by Sister M. Monika Schmidt, SSND, Provincial Leader, Bavarian Province

Mother Theresia, who longed for the unity of all in God, struggled for it and urged her sisters to seek unity because it makes us strong. She had experience of how wars destroy a country permanently, shatter values, shake the foundations of peaceful coexistence and reinforce divisions.

By founding the Congregation of SSND, Mother Theresia sought to respond to the manifold hardships caused by the Napoleonic Wars (1799- 1815) throughout Europe. She was convinced that society could be transformed through Christian education. In order to be more independent of national borders and different regulations in territories and dioceses, Theresia Gerhardinger placed the Congregation under central leadership.

The history of Europe is reflected in the foundation and history of our European provinces, particularly in the conflicts and wars of the 19th and 20th centuries: the Wars of Liberation as a counter-reaction to Napoleon, the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71, the First World War, the political restructuring of Europe through the Paris Suburb Treaties, the Second World War and the establishment of the Iron Curtain. The wars not only brought destruction, poverty, atrocities and targeted extermination, but also shifted borders and displaced peoples. Traumatization, uprooting, injuries and resentment remain until today.

But we would not be SSNDs in the sense of our foundress if we stopped there. We are united by Mother Theresia’s charism, our mission to lead people to God and to create unity among ourselves, to transform the world through educating by our being and actions. In this self-image, we School Sisters have always responded to reality and reacted flexibly.

The demographic development of the European provinces today shows us that we are all experiencing the same challenges. The digital world enables us to network more closely.

Driven by the desire to be more closely united and thus send a strong signal to the divided world, we European provinces set out together in 2019 on the path to ONE Europe. We are well aware of the difficulties: differences in civil law, in political situations and in cultures. Additionally, we speak eight different languages.

But we are engaged in getting to know each other better through PowerPoint presentations, sharing information, meetings and, in 2023, the gathering, Embracing Unity, of the younger sisters of Europe. The Europe Committee initiated a prayer network and developed a model for leadership in the ONE Europe according to the guidelines of the provincial leaders. The European provincial councils are working on the clarification of the details.

We are on our way, and even if we do not yet know all the steps, we do have a common vision.

Sister M. Karmen Balgač, Provincial, Slovenian Province: The Sisters of the Slovenian Province firmly trust in the words of Mother Theresia also in relation to One Europe: What lies in the future is in God’s hands. We endeavor to pray steadfastly for the project and to turn constructively to our tasks.

Sister M. Rut Koprucha, Provincial, Polish Province: Coming closer to one another and building unity takes place through personal encounter. A sign of our unity was for us the meeting Embracing Unity, which helped us to develop closer relations among us.

Sister M. Vojtĕcha Honová, District Leader, District of Czechoslovakia: In the last 10 years, we have undergone a process of structural change. First of all, we merged with the province of Austria-Italy and two years ago we joined the Bavarian Province as a district. We have had positive experiences with this process. The mutual trust in God’s guidance and the willingness to cooperate with the sisters of both provinces have freed us from fears and uncertainties and united us.

We have experienced mutual openness, helpfulness, benevolent welcome and equal treatment. On the way to a common Europe, we want to remain open to the guidance of the Holy Spirit in order to find a common path in faith and trust.

Sister M. Verena Wittibschlager, District of Austria-Italy, member of the EU-Committee: In Europe, we SSNDs will only be a small group in 2025. This completely new situation challenges us TODAY to abandon good, established structures and to radically think about new ways. Our efforts in the “One Europe” committee were certainly marked by this and at the same time not always easy. The “name” (One Europe) that characterizes us as “Poor School Sisters” in our divided and endangered world will be significant in this process.

Sister M. Angela Hatwiger, Bavarian Province, member of the EU-Committee: The meetings in our committee for growing together into ONE Europe were always characterized by great openness, sincerity and mutual appreciation. In our joint search we developed a leadership model that takes into account the guidelines of the provincial leadership and the demographic development and at the same time offers opportunities to carry Mother Theresia’s charism into the future.

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Source: In Mission 2024