Chronicle 2 of the General Team’s visit to the Province of India

General Team | Province of India

Between October 2024 and January 2025, Sisters Maria Irizar and Maggie D’Costa will travel on behalf of the General Team to the Province of India.

Below we share the second chronicle of his visit, between November 9 and 24.

During the days that have elapsed since the last chronicle, we have finished touring Northeast India and visited the two communities that we were missing in that region: Maibang and Didambra. We also celebrated the Regional Assembly in Ahmedabad.

Maibang

In Maibang, the community is made up of three sisters; since the first Regional Assembly was held there and we spent several days in the same place, we had the opportunity to live with them for a longer period of time, sharing the daily Eucharist and their schedules, which are in harmony with those of St. Xavier’s School, which has more than a thousand students and whose direction is entrusted to us.

Didambra

We traveled to Didambra, which is about two hours away by jeep, on the 12th and returned on the 13th, which allowed us to live more peacefully with the community of three sisters and enjoy that place away from any urban center, and quiet in the middle of a still quite preserved nature.

There, the collaboration between the Jesuits and the Vedrunas managed to run a school with more than 700 students, two boarding schools for boys and girls, and a small dispensary.

We were able to appreciate the sisters’ joy at the enormous progress that the students have made in recent years, thanks to the access to quality and proximity education, which is increasingly welcomed by the local population.

The welcome we have received from the interns and boarders, as well as at the School, has been very warm and we have felt at home among them.

During our stay we were able to share the Eucharist, meals and after-dinner conversations, as well as the activities organized on the occasion of our visit, with Reiji, one of the Jesuits who collaborates with our community.

Maharashtra: communities of Mangaon and Mumbai “Shradhaseri”.

On the 14th we left Maibang early and traveled all day, first by jeep and then by plane back to Mumbai, arriving in the evening and being met by Rita Rebello of the Provincial Team.

From Mumbai, where we were based for a few days, we went to visit the community of Mangaon, in the same state of Maharashtra, spending with them an intense day of coexistence and contact with their varied activity.

Although we did not have time to visit the villages, we did visit the sewing workshop developed in collaboration with a civil NGO.

Here we also had the opportunity to participate in the Sunday Eucharist with the parish community, which is small numerically but very active. We gathered 17 people for the celebration of the Mass, after which we were welcomed and had a drink together, it was an endearing moment.

On our return we met with the Mumbai “Shradhaseri” community, which, besides being the provincial headquarters, is also a house of welcome for the province, infirmary and provincial novitiate. They have been intense days of sharing life, mission, pleasant and joyful meals and other meetings that help us to know better how the presence of the Sisters is in each place.

In Mumbai we were able to meet some sisters from other communities who have gone to the city for various reasons; it is always a joy to meet and the taste of family that we found.

Gujarat and Rajasthan

On the 19th we packed our bags again to start the tour of Gujarat and Rajasthan for the rest of the year. We visited the communities of Vidhyanagar, Sanand and Ahmedabad.

We also met the young people of the “Snehadhara” Center (which means Source of Love) that the sisters have in Vidhyanagar (Gujarat). They are active and committed young people and welcomed us warmly when we arrived at the community. Three dancers honored us in the traditional way in their beautiful costumes.

We also visited the parents of our Br. Sheetal Macwan, who was with them and are neighbors of the community. Her father was an invaluable friend, advisor and collaborator during the beginnings of our presence in that city.

In Sanand (Gujarat) we shared some time in the morning with the teachers and members of the school we have there, after the beautiful welcome program offered by the whole school community.

In addition, mid-morning we went to the school during recess and almost all the children came to greet us and offer us their lunch; their respectful welcome and always with a smile that touches our hearts.

Ahmedabad

In Ahmedabad (Gujarat) we visited St. Louis St. Xavier’s College (University) of the Jesuits, where some sisters work and study and with which our Residence Hall is associated. Vinayak, the rector, received us in his office and explained many things about the reality of the university, the current challenges and the values in which they want to educate the more than four thousand students: competence, awareness, compassion and commitment.

Second Regional Assembly

During the weekend of November 23 and 24, in Ahmedabad we celebrated the second Regional Assembly with the presence of 31 Sisters and the participation of Cynthia Pinto, coordinator of the Vedruna Laity group, in part of the Assembly.

It was a very happy moment of encounter, where we exercised synodality and shared leadership.

During these days we continue to fulfill the most important objective of all: to meet with the Vedruna communities in each place, getting to know as much as possible, within the time available, their reality and context, the mission they develop and those people and groups with whom they share their work to make this world a better place for everyone.

The community meetings and Assemblies are an opportunity to deepen the Chapter document and to advance in the exercise of synodality and shared leadership in our daily relationships and in our mission.

In the places we visit, the Sisters carry out educational, social and health projects:

In Mangaon we have a boarding school for girls who go to study in the city from the villages; the sisters regularly visit the surrounding villages. The sewing workshop project is developed in our premises where 30 women are trained for this profession, once they have obtained the official certificate, in addition to receiving the necessary tools to start working.
In Vidhyanagar we have a mixed training center for young university students, which offers complementary training that favors their labor insertion (languages, commerce, computers, etc.) and we develop youth and parish pastoral activities.
In Sanand, the main mission is the Vedruna School “Asha Kiran School” where they offer two lines of education: Gujarati and English.
In Ahmedabad, we have a University Residence with more than 130 students. The community, which currently has two pre-novices in formation, is also involved in youth and parish ministry.

Some things that have caught our attention these days have been:

Participation in the interfaith prayer of the youth group of the Snehadhara center in Vidhyanagar. This prayer, which they celebrate periodically, is a very significant event in the midst of a Hindu-majority city with practically no presence of other religious denominations, because it is a means of promoting peace and coexistence among all, without discrimination.
The presence of our sisters in small communities, located in quite distant and isolated places and with a mission that is challenging for many reasons, but exciting at the same time, because they are pioneering presences and generally in collaboration.
In each place there is a different way of welcoming and receiving those who come from outside, which is considered a visit from God. For example, in Ahmedabad, the community welcomed us following the custom of giving us a coconut, which we had to break on the ground at the entrance of the house. The event turned into a celebration because everything went very well, even though it was our first time.