A group of more than twenty Benedictine abbesses and prioresses
representing the various congregations and regions around the world had
their first meeting outside Europe this summer. They were hosted by the
Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration at St. Louis, MO. Having had
several gatherings in Rome to foster the international dialogue among Benedictine
women, they are now considering what might be the most beneficial structure
for their longterm mutual cooperation. Although they have been supported
and encouraged in the past few years by the monks' worldwide Benedictine Confederation, women have not enjoyed full participation
in that confederation and in such activities as the Congress of Abbots.
Alternatives, as full membership in the confederation or a totally separate
structure, canonical institutions or more freeform expressions of unity,
must now be weighed for the future benefit of all. The group is led by an
executive committee of Sisters Judith Ann Heble (Lisle, IL), Maire Hickey
(Dinklage, Germany), Irene Dabalus (Tutzing, Germany), and Joanna Jamieson
(Stanbrook, England). After their three day meeting at the end of June,
they also had an opportunity to visit other monasteries in Missouri and
Kansas.
The women represented a broad spectrum of Benedictine life, from Mother Martina, whose monastery in Poitiers, France, traces its origins to St. Radegund in the sixth century, to Mother Teresita whose community in India is less than thirty years old, but which is already planning to form a new foundation in Burma. Mother Anastazia of Croatia brought the stories of her monastery's roots in the eleventh century along with a first-hand view of some of today's news headlines. Mothers Irmgard (Namibia), Henrietta (Burkino Faso) and Inviolata (Nigeria) told of the great enthusiasm and growth which are enjoyed by the monasteries of Africa. Yet each also told of suffering, poverty and a tremendous need for both economic and educational assistance. For those from third world monasteries, there was great culture shock in what was most's first visit to the United States. Mother Clothilde observed that the kerosene lamps and simple tools which she saw in American museums were the stuff of everyday life for her sisters in Tanzania.
Sisters from Africa, Korea and elsewhere reported the bulging novitiates associated with countries where monasticism represents a new and meaningful alternative for women. At the same time, those from Europe spoke of the same aging and shortage of vocations as in this country, citing the diversity of options, the wealth and opportunities within the nations, and the negativity towards religion which have marked the recent past.
The world itself was clearly a major player for some of the communities. Disease in Africa, volcanoes in the Phillipines, earthquakes in Assisi, wars and famines, shaped these women's stories. Less dramatic local needs were also influential in the shapes of their monastic lives. While education was clearly an important ministry of the communities, it was expressed in a multitude of forms. Some were providing the most basic education to women and children who have had none. Some of the more enclosed communities in Europe provide retreat and meeting facilities for individuals and group seeking their own spiritual development or striving to promote faith and social action. A high school in Brussels, day care in Brazil, a center advocating against torture and the death penalty in Spain, farm cooperatives, bookstores, and much more bespeak the Benedictine presence in today's world.
Although they were of many races and nations and cultures, the women found unity in their diversity. Many acknowledged that they had initially had some difficulty in understanding the North American expression of Benedictine life with its immediately apparent outward differences of dress, enclosure and culture. All reported that what they found in U.S. monasteries was a hospitality, prayer and daily life which they could appreciate and which touched them deeply with the recognition of one another as sisters.
