Not long after the recent CRA National Assembly, I was away from Australia for two weeks attending the Intermediate General Chapter of my religious congregation which was held on this occasion in the United States. Such experiences of the internationality of our congregations or the international links of locally formed congregations are ones common to many of us.

While the Assembly was firmly grounded in local realities without losing sight of a global perspective, the international gathering shortly afterwards highlighted the nourishment that also comes from receiving the sharing of other experiences that give a deeper perspective to our local realities. Both what is immediate to us and ‘openness to the experience of the other’ are real and have a truth.

In this context, the experience of a communion that both embraces and transcends differences in culture, nation, and outlook is a precious gift in religious life. This is not something unique to religious life - it is a gift called to be lived in families, the broader community and the wider church community. By our consecration as intentional followers of the Gospel, this graced communion is a specific commitment for us expressed through the various forms of vows we take on. In ministry we are have a responsibility to be agents of that communion to which we aspire in our lives. We are vulnerable and there can be great gaps between that to which we aspire and how we actually are – but small and constant steps forward are important.

Lest these values be easily dismissed, the current suffering in Ukraine and many other violent conflicts in our world strongly remind us of the need for people of good will to witness the power of friendship, respect and love. That core charism of communion of life is far from abstract in the concrete realities of the world in which we live. As religious we may, in more forlorn moments, question our relevance. In humility, our lifestyle, even if lived very imperfectly, does have much to say in the face of realities experienced by all our sisters and brothers in the broader communities in which we live and love – whether close at hand or further afield.

As I write, the newly elected CRA National Council formally begins its work with its first meeting. I commend the work of the Council to your prayers as each of you are in the prayers of the members of Council as we begin each meeting.

Fr Peter Jones OSA

CRA President