Dear Sisters and Partners-in-Mission,

A warm and joy-filled welcome to all who are present here and all who are participating from outside of Angers. It is with deep gratitude that I with my team members, Cristina, Edith, Sadhani, Marie-Françoise and Johanna, the Generalate coordinator, gather today with you to launch the 200th Anniversary of the Establishment of the Contemplative Sisters which will be celebrated on 11th November 2025 across the Congregation. We are also happy to celebrate on this significant occasion the Jubilee Year that is pronounced by the Holy Father Pope Francis.

Firstly, on behalf of the Congregational Leadership Team, I take the opportunity to thank the Sisters and Partners-in-Mission of the Province of BFMN, Sr Marie Luc Baily and her Province Leadership Team for graciously hosting this celebration of the launch here in the Motherhouse in Angers. Our grateful thanks to the organizing committee who planned and prepared this 200th Anniversary celebration. We appreciate very much all who as resource persons, have shared their insights on the wider mission. We thank very specially Fr Jean Michel of the Eudist Fathers and all his brother Priests who have graced this occasion by being the celebrants for the Eucharist. We are grateful to Monsignor Michel Dubost, CJM, Bishop Emeritus of Evry-Corbeil-Essonne, who will preach the retreat and celebrate the Mass with Fr. Jean Michel Amouriaux, CJM. Last but not least we thank all of you who have taken the time to join in this Eucharistic celebration and in the other events that have been planned.

This momentous occasion of launching the 200th Anniversary of the Contemplative Sisters, invites us to reflect and give thanks for the remarkable journey that began two centuries ago and to celebrate the enduring spirit that continues to guide and inspire us not only as contemplative sisters but as apostolic sisters and partners in mission. Two hundred years ago, in 1825, Sr Mary Euphrasia, who was made the leader of her community responded in faith, to establish the contemplative lifestyle within the congregation. Despite the challenges and societal norms of her time, she created a space for women to live out their deep yearning for union with God and community life through a contemplative way of life. Her courage, creativity, and commitment to God’s call have left a significant mark on our congregation’s history.

Today on this launch of the 200th anniversary, we also give thanks for the countless sisters who have dedicated their lives through a contemplative way of life in this apostolic congregation. Their stories of love, commitment, and resilience assure us that the call to this life and mission is from God and God gives each one the necessary strength and courage to be faithful. Many are the blessings that have flowed from their lives into our communities and into the world.

In the communication we sent you last week, all contemplative and apostolic sisters and partners-in-mission were invited to include to your liturgies and gatherings a special section to remember and celebrate this special occasion.

This Anniversary and the Jubilee Year is an invitation to:

• Give Thanks: For the profound presence of God in our lives and our congregation, for the gift of our shared mission, and for the blessings that unite us in love and purpose.

• Reflect on Our Role: In God’s holy work, recognizing the call to be channels of God’s love, mercy, and justice in our world.

• Celebrate Our Spiritual Heritage: Honoring the rich legacy of our contemplative sisters, our apostolic sisters and our lay partners in mission who have been captivated by the spirit of our founders, Saint John Eudes and Saint Mary Euphrasia and continue to live the mission daily.

• Deepen Our Journey: Embracing the call to deeper contemplation, allowing the Spirit to renew our hearts and minds.

As we look forward, we are called to continue the journey with the same courage and creativity that characterized our founders. We must ask ourselves: How can we, in our time, embody the values of our apostolic mission while tapping into our contemplative core where we experience God’s embrace? How can we be voices of hope, instruments of peace, and witnesses to God’s love in a world that so desperately needs it?

Let this be a time to renew our commitment to a universal culture of justice, where we open ourselves to the shifts in consciousness and transformation that our Congregational Chapter called us to. Let this year of Jubilee be a time of celebration, gratitude, and deep spiritual renewal.

Together with our Contemplative Sisters on the occasion of this launch of the 200th Anniversary, let us carry this message of Saint Mary Euphrasia in our hearts as we respond to the mission with zeal, “I have no great talents, I only loved.”

Thank you and may you have a jubilant celebration!

Sr Joan Marie Lopez

Congregational Leader