From 6 to 10 May 2019, about 850 women general superiors met in Rome under the overall theme “Sowers of Prophetic Hope” for the triennial UISG assembly, which gathered leaders of congregations from 80 countries representing more than 450,000 women religious around the world.
The Vice-President of UCESM, Sr. Danièle Faltz, and the General Secretary, Sr. Marjolein Bruinen, attended.
The theme “Sowing Hope for the Planet” is an example of an initiative UISG has undertaken since its last assembly in 2016. On 6 May, the plenary’s opening day, Sr. Carmen Sammut, who is finishing her second and final term as UISG-President, and the executive secretary Sr. Pat Murray gave a joint presentation on the organization’s efforts since then.
‘Designated power structures usually are given the bigger say in what is happening and, often, [is] the loudest voice. UISG is a unifying voice for the sisters around the world. Through this campaign, we have the opportunity to organize the voice of the sisters in the effort on many levels of structures in order to enhance and recognize our contribution to the care of our common home. Among all the different crises we are called to live and hope in, the one close to our hearts must be named from the start of this conference: the crisis in our Church. History will judge how we responded to this crisis. One day, women religious will be either accomplices, or prophets or victims. We simply cannot sit this one out on the side-lines, even when we are being side-lined. Women religious can be “women of vision, seers of hope.”
Our feminist legacy has a word of integrity to offer. Religious sisters should all be feminists, Christian feminists, who are committed to struggle and resist to ensure that women and men and children are all treated as human beings’.
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