Tertiary Sisters Celebtrate Feast of St. Francis in Shisong, Cameroon

The Tertiary Sisters of St. Francis (TSSF) Cameroon Province celebrated their Provincial Feast in a spirit of deep fraternal communion and thanksgiving at the Provincial House, Shisong.

The celebration began with a series of planning and evaluation meetings between the Provincial Leadership Team (PLT), Heads of Institutions and Local Superiors. Together, they evaluated community life, life in mission and charted plans for the year ahead.

Before the start of the Holy Mass, all Sisters of the Province who were present gathered in front of the Provincial Chapel around the Provincial Tree for a symbolic handing-over ceremony. Community Leaders each received a symbolic Provincial Tree potrait  for their  communities.

Handing over the trees, the Provincial Superior, Sr. Olivia Waika, encouraged her sisters to foster peaceful and loving relationships and to work tirelessly for the common good of the Province and the entire Congregation. The tree, she noted, symbolizes growth, rootedness, fraternity and ecological responsibility – values at the heart of Franciscan life.

The solemn Eucharistic celebration was presided over by Fr. Cornelius Bamenjo, OFMCap, Chaplain of St. Joseph Convent, Shisong.

In his homily, Fr. Cornelius called on all to celebrate this centenary jubilee with joy and devotion, reminding the sisters that none of us will live long enough to celebrate the 9th Centenary of the Transitus of St. Francis.  “Everyone is invited to the banquet of the Lord,” he said.

Alluding to the timeless invitation of St. Francis, he said: “Brothers, let us begin again, for until now we have done little or nothing.”

He added that those who ascend the mountain of the Lord never return empty-handed, for as St. Paul says, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Phil 4:13). We can do great things because God’s grace and wisdom is always with us.

The offertory procession by the sisters, novices and Capuchin postulants, was colourful and expressive, with various gifts in kind brought forward as signs of gratitude and sharing.

A deeply moving moment of the celebration was the bestowing of Apostolic Blessings on five of our sisters who celebrated their Jubilee of Consecrated Life last summer:

The entire Province rendered thanks to God for their faithful witness, perseverance and selfless service to the Church and Congregation.

After the Mass, all attendees processed in singing and dancing to the Convent reception where the Jubilee Statue of St. Francis is erected, for symbolic group photographs.

This was immediately followed by a festive fraternal meal. The sisters and friars shared in joy, music and fraternity, and left satisfied and happy, renewed in their commitment to live and proclaim the Franciscan charism.

May through the intercession of St. Francis, the Lord grant us the grace to begin again.