Like every beautiful experience, this year’s Course of Preparation for Perpetual Profession has come to an end. While this leaves us feeling a little sorrowful and nostalgic, our overriding sentiment is that of joy for the sharing that took place among us and immense gratitude to God and to the Congregation for the wealth of these past months and the possibilities it has given us. The course, which was held for the most part at Torvaianica, concluded with a course of spiritual exercises guided by Fr. Guido Gandolfo at our St. Paul House in Rome.
We, 17 juniors from 10 nations around the world, take back to our circumscriptions a deeper grasp of our charism and identity as Daughters of St. Paul, the beauty of feeling called from different parts of the world to share this journey, and a fresh awareness of how God weaves in each of us a story of love and fidelity.
Our days were very intense, filled with study, reflection, prayer, discernment, the sharing of ideas and many moments of celebration–all of which helped us rejoice in the charism given by God to Fr. Alberione, which we are called to live today. In these months, there was no shortage of opportunities to visit significant places linked to the origins of the Pauline Family such as the Queen of Apostles Sanctuary and the papal Basilicas in Rome, as well as a very meaningful pilgrimage to the sites of our beginnings in Alba.
After our spiritual exercises based on the itinerary of Christification found in Donec Formetur Christus in Vobis, we are now ready to return to our provinces, delegations and circumscriptions where we will make our perpetual professions, saying an enthusiastic yes to God forever. To each and every one of you, we extend our heartfelt thanks. On our part, we want to reinforce the certainty of God’s love for us and our affection and closeness to one another.
