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            The Prophets had a Choice. So do we! Sister Barbara McMullen   The theme chosen for this year’s “Global Connections” is: “faithful to the mission and charism” which comes from our Chapter 2022 Directional Statement.  When I read the title above it made me remember something another “prophet in her day” said to me many, many years ago.  Her name was Sister Clementia Kemper.  She was a Sister of Divine Providence who emigrated from Germany to the United States and ended up spending her life in the St. Louis Province.  She lived in the Novitiate, where I, as an only novice, also lived.  Sister Clementia and I often had long afternoon conversations about my growing into religious life.  I remember vividly one of those conversations.  She told me: “If you develop a strong friendship with Jesus in your young religious life, you will never be lonely when you grow old as a Sister.”  The second thing she said, as I remember it, was about being “faithful to the mission of the Community and never giving up.  It’s always a choice we make each day.  Do that, even when it’s difficult, and you will be happy.”  Talk about being a prophet, (and I think a saint too!)  I’ve pondered those words often across the years of my religious life…and thanked her!   ............................. To read the full article, please, see the attachment .....................    

January, 2025 Dear Sisters, The Jubilee Year of 2025 began on the vigil of the Lord’s Nativity, December 24, 2024 in Rome and in local dioceses on Holy Family Sunday.  I write to you because a Jubilee Year in the life of the Church is a significant moment.  The theme for this Jubilee Year is:  Pilgrims of Hope.  Pope Francis often writes about Hope and I think his message in choosing this theme is to ask each of us to be messengers of hope to the world.  As we all know, our world is in need of peace and an end to conflicts.  It is a world in need of healing from hatred, racism, and divisions of all kinds.  It is to this very world that we, as Providence People, can be the pilgrims of hope that Pope Francis calls us to be.  Brene Brown, an author I like, names hope as a cognitive process, not a feeling.  She writes that “hope is forged when our goals, pathways, and agency are tested and when change is actually possible.”  According to her “hope is a function of struggle—we develop hope not during the easy or comfortable times, but through adversity and discomfort.”  Nowhere does God say we won’t struggle.  But when we face struggles in our life, we need to dig deep down and trust that God is in the struggle and will not abandon us.  Somehow I think Pope Francis knows all about this struggle and is asking us, as pilgrims of hope, to stay in the struggle, to be in the present moment, to be grounded in God.  That is the call for all of us in this world so in need of hope and joy.  I write also about our gift of consecrated life which is evolving in an ever-changing world.  I believe that our vows can be and are a very real sign to people today of the ability to live a life that is counter-cultural and prophetic in many ways.  It is like a pilgrimage, growing in freedom, open to the unexpected along the journey, and filled with love for Jesus.  It is a pilgrimage of service, and though we may often feel like it is small and insignificant, our witness speaks to others of faithfulness, compassion and joy.   This deep abiding joy comes from God and is a characteristic trait of our vocation.  So you have to ask yourself from time to time:  Am I witnessing joy in my life?  Do I believe and act as a Beloved of God?  Am I daily giving my full-hearted YES to what God asks of me, individually and in community?  Though we don’t know for certain what the future of religious life will look like, what we do know about is the present moment and the gift of joy given each of us as God’s Beloved.  When we made our vows, we put our life journey into God’s hands and each present moment connects us to the next one with our core and essence.  I hope in this Jubilee Year that all of us will examine our commitment to God, asking the Spirit to help us embrace our consecrated life, our vows, and the present moment which often holds surprises we could never have imagined.  I wish you a Jubilee Year filled with joy, deep abiding joy that lasts and gives rise to HOPE—an energy that releases light, love and joy into our world. In loving Providence, Sr. Barbara Congregational Leader

  The Jubilee Prayer Father in heaven, may the faith you have given us in your son, Jesus Christ, our brother, and the flame of charity enkindled in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, reawaken in us the blessed hope for the coming of your Kingdom.   May your grace transform us into tireless cultivators of the seeds of the Gospel. May those seeds transform from within both humanity and the whole cosmos in the sure expectation of a new heaven and a new earth, when, with the powers of Evil vanquished, your glory will shine eternally.   May the grace of the Jubilee reawaken in us, Pilgrims of Hope, a yearning for the treasures of heaven. May that same grace spread the joy and peace of our Redeemer throughout the earth. To you our God, eternally blessed, be glory and praise for ever. Amen More information: https://www.iubilaeum2025.va/en.html  

    See the Video:   https://www.facebook.com/reel/1113264959895431

  Happy Christmas to All! www.youtube.com/shorts/mXMO95u5hTI

Advent Letter, 2024   Dear Sisters and Associates, At the CLB Meeting in October in Korea there was a discussion and a hope that, along with the monthly CDP Environment Day and Eco Challenges provided by the Laudato Si Commission, there could be something else that we might do as a whole Congregation together. Sr. Michele Bisbey told the CLB Members about what she was planning for the Marie de la Roche Province during the Advent season and she graciously offered to share it with the whole Congregation. Thus, we would all be spending time on the same texts during the Advent season. I am happy to announce to you that the four-week Advent series will John the Baptist: Joy on the Periphery, Widening the Circle of Friends Here is an Introduction to the Series by Sister Michele accompanied by the titles of each week’s presentation. Jesus, who is Providence Incarnate, has called us “friends.” Our international congregation of Divine Providence, which includes vowed members, associates, Providence Partners, Providence Companions, Circle of Friends, and the family of Providence is becoming an intercultural “Circle of Friends.” This Advent season we will join together in prayer and reflection through the lens of John the Baptist, the Advent prophet of joy. May our Circle widen to accompany and embrace those, like John, who exist on the margins, the periphery. A different aspect of John’s spirituality and ministry will be explored each week. The titles are:               December 1: Leaping for Joy          December 8: Prepare the Way/Baptizing on Jordan’s banks          December 15: What did you go to the desert to see?          December 22: He must increase, I must decrease Suggestions for prayer and reflection will be translated into our four languages and posted on our congregational website. Additional insights will be shared with the Provincials and Mission Director to distribute, as is appropriate for each area. When I think of Advent joy, I am reminded of the phrase from Nehemiah 8:10: “the joy of the Lord is my strength.” I believe this is a call to find our confidence, hope, and courage in the Lord. When we truly and fully trust in our Provident God and rely on God’s promises, our hearts are filled with joy…and that joy becomes the anchor of our strength. This kind of joy is a deep, abiding joy that comes from knowing that we are loved, forgiven, and empowered by God. It can bring us a resilience and endurance among the daily tasks of our ministry and community life. Even as we may face difficulties, overcome obstacles and see the situations in our world as hopeless and counter-cultural to joy, we can cultivate a culture of joy and celebration. We can encourage one another, inspire growth, widen our circle of friends, and strengthen our collective witness to the world. Perhaps as we look through the eyes of John the Baptist this Advent, we can view life with a spiritual lens, focusing on God’s faithfulness, and realize that our joy is not contingent on what we face but on Who walks beside us. So let us seek God wholeheartedly as we embrace these four weeks together. Let us cultivate gratitude for the blessings given us. Let us surrender our own will to God’s will. Let us serve others with love and compassion which brings joy both to them and to us. It is my hope that sharing these four weeks of Advent together as one congregation will indeed widen our circle of friends, deepen our Providence spirituality, and help us to feel even more interconnected.   Choose Joy; it’s contagious! Happy Advent! Sr. Barbara McMullen Congregational Leader     ***  Please, see the attachment for Sr. Michele Bisbey's prayer and reflection.  

This is a short video talk by Sr. Barbara about First Sunday of Advent.   To listen in Korean, German, and Spanish:  (1) Select  Settings [ ] on the right side of the toolbar below the video (2) Click Subtitles (3) Click Your Language Watch Video  https://www.cdpgeneralate.org/watch/#lg=1&slide=0

  Happy and Blessed Thanksgiving!   "And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." (Colossians 3:17)   https://www.instagram.com/p/DC6rdXLJu7V/

We've launched Congregation's Instagram, so check back often to see what we're up to!   Link:  https://www.instagram.com/cdp7.13/?fbclid=IwY2xjawGvdmRleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHTKIN0P8LyKWyKzTSdg40bWavP0Mlzr-vzo9qagVRa6aMG07uyQEZL0FBg_aem_oz2_fQRDgtmgoQtPEL086g