Our OLA Justice coordinators from across the Congregation are gathered in Cotonou, Benin, for an international formation session on Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC)
These Sisters do this work on their own most of the year, in their own countries, seeing the same things: trafficking, displacement, women and girls whose safety can’t be assumed. This time together is an opportunity to bring their different perspectives into a space where everyone understands the realities of the world we live in. It is also about looking at how the OLA charism is lived through justice, peace and care for creation, and how JPIC can respond practically to the issues facing communities today.
Over the past week, the coordinators have been working with social analysis and the pastoral cycle, looking beneath immediate problems to the deeper causes of injustice and applying this to concrete situations. Their programme has also taken them into integral ecology, including a visit to Songhai Farm, looking at how a community actually manages land and waste.
Some of what they will do is listening. Listening to testimonies from people working directly with refugees, trafficked women, children living on the street. They will explore the Church’s social teaching and share their OLA experiences, reflect on the spirituality of creation, the challenges of climate change, and look at practical ways of living Laudato Si’.
Their time will turn increasingly towards action: conflict management and peacebuilding, the rights of girls and women, advocacy and networking, including the Africa Europe Faith and Justice Network (AEFJN), and practical tools for implementing JPIC within OLA communities. The coordinators will also work on action planning, monitoring and evaluation, considering how the work of JPIC can be strengthened across the Congregation.
Soon they will return to the places where they are missioned, to Togo, Tanzania, Argentina, Ireland and the rest of the OLA entities across the world. The work waiting for them there remains challenging, but they will return with new skills, deeper understanding, and strength found in prayer, reflection and shared community. We wish them well as they continue this work of justice and hold them always in our prayers.
