We are getting used to following the news in the media which presents us with the darker side of world events. From this information, we realize how much people’s lives are marked by pandemics, wars, climate disruption with its direct consequences on humans and biodiversity, just to name a few:
▫ The drought with the great fires that ravaged the forests,
▫ Floods and bad weather in some parts of the world,
▫ Monetary inflation and the high cost of living, etc…
Each event has had an impact on the daily life of the population.
We are far from being spared as a Congregation. Following this news places us at the heart of the world to listen to it and to be in solidarity with the sufferings of the world, as Pope Francis invites us to do, as quoted in the UISG Bulletin: “How can we take charge of the world without listening to it, without allowing ourselves to be touched by its cry and its needs? Listening corresponds to the humble style of God.” 1
As Daughters of Wisdom, we are called to “promote life so that all may have life” as the 2000 General Chapter invited us to do, through the quality of our presence and/or through our apostolic commitments. We are called from our origins as a Congregation to reveal this sought-after and contemplated Wisdom through our given lives, in health or in sickness. The words of Ted Dunn in his article “Embracing our vulnerability and its transformative potential” seem to best describe our role today in a context of great change. “The world needs you now as leaven, as salt, as the little remnant that God can use to transform the world. Whatever your age, your ministry, or your circumstances, you can be a transforming presence.2
Of course, the events of the world bring us face to face with our own vulnerabilities and we experience them in the way we seek to understand the deeper reasons for so much upheaval. The times in which we live bring us to a deeper awareness of our vulnerability; a sign of the human condition that we share with everyone…. Vulnerability is part of our human condition. Paradoxically, the experience of vulnerability gives us the opportunity to become more human. It is not a matter of exalting pain or suffering, but of recognizing a way of being a human person that bows, that leans with respect towards its neighbor, as the heavenly vault bows towards the earth; a way of living that knows how to lower itself and accompany…3
Many are the crises that have impacted our entities and each one, wherever it is, tries to bounce back to choose the side of life and bring a life-giving answer. This is what we discover in the articles of this issue of the International Wisdom newsletter. Beyond the dark side of events, we can perceive Wisdom very present in our world today, it crosses and penetrates all things (Wis 7,24) like leaven in the dough. Wisdom is through our lives and our actions this presence that transforms.
Let us dare to proclaim and spread these “beautiful stories” of Wisdom’s presence in our lives and in our contexts. Making them known is in itself transformative.
1 Pope Francis, Message for the 56th World Communications Day 2022.
2 UISG-Bulletin, P.18
