December 2022 News - Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, Houston

DECEMBER,

“Christmas is joy, religious joy, an inner joy of light and peace.” - Pope Francis

for

Prayer

Volunteer Not-for-Profit Organizations: Wepraythatvolunteer non-profitorganizationscommittedtohumandevelopmentfindpeople dedicatedtothecommongoodandceaselesslyseekoutnewpathsto internationalcooperation.

Intention

December

The Biennial CHRISTUS Health Governance Conference

BY SR. ROSANNE POPP

The Biennial CHRISTUS Health Governance Conference was held on October 24-28 in Ojai, California. Ojai is a small community nestled in the mountainous wine country of California and is known for its wine, olive trees and honeybees. This meeting brought together board members and leaders from all of CHRISTUS Health to celebrate the ministries’ accomplishments, examine present and future challenges and envision the future.

The conference was attended by Sister Sponsors from the three Congregations as well as Sisters from each Congregation who sit on various boards. Representing CCVI Houston were Sister Celeste Trahan and her Council, also Sisters Christina Murphy, Sister Miriam Therese Miller, Sister Ethel Puno, and Sister Rosanne Popp.

The Theme of the Conference was “One CHRISTUS, One Purpose”, and used a large oak tree to symbolize the strong roots that were laid down by the founding Congregations and that its ever spreading and growing branches are still anchored with those roots. The opening event of the ceremony was held under a large oak tree and celebrated CHRISTUS Health’s diversity and oneness with music, dance, and prayer.

The agenda for the conference was built to have opportunities for education, entertainment, and relaxation. Each morning began with prayer. By coincidence, the first day of the meeting corresponded with the CCVI Congregational Foundation Day. Sr. Celeste led the morning prayer using our foundational story to remind everyone of the ultimate mission of this ministry.

After the opening prayer each day, there were a series of talks given by various CHRISTUS Health leaders, including a panel from Latin America, describing our mission in those regions. As an interlude to these sessions, short video clips were shown highlighting the accomplishments of many CHRISTUS Health departments and services.

Besides the addresses given by the CHRISTUS Health leaders, inspirational and

speakers also spoke to the group. Some of these speakers included Vicente Fox, former president of Mexico, Stephen Dubner, host of the Freakonomics podcast, and Earvin “Magic” Johnson, the famous basketball player with the Lakers turned businessman. The sessions closed with an address by the Chairperson of the CHRISTUS Health board, Maricela Breedlove, who challenged everyone to participate fully in the mission of CHRISTUS Health by actively being engaged in the work of governance.

informational

Sister Celeste giving her address on October 25, CCVI Foundation Day, about the history of the Congregation and how Christus Health began.

The morning sessions were followed by afternoon time for relaxing and leisure activities. Sisters, board members and their guests could avail themselves of a variety of events including jeep and horse-back riding, wine and food tasting trips and spa services. Each evening included an informal dinner with music and dancing. The highlight of the third day was a sunset Mass overlooking the hills of Ojai.

As the event concluded and people began journeying home, they reflected on the quality and diversity of speakers and the information and inspiration given by CHRISTUS Health leaders and sponsors. Everyone agreed that this was a wonderful opportunity to be reacquainted with old friends and meet new ones as well as touch our roots so that the tree of CHRISTUS Health can keep spreading its branches as One CHRISTUS with One Purpose.

The magnificent Oak Tree symbolizing One CHRISTUS, One Purpose

Ernie Sadau, President/CEO of CHRISTUS Health, speaking about the three sponsoring congregations: CCVIs of Houston and San Antonio and the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth

Participants of the CHRISTUS Health Governance conference

Sr. Celeste with Srs. Yolanda Tarango, Congregational Leader of the San Antonio C.C.V.I. (in red) and Kathleen Maciej, Provincial Superior of the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth

ANSWERING THE CALL BEYOND OUR BORDERS

BY SISTER KIM XUAN THI NGUYEN

Thank you for supporting and praying for vocation ministry! I had the opportunity to attend the National Religious Vocation Conference (NRVC) Convocation called “Call Beyond Borders” on November 3-6, 2022, in Spokane, Washington. There were about two hundred people who attended, mostly vocation ministers and NRVC members from different religious orders in the United States and Canada. The workshops, liturgies, keynote presentations, and networking possibilities were excellent.Theconvocationprovidededucationalopportunities,resources,andsupportiveservicesfor those serving in vocation ministry. I found the experience helpful and inspiring with all the input for spiritual,professional,andpersonalgrowthIreceived.

Mostofthevocationdirectorsattendingtheconvocationareseasonedinvocationministry.Iwas

one of the youngest vocation directors there! I officially assumed the role on November 1st, only three days prior to this event, while others have been in vocation work for many years. I had a chance to learn from their experiences as vocation directors, such as how to network and create good working relationships. After the convocation, I felt hopeful and was reminded of what Pope Francis said in Fratelli Tutti “HOPE is Bold; it can open us up to grand ideals that make life more beautiful and worthwhile. Let us continue, then, to advance along the paths of HOPE.” My heart is filled with hope for the future of religious life. May each of us take the opportunity to answer the call beyond our borders to rejuvenate our lives and help the young people we encounter discovertheircalling.

Sr. Kim Xuan with other NRVC Convocation participants

Sr. Kim Xuan with two other new Vocation Directors

Sr. Kim Xuan with three San Antonio C.C.V.I.s at the Convocation

Prayer for Vocations

“TobeGuadalupanoisessential”

BY NELLY MONRROY, BILINGUAL EXECUTIVE SECRETARY

There is a special veneration for Our Lady of Guadalupe in the Americas, and especially for Mexicans who feel a sense of pride that our Virgencita Morena is so beloved and venerated by our brothers and sisters in North, Central and South America and throughout the world. On October 12, 1945, Pope Pius XII decreed Our Lady of Guadalupe to be patroness of all the Americas. In Mexico, Our Lady of Guadalupe is not only the patroness, but a symbol of national identity. Most know the story of the humble indigenous man, St. Juan Diego, who Our Lady used as an instrument for her request that a shrine be built on the Tepeyac (now a suburb of Mexico City) in 1531; that in order for the bishop to believe little Juan Diego of her apparition and request, he asked for proof and she appeared imprinted inside of Juan Diego’s tilma surrounded by roses that were not native to Mexico. Today, the Basílica de Guadalupe stands on the site were Our Lady appeared to St. Juan Diego and draws millions to the shrine. December 12th – her feast day and the day of her fourth apparition to St. Juan Diego and the day she imprinted herself on his tilma, is a national holiday. Hundreds – if not millions make the pilgrimage to the Basilica or to their local churches. Some come walking, some come dancing and singing, while others make the pilgrimage on their knees, seeking the intercession of Mother Mary.

The celebrations begin at sundown on December 11th with serenatas or serenades, followed by dances and presentations usually in the form of dances by matachines (carnivalesque dance troupes usually in indigenous inspired attire) and local musical groups that want to pay tribute to our Madrecita, our mother. And at midnight“Las Mañanitas” are sung to her. Through all the celebrations and tributes, whatweremembermostistheloveofMaryforherson,Jesus,andherloveforus.

Her “yes” brought us salvation and her apparition as one of us - to a humble indigenous man, reminds us that she and Christ are with us. For many Catholics in the Americas, and even for lukewarm Catholics, Our Lady of Guadalupe holds a special place in our hearts. We go to her seeking her intercession and her comfort. Because of whom she is and what she represents to millions of Mexicans and “Americanos,” being a “Guadalupano” is essential. She is part of our identity, and it isourhonortovenerateher.

Locally, the veneration and celebrations of this important Feast Day to Our Lady have grown. This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Virgen de Guadalupe Festival to be celebrated on December 4, 2022, with a procession of dancers, drummers,andMassattheGeorgeR.BrownConventionCenter.

-MotherTeresa

AREFLECTIONONADVENT

ByDr.CynthiaTifft,

(AlongtimefriendandbenefactorofSistersGenevieve Marheineke(deceased)andMaureenKossbiel)

The beginning of our Advent journey is also the beginning of the new liturgical year (Year A) and on Sundays we will hear proclaimed the Gospel of Matthew. Like Lent, Advent is a season of preparation, and this Advent we will hear many “good words.” We will hear the word “PEACE.” Isaiah admonishes us to climb the Lord’s Mountain for instruction in peacemaking, in casting aside the weapons of war, to walk in the light of the Lord. . . Isaiah’s vision is far from being realized! But Matthew encourages us to prepare now for the coming of the Son of Man. There is no time like the present to be about peacemaking in our homes, and schools, and workplaces. What would our Advent look like if the “swords” of competition and pushing others aside to get ahead became the plowshares of working together toward a common goal; the “spears” of unkind words or bickering at the dinner table became the pruning hooks of compliments and gratitude? The Advent scriptures offer us many good words this year. This [time] as we begin our preparation,let’s“tryon”peacemaking.

"TheWordbecamefleshand madehisdwellingamongus. Wehaveseenhisglory,the gloryoftheoneandonlySon, whocamefromtheFather,full ofgraceandtruth."-John1:14

United States Saint

Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception

Researched by Dorothy Harris, Librarian at Villa de Matel

Many churches, especially the Catholic Church, in the United States, hold special services or Mass to commemoratetheFeastoftheImmaculateConceptionon December 8th. The feast focuses on the concept that the VirginMarywasconceivedwithoutsin.Thedoctrinestates that, from the first moment of her existence, Mary was preserved by God from the original sin and filled with sanctifying grace that would normally come with baptism after birth. Catholics believe Mary "was free from any personal or hereditary sin". Mary's Immaculate Conception should not be confused with the Incarnation of her son Jesus Christ; the conception of Jesus is celebrated as the AnnunciationtoMary.

The celebration of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception seems to have begun in the Eastern Church in the 7th century and may have spread to Ireland by the 8th century, where it was celebrated on December 9th. In the Western Church, it appeared first in England in the 11th century and was included in the calendar of the universal Church in the 14th century. It has a vigil and an octave and is a holy day of obligation in the United States, Ireland, and Scotland.

On February 28, 1476, Pope Sixtus IV extended the feast to the entire Latin Church. On December 6, 1708, Pope Clement XI decreed that the Feast of the Immaculate Conception be a holy day of obligation throughout the entire Catholic Church. The Immaculate Conception was solemnly defined as a dogma by Pope Pius IX in his constitution Ineffabilis Deus on December 8, 1854.

Among the many masters who have represented the Immaculate Conception in art are: Carducci, Carreno de Miranda, Falco, Holbein, Montanes, Muller, Murillo, Reni, Ribera, and Signorelli. It is the title she used when appearing at Lourdes, France.

Immaculate Conception of Mary

SISTERS SERVING IN THE COMMUNITY

SUBMITTED BY SR. ROSANNE POPP

Oct. 8th- Sister Juana Matias Tomas at Casa Maria giving flu shots

Nov. 12- CCVIs and two mobile clinic staff helping at "Viva la Vida"

Oct. 8th- (L-R) Sisters Rosanne Popp, Maria Mendez, Juana Matias Tomas, and Sharon Apiyo Anam volunteering at Casa Maria, Houston, TX

"MaythelightofChrist shinebrightlyinourlives asweextendtheloveof Godtooneanother throughouttheChristmas seasonandintothecoming newyear!"