The native of Uganda said that revision of formation programs for Religious need to involve the capacity building of those involved in formation, including understanding and knowledge of contemporary means of communication, because “the incoming candidates for Consecrated Life are people who are exposed to technology.”
“The formator who is handling these candidates or who is in formation must also be someone who is exposed to technology,” Sr. Nabushawo emphasized, adding that for a formator to journey with candidates in formation today, “you need to have the skills and go ahead of them (candidates).”
The lecturer at Kenya’s Moi University regretted the fact that some of the formators are not up to date with contemporary realities and that a section of Religious Orders and Societies of Apostolic Life “have not invested in the training of their formators to match with the growing technology.”
It is not enough that a formator is prayerful, the SMK member told ACI Africa, and explained, “A formator of today should have vast and diverse skills, must have a theological background, must have counseling skills, because this is the only way he or she will be able to journey with the candidates.”
In the July 20 interview, Sr. Nabushawo reflected on the process of initiating candidates joining Religious Life, saying, “Formation houses should seek to heal the wounds of those who come from broken families or families with issues.”
She underscored the need for those involved in formation to heal from their past wounds. She explained, “We are going to meet with people from broken families; as a sister, how am I going to relate with such people if in my sense I am still broken? This means that I need to be healed in order to heal the other person.”
The Kenya-based Catholic Nun cautioned formators against discontinuing candidates on the basis of their family backgrounds.
She made reference to biblical figures such as Paul, Simon Peter, and Mary Magdalene among others who found favor in the Lord despite their past lives, saying in reference to candidates joining Religious Life, “We should not push them away because it is God who calls and can make the best out of this person.”
Meanwhile, in her presentation during the biannual Pan-African Catholic Congress on Theology, Society, and Pastoral Life that members of the Pan-African Catholic Theology and Pastoral Network (PACTPAN) organized at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA) in Nairobi, Sr. Nabushawo advocated for a critical look at the rise of vocations to Religious Life in Africa.
“Vocation to Consecrated Life in Africa today is on the rise, especially in recent times,” she said during presentation July 20, and posed, “Why this huge rise; and we are asking ourselves, is the quantity corresponding to the quality? And if not, what could be the reason behind this huge rise in vocations to religious life in Africa?”
