Stop 6 - The Pink Sisters

Welcome to the Pink Sisters.

They got their name because of their striking pink robe. Officially they are called the "Adoration Sisters" or more precisely: "Servants of the Holy Spirit of Perpetual Adoration". Along with the SVD Missionaries and the SSpS Missionary Sisters, they also belong to the family of congregations in Steyl. Arnold Janssen founded them as the third order in 1896 so that they would support the mission through their prayers.

At the moment there are 300 Pink Sisters in 22 convents worldwide. They all lead a most unusual cloistered life.

Cloistered? Perpetual adoration? What does it all mean?

Cloistered means as much as closed or secluded.
The Rosa Sisters never leave the convent grounds unless absolutely necessary. No short walks around the block, no excursions into the countryside, no strolls through town or visits to the cinema. Not even visits to friends and family are undertaken. The sisters live in seclusion, in silence and in prayer for the world.

And this prayer is kept up 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Alternating shifts, even through the night, are prayed here as far as possible. For the mission, the needs of all people and also requests sent to them by E-Mail or letter.

In order not to disturb each other's prayers and concentration, the sisters only talk to each other during the day. In the evenings, however, they actively take time for fellowship and exchange among themselves.

Living in this way is a conscious decision; no one enters a convent by chance or ends up in seclusion unintentionally. The Pink Sisters are not prisioners, as one might think from looking at the bars. They have voluntarily chosen peace and quiet and a special relationship with GOD. And thus found their vocation and fulfilment.

What's behind it all?

What is important to me?

For the SSpSAP Sisters, prayer, contemplation and their community are extremely important. So important, in fact, that they have withdrawn from our fast-paced world and all it has to offer in order to focus entirely on their vocation.

To the extent that the Adoration Sisters do this, it is of course almost impossible for us to escape the world. But becoming aware of who or what is important to you and also taking time and space for it is very possible.

But in everyday life, with all the tasks and expectations of oneself, it is not quite so easy to see what is really important or whether it is simply things that one perhaps takes too seriously at the moment. If you think about it, you often realise that in very few cases this is actually the case.

Supposedly important things or ideas can, in retrospect and with a certain distance, turn out to be insignificant. And other things that we may put off or pay too little attention to may be more important than we suspect at the moment.

Finding that out is a difficult task. But once you have found it, you can consciously give more space to the important things and thereby also become a bit more satisfied.

Impulse for you

Living a fulfilled life. With the important things at the centre. It sounds so simple, but sometimes it is very difficult to distinguish between what seems important in the present moment and what are the really important things. This is individual for each person and cannot be answered in a general way. That's why you have to ask yourself again and again:

What should not be missing in my life?

What does a fulfilled and satisfied life mean for me?