THE EUROPEAN CONTINENTAL

MEETING FOR LEADERSHIP TEAM

IN ROME – ITALY 3 Nov – 12 Nov

FRANCE BELGIUM ITALY SPAIN GREAT BRITAIN IRELAND POLAND

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EUROPEAN CONTINENTAL MEETING 2010

Twenty-nine participants – the leadership Teams from Europe, along with the General Leadership Team, gathered in the Conference Hall in the Generalate to begin the fourth Continental Meeting to take place in 2010. Twenty nine instead of thirty: Maria Dobrowslava Rogalska had returned to Poland that morning, because of the sudden death of her father.

Margaret MULDOON began by inviting each one to quieten down, and to enter into a few moments of silence. Next came the introductions … One by one, the participants said who they were, what team they belonged to, and then shared some of their feelings and desires: Taking all the sharing together, the dominant points were hope, trust, desire to live something new…

Margaret’s Opening Words

Margaret opened the meeting on “Leadership for Mission”. Her words addressed to all participants underlined the centrality and the meaning of mission in our lives and focussing in particular on our role as leadership teams in

Europe. What follows gives you an overview of the theme. Our theme, “Leadership for mission” reminds us that we find our meaning, or reason for being in mission. It is the mission

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that gives direction. It gives meaning and meaning is what motivates people “This new awareness … gives a renewed impetus to commit ourselves with enthusiasm and energy for mission.

Our Constitutions, affirm that the service of authority ensures unity in government which enables the Institute to be faithful to its mission. Mission is larger and more all-embracing than ministry. If our mission is not clear we will remain unclear in our ministries – if the mission is not clear we may each individually be doing good work according to our personal preference with no reference to the group nor to the fact that it is the mission that must influence the why and how of ministry. Not all forms of ministry are coherent with our call to live communion - God’s mission at the heart of the world. How aware are we that when we are on ministry we are there in the name of and on the behalf of the whole? Is the ministry of one the ministry of all or is it something that is “private” known only to the individual and perhaps the leader. Does our ministry promote and proclaim the mission? A new consciousness within Religious Life leads to the conviction that there is a great deal more to our life witness than just ministry. Every aspect of our lifestyle – prayer, community, personal giftedness, congregational resources, as well as ministry

– contribute to the raison d’être of our existence which is to be people in mission. Mission being responsive to God in the world and not just a particular ministry or outreach through which we serve God or the Church.

This changing consciousness marks a transition in theological self-understanding, in fact, a deepening sense of vocation. In terms of the emerging theology of the vowed life, we seem to be at the early stages of clarifying and naming this transition. The witness required in the name of mission is to the God who co-creates across the entire spectrum of creation, across time and history, forever inviting humans to collaborate in that global and cosmic process of birthing possibilities for new hope. In order to respond to the call to a new world view we need to contemplate our Trinitarian God, we need to be attentive to the sacred, the mystical, that invites us into a larger view: we need to remember that what we can see is never the whole story and that the sacred will take us beyond whatever story we are telling ourselves. We are invited to be aware of areas where we are blocked, where we believe change is not possible. We are invited to go beyond our fixed ideas, to see what we need to let go off, allowing whatever no longer brings life to die and to facilitate grieving when necessary. To hear again our Founders say to us that we must “adopt new forms and new means” for this new time, is a source of encouragement and an inspiration.

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THE HOLY FAMILY IN FRANCE For the past 190 years, the apostolic dynamism, the prophetic force that animated Pierre Bienvenu Noailles and the first members of the Holy Family, have traced out a path for us today, through all the winding ways of the history of France and the history of the Church. The early 19th century was a period of change and upheaval in every way: it was the post-Revolution era. In the course of his life Pierre Bienvenu Noailles experienced 12 political regimes. In this traumatised society, Bordeaux lost one third of its inhabitants; the port closed. The Church, ridiculed, humiliated, lost its references and supports. Then came a new burst of vitality. Between 1820 and 1830 half a dozen religious congregations of women came into being. In this restructuring of Christian society Pierre Bienvenu Noailles’ project was formed. Pierre Bienvenu, open to the people and needs of his time and moved interiorly by a strong, mystical experience, founded an Association. He had scarcely arrived at St. Eulalie, “to imitate Jesus, Mary and Joseph, to live the faith in daily life” when he organised the “Catechism of Perseverance”, the preliminary to our long history. Then came the FOUNDATION, the first community, the first house that bore the name of Our Lady of Loreto, “so that those who lived there should never forget that the principal aim of their Association was to honour and imitate the Holy Family”. This first community, cradle of the Association, and refuge of poor orphans, gradually opened to children of more privileged backgrounds. To respect the different social milieus, the work was split in two. The sisters of St. Joseph were in Mazarin Street and the Ladies of the Immaculate Conception, called Ladies of Loreto, in Saintonge Street. In 1837, financial help was

scarce; there were tensions. It was necessary to join forces and maintain unity of mind. After deliberation, it seemed reasonable to retain the work for the poor. The boarders at Saintonge were returned to their families.. The choice was unequivocal. At Pauillac, where a boarding school had just been established, all the sisters spontaneously volunteered for a new project, scarcely conceived by the Good Father, the Branch of the Immaculate Conception. The enthusiasm and unconditional availability stifled all the fears and hesitations he might have had. Following the severe winter of 1829, resources for the orphans were shrinking. Mother Conception Pérille, who was just 30, immediately went up to Paris to the Minister for Ecclestiastical Affairs to solicit bursaries and even obtained an audience with King Charles X. Was she not the one whom the Good Father advised to be wary of her shyness? Youth and the service of others lend wings. At the same time, in 1831, the Society of the Holy Family was canonically erected. At this stage the External Association, that is, the Simple Associates and the Ladies of the Holy Family, numbered more than 1 000 members. The stuff of dreams! When Bishop de Cheverus asked Fr. Noailles to organise a work for the sick he responded in spite of reservations (you cannot produce nurses just like that). The Founder got organised: “The voice of obedience is the voice of God”. He knew the sisters and their capacity for adaptation. He entrusted this mission to Mother Bonnat who began the work with a few novices. Fidelity and obedience to the Church bore fruit. This very new work, the Hope Branch, spread rapidly in spite of the initial difficulties and took root in small villages and soon crossed borders and time.

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Let us now stop at 1842: there were no new branches, no new creation, but important things happened for the Family. To maintain and enable the Family spirit to grow, the General Council of Mary became the pivot to consolidate the Branches in unity and diversity and give more stability to the works: unity of spirit, of goods, a stable location. The Council established itself at Martillac. In this organisation each branch and each work was represented and acknowledged and could enrich the whole: the sap was circulating.

As though to seal this organisation, the Association of the Holy Family received, as a whole, the Decree of Praise, signed by Pope Gregory XVl, a great encouragement for the whole Family. As a result, the Family developed; boundaries were crossed. The Rules of 1844 say it: “Leave everything and go to all the countries of

the world at the first sign of God’s will”. And it was Mother Bonnat who took the initiative

and the first steps. The Good Father had such an expansion in mind when he wrote in 1854: “The Blessing given to your first sisters produces new fruits every day. The mustard seed spreads everywhere through its branches; once more we are leaving France. Mother Despect is in Liége just now where she is establishing a community of Hope sisters on a solid basis.” The most striking fruit was the foundation of the Solitaries! Mother Chantal Machet had this in mind for 20 years. “I recommend my Holy Family Solitaries to your reflection, my Good Father. I desire this foundation from the bottom of my heart.”, she wrote in 1839. “A magnificent, indispensable complement to the works of the Association”, “A constant thanksgiving testimony for the miraculous Benediction.” It was the 7th Branch. The Foundation was complete. Two years later, upon the death of the Good Father, people from all backgrounds, simple ordinary people, collaborators, churchmen, testified to the richness of the Grace received and shared with those close to him. The work was flourishing, fruit of a work of close, flexible collaboration between those responsible (2 200 religious, almost 300 Ladies of the Holy Family, 900 priests and 16 500 lay associates).

And life went on…

May 1870: 50th anniversary of the foundation. The abbey of Royaumont, recently purchased from the Oblates, provided an ideal setting for this great Family gathering. This Abbey had sheltered the novices from France and the

north of Europe for 35 years. In the diversity of the branches, they had a common formation. The abbey was also where large gatherings took place: general councils, retreats, meetings of the leaders of the different branches and great Family feasts.

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One novice merits special attention today. It is Ernestine Lionnet. Trained at Royaumont, she lived for practically 35 years between “Martillac and Royaumont, the two Holy Family paradises”, as she liked to say. It was not paradise every day. Precisely at that time, great difficulties of two kinds had to be faced: new church norms involved the adaptation of the Rules and modification of the organisation of the Religious Institute, and this in the French context of a growing anticlericalism. Mother Lionnet, then Directrice General, was the figurehead during this storm. “When the wind of persecution passed over our poor France, your Good Mother trembled at her inability to steer the helm of the Holy Family in the midst of the hurricane … you are our Queen but especially our mother,” she said, placing the silver sceptre in the hands of Our Lady of All Graces. In 1901, the law on associations found the Holy Family in a complex situation with regard to French law. The Branch of St. Joseph had been recognised by the Royal Decree of 1826. That of Hope had also requested legal authorisation. They were not worried. It was not the same for the Education Branches. In 1902, the Combes ministry enforced the anticlerical policy. The religious orders were dissolved and their assets seized: 3 000 religious schools were closed in France. The teaching religious were driven out. The Branch of Loreto was officially dissolved. The Branch of the Immaculate Conception took refuge in Spain and Belgium. The Branch of St. Martha and the Agricole Branch merged. But in Spain the situation was not favourable. Foreign congregations were only recognised by the government if they were of pontifical right. A serious decision had to be taken. Recourse had to be made to Rome or the Institute could perish. In great haste, Mother

Lionnet and her secretary set off to ask for the approbation of the Constitutions. Before leaving Martillac, she slipped the names of the communities into the silver sceptre of Our Lady of All Graces. Everything went very quickly and smoothly. They returned with a provisional approbation. The Holy Family, even when transformed into a congregation, still had many unique features that did not conform with the Church norms. There was a real desire to preserve as much as possible of the Founder’s project but readjustments had to be made. They were brought to Rome and on 18 December, the feast of Our Lady of Hope, the Holy Family joyfully received the Decree of Pontifical Approbation of the Congregation of the Holy Family. Meanwhile the French government was still as radical. The religious had to leave French soil. In May1902 the General Administration of the Holy Family went into exile to Valcarlos in Spain for 17 years. In March 1904, the novitiate of Royaumont went into exile in England and Belgium. In October 1904 the first General Chapter took place in Antwerp. The teaching congregations were disbanded in France that same year. Some schools were closed, others were taken over by lay staff. In December 1905, the law of separation of Church and State terminated the Concordat with the Vatican. Church property – churches and various buildings – were vested in the state and a number of municipalities. This was indeed a very difficult period for the Holy Family in France. But Mother Lionnet was able to put this state of affairs to good effect. The expulsions freed up personnel, new communities were opened in Europe but also in Ceylon, South Africa and Brazil. And then came the great war of 1914-1918! 1920 saw the return of the General House to Bordeaux. There was a great celebration in the church of St. Eulalie for the centenary of the foundation.

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1951 General Chapter: nominations of sub-directresses of Branches outside France. 1958: Approbation of the new text of the Constitutions with important structural modifications such as the erection of the Institute into Provinces. Then, in France after the Council, greater emphasis was placed on collaboration and partnership with the laity. Some communities moved to new suburban areas in closer proximity with the people. The sisters gradually relinquished the management of schools and hospitals and found new forms of insertion. Care centres developed into non-denominational associations.

At present, the Holy Family in France is made up of: - 17 Apostolic communities located in the

different regions - 1 International Apostolic community at

the Solitude in Martillac - 1 Contemplative community at the

Solitude in Martillac - Consecrated Seculars - Priest Associates - Lay Associates, accompanied by

apostolic sisters. Even if age and distance make it difficult to meet, we try to communicate and share life experiences among the groups and, where possible, make Family feasts an opportunity to express our Family spirit.

THE ASSOCIATION ESPÉRANCE ET ACCUEIL

(HOPE AND WELCOME) This Association was founded on 28 January 1971. The founding members, lay and religious, wanted to ensure the sustainability

of retirement homes run by the Congregation. The purpose of the Association is to “promote a Christian-based social and educative project for the elderly and isolated”. It is anxious to keep alive the Holy Family spirit as lived by the Holy Family of Bordeaux. Nazareth calls us to establish authentic relationships among the partners within the Association. A birth and a continuity: In 1836 Pierre Bienvenu Noailles created the Branch of the Sisters of Hope, nursing sisters who cared not only for the poor but also for the rich whom they accompanied at the end of their life. They were the forerunners of the Association that came into being in 1971. Today, what are the strong points of this Association Project?

Hope, finding the energy within when old age comes. How can we deal with ageing and still find the vital force that keeps us going? The two ideas, ‘Welcome’ and ‘Hope’ are inseparable. The elderly, whatever, their state of health, maintain their dignity. They are central to our work. They are welcomed, respected, cared for, accompanied to their last days. Together, the different partners – clients, employees, family, volunteers – make these homes places of social and spiritual growth, places of life rather than ‘end of life’, convinced that all can grow until the end of life, whatever their physical, mental or spiritual state. The presence of Holy Family communities: a challenge and a joy! Accommodating lay residents was always a part of the project. Having lay carers, cooks, domestic staff and ultimately a lay manager was a step that was both invigorating and caused apprehension. For the communities it meant real renunciation. Each one had to find

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her place. The lay people had to come into an existing group with its habits and regulations. All had to progress from mistrust to trust and, together, find ways to live in mutually respectful relationships. The religious community has an important part to play, by its presence: the spirit of Nazareth influences daily life by welcoming all. Prayer times are open to all; the laity participate in bible study groups and retreat times. The community leaders are the links that create this Holy Family climate with the directors, so that the elderly may have a serene and joyful retirement. Currently, the Association has five establishments. - The Sablonat in Bordeaux (founded in

1866, came under lay management in 2003) has 62 residents, 20 Holy Family

sisters and 2 sisters from another congregation.

- The Pyrenees at Pau (founded in 1867, lay management in 1983) has 69 residents of whom 15 are sisters.

- The Rose des Vents at Toulon (founded in 1846, lay management in 1985) has 110 residents of whom 11 are sisters.

- Olivier at Valence (founded in 1890, lay management in 1988) has 95 residents among whom are 7 sisters and 8 diocesan priests.

- Val Bièvre at Versailles (founded in 1847, lay management in 1989) has 62 residents, with 16 Holy Family sisters and 4 from another congregation.

While remaining faithful to the initial project the Association Espérance et Acceuil (Hope and Welcome) is adapted to the needs of present day French society and enables us to live the spirit of the Holy Family.

The Network On 30 December 2006 the apostolic sisters of Belgium, France and Italy came together as a Network. With different cultural identities and backgrounds, we united our strengths and weaknesses. The Network Council, composed of sisters from the three countries, is a place where acceptance of our differences, sharing of the realities experienced in all the communities is lived. It is a place where communion is woven, first among the members of the council through the different tasks, and then among all the communities. To enable us to feel closer to the reality of each country the council meetings are held alternately in each country. This Network structure can at times seem to be a challenge or a utopia. But we realise that others have gone the same route and paved the way. From the beginning it was a question of continual adaptation, of flexibility, of changes, of fidelity to life so that the grace received for ourselves and humanity might grow day by day.

In our roots, there are sister, seculars, and associates whose names we may have forgotten but who were pillars of faith and of life given and received. Among them are sisters from different European countries who gave life to the Good Father’s work in France. Our roots are full of their holiness. With this sap we were able to build the Holy Family and plant our roots firmly in the spirit of God alone, sought, desired and loved in ordinary daily life as in the storms and whirlwinds.

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HISTORY OF THE HOLY FAMILY ASSOCIATION IN BELGIUM

December 8, 1854. After a lengthy correspondence between Father Noailles and Mgr. De Montpellier, Bishop of Liege, the Good Father agreed. A first community of Sisters of Hope arrived in Liege on 30 November. They were accommodated in the monastery of the Conceptionists in Amercoeur. Their mission was to visit the sick in their homes. As time went on, a dispensary for the poor was opened. 1857 At Dolhain, the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception devoted themselves to the education of children for 117 years. The founder himself came here to visit them. 1871 Foundation of a School at Liege St. Jean. These two schools, Dolhain and St. Jean, pioneered the Holy Family works in Wallonia. 22-02-1896 An international group of six sisters set up a community in Lier. This was the first in the North of the country. Four more sisters came to reinforce the community. Seeing the needs in the area they soon became involved. There

were many requests for assistance from Antwerp where another foundation was made. 15-08-1897 A Flemish Postulant entered in Lier, where the novitiate was installed. 11-02-1900 The first Associate was received in Antwerp. In Lamorinièrestraat, elderly ladies could take up residence and receive any necessary care. This was an innovation. 1902-1907 During this period, a group of sisters formed a community in Brussels. Ten other foundations were made in Wallonia between 1902 and 1907, where the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception were almost always engaged in the schools, workshops, visits to the sick and poor. They also had a clinic, as in Romsée, where it was common to treat injured mine workers. Vottem, 1902 to 1968; Romsée, 1903 to 1963; Beyne Heusay, 1904 to 1976; Queue du Bois 1903 to 1927. Also to Avin, Montroux, Amay, Liege St.Lambert, Esneux ...

1903 The political situation in France forced the closure of Royaumont. The novitiate was transferred to Huy-Bas, Belgium. During the

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same period, a second community settled in Antwerp. 1904 The first Chapter of the International Association of the Holy Family was held in Antwerp Lamorinièrestraat.

1907 Because of the tense political situation in France, the international novitiate was transferred to Boomgaardstraat in Antwerp. 1913 The first Dutch postulant entered the postulate. 1914 to 1918 Our country was at war with all the violence, anguish and misery that that entails. Our international community was very much in the public eye. During this World War, all kinds of refugees came to the community asking for help and shelter. The sisters did everything they could to help them in their needs. 02-08 - 1918 To our great regret, the international novitiate in Antwerp was closed. The postulants, 30 novices and 10 sisters left the country. 1919 Repairs to the buildings were very necessary because they had been badly damaged by the bombing.

1920 The centenary of the Holy Family was commemorated by a great feast. 1921-1933 An increase in the number of sisters made it possible for them to be present to the orphans, the sick and lonely. Flemish, French English, Irish, German and Spanish sisters left regularly from the port of Antwerp for missions in Asia or North America. 1928 – 1948 A school was opened in Grivegnée. Here, too, families were given support in different ways according as society changed. The consecrated seculars were particularly active in this place. 1934 A new economic crisis paralysed society. There was a lot of distress among the people. 29-05-1937 The congregation was recognized by the Belgian state through the foundation of the VZW-VZW (a non-profit making association) 1937 Students, aged from 16 to 18, were allowed to lodge in the Boomgaardstraat house. There were also sisters of Hope in Pont-Herstal, and some sisters were involved in parish work. 1940 to 1945 The Second World War resulted in another exodus of the sisters. People were seeking refuge, some knocking on the sisters’ door in the hope of finding protection. During this time, the Jews were persecuted. Some of them could be sure of a safe hiding place with the sisters, which was very dangerous. There followed four years full of inconvenience and danger. Occasionally there

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were problems with the occupying German who wanted to take the house as a barracks. In the cellar of the big house on Lamorinièrestraat many events were going on: the church youth group was able to meet there without too much risk of danger. They held their meetings and games there. In that way the youth could enjoy some relaxation during this difficult time. 1942 Two war orphans found an affectionate home with the sisters for several years. 1943 The sisters started a service for the sick in their homes in the parish and surrounding areas. 1944 The "flying bombs sow death and destruction". There was a lot of damage to buildings, but there were no casualties among us, thank God. 1945 The number of missionaries increased; sisters from other countries came to the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp to prepare for their mission. 1946 Because of plans to open a clinic in Antwerp, lady boarders were no longer accepted in the house, this after 50 years. 1947 The house Lamorinièrestraat was transformed into a clinic. Four French sisters passed through Antwerp for a foundation in Congo. 13-03-1948 The clinic opened its doors with a special service for children, a service for general medicine and surgery.

1949 The convent in Liège was transformed into a medical clinic. 1953 Until this year the postulate and novitiate were in France and Liege. In 1953 the novitiate was moved to Antwerp, because of the number of vocations in Flanders. 12-02-1962 Because of the VZW-VZW, the designation “Sisters of Hope" was changed to "Sisters of the Holy Family." It was also in 1962 that a community was installed at Banneux, the shrine to the Blessed Virgin. This house remained as a rest home for the sisters until 1999.

1963 Some sisters started a community in Assebroek (Brugge). They began serving the sick, families and helped in parochial work.

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1964 A new community was sent to teach at St-Job-in-t'-Goor. Meanwhile rebellion broke out in Congo. At Kilembe four Oblates were killed. The missionaries were forced to leave Congo for some time. 18-12-1965 Canonical erection of the regional district of Antwerp. 1968 The Holy Family in Belgium had two Provinces, one in Liege in the south, and the Northern Province. The community of Antwerp left the clinic and the house in Lamorinièrestraat. True to the Founder's intention, the sisters wanted to meet new needs. They lived in the north of the country in small communities among the people responding to different needs. The long black habit was replaced by a sober gray dress and a short veil. 1969 As a result of the Second Vatican Council a wave of renewal and deepening came about. 1972 A community moved into a rural neighbourhood in Antwerp. More attention was paid to" socio-cultural work in the neighbourhood” and “aid to youth in difficulty”. Some sisters were attracted to the contemplative life and formed a community. For these first sisters it was a time of discernment and deepening of their vocation. 1976 Some Lay Associates were inspired by the spirituality and charism of Father Noailles. The clinic in Liege was closed. A new home for the elderly sisters was built.

1978 The sisters finally left the clinic (the convent where the community was founded in 1854). It was taken over by a Medical Centre. 1979 A nucleus of Consecrated Seculars was beginning to find its way in Flanders. 1980 The Holy Family Association now had three groups; Apostolic and Contemplative Sisters and Consecrated Seculars who had their own structure and status. 1992 The contemplative sisters of Flanders joined the Martillac contemplative community in France where there were sisters from France and other countries. The number of communities having declined, the Province of Liege was attached to France, becoming the France-Liège Province from March 6, 1992. 2003 Another stage in the history of the province began. We entered a process of discernment over our future in Antwerp and Liege. A time of reflection together: "How can we maintain our vitality to live our mission to the end? We are aware of the need for restructuring in the province. The call to prepare our hearts by opening ourselves to the resulting changes and be able to live serenely in favour of "life.”

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2000-2004 Ageing and retirement are a fact in Flanders. Each, according to her abilities, remains available for new needs: some care for "undocumented" immigrants, provide language courses for children and adults, support teachers of religion in special education, do parochial work such as visiting the lonely, sick, and disabled. 2005 To live as "sisters of the Family to the end" we felt called to join forces. The 6 small communities were reduced to 3: Boomgaardstraat, Markgravelei and Lokkaardstraat. With our combined strength, we can continue our mission to the poorest.

December 31, 2005 NETWORK: Belgium-France – Italy. As a result of this new structure there was more regrouping. The communities of Liege and Antwerp became one unit. 2006 The house of Liege was sold and turned into a Nursing Home by the ASBL, Balloir. 2010 On 11 January, the community of Sisters in Liege took a definitive step. The community was integrated into the renovated house as a "nursing and care home”, Air de famille du Balloir:

We confidently place the future in the hands of God.

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THE HOLY FAMILY IN ITALY

There are 43 Holy Family sisters living in 5 communities in Italy. Some are in Rome, Marino, Via dei Gracci, Via Montenevoso. The others are in the South: Campobasso, Orta di Atella. Naples Before 1870

In 1847 Pierre Bienvenu Noailles was asked to send a community of Hope sisters to Rome. These would take care of the sick in their homes. In 1851, during the Founder’s visit to Rome, the Pope, Princess Borghese and General Rampon made the same request. On this occasion, the Founder said: “We need to think about this before making a decision. I wish for this foundation too; pray that God’s will be made known to us”. In spite of the general wishes for the foundation, nothing happened until 1870. Then a foundation was made in Naples. Initial contacts were made with Cardinal Sforza and the Marquis De Rende who had taken refuge in Paris for political reasons and was welcomed by the Holy Family in Rue de Clichy. On 23 October Sister Zimmer, superior of Toulon and four Hope sisters embarked at Marseilles on route for Naples. Sister Zimmer wrote in her journal on board ship: “The sisters were tired but happy and very enthusiastic and we received every courtesy on board the ship”. They arrived in

Naples and received an affectionate welcome from Cardinal Szorfa. The sisters who made up the community were of different nationalities: a German, 2 French and one English speaking sister. For a long time Naples community kept its international characteristic. The engineer Michele Ruggiero helped the sisters in practical matters. He was a trustworthy person and a friend of the Holy Family. He became administrator of the goods of the Holy Family in Italy. It was he who drew up the contract for the purchase of the house in Naples and also for a piece of land that belonged to the .city council. Madame Bodin, the widow of Clavier and Miss Chopin of Bordeaux were directors of the association called “Caisse d’Encouragement” widow Clavier and Company.

The hotel Suizo which cost 8.482 francs was converted to become a house for the sisters Very soon the sisters’ house and the house of the Oblates who lived nearby, became the centre of attraction for the nobility of Naples. Many of these were sick and required care in

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their homes; also the ladies who lodged with the sisters made the house a centre for charitable work. Every year one lady made a donation of basic food for the sisters and the young people of Naples: fruit and vegetables from her own farm. But it was not only the aristocracy who came to the house in Via Teresa Chiaia. Very many poor people came: men, women, children and old people came to seek help.

With the passing of time, the works multiplied and the sisters dedicated their efforts, not only to the care of the sick and the poor, but also to teaching and catechesis. And the sisters are still engaged in these different works. As the number of sisters decreased, so too did the ministries, until the moment came when we had to close the community on 16 July 2010.

FOUNDATION OF VIA DEI GRACCHI The date of the foundation was 2 February 1904. One of the foundresses relates: “The community was made up of 6 sisters. Of these 4 had been expelled from France including myself. To begin with we lived in a flat in Via Germanico as we waited for our house to be made ready. In our house there were no luxuries; our wealth was trust in God. Divine Providence had given us a a large field of activity in three parishes: San Joacchino, Santa Maria in Traspontina, and Santa Maria del Rosario. These were situated in the countryside at that time. We were given our mission by the ecclesiastical authorities. The area was poor. It was extensive and heavily populated. The people were mainly uneducated especially in their religion. We set to work with great enthusiasm. Two sisters undertook to visit and care for the poor who were ill and the other two worked in catechesis. They looked after those who were physically ill but also those who suffered moral poverty

and deprivation. The fruits of their labours were manifold: conversions at the hour of death, marriages that were regularised, reconciliation in families where hatred and discord had reigned, baptisms of young people, and entire families who recovered their dignity, receiving religious instruction, food, work...

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The little work, loved and blessed by God gave abundant fruit.

There was no shortage of difficulties but God helped them to overcome them. When they established themselves in the new house in Via dei Gracchi 134, all the works began to develop. The retreats and first communions of adults increased. Pope Pius X appreciated this work so much that on the last day of the retreat, he gave an audience to all the retreatants and encouraged the sisters in their mission. In order to encourage greater attendance at catechism classes, the sisters opened a school for primary school children and offered language classes to middle school children. The Sisters from Via dei Gracchi were always ready to meet the needs of the poor. After the earthquake in Avezzano, Abruzzo in 1915, they opened their homes and hearts to 40 children who had been orphaned by the disaster. They looked after them for three years and did their best to provide the maternal care that they had lost. During the Second World War, the house was opened to the Red Cross and there was also an information centre for prisoners of war. The sisters gave their services to both these initiatives. (Taken from an article written for the centenary by Sister María Serafina Gagliardoni, founder of the house.) 1945…

My first visit as Delegate of Christian Aid was to the house in Via dei Gracchi. There I en-countered, not only under-standing but also great enthusiasm which impressed me greatly.

Mother Giovanna Acampora showed me the ground floor of the building saying: “Could we use this for a school?” “Of course” I said “and you could do much good here in the centre”. How cold the corridors were! So many things were lacking but nevertheless on 25 January 1945, 40 little girls who came from overcrowded schools formed the nucleus of the new school. The children arrived in dreadful condition – barefoot, old torn clothing, untidy and malnourished. They were aged between 12 and 13 years of age and had forgotten everything they had ever learnt so we had to begin from scratch. . Years later there were 300 children in the school and things improved little by little. Their little faces recovered the serenity which years of war had effaced. Such were the beginnings of a school that lasted more than 10 years. Other needs arose later and the sisters began to think of transforming part of the house into a clinic. (Taken from an article written by the Marquis of Theodoli for the centenary celebrations). 1958… The need for a school had gone; the sisters wished to open themselves up to new apostolic demands and the idea of a “Holy Family Clinic” emerged. It was at first a private clinic and later it linked with the Lazio region. Once more the daughters of P.B.N.

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dedicated themselves to all who came knocking at their door. 1999… The management of the clinic was given over to lay people and a small community occupies a separate part of the clinic. For some years it was the Provincial house of Italy and was open to sisters who carried out different apostolic activities: work with immigrants, especially migrants from Asia and this work was carried out by Winnie Fernando originally from Sri Lanka. Other activities are spiritual animation in the clinic, catechesis in the parish, welcoming foreign students. The house is in the centre of the city and is suitable for welcoming those who come to Rome.

The community is called to live the spirit of the Holy Family according to the orientations of the Institute and in harmony with the local and universal Church. The community defines its mission as one of presence, welcome and communion. In the second half of 1900, from 1950 to 1990, the number of sisters increased considerably and this made the opening of more communities possible. These are: Veneto: San Vendemiano, Conegliano, Veneto, Belluno Liguria: Alassio Umbria. Monteleone di Spoleto Lazio, Roma.: Via dei Gracchi, Marino, Montenevoso, Lunghezza

Molise: Campobasso Campania: Napoli, Roscigno Sicilia: Patti, Santa Rosa, Patti-Hospital, Capo d’Orlando, Cefalù, Bagheria, Mesina. Later a number of communities had to close due to a lack of vocations and also due to the separation from the Institute of a group of young sisters who left to found their own Institute. Here is a little more information about the following communities: Marino This is a community of welcome in which there are 21 sisters, the majority of whom are elderly and ill. Their mission is prayer, self sacrifice and living communion in the Family and in the Church. Montenevoso There are 8 sisters in this community. Their mission is welcome, daily prayer and sharing prayer in the district. Two sisters live in Monteleone de Spoleto, and are a presence of Holy Family in the city.

Campobasso The community is on the outskirts of the city. There are 6 sisters who carry out different apostolates according to their possibilities: catechesis, animation of Lay Associates, visits to the sick and the poor and collaboration with those working with young people who are dependent on drugs.

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Orta di Atella

This community was opened in 2009. There are 3 sisters in the community. They are a Holy Family presence in poor areas. They visit families, collaborate in the Christian formation of children and adolescents. During the last 5 years, the Italian province has been opening up to a new reality: the

Network made up of Belgium, France and Italy. A new chapter in our history has begun. It is helping us to widen our horizons, accept difference, transcend frontiers, establish a new solidarity, open our minds and hearts to accept other experiences and to promote greater unity in the Holy Family and the Church in Europe. CONCLUSION What we have written about the Holy Family in Italy is a very brief account of the life that has blossomed in the first communities and in the newest ones. All have spread the good news. Each one has contributed to the building up of the Church, the Great Family of God. In their daily lives, the sisters have kept for their models the Holy Family, the gentle image of the Trinity on earth and school of communion with God and our brothers and sisters.

BEGINNINGS OF THE HOLY FAMILY IN SPAIN

On various occasions, during the council meetings of the Association, the good Father had expressed a desire to go to Spain and establish a work of education for the upper classes. He prayed, he studied the situation, he asked for advice and after having reflected, he concluded that the moment had arrived to extend his apostolic action beyond the Pyrenees. The decision was clear; he would name Mother Emmanuel Bonnat to head this delicate enterprise. By depriving himself of Mother Bonnat, he was imposing a very great sacrifice on himself. She was like his right arm, his support and consolation in the governing and the smooth running of the Society. But the sacrifice was necessary if the new work was to have a solid and stable basis.

Mother Bonnat warmly welcomed the Good Father’s idea and accepted the challenge offered to her. She was born in Spain of French parents and part of her family still resided in Spain. Her companion for the foundation was to be Mother Melanie Despect, who also had Spanish relatives, some of whom resided in Spain. However neither Mother Bonnat nor Melanie Despect had any notion of the language or the customs of the country. They were aware that if France was going through a period of difficulties and persecutions of a religious nature, the situation in Spain did not seem very good. Shortly before this date (1843), religious had been expelled from Spain and some were even shot to death. The situation did not seem very favourable to new foundations.

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In spite of everything, one sad rainy morning, the 13 November 1843, Mother Bonnat, alone but very courageous, set out from Bordeaux on route to the frontier. She met up with her travelling companion, Sister Stanislaus Fournier at Bayonne. The journey to the capital was long and arduous – 4 days and 3 nights and the sisters suffered all kinds of hardships. No one awaited them in Madrid. They arrived at nightfall on the fourth day at the house of the banker Alinari, Mother Bonnat’s brother-in-law, who welcomed them very warmly The language barrier made communication very difficult and so they immediately looked for a Spanish teacher so that they could begin language lessons at once. The diocese of Madrid was ecclesiastically dependent on the Archdiocese of Toledo and was in intense negotiations to become independent. However this did not happen until 1885. In the meantime there was much confusion with some members of the diocese “inside” the Roman Church and others “outside”. Mother Bonnat was on her guard and relied more on the Patriarch of the Indies, Monsignor Tonel and Orbe, who legally represented the Holy See. It was not easy for the sisters, since it was inconceivable at that time that women religious, wearing secular garb should be dedicated to the active life, when the traditional concept of religious prevalent in Spain was that they were closed up in convents and dedicated exclusively to prayer. Mother Bonnat fell ill and this made her question her decision. However she was comforted by a letter from the Founder and she took up again the challenges of her difficult task to establish the Holy Family of Bordeaux in Spain.

After much searching, they found a flat in Real del Barquillo Street. It was small and rather old but it was all they could afford. Four sisters were sent from Bordeaux to complete the community and on 2 February, the feast of the Purification of Our Lady, the community began. Almost as soon as they were installed two young girls arrived asking to become boarders. They wanted to learn French and they were accepted. Not long afterwards there were 12 boarders and as many day pupils that the flat could hold. Some months afterwards objections from the neighbours meant that the sisters had to leave the flat and begin all over again. They were told about an abandoned Capuchin convent about which there were many opinions. The sisters enquired about its history and went to visit the Duchess of Medinaceli, since that family was the proprietor of the convent. The family put them in touch with the manager of the property so that they could negotiate a contract. Finally they were given the ground floor; it was more difficult to rent the first floor. As soon as they moved out of the property, the pupils occupied the new locale. Problems multiplied and the situation became more and more sensitive. Mother Bonnat continued to seek strength and peace in the letters from the Founder. In October 1844, when Mother Bonnat returned to Madrid after a trip to France, she found endless problems that had arisen in her absence, especially problems of relationship between the sisters and the priests. It was a difficult time for the Church in Madrid and the sisters of the Holy Family of Bordeaux came from “another world”, France, which was also in conflict.

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Father Noailles understood perfectly the delicate nature of the problem of the work in Madrid in relation to the Spanish clergy. So in order to come to Mother Bonnat’s aid, he left Bordeaux on 23 February 1845 and went to Madrid. He first visited the ecclesiastical authorities – the recently named Archbishop and the Patriarch of the Indies. They received him very warmly and offered to do all they could to help the work that was beginning. During Father Noaille’s stay two more foundations for the education of youth were asked for: one in Barcelona and another in Granada. Because there was not sufficient personnel to staff the two works, Father Noailles and the council decided to accept the offer of the foundation in Barcelona, since it seemed to offer greater guarantee of continuity. Time passed...The foundation in Madrid grew gradually and became stronger after the Founder’s visit. Everything seemed to be going well but always under the shadow of the ecclesiastical authorities with whom the sisters related quite well. The number of boarders increased. The college was doing well. The building became more habitable but it was cold and the garden had a very abandoned air. The Archbishop of Bordeaux Monsignor Donnet paid a brief visit to the college on a visit to Madrid. This visit was very beneficial since the press widely reported the Archbishop’s stay in the “College of the Sisters of the Holy Family of Bordeaux” and the sisters felt very encouraged in their work and found in him a magnificent example of goodness and cordiality. In 1848 the tensions had abated. Mother Bonnat believed that the time had come to put on the religious habit again. It was a delicate change, because the sisters had been received in Spain as a secular institute. But little by little the people became accustomed to the

change, not understanding, it is true, the motive for this external change. For some time, there was talk about a house of the sisters of the Conception in Madrid. The director and the gentlemen from the Polytechnic school had heard about the sisters of the college. They were so highly praised that they approached Mother Bonnat asking for sisters of the Conception to work as bursar, linen keeper and nurse in the college. In October of the same year 1848, four sisters of the Conception were sent. Soon after came the foundation of the Orphanage in Placentia (Caceres) in 1848; the establishment of the sisters of Hope in Madrid in 1857 and many other foundations that had been asked for to meet different needs. Immediately Lay Associates began to be organised giving witness by their lives of commitment and self-sacrifice. In the schools the ribbon of Holy Family congregant was given to pupils who desired it and who, by their good conduct deserved it. In 1857 the Founder of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, Monsignor Eugene de Mazenod, Archbishop of Marseilles and Pierre Bienvenu Noailles came to an agreement with regard to the future of the sisters of the Holy Family when their founder died. The agreement was this: that the sisters would always find in the Oblate fathers a support and a help in their works. In the space of the last 50 years, the foundations in Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Pinto, Getafe, Plasencia, Málaga, Toledo, Aranjuez, Guadalajara, Frómista, Bilbao and many more were places where the spirit of the Good Father shone forth and faithfully lived by his daughters. The XXth century arrived accompanied by innumerable political and religious events, reflected in the Annals of the Holy Family of Bordeaux and in the written lives of our

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Founder, Pierre Bienvenu Noailles and of the first mothers who were his closest collaborators, like Mother Bonnat. Mother Bonnat died on October 6 in the Solitude at Martillac. The contemplative sisters began their existence in Spain at the beginning of 1970. To begin with they had 3 houses: in Arre (Navarra), in Clemente Fernández Street (Madrid) and in La Carolina (Jaén). In 1992, after much research, the building of a monastery in Oteiza (Navarra) was begun. It was inaugurated on 18 December 1993. With regard to the secular group, there has been constancy since in 1845, there were members according to the register of the Ladies of the Holy Family in the General Archives in Rome. Between 1845 and 1969 there were 95 Spanish members noted. In 1957 there were 19 Ladies of the Holy Family, spread throughout Aranjuez, Malaga, Valencia, Madrid and Barcelona. The Lay Associates began in 1819, almost 200 years ago. At the death of the Founder there were 17.938 in the countries where the Holy Family had established itself and among these there were Spanish associates.

In Spain, there has been a revival of the Lay Associates from 1977 to 2006. In 1977 former pupils of the colleges of Loreto in Madrid and Malaga formed a group of Lay Associates of the Holy Family. They were inspired by Vatican II’s teaching on the role of the laity in the Church.

In 1979, in Madrid, three Associates made their commitment and in 1980 the members of the group in Malaga made their commitment. That same year, the First Congress of the Family was celebrated and the Sister accompanying the Lay Associates, Maria Guadalupe Amondarain and a lay Associate attended this congress.

Sisters of Hope College of Loreto – Madrid

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PRESENT SITUATION OF THE PROVINCE OF SPAIN

After having made a study of the situation of the Province in 2005, we thought it necessary to reorganise the communities. At the present time there are 435 sisters in the Province distributed among 40 communities. After the regional assemblies (2005-2006) we made a study of our reality at social and provincial levels. And from that the following options were made: • Continue to maintain the clinics at

Paterna, Fromista and Archanda and one in Pinto, providing them with material and the secular staff that was required for the clinics to be well run and the sisters to be cared for. We contracted outside agencies for this purpose.

• In order to respond to the needs of immigrants, we opened a community in an area where this need was most urgently felt - Campohermoso in Almeria. We joined with other congregations to begin a project called “Bridges of Hope” (Photos). We also collaborate with other organisations, by giving the use of our communities like the community of Villa Elvira to Caritas and an association called “Welcome” in Cartagena. All the communities in one way or another collaborate in the work with immigrants and in this we are implementing our Corporate Commitment and placing particular attention to the importance of intercultural relations

• We continue to work in our Holy Family schools and see them as a platform for evangelisation and where we try to transmit our spirit. A management group has been created in order to coordinate

the management of the schools in a unified way.

• At the Provincial Chapter of 2007, we studied channels of participation and we created 2 groups that would collaborate with the Provincial Council in the animation of the Province, the implementation of the Corporate Commitment and the promotion of ongoing formation. These two teams are: Apostolic Dynamism and Ongoing Formation. Together with the Council, 6 formation meetings have already taken place in Oharriz and Ramon de la Cruz. These have helped the sisters to reflect more deeply on the new cosmic vision

• The Pastoral team for the care of vocations has widened to include secular members. We aim to encourage the implementation of the decree on Pastoral Care for Vocations by forming Holy Family youth leaders, carrying out activities with adolescents and young adults, organising Holy Family Days, days in preparation for Easter, camping events and so on and in all these events

the pupils from the

different colleges

participated.

The different

Holy Family Vocations are present in Spain:

• The contemplatives are in the monastery of Oteiza and they are 14 in number.

• There are 6 members of the Secular Institute

• There are 95 Lay Associates who have made their definitive commitment and there are 48 in Formation. There are 17 groups.

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All the vocations come together from time to time – retreats, Family meetings, reflect ion

groups where we can share our lives and strengthen the bonds that unite us.

A SHORT HISTORY OF THE HOLY FAMILY SISTERS IN

BRITAIN AND IRELAND THE FIRST FOUR SISTERS ARRIVED IN LEEDS ABOUT 11 PM ON 14 FEBRUARY 1853. THE NEXT morning, Fr Cooke, the Oblate priest who had arranged for them to help build up a parish, showed them the extent of the work he had planned. They were standing on the top of a bare hill, looking down onto streets of dilapidated housing. The smoke rising from the tall chimneys of factories and mills only added to the yellow fog which clung to them on that cold February morning. The whole scene must have made their hearts sink at the task before them. What would need to happen to bring about change? They began to face this question only after they had spent time together in prayer. It was in this gentle, prayerful atmosphere that they bonded together as a community and were then able to set about their task.

First of all it was important to assess the situation in which people were living and to this end, the Sisters walked as far as the

suburbs of the city. As well as widespread poverty and ill health, they discovered children as young as eight, working full time for a pittance, in the local mills and factories. If parents did find work, (though it was cheaper for mill owners to pay a child rather than an adult,) older children were left to look after the younger ones in the family. It was obvious to the Sisters that they needed to provide education as well as care for children. There was no government

legislation in place regarding school attendance. The first stage was the opening of night schools for girls who were working during the day. They came in droves eager to learn. In fact, these Sisters were the first to introduce education for poorer people in Leeds. The Sisters realised that it was only through the skills received in school that people could lift themselves out of their poverty. The Sisters worked hard to do all they could to help people build a better future. As well as providing what education they could, they trudged the streets of Leeds to raise money to build a church, school and orphanage. In this they were supported by the Bishop of Beverley, the Right Reverend John Briggs and also by people who had the financial means to help the poor. Eventually, having extended their quest to various parts of England, they went to Ireland and received support there for their work. Soon a church was built and became a focal point for the people living in the area of Leeds known as The Bank. A school, convent and an orphanage followed. Because of their poverty and the conditions in which they lived, many parents fell victim to diseases such as typhoid and died, leaving their children to fend for themselves. Orphaned children were cared for by the Sisters and this

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work continued, in various forms, from 1853 to 1999. At the time of their arrival in Leeds, the Sisters were known as the Oblate Sisters of Mary Immaculate, a Religious Order of Sisters founded in France by a priest belonging to founding an Order of Sisters was that they would be there to assist the Oblate Fathers in their parish work. Some fifteen years after their arrival in Leeds, the Sisters were beginning to feel that a change was being brought about and their vision for the future was beginning to unfold as more young women were coming forward to join them. However, there was a dark cloud on the horizon. A significant event was to change the course of their lives for ever. For some years, from about 1862, there was a question of the Oblate Fathers wanting the Sisters to amalgamate with another religious order of women, the Holy Family of Bordeaux. Nothing came of the idea at first and the Sisters in Leeds were oblivious of the fact that consultations had taken place. The crunch came in 1869 when the Sisters, now having been consulted, finally agreed to amalgamate with the Holy Family of Bordeaux. It caused much heartache and soul searching, but the Sisters knew that if they wished to have sufficient personnel to meet the many needs of the day, it was a necessary step to take. The amalgamation with the Holy Family of Bordeaux took place that year. This is the story of a Family. Just as with any ordinary family, it is good to know one’s roots and family history, so it is with the Holy Family of Bordeaux. To have a knowledge on one’s origins and history establishes one’s personal identity and sense of belonging. Research into all this history has done the same for the Sisters of the Holy Family. It has been an interesting journey to delve into the archives and learn about our origins, how we came to be who we are today. This has been like tasting a luscious, exotic fruit.

The amalgamation of the Oblate Sisters into the Holy Family of Bordeaux brought about many blessings. As a small group of Oblate Sisters, one of the problems they had foreseen some years before was how could such a small group expand their work to reach out to more people. The problem was now solved; they belonged to a world-wide religious family with similar aims and spirit. May priest, hearing of the work the Sisters were doing among the poor and their enthusiasm in carrying it out, invited them to work in their parishes. In addition, the Sisters had to familiarise themselves with their new Family. To this end, the Superiors of the Holy Family of Bordeaux sent some of their Sisters to England to help with this and initiate them into the spirit of the Holy Family. To understand the situation fully we might think of the example of a young person being adopted. In order to feel comfortable and settled in his/her new situation, the person would be given the family name; meet and get to know relatives and their relationship to the adoptive family; discover what the family enjoys doing and so on. If one tries to imagine the situation for oneself, many more example of ‘getting to know you’ will come to mind. This is what we mean by discovering the spirit of the family. By the end of the century, the Sisters of the Holy Family had opened fifteen convents in various parts of Britain and two in Ireland. They worked among the parishioners, helping to build up the parish, see to the needs of the poor and teach in the local schools. By this time the 1870 Education Act had been passed and this meant that education for all was a legal requirement. The type of ministry undertaken by the Sisters also expanded to include nursing. This was undertaken in Nursing and Convalescent Homes run by the Sisters, and some nursing Sisters visited people in their homes. It was an important ministry in that they were able to give help to families in times of sickness who would otherwise, because of poverty, be

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unable to have this care. It must be remembered there was no National Health system then. A doctor would be paid by the family for every visit made. There followed a period of consolidation when foundations already made and the work undertaken were firmly established. This lasted until the 1930s, by which time society was changing. It was an era when local councils began building a better type of housing on estates in urban areas. This resulted in a movement of people from the cities and large towns into the suburban areas. New parishes grew up to meet the needs of the new pockets of population and the Sisters also followed into the new areas. The Second World War brought about a certain stagnation in progress, owing to

austerities which lasted into the

1950s. However,

though the economy

was stagnant, the

war had brought about change in people’s attitudes and expectations and paved the way for significant change in society as a whole, but particularly in the Church. The 1970s was another landmark in our history. The Second Vatican Council of 1962 to 1965 had issued statements on every aspect of Catholic life in response to the attitudes and expectations of a rapidly evolving society. Religious Life was also called to respond to this process of change. The work of education undertaken by religious orders was now in the capable hands of lay teachers and the same is true of nursing. The religious had by this time expanded the work to such an extent that large institutions had been established, which in practical terms, could be taken over by others and the Sisters freed to seek out the other needs of society which had arisen in the course of a century and a half

and were not being met. From 1970 onwards, Sisters withdrew from their schools and hospitals, concentrated on retraining to meet other needs and changed their convents and life-style to be more accessible for mission and the needs of the society of the day. In Britain, new housing estates were being built not only in the suburbia of cities and large towns, but whole new towns were planned and built in various parts of the country. Once more, there was a shift in population, but it was a much greater movement than anything before. The distances people travelled were vast. The effect on people was enormous. The new towns were planned differently. The main shopping centres and all the commercial amenities were far from housing estates. There were no familiar landmarks along roads, such as a bank or a post office, where one could recognise where to alight from a bus. Everything was so different from the old towns and cities. People were now further away from relatives, and children from grandparents. All this added to the ‘unknown’, the unfamiliar. For a time people lost their identity; everyone was a stranger and it took years before they felt they belonged in that place. People had moved because of job prospects or changes in family circumstances. Often they were already suffering ‘loss’ of some kind or another. So there was a great deal of work to be done in these areas to build a sense of community and a sense of belonging. The Holy Family Sisters found themselves in new ministries in these situations and often experienced the same feelings as the people who had been uprooted. Having moved our from the large schools and hospitals, most of the Sisters were now living in smaller houses, with fewer numbers in community. As the third millennium approached, the understanding of the life style and mission of religious communities began to change. However, the change was gradual, for the renewal of religious life had begun

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after Vatican II and it has been evolving ever since.

FIRST FOUNDATIONS IN BRITAIN AND IRELAND First Foundation in England 1853 Leeds (O.M.I. Sisters)

First Foundation in Scotland 1869 Leith

First Foundation in Ireland 1875 Newbridge

First Foundation in Wales 1879 Wrexham

Present Houses in the Province of Britain and Ireland Community Founded Sicklinghall 1868 Rock Ferry 1869 Newbridge (Naas Road) 1875 Wrexham 1879 Magherafelt 1889 Woodford 1897 Leeds (Crossgates) 1937 Cambridge 1940 Portlaoise 1945 London (Aberdare) 1959 Clane 1970 Moneenroe 1971 London (St. Gabriel’s Road) 1974 Newbrige (Sonas Chriost) 1974 Draperstown 1978

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Bradford 1985 Dublin 1989 Skelmersdale 1989 London (Clapham) 1996

THE BEGINNINGS OF THE HOLY FAMILY SISTERS IN POLAND

This happened in 1934 through the Oblates of Mary Immaculate who had been working in the country since 1920. In the course of their ministry, they spoke to young girls of the religious life and expanded the activities of the Holy Family sisters. The young women who wanted to join them went to France or Belgium. They were very numerous at that time. The Superior General, Mother Gonzague de Marie Fourneau, wanted the Holy Family to

be present and working in this country that had officially revived in Europe fifteen years ago. The choice fell on a working class town, Lodz, with its textile mills. It was a multicultural town with a significant presence of German and Jewish nationals. With the help of the diocese of Lodz, the sisters bought a disused clinic that had closed on 1 April 1934. The house was located, in the centre of the town on 19 Wigury Street. After some necessary refurbishments it began operating as the Holy Family Hospital.

The first Sisters came on 22 and 24 May 1934:

Mother Paule de la Croix LAZAR (1888-1970) Mother Veronica MANJUSZ (1909-1963) Sr. M. Ambrose SAPPOK (1883-1956) Sr. M. Leonie POSOR (1894-1960) Sr. Josefa ROZEK (1901-1973) Sr. M Antoinette GODDE (1890-1975) Sr. M. Oktavie SZYNOWSKA (1892-1977) Sr. M. Lucie KIJAS (1880-1939) The foundresses who were Sisters of Hope had been nursing in France and Spain. The majority were of Polish origin but had lived under German occupation during their childhood and adolescence and spoke French and German which enabled them to communicate with ease in this multinational environment.

On 26 May 1934, 19 young candidates, who had helped to organise the new foundation, came. The official opening of the hospital took place on 28 October 1934, the Feast of Christ the King. However, history decreed that it did not remain for very long as a Holy Family work. On 1 September 1939 the country was invaded by the Nazis and the hospital management passed into German hands. The presence and work of the sisters became very difficult. Their lives and the lives of the people were threatened daily. They remained there thanks to the German roots of some of

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them and thanks also to their knowledge of the language. However, those years were dark and painful ones. The hospital became “Erwin Payer Krankenhausse”. From the first day, the new director, Dr. Hans Schulz, ordered the removal of the crosses and other religious symbols. The sisters had to dress as seculars. As well as caring for the sick, the sisters did everything in their power to help the people in other ways. With great courage they secretly sheltered those who were being pursued including a Catholic priest and a little girl found at the door on the day of the flight of the Jews. When the war ended the political situation caused the hospital to pass into the hands of the Communist state. There was no such thing as private property. The sisters remained there and continued to serve the sick thanks to the fact that the building had been bought by the General Administration in France. Until 1957 it was the only Holy Family house in Poland.

In 1957 the diocese gave us a house in the suburbs of Lodz at Arturowek for use as a novitiate, which it still is.

During communist times the opportunities for religious activity in Poland were very limited. The sisters could neither teach nor work openly with children and the youth, apart from catechism in the parishes where working conditions were poor and difficult. To ensure that pastoral work was carried out and to provide the sisters with some means of livelihood, the church in Poland asked them to be involved in various services in the parishes in addition to teaching catechism, such as visiting the sick, maintaining the churches and seeing to the sacristy, animating the liturgy, or playing the organ…

During the 75 years of their existence in Poland, the Holy Family Sisters were a presence in many places in their own country and also in Denmark and Belarus:

Lodz-Wigury 1934 – 2005 Lodz-Arturowek 1957 Zabiczki 1964 Wilczna 1969 – 1993 Zgierz 1971 – 1994 Lewkow 1972 – 1983 Wysocko Wielkie 1973 – 1994 Lodz-Hektarowa 1976 Zablocie sous Koden 1978 – 1992 Koden 1980 – 1983 Lebork 1980 – 1992 Warsaw 1984 Zgierz-Sierak owskiego 1985 – 1986 Vedbaek (Denmark) 1988 – 1992 Iwie (Belarus) 1993 – 1998 Lodz-St. Anne 1994 – 1999 Stolbce (Belarus) 1994 – 2007 Lachowicze (Belarus) 2000 – 2003 Plecka Dabrowa 2005

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Stargard Szcz 2005 -2006 Gorzyce 2007 Lodz-Nowosilna 2008

Given the circumstances and the social changes, we were obliged to sell the hospital building and withdraw the community but the care of the sick remains one of our services. Another hallmark of our ministry for years has been the catechesis of children and young people, currently done in public schools. Involvement with Youth The formation of new generations is undertaken at the nursery school, “Children of the Good Father” at Lodz-Arturowek, founded by the sisters in 1996. Our sisters are also

working with the poor within the framework of the diocesan Caritas (Warsaw and Gorzyce). And when, because of diminishing physical strength, the sisters can no longer work, their prayer supports those who continue to minister in today’s world so that our charism may spread and communion be lived. Certain of the vitality of our charism, as Sisters of the Holy Family, we continue our mission wherever the Lord wants to send us.