Spirituality of Peace through Justice
by Sister Carmel Little, CSJP
Charism and Constitutions
The charism and Constitutions of a religious community go hand-in-hand. Charism comes from the Latin word for gift. It is the gift given the community by God to the founder. It is a gift for the church and for the world. That founding gift, or spirit, deeply identifi es a religious order. The Constitutions are guides or rules by which a congregation lives out its charism.
The mission of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace is to work for peace through justice. This is our charism. The charism is the gift given to the founder and is what continues to attract and inspire the members of a congregation. The Constitutions are the daily expression of that charism –the road map by which we strive to live our lives. The charism holds the vision, inspires us and gives us hope. The Constitutions invite us to live that charism in concrete ways.
In our Constitutions we say that “gospel peace is both gift and task.” We accept the charism and the Constitutions as gift, believing that they hold the mystery of God. And we respond to the charism and Constitutions as task inviting us to “continue the work of establishing God’s reign of justice and peace.” (Constitution 2)
To be people of peace and justice we must first be people of prayer. Our Constitutions say; “Recognizing gospel peace as both gift and task, we believe that prayer is fundamental to our life. Our intimacy with God unifies our prayer and activity, so that we are moved to action by prayer while action urges us to pray.” (Constitution 28) The work for peace calls us to be rooted in God, the source of our peace, for it is only when we come from that source that we are able to sustain our efforts for justice. It is our intimacy with God that compels us to strive to alleviate the poverty and oppression of people. “The weight of suffering and oppression borne by so many people today, especially those who are economically poor, cries out to us for action. Our response demands a firm commitment to work for justice in solidarity with our sisters and brothers.” (Constitution 21)
To work for peace through justice is not an easy task because justice calls us into places we would rather not go. It can be risky and diffi cult to open the eyes of the blind, to set prisoners free, to bring good news to the poor. It is likewise risky to provide affordable housing, to assure healthcare for all, to take a stand against violence and war. It is not an easy path. We need the support of others who share our vision. We need community. Our Constitutions say; “The call to live community for mission comes to us from Jesus whose Spirit is the source of our unity.” (Constitution 13) Community enables us to stay the course when it is diffi cult; to take the risk when it is dangerous; to have courage in the face of fear. Community life sustains us. “Our presence to one another enables, sustains, and challenges us to be responsive to our mission.” (Constitution 16)
Being responsive to our mission calls us to reflect on “the needs of our times.”(Constitution 20) At our General Chapter, a congregational meeting held every six years, we pause to do this. At our General Chapter in 2008 we committed ourselves to the care of creation and to growing in nonviolence. Our Constitutions say: “We strive to respect the gifts of creation.” (Constitution 11) We find these words more than ever call out to us today as we experience and witness the devastation of the environment. They call us to a greater awareness of the effects of our actions on our brothers and sisters around the globe and on our natural world. The devastation of the environment and the depletion of natural resources are having the greatest effect on the poorer countries of the world. In her own time, our founder, Mother Clare, made the connection between the devastation of earth and the victims of famine. In her book, Illustrated History of Ireland, written in 1868, she says: “The ancient forests have been hewn down with little profi t to the spoiler and to the injury in many ways of the native….”
“The very name Sisters of Peace will, it is hoped, inspire the desire and a love for it.” These words of our founder continue to inspire us today. The world is bombarded by violence - from individual violence to the violence perpetrated by nations. It is a daunting task to be a person of peace in such a milieu. Yet, we have known people who have overcome adversity and violence through nonviolent means. As Mahatma Gandhi says: “Be the change you want to see in the world.” Be the peace you want to see in the world. As we commit ourselves to walk in the way of peace “we trust that Christ’s blessing promised to peacemakers will sustain us, knowing that God working in us will accomplish more than we can ask or imagine.” (Constitution 62)
This reflection first appeared in the Autumn 2010 issue of Living Peace