What’s
going on with Reconfiguration for the Dominicans across the US?
In October of 2005, the Dominican
Leadership Conference (DLC), the leadership of Dominican congregations
and provinces in the US, was asked to facilitate a day of conversation
on Reconfiguration and a recent survey of the DLC members asked
if a task force should be formed to address the questions of moving
reconfiguration forward. Below are the results of that
survey. Some purposes for this
task force were identified: 1) to explore and study
forms of reconfiguration adopted by other charism-relate congregations
(for example: Sisters of Mercy, Sisters of St. Joseph); 2) to identify
those Dominican Sisters congregations in the US who wish to explore
moving beyond collaboration to structural reconfiguration together;
and 3) to provide on-going communication regarding reconfiguration
possibilities for all Dominican Congregations.
What did the survey say? Of
25 congregations who responded to the survey, 22 supported the idea
of an Ad Hoc Reconfiguration Task Force and 11 were willing to recommend
members to serve on it.
Some cautions were noted.
Among them was a concern among nine congregations around 1) how
present conversations will fit into future directions of reconfiguration
2) not to delay conversations already in process, and 3) the limit
of resources of time, money and persons to do this additional work
The internationality of a few congregations made them less likely
to participate in such a reconfiguration.
In addition, other expectations included: attention
to on-going communication and a focus on the needs of membership;
that membership on the task force would include representatives
from congregations considering reconfiguration for the first time
and those already engaged in some form of reconfiguration.
Finally, the call for the formation of a Secretariat,
a national organizing body of the whole Dominican Family in the
US, was also noted as a factor in the process. At the present time,
this possibility is being fostered through Parable and may result
in a planned gathering of the Dominican Family in 2009.
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