In the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,

Peace be with you!

Dear sisters,

I am pleased to meet you at the end of your provincial Chapter: in this week of prayer, discernment and joint planning, you have been able to renew your adhesion to the charism of your foundress, the venerable Sister Maria Teresa Spinelli.

While the process of her canonization continues, your journey of holiness proceeds too! As Augustinian Sisters, Servants of Jesus and Mary, I encourage you to let yourselves be guided anew by the name you bear. Indeed, the service you carry out every day is realized first and foremost in the consecration of life to the Lord, and is strengthened in sincere devotion to his and our Mother.

By imitating Sister Maria Teresa, you will therefore be patient in tribulations, because it is precisely in our trials that the Lord confirms his faithfulness; you will be courageous in the mission, so that the educational work to which you dedicate yourselves may form wise minds and hearts capable of listening and of passion for humanity; you will be unwavering in the following of Christ, who is “the way, the truth and the life” (Jn 14:6), and therefore the criterion for all our cultural initiatives. We know that a culture without truth becomes an instrument of the powerful: instead of freeing consciences, it confuses and distracts them according to the interests of the market, fashion or worldly success.

In this regard, I advise you to pick up again a work by the holy Doctor, our father Augustine, De Magistro, to contemplate it in the near future, as you gather the fruits of your Chapter. In this work, Augustine affirms that external teaching must always lead to the encounter with the inner Master, who is Jesus (cf. I, 11). In his name, I wish all the best to your communities, and I wholeheartedly impart the apostolic blessing to you. Thank you!

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Daily Bulletin of the Holy See Press Office, 5 July 2025