EVANGELISATION VISION FOR THE FUTURE from our Sisters with temporary vows Let us be an open Gospel where all may read Jesus Christ! Marie Rivier
Words of wisdom: I believe that the best way to live out evangelization is to allow the joy that I carry in the depth of my being to burst forth. May this joy evangelize the children and the poor that I meet. Let us have the creativity and the courage to live the heart of Jesus’ message in a world that is in constant evolution. From the joy of the Gospel and the authenticity of our witness will flow the radiance for a successful mission of evangelization. I think that, as Sisters of the Presentation of Mary, our mission of education of youth could be “a very precious contribution to the evangelization of culture even in those countries and cities where unfavorable situations encourage us to utilize our creativity in order to respond with appropriate methods.” Pope Francis To evangelize is to participate in the mission of Christ. To know him, to make him known and loved by others by our words and actions. We must have the ardent zeal of Marie Rivier to make Jesus known and loved in all the peripheries. The witness of our lives:
Evangelize: o by a life centered on Jesus Christ o by our commitment to a prayer life, a community life, and a simple life style o by our faith, our joy of being consecrated to God and by our authenticity o by my words and actions o by going beyond my selfishness in order to bring the Good News to others o by living in love and joy so that others may know the love and mercy of our God o by transmitting the hope that dwells within us o by living the values of the Gospel
The witness of the community:
We envision a community that evangelizes, that knows how to go out towards the poor and learn with them to live the Gospel of love and life o Place the accent on the witness of our fraternal life Open our houses even more to the poor in our areas and live in communion with them
Respond to the needs of our world/ of the Church: It is important that we appreciate and deepen our charism in order to better discern how to serve the Church and the world of today. More and more, our world needs to know who Jesus Christ is. Pope Francis asks us to come out of ourselves and to go out to meet those who hunger and thirst for the Word of God o Let us go out to the peripheries of our towns and country-sides where Jesus Christ is not yet known o Let us dare to go to the peripheries and consider these as places for meeting with God, places of growth in the faith. o Let us come out of our comfort zones, let us go towards the poorest and with them work for the coming of the Kingdom Let us rely on God’s grace. Marie Rivier loved to say: “God will provide.” Let us not work alone . . . let us evangelize with other groups and parish or diocesan movements. Concrete methods: Pursue the mission “ad gentes” in poorer zones o Learn the basic language o Open new avenues in distant parishes o Send our missionary sisters to reopen our houses that have been closed Commit ourselves fully to catechesis Deepen pastoral ministry for families, the sick, the aged Commit ourselves to pastoral animation in parishes o Celebrations of the Word o Accompaniment of Basic Ecclesial Communities and movements of Catholic Action o Sharing of the Word o Retreats for the young Teach catechism in public schools for those students who do not come to school (Philippines) Organize days of prayer or sessions that bring together our collaborators, our students, our associates in order to speak of Marie Rivier and Jesus Christ. Economize in order to share with the poor Evangelization by means of social media/communications Utilize new technologies and methods of social communication in order to make Jesus Christ known and loved Also make use of these means of evangelization for vocation ministry Preparation Prepare the sisters well for evangelization o Theological biblical, pastoral, catechetical formation o Sessions and conferences