On October 5, 2024, Sister Annette Laliberte, Provincial Superior of the United States Province, welcomed a group of approximately one hundred five Sisters of the Presentation of Mary, Marie Rivier Associates, and Consecrated Laity, to the Installation of the Province’s new leadership team. Members of this new leadership team are Sister Holly Gauthier, Assistant Provincial; Sister Therese Larochelle, Councilor; Sister Suzanne Rivard, Councilor; and Sister Lorraine Aucoin, Councilor.
The ceremony of installation opened with a prayer service entitled “From the Heart of the Eucharist, We Move Forward in Hope.” The assembly prayed Psalms 119 and 61 together, and then the Word of God, from Corinthians 12:12-27 was proclaimed. A reading from Saint Marie Rivier’s Spiritual Testament (60) followed. The Word of God was then presented to Sister Annette. This gesture symbolizes the mutuality of commitment into which the Sisters in the province enter into with Sister Annette. Sister Annette then invited the Councilors to place their hands on the Word of God and voice their fidelity. The same symbolic gestures were repeated with the Rule of Life, the directory of the Sisters in the province, and a lit candle.
Following the installation ceremony, Sister Annette presented her first full address to the province and to the many Marie Rivier Associates and Consecrated Laity present. “Today I would like to speak about hope” she stated. Hope is a virtue that is sorely missing from our world today, and it is urgent that we all be witnesses of hope. She reminded us that our community theme for this year is “From the Heart of the Eucharist, we move forward in Hope.” This theme encapsulates both presentations from the Eucharist Congress of 2024 which local communities are following on YouTube and Pope Francis’ letter “Hope does not Disappoint” written for the Jubilee Year of Hope which begins on December 24, 2024, and ends on January 6, 2026.
Sister Annette went on to suggest that there is “one small practical way that we can reveal hope every day to every one we encounter.” That way is to smile. “A smile can be an act of trust in times of trial and a witness to hope for those who are in the midst of sadness.” She ended her address by reminding us that the more of us who are smiling regularly, the greater the witness to our Hope. “Being consistent in smiling can make others wonder and ask us what is the source of our hope.” And, as we know, the source of our hope is Jesus Christ.