In “Blessed be God who filled my soul with fire!” Tracy Kemme, Sister of Charity of Cincinnati, shares with profound honesty her reflections on a recent presentation “Younger Religious in the Time and Place we were Called to live”.

I must admit that as I read it I kept thinking of the pioneering sisters of the 19th century who broke the molds of religious life as they started the schools and hospitals that were needed at that time in the United States.

After situating herself in the 1 percent of religious life today, she gives voice to the “Giving Voice-aged people” who are at an age when their peers are taking leadership positions in their profession and enjoy the heights of their careers.

Some young sisters feel that they are expected to carry on with business as usual. Older sisters wonder why the newer members do not want to work in this or that sponsored ministry that has been such a part of the congregation for so many years. The desired ministries of young sisters may be misunderstood as them “not wanting to work.” As I shared this sentiment with a co-worker the other day, he offered an insightful comparison. Perhaps, it is like when a family has owned a successful business, maybe a little restaurant, for many years. Great-Grandpa started it, Grandma ran it, and Dad took it over. It has been a wonderful place that has brought a lot of people together and touched a lot of lives. Now, the granddaughter is graduating from college, and she feels called to be a teacher. Her family wants her to take over the business instead. She loves her family, and she cherishes the family restaurant, but she knows that her path is to be something different. It wouldn’t be good for the granddaughter, or the restaurant, for that matter, to force her.

And so it is with new generations of sisters. We treasure the tradition and deeply admire all that our sisters have accomplished in the past. But in this time and place, our call is different. Some young sisters shared that when they bring forth an idea for a new initiative or direction in their congregations, the initial response of older members might be a resistant, “And how do I fit into this?” I understand that watching the “new” unfold might be painful for someone entering their elder years. They may fear division within the community between the “old” and the “new.” They may wish that they were younger. I know I will be there someday. But it doesn’t help the new to emerge if we all try to fit into the puzzle the same way. We must celebrate then new and know that we are a part of it because we are sisters.

She continues with her thoughts on various types of leadership in an age with simultaneous diminishment and new life occurring.

In the face of all this she speaks of the necessity of reverence… reverence for what has been and for the wisdom figures. But also reverence for the questions, passion and innate desire to create.

“This is our story, and we write it together by being who God calls us each to be.”

“Blessed be God who filled my soul with fire!“

Her article is well worth reading in its entirety…  with much prayerful reflection… and not just by those in religious life.