregation’s Website Team began work on an article about the pilgrimage of the Sisters of the Community of St. Joseph from the Mother House in Paris to Notre Dame Cathedral, meanwhile on October 3, the Daughters of Charity from four communities of the Chełmno-Poznań Province went on a pilgrimage ‘Together with Hope’ to spend a day at the Verbist Missionaries’ Retreat House in Chludowo (central Poland).
Most of our group consisted of elderly Sisters from the Community of the Servant of God Stanisława Barbara Samulowska in Poznań. Despite their age and ailments, they set off with joy and enthusiasm. We were accompanied on the way by devotional songs and, as befits the month of October, the Rosary prayer.
With prayer and singing, we arrived at our destination, where the Divine Word Missionaries invited us for coffee. During the meeting, we talked about the history and charisms of our Congregations. Then we had the opportunity to visit the Missionary Museum. We admired the exhibits gathered there, which reminded us of the great missionaries, martyrs and saints of the Vincentian Family. We really liked the words of the Servant of God Father Marian Żelazek, a missionary to lepers, to whom a large part of the museum is dedicated: ‘It is not difficult to be good, you just have to want to be.’
Later, we went for a walk in the vast park. Three-hundred-year-old and older trees encouraged us to admire the beauty of creation. The older Sisters happily went for a walk, undeterred by the uneven ground, simply supporting each other and accepting the help offered. These were practical exercises in moving forward with hope!
At noon, we gathered in the chapel of the Retreat House for Holy Mass. During his homily, Father Kazimierz encouraged us to look carefully at our actions and to evaluate, above all, whether they are pleasing to God.
After Mass, we shared a meal, which allowed us to exchange impressions, ask questions, and rejoice in the richness of the charisms of both Congregations.
We returned filled with new energy, full of gratitude to God for allowing us to participate in this meeting, to Sister Assistant Magdalena and Sister Servant Anna for the idea of this pilgrimage and its efficient organisation. It was a joyful pilgrimage, ‘Together with Hope,’ which, through the Holy Spirit, coincided with a similar initiative by our Sisters in France.
