SNJM Québec Justice and Peace Committee: Many Activities and a Missioning Ritual

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There will be no shortage of activities in this first half of 2025, judging by the presentation made by the partners of the Justice and Peace Committee at the January 15 meeting.

On environmental issues, Simon Lantz was very pleased with the enthusiasm of the Sisters who took part in the Christmas card activity sent to municipal, provincial and federal elected officials last December.

Environment

Even though the postal service is running slowly, volunteer Julie Tétreault has already received an answer from Francis Scarpaleggia, her federal MP. “Thank you for your kind words… I readily agree with the urgency of taking action to address climate change, and I’m working towards that goal as Chair of the House of Commons Environment Committee.”

Encouraged by this first direct action, Simon spoke of his participation in the week of ecological transition activities at his university, and of the possibility of organizing a meeting at Maison Jésus-Marie (MJM) with one of his professors who is a water specialist. He also confirmed his participation on the panel organized by the Laudato Si’ committee which will be open to the entire Congregation, next June. After consultation with those present, he intends to join an environmental group like Eau Secours to pursue the actions already initiated by the SNJMs on this subject.

Aboriginal women

Host Julie Tétreault and Sr. Lise Gagnon replaced Héloïse Vincent-Ozell, who was absent that evening, to talk about her exhibition project about aboriginal women. The exhibition will run from March 8 to 22 at MJM. It will allow residents to discover the various facets of this exhibition and prepare for their meeting with the volunteers on March 22. Several aspects will be discussed, including “our perception of aboriginal women”.

Human trafficking

Sofia-Elena Ranke-Farro, also a committee partner spoke of her many commitments, notably with CATHII, where she is preparing a presentation on positive and negative testimonials by temporary foreign workers. At the same time, she is continuing her training to take over the person accompanying the group of students to New York as part of the CATHII-University program at the UN. As a member of Talitha Kum’s “young ambassadors” group, Sofia-Elena is also helping to develop a project on the sexual exploitation of young people.

A few days before leaving for Mexico for her master’s project on human trafficking, Sofia-Elena explained the importance of understanding how criminalized people, in their journey, perceive and face up to their actions. After interviewing criminalized people involved in human trafficking, she hopes to draw up recommendations that could be used to set up a social reintegration program to prevent them from reoffending.       

After completing her dissertation, she plans to travel to the U.S.-Mexico border to volunteer with an organization there. This will be another way for her to understand the experiences of migrants turned away at the U.S. border.

Mission sending

Within this context, the members of the committee reserved a wonderful surprise for Sofia-Elena by organizing a missionary ritual  send-off. Following Joyce Rouse’s song “Standing on the Shoulders” (see the YT video), everyone who attended approached Sofia-Elena and expressed a wish, either on their own behalf or on behalf of an SNJM missionary Sister who was absent from the meeting.  

These messages included: “Leaving is not about eating up kilometers, crossing seas or reaching supersonic speeds. Above all, it is about opening up to others, discovering them, going out to meet them.”

This was Sofia-Elena’s first experience of this kind and thus was very touched by the attention. “It is a wonderful moment. It really warms my heart to hear all these kind words and wishes,” she said. 

Deeply moved, she continued, “Your example is a great inspiration to me. The fact that you opened your doors to me and supported my project and my interest in social justice has led me to want to get more and more involved with today’s issues.”

At the Sofia-Elena mission, some of the SNJM missionary sisters and a SNJM Volunteer were brought together. From left to right, behind, Sr. Lisette Boulé, Sr. Jacqueline Aubry, madame Julie Tétreault, Sr. Hélène Harvey, and in front, surrounding Sofia-Elena, sisters Monique Fortier and Élisabeth Giroux.

Inspiring moments

The meeting continued with an update on UNANIMA International, the JPIC SNJM committee, the Laudato Si’ SNJM committee and the upcoming Development and Peace Lenten campaign.

In the sharing at the end of the meeting, everyone expressed their joy and enthusiasm, particularly for the projects put forward. Julie Tétreault emphasized “the beauty and importance of rituals. It means a lot to me to see that the tradition continues and that we’re still organizing wonderful celebrations.”

For her part, Sr. Denise Riel, provincial animator, felt the solidarity of all the members towards Simon and Sofia-Elena. ” I also feel friendship…You are a great group with great projects. We’re proud of what you arere doing.” 

It was undoubtedly an inspiring meeting for all the members of the SNJM Québec Justice and Peace Committee.

Note: For over a year now, three young academics have joined the ranks of the SNJM Québec Justice and Peace Committee, taking responsibility for one of the three themes of the SNJM’s collective position papers. It’s an original initiative that is arousing a great deal of interest within the Congregation.