375th Anniversary
The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet join with our fellow Sisters of St. Joseph congregations in celebrating the 375th anniversary of our founding.
In 1650, six ordinary women, under the guidance of Jean Pierre Medaille, SJ, joined together in community under the patronage of St. Joseph in Le Puy-en-Velay, France. These six women had a common desire to grow in their love of God and serve the unmet needs of the people around them, whom they came to call their “dear neighbors.” From their humble beginnings in a small kitchen, the order grew to include communities all over the world.
As a part of our 375th Jubilee Anniversary Celebration, we’ve asked our sisters and charism partners to write blog posts reflecting on integral parts of our history and spirituality, illuminating how these symbols and traditions continue to shape our present and future.
Foundations of Community
As the “Little Design” of Father Jean Pierre Medaille, SJ began to take shape in the mid-1600s, Father Medaille wrote the Règlements, carefully describing a new community of women in service of the dear neighbor. He wrote: “This association is established to provide for many young women or widows not called to the cloister or who have not the means to enter it, and who, nevertheless, wish to live chastely in the world.”
In 1650, six women of the “Little Design” joined together in community under the patronage of St. Joseph in Le Puy-en-Velay, France. Offering their lives in service to God and the dear neighbor, this religious community devoted themselves to the needs of ordinary people, living among them.
These women had no monastery and no convent but were called to live together in a “common life.” In a small kitchen, the original six sisters cooked, ate, made lace to support themselves and grew together as individuals and as a congregation.
Sharing of the Heart in Le Puy
Take into your heart all my words…hear them well. Then, go to your own people and speak to them.
Ezekiel 3:10-11
While forming the first community of Sisters of St. Joseph, Father Médaille called the original six sisters to meet weekly to “confer for a half hour on the state of their congregation and the current works of zeal.” This practice, today understood as the Sharing of the State of the Heart and the Order of the House, gave the first sisters the opportunity to discern together about how the Spirit of God was calling them to live their vocation individually and collectively.
Sister Theresa Kvale, CSJ described Sharing of the Heart as “…finding God through the neighbor, through the activities of daily living, in the zeal for the mission, in nature…it’s a communal spiritual direction.”
The Sharing Continues
A Cornerstone of Our Spirituality
Called to return to our foundation after the Second Vatican Council, we began to relearn about Sharing of the Heart and Order of the House in the 1970’s. Research teams from many different congregations of Sisters of St. Joseph went to France to study our spirituality and history.
“Our tradition of Sharing of the Heart may have elements in common with theological reflection, contemplative dialogue, Lectio Divina and communal discernment, but Sharing of the Heart is different from all of those. It is unique and central to Sisters of St. Joseph,” writes Sister Mary McGlone, CSJ. “This communal prayer practice undergirds all we do and leads us to do anything of which a woman is capable to serve the Dear Neighbor.”
Sharing of the Heart and Order of the House returned to their rightful places as cornerstones of our spirituality. Strength for our mission comes from fidelity to community, prayer, our practice of sharing our heart and celebrating the rituals of church and community. Today, our sisters participate in regular Sharing of the Heart groups with fellow sisters from across the congregation.
The Practice of Sharing of the Heart
Preparation:
Sharing:
