Transitioning Tomorrow For

Our Challenge: How do we sustain our mission and identity as we face the reality of our ageing and the declining number of available ministry positions ?

I can be upgraded- Can you??? Smart aleck computer !

The average person today will have eleven jobs in his/her lifetime Most people change careers three to four times in their lifetime

Transitioning for IHM’s Look at your gifts and skills – Rekindle your passion and dreams How do the choices I make today/we make today affect persons who are in need in our time? What choices must we make as we live out our commitment to God and God’s people?

I can be upgraded- Can you??? Smar t aleck!

Leadership Training

Today’s Realities Upheaval in our institutions Diverse needs of the vulnerable Decrease in religious vocations and ageing of current members Fewer “mentors ” Fewer administrative opportunities Members living/ministering apart from other members

Leadership Training for Our World Mercy Leadership Development Program Inter-Congregational Collaborative Initiative for Leadership Development Preliminary IHM Leadership Sessions

Oh, my goodness! I can’t believe Sr. Esther has more friends than I. She must have already “upgraded” and signed up for Leadership Training!

Councilors & Membership Sisters Sr Amy Zychal135 Sr Mary Jo Gallagher 33 Sr Susan Hadzima131 Sr Kathryn Clauss Sisters Sr Ellen Maroney 175 Sr Chris Koellhoffer 75 Sr Rosemary Goulet188

Age Distribution & Location AgeTotalOLP IHM Ctr.On Mission

TOTALS Age Distribution & Location

Age Distribution

On Mission

Membership & Location

Our Work, the Work of the Spirit

Ronald Rolheiser The lack of time to cultivate an interior life The struggle for interiority and prayer inside a culture that constitutes a virtual conspiracy against depth and serenity

Parker Palmer To become a school of the Spirit, mind and soul, we must create a micro-climate of quietude.

Mary Oliver Let me keep my mind on what matters, which is my work, which is mostly standing still and learning to be astonished.

12,144

Number of miles our leadership team traveled for Moving Forward 2,606 by car 9,538 by air

300+

Number of Sisters present

13

Number of sessions of Chapter 2010: Moving Forward

6

Number of states in which sessions were held: Delaware Florida Maryland New York North Carolina Pennsylvania

2

Number of countries in which sessions were held: United States Peru

Beyond calculation

Number of snacks consumed by the leadership team on the road

Priceless

The experience of gathering, praying, and sharing life together

What we discovered along the way Our living into a new reality in our time is a clear continuation of our IHM history

This new reality involves a corporate grieving of what we have let go and a corporate gratitude for what God is revealing that we should hold onto, the essence of our lives together

We are willing, patient, and open to live with uncertainty – embracing the “IT”, the emerging reality

We are aware that the call to deeper contemplation and the desire for it is bubbling up in Congregations all over our world

Evenings of Prayer September: Living the Questions October: An Empty Place at the Table November: Founders’ Day December: Finding Time, Advent Evening January: Vocation, An Encounter with Jesus

February: Prayer for Haiti March: Communal Celebration of Reconciliation April: Contemplating the Heartbeat of Creation May: Being a Blessing

E-courses Welcoming Prayer: Consent on the Go (Contemplative Outreach) Practicing Spirituality in Winter Practicing Spirituality with Brother David Steindl-Rast Contemplation with Richard Rohr (Center for Action and Contemplation)

Creating a Monastery of the Heart (Joan Chittister) Practicing Spirituality with Henri Nouwen Practicing Spirituality in Summer Spiritual Practices for Hot Weather! E-courses

Moving Forward Together Advent and Lenten Reflection Guides, Journey Contemplation: the Bridge to Justice OSP IHM Retreat – July 2011

Moving Forward Together The prayer and witness of each Sister and Associate for the life of the world Conversation Circles Mission Groups – all that we heard in our opening prayer

Moving Forward: to come “Joining God’s Prayer in Me” An experience of contemplative praying with Rose Mary Dougherty, SSND October 15, 2011

Moving Forward: to come “Praying with the Mystics” Nancy Hawkins, IHM March 24, 2012

To hold the tensions of the world, the suffering of the world, in ways that enhance spiritual creativity and build the beloved community

Standing still and learning to be astonished