On the evening of April 27, we had the joy of welcoming eleven young women from our Témento/Samine parish for three days of discovery, sharing, and reflection on the following theme: “Mary, model of every vocation.”
We discussed her attentive listening, her availability, her obedience, her docility in prayer, and her service. The sub-theme was the vocation of St. Francis of Assisi and Blessed Frances Schervier.
The camp opened with a beautiful prayer led by Sr. Véronique, followed by a word of welcome from Sr. Sylviane. Then a short summary of the theme of last year’s vocation camp refreshed our memories. The camp itself began on April 28 with the sub-theme “The vocation of St. Francis of Assisi: the passage from a desperate life to an ordered life.” It was a very rich time of sharing through examples and experiences. I noticed that all the girls were touched by the radical conversion of Francis who, wanting to be a knight, ended up marrying Lady Poverty. And in that we can say that the Lord’s ways are unfathomable and his decisions inscrutable.
On the 29th, we shared about the vocation of Blessed Frances Schervier and how Frances was becoming increasingly aware of how God was leading her group of friends to be instruments of compassion. She would later say: “In the poor and suffering, I recognized my divine Savior as clearly as if I were seeing him with the eyes of my body”. These very profound words of Blessed Frances struck many girls and raised many questions, such as: what are the different wounds that Christ invites us to heal? Who is the poor person I am called to support?
During these three days, we felt the presence of Christ among us, asking us to lend an attentive ear to our brothers and sisters, especially those in need.
I felt the girls’ joy and openness through the interest they showed during the camp. It was a moment of communion and fraternal sharing with the girls. I thank God for the success of this mini camp.
Sr. Véronique Diouf, SFP
