Here is an instructive interview Sr Alena Fernandez SCB, who worked as a doctor for years, and is now the superior general of her congregation, the Sisters of St Charles Borromeo. She was interviewed for MAGNET by Janina Gomes.
1.You combine two important roles, as Superior General of the Congregation of the Sisters of Charles Borromeo and as a medical doctor looking after the seniors in your Home at Kalyan. How do you combine these roles?
First of all, I am happy to tell you that, as a Superior General, I am fortunate to practice my medical profession to a small extent, since the Generalate is attached to the Home for the Senior Citizens. Doing only administrative work would not have been suited to my nature, as my work as a medical doctor adds meaning to my life as a religious. I don’t need to make extra effort; rather I enjoy caring for people. My work demands that I am on the move often, so I miss my old and loving people. In fact, when I was elected Superior General, I felt sad I would miss my patients; but then someone gently whispered to me, “So far you took care of patients; now God wants you to care for your sisters.” I am trying to do that to some extent through love and kindness! Being humane and humble is a great goal to achieve.
2.Was your calling to be a religious linked with your calling to be a medical doctor? How did it all happen?
“The call” to be a religious goes back to a very young age. I was attracted to the life of the sisters who taught me, who loved me and inspired me when I was hardly ten years old. The desire to be a Sister like them grew steadily, as I continued my high school. From the very beginning I was inclined to care for people, especially the sick and the suffering. So the calling and the caring went together. I owe much to my Congregation, which has helped me to live both these aspects to the full. I find fulfillment as a Religious being a medical doctor. One complements the other. I believe strongly that whatever happens in one’s life is a gratuitous gift from God and He always provides the grace we need to fulfill his will.
3.You served in your hospitals in Bhadravati and Belgaum for thirty years and was Director of the hospital for several years. How did that ministry help you in your personal growth and journey with God?
This is the secret of my happiness, being fully alive and active as a religious and a doctor. It has always been easy for me to harmonize the two. When you can find God everywhere, in everything and in everybody, it is easy to strike a balance. When God is with you, it is easy to find Him connected to everything and everybody. This does not mean that life has been smooth sailing. There were times when life was stormy, but I found God closer to me in the difficult situations of the hospital than in the chapel! As the saying goes, faith is tested in fire and the best of an individual is also revealed in most difficult situations. I have grown stronger in faith and in my professional acumen, facing, with the Lord, the storms and floods of daily life. I am proud to say that God is the rock, the foundation of my life.
4.How did you approach your many patients? How did they respond to your healing?
It is too long to recount, for it is a story that spans over nearly forty years. I started my medical studies way back in 1980. One’s interaction with the patients starts already when one is a medical student. Soon after my initial studies, I was in a hospital with minimum facilities and maximum patients, giving me ample opportunities to grow, to learn, to mature, to develop and flourish. As I mentioned, the Lord has been at my side as a stronghold, ever upholding me, and allowing me to witness to His love and mercy by ministering to thousands of suffering people.
Very often my patients were my motivators. The more you give, the more you receive. Certainly, I have received more than I have given. Ninety-five percent of my patients were non- Christians. They would freely share their woes and worries with me, more than their ailments, and seeing them go home happy was so rewarding and encouraging. Their sincere gratitude and speedy recovery would give a lift to my weary spirits and give me the energy required to move on. Moreover, there was not a single night spent without being woken up several times, and often I was asked by my patients from where I drew such energy. These were occasions when I could speak about my God who walked and worked with me.
5.What are some of the challenges sisters involved in the medical ministry (nurses and doctors) face? What consolations do you experience? What gives you strength in difficult moments?
For me, it was certainly the spiritual strength I drew from the source of Eternal life, the daily Eucharist, the intense moments spent in His presence, my community life lived with a strong sense of belonging and the deeper joy of being appreciated and accepted. These are some of the forms of wealth I have treasured the most, right from the beginning of my religious life until today. They sustain me even today.
So definitely, the challenges will be greater when these treasures are lacking in one’s life, such as lack of appreciation and non-acceptance by one’s community members. On my part, what helped me was to remain simple and humble, just as any other member of the community.
My principle in life is also not to expect much from others. So, I am not disappointed easily. Self-pity, fault-finding and blaming others will only make our life miserable. Most often problems and challenges arise from your own sisters and authorities, who misunderstand you and do not support you in times of difficulty. It is a two-way process, to be committed to your religious calling and dedicated to the apostolate of the community.
6.What is your vision for the Congregation?
My vision for the Congregation is that we live as disciples witnessing to the love and mercy of the Lord. We have no Mission other than to become JESUS to others. By constant effort and good will, we have to arrive at that. As a religious, I need to make a difference in the lives of others by the way I live and not so much by preaching. This is what Pope Francis is challenging every religious to be: a true disciple, by witnessing to Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection, all three included; and not only to His Resurrection. No glory without agony!
7. Religious vocations are hard to come by these days. How do you cope with a shortage of Sisters, and how do you see the future of your congregation?
It is indeed a hard reality to be faced, with hope and trust in Divine Providence. At the same time, we must remain confident, that it is God who is guiding and leading us. We look back at the past history of our Congregation with gratitude and praise God for all that has been complished in the last 340 years in spite of our poverty. We also look forward with hope, and work hard for more labourers in God’s vineyard. The master of the vineyard knows what is best for His church. God works through our fears and our frailties, we must let the Lord steer our course. At time we want to be in complete control, but it is God who sees the bigger picture.
The shortage of religious vocations is felt acutely in our overseas Mission. With a decline in the number of sisters in India, we lack young sisters to replace the aged and ailing sisters. This situation may force us to wind up a few communities both abroad and locally. We are still hoping for the best. I am positive that there will be new forms of religious response to God’s service. I also envisage a future religious life with more lay collaborators.
- Who are the persons who have influenced you most? What qualities did you pick up from them?
My family had a big share in contributing to my upbringing. In particular, my maternal grandmother had a great impact on me. Her holiness was contagious; she was always connected to God from early morning right into the night. She loved us so intensely and forgave us generously. As I mentioned already, the Sisters who taught me did play an important role in sowing the seeds of a vocation that enabled me to bloom and flourish in good soil. As a young sister I admired and avidly imbibed the goodness, the faith, the selfless service and courage of others.
Soon after my first profession, I had the privilege of living for six years in our Mother House in Belgium. This laid the foundation for the rest of my life. It was not easy: new place, new people, new language, different food and culture… but finally, life is about being happy and taking everything as it comes.
There are lots of people inside and outside, both religious and lay, who have influenced me in many ways to grow and blossom. I am grateful to all of them. But I would like to mention just two names and pay tribute to them: my Superior General in Belgium, Mother Anne Marie Carlier (I lived with her as a junior) and the first Indian provincial, Sr Benedicta Lobo. Both of them have had a lasting impact on me. Their strong faith in God and their fidelity to their calling have taught me much.
- Do you have any special message for readers of MAGNET? (Most are religious, the majority of whom are engaged in the teaching ministry, and a good number of them in medical work, while others do social or pastoral work, and a few are engaged in media work.)
We are challenged and shaped by all that we hear, see, encounter and experience in our life. How I respond and get transformed into a better human being is up to me. When we are truly human, we begin to resemble God a little more, and finally we tend to become Divine. So, whatever ministry we are engaged in, we all need to strive to be part of God’s big plan of redemption. Always have a broader and positive perspective and discern before God; that will help you take the right decision for the good of all. This will enable you to reach out to society at large, so that we do not just remain confined to the Institution. Reaching out to the peripheries is the call of the hour.
As I am an avid reader of Magnet, I am more than eager to encourage many more to subscribe to this enriching magazine. I would call it a Holistic Magazine, dealing with all aspects of life. It is very realistic, reflective and thought provoking and appeals to people from all walks of life. I enjoy reading it from start to finish.
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