Chapter Commitments

Context
The challenge to live our Constitutions was a refrain echoing throughout the Chapter, heard in one form or another from Sheila Lemieux, CSJP, in her introductory remarks, from Nancy Sylvester, IHM, and from John Dear, SJ. We are people of peace, open to the liberating power of God (Constitution 28), committed to live and proclaim Christ's gospel of peace (Constitution 20), experiencing our own need for continuing conversion (Constitution 10), and willing to become peacemakers in the spirit of the beatitudes (Constitution 39). Our vows and covenants commit us to walk in the way of peace (Constitution 40), our history has set a direction, and our experience of contemporary society compels us forward.

Today we stand at a new crossing place. We live in a society marked strongly by the violence of war, violence to people through poverty and a sense of powerlessness and alienation, violence to earth, sea, and sky – violence that is truly cosmic. In response we commit ourselves to grow more deeply toward a nonviolent way of being and acting as peacemakers.

Commitment
"The very name Sisters of Peace will, it is hoped, inspire the desire of peace and a love for it." Mother Clare in the original 1884 Constitutions.

As people of peace, we commit ourselves:

to nonviolence grounded in contemplative prayer and reflection

to nonviolence practiced in our daily lives and ministries

to nonviolence in the protection of all life

to active nonviolence as we resist the reality of evil

Sowing the Seeds of Peace
"You will hope, if God blesses your work, to sow the seeds of peace in modern society." - Bishop Bagshawe at the profession of the first Sisters of Peace, January 7, 1884

The lens of nonviolence brings new insights and commitments to all aspects of our lives together. We commit to look with eyes of compassion, to relate with openness and hospitality, and to act from a center of contemplative prayer, peace and passion. Our prayer and study lead us to actions which "make our own the concerns of the human family ... especially those who are poor and oppressed." (Constitution 55).

We call ourselves to prayer.

Congregational weekly peace prayer

Examination of Consciousness related to nonviolence

Regular reflection on the Beatitudes/Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) and Constitutions

We call ourselves to study.

History and people of nonviolence

Constitutions and writings of Margaret Anna Cusack and community members, read through the lens of nonviolence

Contemporary resources for practice of nonviolence

We call ourselves to action.

Practice nonviolence in all relationships, with self, one another, Earth, and Cosmos

Stand in solidarity with those who are poor and respond to injustice with creativity, passion and nonviolence

Practice nonviolence in communication, reconciliation and forgiveness

Live nonviolence in our choices as citizens and consumers

Practice nonviolence in collaboration with others to heal the violence in our world

As individuals, we will discern if we are called to take a vow of nonviolence

Practical guides for prayer, study and action will be developed and shared throughout the Congregation.

Each flower in the field of gorse contributes to the beauty of the whole ... each has its own beauty which enhances the beauty of the rest. ~ Mother Clare, The Spouse of Christ

The ancient forests have been hewn down with little profit to the spoiler and to the injury in many ways of the native ... The Country which was in 'God's keeping' then has but little improved since it came into the keeping of man." ~ Mother Clare, The History of Ireland

Context
Earth is a revelation of God and the sustainer of all life. We recognize that the exploitation and destruction of Earth's air, water, soil and species is a sacrilege. We are committed to a spirituality of peacemaking which compels us to live in right relationship with the entire community of life. In this way, "we engage in the struggle against the reality of evil and continue the work of establishing God's reign of justice and peace."(Constitution 2)

Our history calls us to a special love of those who are poor. (Constitution 21)

In her own time, Margaret Anna Cusack (Mother Clare) made the connection between the devastation of earth and the victims of famine. Failure to care for creation also threatened family life, the wellbeing of women and children was a cause of emigration. Recognizing the interdependence of all life, we count among those who are poor all Earth's creatures whose lives are threatened or diminished. We experience a call to live our stance of contemplative, nonviolent peacemaking in regard to creation. It is faithfulness to this charism in our own time that compels us to respond to the crisis of climate change/global warming.

We believe in a sustainable world, yet we see Earth's life-giving resources weakened by human choices and actions. Climate change, especially global warming, is already affecting peoples and biological systems throughout the world. War and nuclear proliferation post a particular threat to the integrity of Earth.

Commitment
We commit ourselves, personally and communally, to:

Deepen our spirituality of peace regarding care of creation

Identify and reduce our carbon footprint in our communities, ministries and institutions

Pray, study and act to promote a sustainable lifestyle

Participate in legislative efforts to support the integrity of creation

Stand in solidarity and act in justice with marginalized people whose lives are already affected by the devastation of Earth

Collaborate with others, including interfaith and civic groups, who are addressing climate change.

Practical guides for prayer, study and action will be developed and shared throughout the Congregation.