Interprovincial novitiate Villa Clara, Manizales (Colombia), 02/02/2020, Sr. Irma Jiménez Afanador, mistress of novices.- On this feast of the presentation of the Lord in the temple and the celebration of the day of consecrated life, Villa Clara interprovincial novitiate welcomed a new group of novices. The Congregation accepted to accompany these eight young women who with a generous disposition was attracted by the project of God in their life and wanted to continue their process of formation in their search and discernment to make a choice for life in the Charism of Blessed Marie Poussepin.
The Eucharist was the center of this celebration presided over by our parish priest, Fr. Leonardo Ramírez Jaramillo. In his homily he emphasized the importance of presenting ourselves before the Lord with the lights on. Following the Lord is not a matter of one moment, it is living experience of everyday life. The characters presented in the Gospel, Mary, Simeon and Anna, were moved by the Holy Spirit. God calls us and we respond with the strength of the Spirit. Let us not allow discouragement lead us to become task masters; we are called to be God's ministers in the joy of self-giving.
Sr. Martha Lucia Andrade Morales, Provincial Superior of Manizales, sisters of the Novitiate community and the sisters responsible for formation of the postulants were present at this celebration. They were Sr. Leonila Castaño Hoyos of Manizales, Sr. Gabriela Mejía Tamayo, of the Province of Medellín and Sr. Mariela de la Cruz Ortega Ortega from the Province of Bogotá. Sisters Blanca Segura Rodríguez and Elsa Myriam Londoño Valencia (Councilors of Manizales), Magnolia Sánchez Valencia (community of the Postulants, Province of Medellín) and Carmen Rosario Medina Alvarado (Community of the welcome in El Limonar, Cali) accompanied us with their presence on this joyful day.
At the conclusion of the Eucharist, Sr. Martha Lucia handed over the Bible, documents of our particular law and Ratio formationis to the sisters of the formation community, insisting that it is their responsibility to make the novices know these documents, to encourage them to study and assimilate them, so that their lives may gradually become identified with the Spirit of Marie Poussepin. Trusting in the love of the Lord, in the company of the Virgin Mary and in the prayer of the sisters of the Congregation, we begin this new mission.
