At home with the Word of God

“If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love…”  (John 15,10a)

If I am a sister of Notre Dame de Sion today, it’s because the day I met a community of Sion sisters for the first time, I felt “at home” with the Word of God and with the way the sisters shared and lived the Word of God.

 I have been deeply touched by hearing testimonies of faith from our more senior sisters

I come from Romania, from a family without any evident practice of our faith, simply because during communism it was not possible. I don’t remember reading, praying or having any contact with the Bible at home. But I remember very clearly that during my first experience in a Sion community, the place of the Word of God in the life and prayer of the community had a very strong influence on me and on my subsequent decision to join the sisters of Notre Dame de Sion.

As a Romanian sister, I have grown in the appreciation of the Bible and been deeply touched by hearing testimonies of faith from our more senior sisters. I recall, in particular, the experience of a group of sisters who were held for years in prison: in spite of the difficulties they faced, they managed to find a Bible, to take risks to keep it and to live their faith. (Read the story.)

My years in contemplative life were a time of deepening the Word of the Lord

After my time in the novitiate in Romania, I took my first vows and decided to join the contemplative branch of the Congregation. The presence of contemplative sisters in our Congregation is very important because “in complementarity with the sisters in apostolic life, they are at the service of the same mission” (NDS Constitution). My years in contemplative life were a time of deepening the Word of the Lord through liturgy, community prayer and personal time with the Word of God in prayer and reading.

After about 14 years in different contemplative communities, I felt the call to join the apostolic sisters, who combine a life of prayer with one of active ministry. It was my desire to be at the service of the same mission, but in a different way. The years I have spent in apostolic life so far have also been a time for me to continue to deepen the Word of God through community and personal prayer and study, and also through my ministry supporting people with learning disabilities.

 

The Bible has really come alive for me, now that I’ve seen the places where events of biblical history took place

An essential part of our charism as sisters of Sion is to be attentive to the way the Bible is interpreted by Jewish people in their life and tradition. I have had the opportunity to do this by spending some time in one of our communities in Jerusalem.

For me, it’s been a blessing to live in Jerusalem for a few years; a real blessing to deepen the Word of God in the land of the Bible. The Bible has really come alive for me, now that I’ve seen the places where events of biblical history took place. I have also gained much more of a sense of the richness of the Bible through discovery of the Jewish tradition and the way in which Jewish people interpret and live God’s Word today.

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Ps 119,105)