of Hna. Rose Celine
The testimony of the nun who presented the meeting with Pope Francis in Manama: “We work in prison ministry, we visit hospitals, the sick and families in need. And in a world that is changing by leaps and bounds around us, we educate the young people from migrant families to follow Jesus.”
Manama () – Along with his contribution to the dialogue between religions, the trip that Pope Francis made these days to Bahrain was a valuable opportunity to discover the vitality of the Catholic communities that bring together migrants in the countries of the Persian Gulf. . We propose below the testimony that he gave on Sunday before the pontiff in Manama, during the meeting with priests, religious and pastoral agents, an Indian nun, Sr. Rose Celine. She recounts the experience in Bahrain of the Sisters of the Apostolic Carmel, an active congregation founded in India in 1870 that unites the Carmelite charism with the mission of teaching. The Sisters of Apostolic Carmel have been working since 1969 with Catholic immigrants in Kuwait. And since 2003 they have also carried out their ministry in Bahrain with the College of the Sacred Heart and collaboration in the pastoral activities of the Apostolic Vicariate of Northern Arabia.
I am Sister Rose Celine, I would like to offer a summary of our life and our mission. The Sisters of Apostolic Carmel, the first Carmelites to be an active missionary Congregation, were pioneers in girls’ education and faith formation. We began our missionary journey in the Kingdom of Bahrain on January 3, 2003, after our foundation in Kuwait. Bahrain, known as the “land of smiles”, gave us a warm welcome.
The compassionate and merciful love of the Father encourages us to commit ourselves to the service of our people. We are witnesses to the abundance of God’s mercy that warms the heart and rekindles hope in the lives of many people. We work in prison ministry. In particular, we visit the inmates to share the Word of God, advising them and praying with them.
Our presence here is a special sign that God meets us wherever we are and leads us along new and unprecedented paths towards our goal, lived under the motto “Only God is enough”. The sisters participate in different groups of the Church, one of which is the Legion of Mary. The weekly meetings offer us a great opportunity to grow in our spirituality through prayer and communion. Together with the legionaries, we visit hospitals, the sick and families in need.
We see that the world around us is changing by leaps and bounds. This rapid change is posing new challenges and many things that were familiar to us are entering more ambiguous terrain. However, we try to respond creatively to the needs of this time, being carriers of change, hope and transformation both inside and outside our community.
To help young people today we work in the ministry of catechesis, helping students in their formation in faith, so that they can respond to the rapid changes that surround them and face the new challenges that arise. We offer them opportunities by organizing competitions, talent shows and many other activities to improve their leadership, communication and creative thinking skills. Each year we prepare students and adults to receive the sacraments of the Eucharist and Confirmation.
Our Foundress, Venerable Mother Veronica, left us a legacy that stems from her experience of God as her All. Following in her footsteps, the Sisters promote in the members of the Flowers of Carmel (an association of lay people formed for our students) a deeper faith and the following of Jesus. We teach and share the charism of the Apostolic Carmel through various activities and moments of encounter, educating young people to live and transform the world with human values, of truth, justice, love, peace and excellence.
Along with all these activities with the different national communities, we participate in the Parish Council meetings and in all the Church events. During the pandemic we help priests to continue celebrating the Eucharist in different languages.
Our Mother, Queen and beauty of Carmel, is our model and encourages us to put ourselves at the service of the Church and her people. As much as possible, we radiate the joy of the gospel within and around us.
(with the collaboration of Nirmala Carvalho)
Photo: VaticanNews
