By Molly Fernandes
Sancole: The Goa-based Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth has elected Sister Berna Rodrigues as their ninth superior general.
The election took place September 8, the last day of the congregation’s 12th ordinary general congregation held at St. Joseph Vaz Spiritual Centre, Old Goa.
First time in the history of the 86-year-old congregation the chapter was held away from its headquarters in Sancoale because of the pandemic.
The congregation has also elected Sisters Maria Angela, Monica Coelho, Charlotte Barbosa, Emilia D’Souza, and Mariquinha Rodrigues as the members of the governing body.
The chapter was based on the theme, “Arise and Shine.” The new superior general urged her sisters to love their vocation, pray intensely, work passionately and serve selflessly.
The chapter thanked the outgoing superior general Sister Alvita Gurjao and her team.
This is the first indigenous congregation for women in Goa. It was founded by Father Faustino De Souza, a diocesan priest, who in 1933 sent four candidates to Mangalore for formation under the Bethany Sisters.
The congregation began on June 16, 1935, when the four novices made their first profession in the Oratory Room of St. Joseph Vaz, at Sancoale, Goa.
The congregation now serves Maharashtra, Gujarat, Haryana, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Andaman and Nicobar Island, Dadar Nagar Haveli, and Uttar Pradesh.
(Sister Molly Fernandes is a member of the congregation.)