In the late sixties of the last century, Rome called religious orders and congregations to reflect on their origins. They were given room for experiment. This call was for our congregation the reason for the renewal chapter of 1970. In this chapter the collegial form of government was agreed, responding to contemporary attitudes.
Immediately from the start, collegiality was more a matter of attitude than a way of working, in the light of the text of 1970: “Collegiality is a spirit of living together and working together, in which we try to create room for everybody’s individuality and thus for the diversity existing among us. This calls for an attitude of listening, trust, paying attention, the ability to wait for each other, the willingness to complement each other, the desire to grow together in a common goal while accepting each other and each other’s gifts, willing to take risks…" (We together page 6).
This spirit quickly developed into spirituality: the spirituality of equality.
With this, the congregation was involved in a profound process of renewal, a process in which each sister slowly became aware of everything that stood in the way of the perception of equality in her own life.
('Equality' may be described in a more visualized, a more inspiring way by sisterhood, ‘sisterly feelings', a ‘sister’ being in hierarchy not higher, not lower than her sisters and brothers, on the same level as they, ‘even-worthy’).
We remember the sensitivity training. This was intended to achieve self-understanding and from there to attempt to lay off possible false 'attitudes'.
At that time we discussed topics such as freedom and responsibility, room for everyone's individuality and diversity, openness and trust.
The spirit of these themes appeared to correspond to what existed during the Second Vatican Council. The windows of the church were to be opened to the world (Pope John XXIII). These themes were also actual in the society of the sixties. An optimistic mood was felt everywhere. The greater part of the sisters in the Netherlands was eager and willing to change.
To support the process in the congregation, ‘the communication office’ was established with the principal task to organize and to stimulate the 'conversation' in the congregation. The provincial council determined the theme, in consultation with the officially appointed advisers - a psychologist and a theologian - with the trained sisters/discussion leaders and with the members of the communication office.
At the same time, equality in the congregation was developed: it was extended to all sectors, at all levels. The ‘mission areas’ became respectively ‘province’ and ‘region’ at level with the likewise founded ‘province The Netherlands’.
Actually, the congregation made with all this a radical change: from an inward spirituality (the formula of the vows of that time speaks of "separate from the world”) to a spirituality that is eager to open up to the world, the world as the place where salvation takes place, the place where God´s Kingdom takes shape. Along with this change, each sister, as a true sister in the original family meaning - unmarried because of the 'Kingdom of heaven' -, could approach unconcernedly every man who crosses her path, free and unselfish, open, cordial and close.
In this way, she can feel herself supported by the confidence to be on the right track, the path to which the constitutions call each sister individually, in particular to commit herself to "a new society in which human beings will be recognized as sisters and brothers." Constitutions, p. 23.
The spirit of all this was finally recorded in the Renewed Constitutions.
The congregation received the approval of these Constitutions on July 29, 1988.
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Translation by Renny Zwaagstra
