MARY NALUKINDU SHARES WITH US THE EXPERIENCE OF HER CELEBRATION OF PERPETUAL VOWS.

2025-08-07

With a heart full of joy and gratitude, first of all, to the Lord for the call, I ask myself, who am I to be at your service?

I also thank all the sisters of the congregation who have journeyed with me on the path of reparation. Without you, I don't know what would become of me. Thank you for your presence, that helps me to grow as a person and to accept me to be perpetually part of this great family of Mary Reparatrix. Thank you for the journey we have taken together for greater service, that fills me with life and makes me happy.

The celebration of vows took place in Tudela, Spain, on July 31, 2025, at the parish of Saint John Baptist, accompanied by Sisters Rosa Vizcay, superior general, Tomasa Gómez, provincial superior, sisters of the community of Tudela, Vitoria and Pamplona, the three priests, Carlos, Javier and Sergio, my elder sister Judith and her son Benjamín and finally the people of the neighborhood, associates, friends and colleagues.

In a simple, family atmosphere, Mass begins at noon. The sisters, along with the people present, sing the hymn: You, Lord, You call me; You, Lord, say to me: "Come, follow me, come, follow me." Lord, I will follow you. Lord, I will follow you.

The act of blessing that Judith brought from my parents was a moment filled with emotion. This was the sign with which my family handed me over to the congregation: Judith, my older sister, handed me over, her younger sister. This affectionate act moved everyone present.

Listening to the process of my vocation and initial formation helped us understand and resonate with this step toward my final commitment. The main celebrant, Father Carlos Aguado, impressed us all with his homily, as he was connected my vocational process with the readings I chose: the call of Samuel and Jesus' visit to the house of Mary and Martha, and along with the words of Blessed Emilia, asserting:

Mary, do you remember what Eli says to Samuel? Keep sleeping; go back to bed, as if to say, "Return to your normal life." It's something like the Reparatrix Sisters have invited you not to go to bed, but to continue moving on, to continue knowing yourself and knowing them. To continue converting to the Lord. Time will reveal it to you... Walking, you begin to know yourself. I am. I give myself to you, Lord. I am the Lord's. May you, with your Blessed Mother, be able to say: I am your thought, Lord, your good, your making. I am nothing to become your daughter, your sister, your wife. I want to prolong in this world the eternal shower of your love. It is the enriching experience of your Mother Foundress: Mary has chosen the better part. This is the surprise and happiness of the-child Emilia when she hears within herself: This part is yours, and the world will not take it away from you. Is this also your experience, Mary? True. Yes! You are all His; all Christ's. He, your Lord, is all yours. You have chosen to be at the feet of the Master, listening to words of salvation and love.

Both the sisters and all the entire people present felt connected and attentive throughout the celebration.

At the end, I gave thanks to everyone who attended this special event: the priests, the sisters, and everyone else and on behalf of the community, I invited them to have "picoteo" (a simple snack) in the parish hall.

Celebrating this event in Tudela, Spain, has made me welcome and appreciate the loving, caring presence of the older sisters. It is a privilege and an honor to be with them and continual call to give all that I am and possess at the service of humanity.