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As at December 2006 there are 79 Presentation Sisters in the Queensland Congregation. In the 1960s there were about 150 Presentation Sisters in Queensland and our novitiate was full. We have not had a sister make first profession for 20 years. There is no doubt that Religious Congregations such as ours seem to be in a very vulnerable position with a very uncertain future.
It has become clearer to members of Religious Congregations in the western world over the past 5-10 years that Religious Life as understood and interpreted by the Church and as embodied in our congregations is being severely pruned. We can no longer ignore the pain and the fear of this pruning. Just as the pruned plant often looks dead for a period of time before new shoots begin to appear, we are called to live our religious vocation with passion and trust in a fallow time when all seems dead and where we cannot predict what newness will emerge or when. The Presentation Sisters in Queensland are experiencing the pain of this pruning and are trying to enter into the evolutionary and organic process of pruning in order to encounter there God’s grace. What has not changed in spite of ageing and diminished numbers is the primary vocation of each Presentation Sister - a single-minded quest for God through celibate solitude lived within the communal structure of a Religious Congregation. Nor has the commitment of each Presentation Sister to work with and on behalf of the most vulnerable people in society been lessened. These challenges remain the same and, like most human beings, Presentation Sisters live these challenges with great energy and commitment. The experience of severe pruning, of fallowness, need not be one of hopelessness and despair. This is especially true if we believe that God’s creative Spirit is at work in every aspect of our lives, inviting us to fullness of life. Our movement as Queensland Presentation Sisters into an uncertain future is a journey into mystery. It is a challenge to remain true to the search for God as our primary commitment and to our mission to work with and on behalf of the most vulnerable members of society in the spirit of our foundress, Nano Nagle. We learn the future by walking into it one step at a time, guided by the desires of our hearts and trust in the One Who Is Always Faithful. Contact:
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