On April 21, 1934, the first seven missionaries from the Netherlands arrived in Indonesia to begin the Mission of the Sisters of Divine Providence: ‘The work for the glory of God and for the good of mankind’.
On April 21, 2021, we Sisters of the Indonesian Province were very happy and grateful; we have not only recalled the efforts of the first missionaries, but also received on this day the newly updated Constitutions. Because of the pandemic, this celebration took place in a video conference with a prayer so that Sr. Lydia Liong and Sr. Leoni Windarti in Germany were also able to participate.
At her introduction, Sr. Lydia said that these Constitutions are a guide to our daily lives. After a period of silence, Sr. Lydia invited the community coordinators to present the constitutions to each individual sister of the community with the following words: "Sister N.N. may the Constitution and the Directory encourage you to realize our Charism in your life so as to bear witness to the love of God."
The sisters felt touched, grateful, happy and amazed at the love of God that led the whole process to the final editing of these updated Constitutions. Special thanks go to the Members of the ‘Commission for the Updating of the Constitutions and the Directory'. Through their struggle and tears, these life guidelines could be "born" that will guide our lives as Sisters of Divine Providence.
Now it is up to us. We should strive to live and engage in accordance with the Constitutions so that we can be more and more true witnesses of Christ's presence in the world.
(Sisters of Divine Providence, Indonesian Province “Mary Star of the Sea”
Semarang, April 27, 2021)