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InFormation Bulletins - InFormation 2019 No.2 Summer

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For members of religious communities retirement is often seen as a signal to be ‘recycled.”  How do we respond to the too frequently asked question, “What do you do?” when ‘doing’ no longer fills our days?  What is the invitation embedded in this life event we call retirement?  We will consider some of the attitudes that impact our response, the ordinary phases that are to be expected, some suggestions on how to move through them and the potential of new life that lies beyond.

Paula Cooney is a member of the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary of Monroe, Michigan.  Using her background in gerontology, spiritual direction and leadership in her own congregation, she has developed programs and retreats for seniors on a variety of topics that impact the journey of aging.  Since the mid 90’s the core of her ministries have been with Elders, most recently as the director of a retirement center for a community of women religious.  Paula has been an eldercare consultant with NRRO for the past 12 years.

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Fifty years after the close of the Second Vatican Council, its key concepts, most notably, aggiornamento, the Italian term for “bringing up to date”, as well as ressourcement, a critical engagement with the current situation in light of the lessons of the past, continue to capture the imagination of the contemporary disciple in Christ's mission.  Our day will be spent in prayerfully exploring Christian world mission in light of the current signs of the times, in an attempt to discern where the Spirit is leading our religious communities.

Particular attention will be paid to the gift of the arts as manifested in the diversity of cultures.  Activities include some presentations, quiet prayer time, and small group discussions (which may take place in various languages).  Each participant is invited to bring a symbol of her or his religious community's charism.

Eduardo Fernández, SJ, PhD: Other than teaching classes in missiology and Latino theology and ministry at the Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University at Berkeley and the Graduate Theological Union, Professor Fernández publishes, gives workshops and retreats, and assists at local parishes.  He has also worked in university campus ministry.  A native of El Paso, Texas, he earned a Masters in Latin American Studies at the University of Texas at Austin and a doctorate in theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. His two latest books are Mexican American Catholics (Paulist Press, 2007), awarded a 2008 Catholic Press Association Book Award in the category of pastoral ministry, and Culture- Sensitive Ministry: Helpful Strategies for Pastoral Ministers (Paulist Press, 2010) with Kenneth McGuire, CSP and Anne Hansen.

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