From December 25th to 31st, 2025, our Provincial Assembly in Africa was held in Yaoundé, Cameroon. It was a time of reflection rich in experience and sharing.

On the evening of December 25th, Sister Marie Bontole, Provincial of Africa, opened the session by welcoming us and addressing us with a few opening words.

A time of recollection

December 26th was devoted to a recollection on the theme: “How can our relationship with Christ impact our fraternal life in community in the service of the mission?” We worked with the chapter orientation proposed in our Province: “Putting Christ at the center of our lives.” What stays with me from this retreat is the idea that community is a place of fulfillment where we come together to live the same charism and carry out our mission, which is that of the Congregation as well as that of the Church.

Fraternal life evokes love, and love requires daily nurturing. Times of prayer lived in community, meals, celebrations, relaxation, etc. are moments that strengthen our sense of belonging to the Congregation. It is in the little things of daily life that we can love our community, our Province and our Congregation.

Fraternal life

On December 27th and 28th, Sisters Patricia Guillet, Superior General, and Dora, General Councillor and representative for our Province, spoke to us about fraternal life. I retain two aspects of their contribution:

Each sister should take some personal time to reflect on the qualities of each of her sisters in the community and then share these qualities with the others.

– Identify one or more aspects of community life that could hinder fraternal life and find ways to remedy them. These two aspects have been very useful to us, because everyone has had a chance to express themselves, which helps us in our daily lives and strengthens our fraternal bonds in the community.

A rich sharing

From December 29th to the 31st, the Provincial Council and some of the mandated leaders inthe Province were happy to share their experiences with us and invited us to share our personal experiences related to one mandate or another. Let’s take the example of sharing about our mission or the commitments entrusted to us. I appreciated the procedure. The facilitator of the meeting projected the works we have and how they function. At Dorval Protection in Daoukro, Ivory Coast, we saw their projected budget, what they received from parents of students, what remains with other parents, the allowances that the principal or teachers receive at the end of the month, etc. At Mère de Miséricorde, Brobo, Ivory Coast, in addition to what I mentioned at Dorval, the Center receives donations from the Congregation or other parties.

We also discussed the missions entrusted to us. In these specific commitments, the emphasis was on the agreements made with the dioceses. Are the agreements with the dioceses clear? When these agreements were unclear, the question was put to the assembly to see together what course of action to take or what measures to implement. In the case of Laï, in Chad, where I am sent on mission, the agreement is clear. Through the sharing about regarding our involvements, I was touched by the interest that each of the sisters showed in our missions. This was evident in the questions asked and the contributions made by each one. I believe that all the sisters who participated in this assembly, like me, have an idea of the mission that each sister in the Province is carrying out. 

One last thing I would like to share concerns the “Charlemagne” accounting software that we have been using in our African Province for a year now. The presentation we were given allowed us to see its advantages and limitations.

The morning of December 31st was devoted to evaluation and the closing celebration of the assembly.

 

My impressions

My impressions of this assembly are very positive. Here are a few of them:

– I appreciated the recollection on December 26th, which allowed me to reflect on how to put Christ at the center of my life and the mission entrusted to me. 

– I found the exercise proposed by Sisters Patricia Guillet and Dora Ramos useful, which consisted of sharing the qualities of my sisters in the community with them and identifying aspects that could hinder fraternal life.

– I appreciated the process of sharing with regards to our commitments, which allowed me to understand how they function and to reflect on their sustainability. I was impressed by the interest that each of the sisters showed in our missions and the way this was manifested in the questions they asked and the contributions they made.

– Finally, I appreciated the presentation of the “Charlemagne” accounting software.

Each one left with a heart filled with joy and enthusiasm for her mission.                                                     

 Sister Nadège TETEE, fj,

 Laï, Chad