Four New Perpetual Promises made in Servants of the Plan of God

Medellin, 09/16/13 (Sodalit News – Colombia). On the feast day of the Holy Name of Mary four sister Servants were incorporated for life to the Servants of the Plan of God, accompanied by family, friends and many members of the Sodalit family.

In a warm atmosphere of family and prayer, over 600 people from amongst family, friends and other members of the Sodalit Family in Colombia came together to attend Mass celebrated by Bishop Flavio Calle Zapata, Archbishop of Ibagué, who received the Servants upon their arrival to Colombia more than eleven years. The newly professed sisters, all Colombian, are Natalia Lara, Sandra Ospina, Martha Tamayo and Sandra Zapatawho, who were accompanied by a large delegation of sister Servants of the Plan of God from different foundations, in addition to the General Coordinator, Sr. Carmen Cárdenas.

Archbisop Flavio Calle explained the meaning of the Feast of the Holy Name of Mary, the date chosen for the perpetual incorporation of the sisters, and then reminded those present of the supernatural meaning of vocation. He defined the perpetual profession of vows as “a sublime event, not of human intelligence but one inspired by Holy Spirit.” He added that “great and sublime things are not accomplished by earthly works, but by the light which comes from above. And in the ritual that we will now carry out, we shall listen as in a calling, as these sisters have been called and they have responded ‘here I am, here I am Lord, for you have called me.’ ”

Addressing the Servants of the Plan of God and especially the Servants making their promises, he outlined the life commitment to which the Lord invites those who consecrate themselves to this religious community, emphasizing the call to appear always “with friendly face, ready to serve the Church, to love Her as Christ loved, loves and will always love his Church.” Also he made reference to another aspect of the call, that found in the faces of those who they are called to serve, reminding the sisters that in the face of our most needy brother, we will “most especially encounter the suffering Christ, the poor Christ, the Christ who suffers, the Christ in solitude and we will even see the face of Christ in so many souls who have become cold and have turned away from God. We are called to rescue them, to clean this face of Christ, to purify it.” Finally he urged them to “be faithful to this call until the end of their lives.”

The Archbishop also reminded the newly professed that the commitment they would assume would be a way to live the life of Jesus, and that in order to do so, they should follow the example of Holy Mary, since from this moment, in a more explicit way, they would be “forever committed as one who has said her “Yes” to the Lord, like Mary when she pronounced her Fiat.”

Currently the Servants of the Plan of God carry out their apostolic work in countries of Central and South America, Europe, Africa and Asia. The first foundation outside of Peru was that of Colombia in 2002, where for more than eleven years they have been carrying out their apostolate in a region of Antioquia called Oriente, evangelizing especially those people who have been displaced and affected by violence. They are in charge of the St. Mary Center, a residence that welcomes university students who come from rural areas affected by the violence and who form part of a program that allows them to attain a college education. They also do pastoral work in the Catholic University of Oriente, take missions to the most remote villages and carry out various charity projects, pastoral work in healthcare centers and catechetical work in both Oriente and in the city of Medellin.

The Servants of the Plan of God is a new community of women dedicated to God, founded in the Archdiocese of Lima by Luis Fernando Figari in 1998. They live a full availability for the joyful proclamation of the Gospel and an intense life of charity, especially with those brothers and sisters who are suffering, the frail, the sick, the poor and needy who seek to discover the face of Christ.