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Rome
A U.S. Franciscan woman religious was elected May 13 to lead the Union of International General Superiors, the worldwide network that bonds some 600,000 women religious.
Franciscan Daughter of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary, Mary Lou Wirtz, took over from Scottish born UISG president, Sister of Notre Dame de Sion, Maureen Cusick.
The election by the UISG Council of Delegates took place following a five-day gathering of the organization’s general assembly, which drew some 800 general superiors to Rome.
The UISG is an outgrowth of the Second Vatican Council. It is a canonically approved organization of general superiors of institutes of Catholic women religious and is intended to provide an international forum in which women religious leaders can share experiences, exchange information, and set directions for their work.
Wirtz has been the general superior for the Daughters of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary for the past year. That congregation’s mission includes:
- prayer for the church, particularly through adoration of our Eucharistic Lord;
- care of neglected children and the sick; and
- Other works of charity according to the needs of the times within the scope of the goal of the congregation.