“We owe a debt of gratitude to the Josephite Visioning Team”  -  words which found a resounding echo in the gathering of Federation Leadership Teams meeting in Goulburn NSW in April this year.

In her Report to the 2009 Federation Meeting the President, Sr Jillian Dance of Hobart commented that much of the Federation activity since the 2008 meeting had been in partnership with the Central Josephites - a fact she described as “a cause of great joy that the bonds between us continue to grow and strengthen”.

Sr Jill pointed to the Josephite Visioning Team whose hard work and commitment to the shared Josephite heritage enabled so much of this to come to fruition, including the combined Be a Josephite website and facilitated the eventual formation of the Conference of Josephite Leaders.

The defining moment came in August 2008.

Sr Jill describes this step.
“Following the Central Josephite change of leadership, both at Congregational and Provincial level, which came into effect in 2008, the Josephite Visioning Team organised a meeting of Josephite Congregational and Provincial Leaders and Teams at Baulkham Hills NSW on 3^rd – 4^th August, 2008.    The meeting was facilitated by Dr Carlos Raimundo and Brother Graham Neist fms.   It was an historic and memorable weekend during which, with the aid of historians Marie Foale rsj and Marie Crowley and with  Susan Pollard rsj as reflector, we came to a deeper understanding and appreciation of our shared history, of the ‘separation’ and the resulting pain suffered by our early Sisters.    An exciting outcome of the meeting was the establishment of the Conference of Josephite Leaders, thus making it possible for decisions to be made together for Josephite mission.  

The inaugural meeting of the Conference was held at Mary MacKillop Place North Sydney on Tuesday 21st October.   The gathered Leaders articulated the Vision of the Conference as:
Strengthening the bonds for Mission
Acting as one for today’s Church and World

All groups and projects involving sisters from both Central and Federation Congregations will now operate under the auspices of the Conference of Josephite Leaders.”

Formed at a combined meeting of Australian and New Zealand Josephites in Hobart in April 2007, with its work completed in such a very short time, the Josephite Visioning Team goes down in Josephite History for a very significant contribution to unity.

Ritual Bridge Crossing during the Hobart Gathering
(where the Josephite Visioning Team was formed in April 2007)