 Today, as I sit before
my computer in a different century, 1982 seems very distant. I do have a
very distinct memory of sitting in a classroom on a summer day at St.
Mary-of-the-Woods College and raising my hand, along with Barbara Doherty
SP, Kathleen Popko, SP and Anita Green, CDP, to accept an invitation to
join the first steering committee of what later became the Women of
Providence in Collaboration. From then on WPC unfolded as a series of
phone calls or meetings at convents near airports in Chicago, Pittsburgh
or New England to plan and execute symposia, colloquia and books. I
remember that Barbara usually chaired and also kept the entire financial
account for WPC in a small checkbook tucked away in a voluminous purse.
Certain events stand out more than others. The meeting between budding sister-authors-to-be and theologian Langdon Gilkey, author of Reaping the Whirlind was one of those moments. Another "aha" experience occurred when Barbara was invited to speak about our work at a CTSA meeting in St. Louis in the late 80's, where Providence Theology was the theme. I remember having lunch later with Charles Curran and two other theologians who were awestruck by Barbara's talk and what we were attempting to do. We had come of age in a broader theological context. As we began the planning for On Keeping Providence, two new thematics seemed to be unfolding: the relationship between Providence and process theology and the relationship of Providence to the multicultural context. Almost as a final exclamation mark in her article, Barbara Doherty began to explore Providence spirituality and the earth. In the nineties, a new steering committee was appointed and we had, for the first time in Sister Mary Catherine Hunt, CDP an Executive Director. And what a glorious period the nineties turned out to be, with the birth of a newsletter, Collaboration, and a host of retreats, symposia, formation gatherings, etc. During this period of time, however, my attention was primarily on a return to ministry. Thus, I was somewhat distanced from internal events in the evolution of the WPC. Now, as I return to the Board of WPC, under new leadership with Ann Margaret O'Hara, SP as Chair and Barbara McMullen, CDP as Executive Director, I feel almost like Simeon in the "Nunc Dimittis", in realizing that those seeds that were planted often in a vortex or whirlwind, have fallen on fertile ground. That last exclamation point in Barbara's article has now blossomed into a whole new direction, broader and deeper, in terms of our understandings, not just of Providence spirituality and the earth, but our extension of Providence into what Brian Swimme refers to as cosmic generosity as we view the universe as primary revelation of Divine Providence, the splendor from which we come. As we proceed together into the 21st Century, I have great hope, that all bearing the name Providence, sisters, associates and friends, will continue to bring great hope with them on the journey. Joan Coultas, CDP |
Women of Providence in Collaboration
Ann Margaret O'Hara, SP, Executive Director
1 Sisters of Providence, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, IN 47876
Phone: 812-535-2502 || Fax: 812-535-1011 || Email:
www.wpcweb.org