the curia informs - Passio Christi

PASSIONIST FAMILY
MEETING OF THE ITALIAN NATIONAL
COUNCIL OF THE LAY PASSIONIST MOVEMENT
The Meeting of the Italian National Council of
the Lay Passionist Movement took place on
May 2- 4, 2008 at the Sts. John and Paul
General House in Rome. Attending were the spiritual
directors of the Italian Provinces, the lay coordinators
and some representatives of the bigger groups of
each Province. The topics of the encounter were:
Evaluation of the Province programs, the common
Passionist formation, and programming the next
Congress on June, 2009.
●
Meeting of the National Lay Passionist Movement
A RESPONSE…
“I will go anywhere in order to save a life.” – this is a
quotation from Teresa Gallifa Palmarola, the Foundress
of the Congregation of Religious, Servants of the
Passion, and it is the spirit that for more than 100 years has
guided her followers to work for and on behalf of life.
This basic program of maternity/neo-natal care for pregnant
women or children in risk of social exclusion is one of
the projects that is promoted by the Sisters’ Congregation.
This project is located in the “Llar Santa Isabel/ Madre
Teresa Residence” in Barcelona, Spain, specifically in the
District of Horta-
Guinardó, in buildings
that are annexed to the
Generalate of the
Congregation and
where, in the Chapel of
the Visitation, the
mother foundress is
buried.
The project is socioeducational
and is car-
“I will go anywhere in
order to save a life.”
PASSIONIST SISTERS
ried out in two, nearby centers that are designed for pregnant
women and mothers with a child less than three years of age,
who are living in difficult situations that impede them from
living autonomously and assuming responsibility for their
maternity. The final goal is total re-integration into society
by offering support and assistance in order to help them to
achieve their goals.
The majority of the women that arrive at the reception
center many times don’t know what they are looking for,
although basically they are all seeking help, stability, someone
who will listen to them and be present to them in this
process of accepting and assuming responsibility. Once
fears, resentments, and anger have been overcome and they
observe other women in similar situations and that they are
not the only ones in this condition, they begin to recover their
strength and they can resume their lives with a new outlook
… aware of the difficulties, but also of their potential, of their
abilities and of their desire to live and of the strength that
they give to their child.
The Sisters of the Congregation of the Servants of the
Passion are very familiar with this process since over the years
they have assisted many women and their children in this
ambitious process of transformation. They use the most basis
tools in this endeavor: love, joy, tolerance and dedication. ●
July 2008 - PIB n. 17
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