MAGNIFICAT, LORD! Yes, Magnificat for this happy inspiration to organize an intensive Vincentian formation that gathered all the Provinces of the Daughters of Charity of Brazil.

The Vincentian Formation Session for the Daughters of Charity of the six Provinces of Brazil was held in Rio de Janeiro from July 1 to August 3, 2019. It was a time of sharing, study, reinvigoration of the Vincentian Charism, rediscovery, knowledge, meetings… Blessed be God! It was an initiative enlightened by the Holy Spirit and guided by the maternal presence of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The Formation was aimed to reinvigorate our love for Jesus Christ in the person of the poor, for the charism, and for our sense of belonging in the Company in order to be more deeply rooted in our Vincentian heritage, to live with fidelity and authenticity our vocation as Servants and to open the way for a future that is enlightened by Jesus Christ. The Session actually began in May 2018 when the Visitatrixes met at the Mother House in Paris; they prayed over the idea and presented it to God. The details were then planned, studied, and submitted to the Visitatrixes who sought the approval of the General Council. That was how the first Vincentian Formation Session in Brazil came into being. The theme was: This is our Vocation: BEING PERSONS OF GOD AND SERVANTS OF OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS. First, we are called to an awareness of the divine within our being; then, we are invited to assume a position of learning through study and prayer and to let the Master wash our feet in order that we may receive His Spirit and follow His example. Our true vocation is to serve and so we GO WILL GO OUT to meet our brothers and sisters, especially those who are most deprived, and serve them with love.

Our gratitude to Sr. Kathleen and the General Council, to the Organizing Team, the Visitatrixes and their Council, the Provincial Directors and all those were involved in making the first Vincentian Formation Session of the Daughters of Charity in Brazil deeply meaningful.

Sr Faride Pereira Dutra – Province of Rio de Janeiro – Brazil