A door
Doors in the General Chapter 2024
Sr. Rosario Garcés del Castillo, province of Europe.- Today I would like to talk about doors. As we know, a door is a gap, a hole in the wall that allows access to or exit from an enclosed space. Doors play a key role in everyday life. They provide security and privacy to meeting places and at the same time allow the controlled movement of people and objects. From time to time there are signs that restrict this flow: "Access authorised for technical staff only"; "No access for outside personnel"; "Emergency exit".
When viewed through the eyes of an interior designer, doors reflect the style of an era and are elements that contribute to the aesthetics of buildings and structures.
In some cultures, when entering a house for the first time, a rite of purification or welcoming, as the case may be, must be performed at the doorway. Doors can also be symbols of change of place, of new beginnings, of boundaries to be overcome or respected as appropriate.
At the end of the Eucharistic celebration at the opening of the 56th General Chapter, we went in procession led by the major superiors to the chapter room, but before entering, Sister María Escayola symbolically opened the door, as at the beginning of the holy years. We passed through the "holy door" to enter the Chapter Room, a meeting place as Sisters to think, reflect and discuss the Congregation we want to build together.
The door that gives access to the room is not very big, it is a normal door, but on the opening day of the Chapter, due to the large number of Chapter Sisters, one could say that it became a "narrow door", the narrow door that Jesus in his Gospel (Luke 13:24) invites us to go through.
Jesus himself identified himself as the door (John 10: 9), inviting us to enter: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with me" (Revelation 3:20).
My wish for the General Chapter would be that we welcome Jesus' invitation to listen to his voice, to open the door to enjoy the banquet that he has prepared for us and in which each of us has a place reserved for us.
