The name of the Congregation

The Marcelline Sisters

The Congregation, founded in 1838, took its name from Santa Marcellina (4th c.). Luigi Biraghi choosed her as protector and model for having educated her younger brothers, Ambrose and Satyr, to the Christian faith and for having lived the ideal of virginal consecration to Christ.

The charism of the congregation

“The Sisters of St. Marcellina are called to live an educational charism, which embodies the love of God the Father for Man. Their special characteristic is the contemplation of Christ the Saviour who sends them to announce the Truth of the Gospel to all the fields of their apostolic mission. They fulfil their service by embracing the Incarnation (a way of life so recommended by the Founder) with a maternal attitude and a family spirit. [25th General Chapter 2010]

Spirituality

Dalle norme.

76. The spirituality of the sister marcellina and her living in the Spirit, is Christocentric. The Spirit of Christ, as revealed to Blessed Luigi Biraghi, supports and animates the life of the sister marcellina, her prayer, her community life and her mission.
77. The spirituality of the sister marcellina , born from the educational charism of Blessed Luigi Biraghi, is permeated with "simplicity and firmness" and rich in fraternity; she is missionary, oriented towards the other in the desire to generate "new creatures" according to the Beatitudes.
78.The Eucharistic meeting and listening to the Word of God in imitation of Mary nourish the spirituality of the sister marcellina who, in the style of the Incarnation, shares the life of the other and takes compassionately her time to remedy the "breakdowns" ”and restore the beauty of the creature made in the image of the Creator.
79. According to the synthesis indicated by the Founder through the icon of Marta and Maria, the sister marcellina is called to become a woman of listening, in constant contemplative attitude. In the loving search for Jesus, she lives in the daily apostolic commitment and unifies her life in her "inner cell", in a deep communion with Him.

The glossary of the sister of saint Marcellina

There is a great freedom of spirit in the style of the Marcelline Sisters. In fact, there is no model of educator: while making one's own and sharing the common intent to look at the person as a whole, each one is called to give his own charismatic personal contribution, to make the approach with the younger generations dynamic and new. However, some traits create a common platform qualifying and characterizing our educational action.

- Bonariness: it is a trait of the character often recommended by Don Luigi. It indicates the serenity of the judgment, the positive gaze on facts and people. In goodwill, the Marcelline educator recognizes the premise to open the educational dialogue. Listening is characteristic: understood as the ability to welcome and "let in" the words of the other, with attention and without pre-understandings, and the ability to know how to respond to the appeals, even implicit, of the other. Sometimes it is expressed with the willingness to accompany the other in research, in bringing out the fundamental questions

- Presence: In presence, the Marcelline educator recognizes the application of a careful attention to the other, of an intense receptive capacity, of a concentration without pre-established directions. A characteristic of the presence is the ability to wait, precisely to respect the maturation of the other, and to watch over the movements of one's heart.

- To encourage: it is a recurring recommendation from Don Luigi. It is a characteristic of the heart with hope. For the Marcelline educator, it is an attitude with which face the events and situations. The believers find their strength and courage by the pillars of faith: patience, strength to remain firm despite adversity how to wait long time, confidence in Jesus Christ.

- Firmness: it is a term that in Don Luigi's writings qualifies the faith, the education of the teachers, the knowledge of the students, the inner life. Firmness is honesty in recognizing one's inner situation, it is a clear vision of one's ability, it is the opposite of superficiality, of lightness, it is the denial of any prejudice, preconception and therefore freedom of heart. For the Marcelline educator, firmness is an indication of a serious work of self-knowledge. If tenderness allows us to welcome the other, firmness allows us to intuit, to see his good. Firmness is still the solicitude in facing one's task, the ability to persist in achieving a valid goal; it is the determination.

- Uniformity: recurring recommendation in the first rule of Marcelline, it is not to be understood as homologation, but as "pushing everyone in the same direction", as pursuing the same goal together. The educators of Marcelline recognize in uniformity the search for the community dimension, teamwork, the desire for synergy between consecrated and lay people, in an atmosphere of mutual esteem and welcome, capable of bringing out the talents and potential of each one, in view of the good. They recognize a way to continue to keep the family spirit alive; they commit themselves to be “people who know how to share in mutual respect, in the breadth of heart, in fraternal and maternal attention, in the simplicity of relationships free from comments, suspicions and ratings.

- Joy, being happy: it is a dimension of the heart that involves everyone, which determines the atmosphere of living together, learning together, collaborating. Don Luigi never seems to tire of repeating it. The educator of the Marcelline recognizes in this joy the care of his own inner life, the acquisition of a contemplative gaze on reality, which teaches to unify, despite all the fragmentary nature in which we are immersed, knowledge, desires, life. It has its foundation in the certainty that Salvation comes from the Lord, and is for everyone.

- Simplicity: also known as frankness, naivety. For Don Luigi it is the search for those flat ways, which are opposed, in education, to any form of complication. The educator of Marcelline recognizes in simplicity an essential feature of the educational relationship: it means placing yourself in front of the other with freedom of heart, granting him permission, to express himself, to ask himself, even to make mistakes