Sr. Bridgetammah SAVERIMUTHU
| "I know of a boat named Canada that brought our first two sisters, in 1949, from the Port of Marseilles in France, to the port of Douala in Cameroon to extend the family of God " |
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In the 1987
November-December issue of Le Flamboyant, the newsletter of the Cameroon-Chad
Delegation, Sr. Odette Filion and Sr. Carmen Valbuena wrote, “Nazareth is born in Cameroon”.
“In 1949, the first
sisters of the Holy Family arrived at Mokolo in the extreme North of Cameroon.”
That means almost 40 years of presence, sharing, communion, intense life with
our Cameroonian brothers and sisters.
The Christian
communities grew and became strong. The Chuch in Cameroon matured, local
vocations began.
Yes, for a decade
now, young girls are asking “to follow the sisters’ way“. We welcome them into
our communities for longer or shorter periods. But, we do not have the
structures to continue their formation.
At the end of
February 1987, Sr. Christiane Meunier (General Councillor) visited us.
There was a period
of intense reflection, prayer, enlightenment and discernment in our Delegation.
On her departure a piece of land had been bought at Mokolo; the decision to
build a house for the reception of young girls was taken.
“NAZARETH” had been
born. The girls began to take certain steps; we began to dialogue with their
parents and those in charge of the Christian communities. This first experience
began on 16 November 1987 at Mokolo-Mbuoa, with four young girls – Solange,
Hellé, Gaipambi (from Djingilya) and Asta Doukoye (from Mokolo-Tada). The
Delegation was full of hope, “the future daughters”! The Reign of God was
growing and developing in the Church of Cameroon.
In the beginning
Nazareth was a house of formation for young people. In 1999 the postulants
lived there. In 2001, the noviciate of the Holy Family Sisters was established
in the house.
In 2003, the first Cameroonian
sister, Solange Graka, made her perpetual vows.
Present activities of
our sisters:
“If the rhythm of the drums changes,
the dance steps also change.” (Benin proverb)
Now, lay people have replaced the
sisters in the school and the health centre where they worked. We go with the
signs of the times. We give priority to the marginalised – the deaf and dumb,
the disabled, the blind, prisoners, the elderly, the sick, so that they may be
respected in their dignity as children of God.
We also work with Catholic Action
Movements for children, Catholic women, couples in formation at the Emmaus
Centre in Mokolo, the kindergarten, the educational complex at Yaounde, a girls’
hostel, primary and post-primary school at Gounou-Gaya, care of the sick at
Tagal in Chad and community granaries.
For the time being, our Nazareth
house is a great help when we have large gatherings such as the Delegation
Assembly and sessions for our sisters and associates. Young people in
formation, after a stay in our communities, go to Congo for their noviciate.
For the future, we would like this house to become a Pierre Bienvenu
Noailles Spiritual Centre where all could refresh and nourish their faith with
no distinction of social class and also provide an integral human formation for
those interested.
We
are also reflecting on providing professional formation: sewing, cutting,
artistic and decorative courses such as embroidery, knitting, crochet and cooking.
In addition:
Psychology: self knowledge by working through good experiences,
Spiritual: the pilgrimage of the Holy Family, meditation, yoga,
zen, retreats with the cosmos,
Intellectual: debates on what destroys us... we remain open to the
signs of the times and the calls of the Holy Spirit.
We
hope that as we work and fertilise the soil of our Delegation the roots of the
Holy Family tree will enter deeply into this land and that this young tree will
bear fruit in the growth of the Family of God.
Sr. Carolina MARTÍNEZ
Cameroon-Chad
