The School Sisters of Notre Dame, Atlantic-Midwest Province and School Sisters of Notre Dame, Central Pacific Province joined women religious across the United States in signing the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) Declaration of Commitment. This declaration, which comes as the U.S. prepares to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, was delivered to Congress on Thursday, June 25. It articulates the convictions that guide the responses of women religious to the challenges of our times; affirms their commitment to justice, mercy, and compassion; and urges a renewal of the nation’s dedication to ensuring that life, liberty, faith, and the flourishing of the human spirit are possible for all.
In preparation for the 250th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious
has entered a period of reflection on nearly 300 years of our presence, service, and leadership in the United States.
In a spirit of prayer, discernment, and fidelity to the values that inspired women religious, beginning in 1727, to respond to the
humanitarian needs of those they encountered in the United States, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious makes this
Declaration of Commitment.
We, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, affirm our commitment to:
• Upholding the inherent right to life of every human being and the dignity of each person
• Embracing the gospel call to love, welcome, and care for all people, especially those who are most vulnerable
• Welcoming immigrants and providing care and assistance to all who reside in our nation, while advocating for comprehensive immigration reform
• Standing against violence in all its forms
• Dismantling racism in all its manifestations
• Caring for our common home, Earth, through attentive stewardship and decisive action
• Respecting and supporting every person’s journey toward the fullness of their humanity
• Working to alleviate poverty in all its forms
• Exercising the responsibility to vote and advocating for the protection of this opportunity for others
• Promoting dialogue, negotiation, and mutual understanding as the path to lasting peace, rather than the use of force and the destruction of life
As bearers of hope:
• We commit ourselves to living compassion, communion, and nonviolence as members of one global community.
• We remain steadfast in our belief in the inherent right to life of every human being and the dignity of each person.
• We proclaim the urgent necessity of nonviolence in both word and action.
• We embrace our responsibility to make choices that support the good of all life on this planet.
• We pledge to live our call to be courageous witnesses of love — refusing to surrender our moral authority or succumb to despair.
We make this Declaration of Commitment in light of our vocation as Catholic Sisters: to be women of God living amid the profound challenges of our world, fearless in embracing and embodying the priorities of the Gospel