UISG 2019 plenary

A ceiling mosaic of Mary and Jesus in a chapel in the Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere in Rome (GSR photo / Joyce Meyer)

Sown seeds surprise at International Union of Superiors General plenary

Jun 10, 2019

We are called to be sowers of seeds and to remember the power of small, sown seeds. Several weeks after the UISG assembly in Rome, I carry with me strong images from our gathering, of events that exemplify small actions that begin to change landscapes of impossible situations.

International Union of Superiors General elects Polish educator as new president

by Joshua J. McElwee

May 14, 2019

The umbrella group representing approximately 450,000 Catholic women religious around the world has elected Polish Sr. Jolanda Kafka, the general superior of the Claretian Missionary Sisters, as its new president. Kafka, who has led her congregation since 2017, takes over UISG leadership from Maltese Sr. Carmen Sammut.

Pope Francis meets with some 850 superiors general May 10 at the Vatican, who were in Rome for the plenary assembly of the International Union of Superiors General. (CNS photo / Vatican Media via Reuters)

Sisters at International Union of Superiors General plenary appreciate pope's dialogue

by Gail DeGeorge

May 13, 2019

An initially scheduled audience with Pope Francis turned into a dialogue between him and congregational leaders at the closing session of the International Union of Superiors General triennial assembly May 10 — and the hundreds attending couldn't have been more delighted.

Sr. Carmen Sammut, superior general of the Missionary Sisters of Our Lady of Africa and the outgoing president of the International Union of Superiors General, gives her address alongside Pope Francis during a meeting of the organization at the Vatican May 10, at the Vatican. (CNS/Vatican Media via Reuters)

Francis: Decision on women deacons cannot be made 'without historical foundation'

by Joshua J. McElwee

May 10, 2019

Vatican City: "In the case of the diaconate, we have to see what was there at the beginning of revelation," Pope Francis said. "If there was something, let it grow, let it live. If there was not something … it doesn't work."

Feature Series ›

Sown seeds surprise at International Union of Superiors General plenary

International Union of Superiors General elects Polish educator as new president

Sisters at International Union of Superiors General plenary appreciate pope's dialogue

Francis: Decision on women deacons cannot be made 'without historical foundation'

Women religious learn practical steps for engaging in interreligious dialogue

Sr. Adriana Milmanda urges women religious to foster interculturality

UISG leaders call for broader environmental action, clear stance on church abuse at triennial meeting

Whether Francis will address women deacons remains unknown, UISG president says

International Union of Superiors General advocates for women, sees influence grow