Vinformation, one of the websites by Famvin.org, dedicated to provide various formation resources for Vincentian Family invites to view and study couple of presentations created to help celebrate the anniversary of the founding of the Congregation of the Mission and guiding viewers from the origins of the Little Company until its ministries and activity in present days.

On this occasion we bring you a short presentation in English and Polish on the origins of the Company of the Daughters of Charity wishing them abundant blessings in their service to the marginalized, impoverished, needing. May the Charity of Christ encourages them in their works and lives.

Sr. Carol Keehan, D.C.

In 2011 Sr. Carol Keehan DC was named one of Time Magazine‘s 100 Most Influential People in the World for 2010. Sister Carol has worked in administrative and governance positions at hospitals sponsored by the Daughters of Charity for more than 35 years. She took Presidency of CHA in 2005. Pope Benedict XVI awarded her the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice (Cross for the Church and Pontiff).

Reffering to various opinions Sr. Carol brings greatest moral authority to the debate over the HHS mandates as she represents major stakeholders in the debate, the many Catholic hospitals nationwide that care for one sixth of all Americans: If anyone can speak authoritatively about what it means to carry on the healing ministry of the Lord Jesus in America today, it is she and the people she represents. Sr. Keehan not only advocated for the passage of the ACA, it is doubtful that the ACA would have passed without her support.

Highlights of the address:

• “Giving in Faith and Love” [theme of the Assembly]  goes to the heart of what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ and a bearer of the Vincentian charism. Jesus’ life was one of complete ‘giving in faith and love.’
• Focus on two crucial issues for women today
  • feminization of poverty : “in the USA, it is a fact that women are often underpaid, limited in their access to education and advancement, and face greater obstacles as single parents and sole providers for their families. Indeed, the feminization of poverty has occurred alongside another misery which includes both women and men; namely, that of the working poor.”
  • human trafficking: “…originally believed to occurring largely in developing nations, we now know how prevalent it is throughout the world. It has destroyed the lives of so many young women and girls… It is also a reality on our own shores, with estimates of nearly 18,000 people who are trafficked yearly to the USA. Among these people are the most vulnerable, including minors and the undocumented”
• “To be ready to serve as Jesus and our founders did, I suggest a three-fold way I call the “Vincentian Family Triple A”:
  •  accompaniment – “Rooted in Christ, Vincent and Louise are our models of Christian accompaniment. Their conversions occurred by allowing themselves to be led by the Spirit of Jesus into accompanying the poor.”
  •  action – “Vincent de Paul said that «the aid contributed should be organized in a way that beneficiaries are gradually freed from their dependence on others and become self-sufficient.»”
  • advocacy – “As advocates for the poor, you realize that behind every statistic, there is a person. Every underpaid or unemployed worker is a human being with the same economic needs as you or I”.
• “A contemporary way to understand and incorporate the “Vincentian Triple A” into your life and activity as Ladies of Charity is by a methodology called “Systemic Change”. It has become an important tool for reflection and action within the Vincentian Family.”

Read the full text (to download click on the “slideshare” button):

Monsignor Raymond East of the Archdiocese of Washington was another  speaker and his speech on “St. Vincent de Paul and the New Evangelization,” uniting Vincentian charism with Pope Benedict’s enthusiasm for 21st century methods of spreading the gospel very much concretized and developed the presentation by Superior General.

Sister Carol Keehan, DC, President of CHA was speaking another day, Saturday on  “St. Vincent de Paul and the Care of the Sick: What Would He Do Today?” Her presentation is available in another post here.