Last night a gathering of  300 Catholic Sisters under 65 from 25 countries and 6 continents prayed as one during the opening ritual of Hope 2025. This 4-day event, held at Fraterna Domus retreat center outside Rome, is an opportunity during this Jubilee year for the next generations of religious life to explore the current and emerging realities of and concretely experience the gift of the global sisterhood. About  two-thirds of us are here in person, with the rest participating online.

We began singing with our special musical guests, Gen Verde.

This is our dream, across the oceans and deserts, we’ll join our hearts to walk together.

A world of Hope, is our tomorrow if only we learn to live for one another.

And we will see we are one.

Looking around the room, sitting at my table with sisters from Australia, Dominican Republic, Korea, New Zealand, Vietnam and the US, I felt that the dream is becoming reality in our midst.

In the opening ritual sisters from the continents brought our foremothers and founders to the circle. We prayed with all of our charisms, different aspects of the charism of religious life to witness to the Gospel in our wounded and weary world. I was literally brought to tears, tears of Hope and Joy and Possibility.

And to think we have four more full days to bask in this global sisterhood.

God is good. All the time God is good. Sometimes we are just more aware of that reality and this graced experience I know is one of those times.