The long awaited Triennial Evaluation of the Provincial Conference of India (PCI)comprised of seven FMA provinces commencedin earnest with a well prepared morning prayer and the solemn Eucharistic celebration presided by Most Rev. Thomas D’Souza, the Archbishop of Calcutta. In his homily he highlighted the tenderness and compassion so much desired by St. John Bosco our father and founder, drawing his inspiration from the life of St. Francis de Saleswhom he gave us as our patron and whose feast we celebrate today.

The PCI is blessed with the honourable presence of Rev. Mother Yvonne Reungoat and four members from the General Council: Sr. AlaideDeretti, Sr. Runita Borja, Sr. Lucy Rose Ozhukayil and Sr. Phyllis Neves.  There are 35 participants along with the lay representatives.

The inaugural welcome by the host province situated at the heart of Kolkata, the City of Joy was indeed breathtaking and mesmerising. We travelled through the land of ancient monuments known for its traditional charm and heritage.As the participants were escorted to the auditoriumaround 700 students of Auxilium school depicted the culture of West Bengal through various art forms that attracted the attention of alland made us wonder at the richness of this land and her people. The representation of leaders and luminaries like Swami Vivekanadha, Rabindranath Tagore and Mother Teresa, the Saint of the Gutters stirred our hearts. After the ceremonial welcome our beloved Mother General enthralled the audience with her affectionate message. She had great appreciation for the artists and staff for such a wonderful performance. She said that along with her and the members of the General Council the whole FMA World is witnessing and participating in the PCI through the web. Mother General spoke to the participants about the beauty of our vocation as believers. She said that we need to ‘let ourselves be found by the Lord Jesus’. Only an encounter with Jesus can help us encounter others. This was followed by group discussions which helped the participants to deepen their reflection on her talk.

The other highlight of the day was the presentation of the reports. Unlike other years this year the PCI decided to put together the reports of all the provinces and present it avoiding repetitions and bringing in more clarity and focus.  The presentation of choice I and Choice II were followed by lively discussions.

The day came to an end with the evening prayer, dinner and a brief recreation which bonded us together as FMA India.

Reported by  Sr. Margaret Mathai