On Saturday 13 June, Stancea Vichie MSS celebrates the 50th anniversary of her profession with the Missionary Sisters of Service.
Earlier this week, on 9 June, Stancea gathered with Melbourne-based MSS sisters, friends and colleagues to mark the occasion together on the Feast of Mary Mother of Divine Grace, a feast she described as holding special significance in the life of the congregation.
Reflecting on the celebration, Stancea spoke warmly of the gift of community and the importance of gathering together in gratitude.
‘Some of you have been part of this 50th anniversary journey for the whole time, but some of you have been part of this journey for all sorts of different amounts of time,’ she said. ‘That doesn’t matter in the slightest, because you’re all very much loved and appreciated very deeply by me.’
For Stancea, the occasion was less about marking an achievement and more about celebrating relationships, shared life and the grace found in one another.
‘From my point of view, this is yet another opportunity for all of us to get together, enjoy each other’s company, and give thanks,’ she said. ‘It’s so lovely that we can be here together and make the most of it.’
Speaking about the Feast of Mary Mother of Divine Grace, Stancea reflected on the meaning of grace as ‘gift’, describing those gathered as gifts to one another and to the wider community.
‘You are all a gift not just to me, but to each other,’ she said. ‘As a group, we are a gift to one another.’
As part of the celebration, Stancea shared an icon she had recently completed featuring the Greek word Theotokos, meaning ‘God bearer’ or ‘birth giver of God’. She dedicated the icon to those gathered and to the Missionary Sisters of Service community, saying:
‘What I want to do with this icon is to dedicate it to each of you on this feast of Mary Mother of Divine Grace.
‘No matter who we are, we are giving birth each day in our world.’
Reflecting on the icon, Stancea said it offered an opportunity ‘to recognise and to give thanks for the way in which we each give birth to the life of God in our world every day.’
As the MSS community gives thanks for Stancea’s 50 years of profession, her reflections offered a gentle and heartfelt reminder of the grace found in community, gratitude and lives shared together.
Photos courtesy Fiona Basile.
