“An extended provincial council meeting took place from January 12th to 15th with the participation of the OCDS Delegate General and the OCDS Provincial Delegate of the France-Sud province, fr. Jean Sebastien. The chosen location was the convent of the Poor Clares in Nîmes.
“The meeting enabled a clearer awareness of the state of the Province which was presented by the President, Mrs. Claude Garabiol, as well as the communities, whose councils provided information to the attending regional councillors and the provincial Council.
“The OCDS Province of France-Sud covers a wide region of the French territory and includes three communities in Switzerland (two French-speaking and one German-speaking) and the island of Guadeloupe in the French Antilles.
“Each region has a Councillor in charge of organizing formation meetings, retreats, and other events per the requirements of the communities. The Councillor also visits the different communities in his or her region to assist and accompany them.
“During these days, the confreres have been able to fraternally share thoughts about their lay vocation in the Order and how to contribute to spreading the charism despite the few vocations, small size of the communities, and high median age. The Father Provincial, Fr. Henri, was also present in the meeting on the 13th, helping to solve some questions that arose regarding the main theme of the meeting: discerning the vocation to the OCDS.”
Fr. Alzinir Francisco Debastiani OCD
