The Council of the Superior

"The source and foundation of authority in the Congregation is the Spirit present in each person and in the community gathered as a communion of disciples. By her profession, each Sister of the Good Samaritan becomes a member of the chapter and is entrusted with the charism and heritage, as this is expressed in the life and mission, the spirit and tradition of the Congregation.

The Superior (Congregational Leader) is entrusted with the governance of the entire Congregation according to church law and the laws of the Congregation. Four Counsellors have been elected to assist and advise the superior in this governance role -- they form the Council of the Superior."

Constitutions- Sisters of the Good Samaritan of the Order of St Benedict

Superior

clareSister Clare Condon

Clare is the Superior (Congregational Leader). She was born on the South Coast of New South Wales at Jamberoo and lived her childhood in Wollongong, where she was educated by the Good Samaritan Sisters at St Francis Xavier’s School and St Mary’s College.

Clare’s tertiary qualifications are in the Arts, Education, Policy and Accounting. She has taught in schools in New South Wales and Queensland, before taking up the position as Province Leader in Sydney and then as a member of the Council of the Superior.

More recently, she has been a Member of the Diocesan Pastoral Team of the Archdiocese of Adelaide and has been a Chancellor of the Archdiocese for the past three years. Clare has also been involved in other Church initiatives, such as Church Resources, established jointly by the Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference and the Australian Conference of Leaders of Religious Institutes. She is a Director of Catholic Church Insurances.

As Superior, Clare will lead the congregation in implementing its Statement of Directions for the next six years. In particular, the sisters, as women of hope ministering in four different countries, will seek to extend hospitality beyond the normal boundaries of engagement, and bring justice and compassion to all whom they encounter.

Members of the Council

kerinSister Kerin Caldwell

Kerin Caldwell was born in Melbourne. Throughout her years of education she was greatly influenced by Sisters from three religious congregations, the Good Shepherd Sisters in her primary schooling, the Good Samaritan Sisters in her secondary eduction and the Mercy Sisters in her years at the Catholic Teachers College, Ascot Vale.

Kerin has lived and ministered in Victoria, New South Wales, North Queensland and Southern Queensland. She has also worked for short periods in Japan, Philippines and Kiribati. Her focus and interest has been in varied forms of education, from primary teaching, Motor Mission and catechetical formation, principalship, adult education, spiritual formation, ministry training, and lay leadership development.

Kerin’s tertiary qualifications include Bachelor of Educational Studies, St Lucia University Queensland; Masters of Pastoral Studies, Loyola University Chicago; Doctorate of Ministry with a concentration in Spirituality, Catholic Theological Union, Chicago.

For the last eight years Kerin’s passion has been lay leadership development in Church, and she worked in many facets of the field in the Broken Bay Diocese, Sydney.

She looks forward to her involvement in the church and in the congregation through her leadership role. She sees these times as both exciting and challenging as the congregation stewards its life and charism across the four countries of Japan, Philippines, Kiribati and Australia and into the future.


pattySister Patricia Fawkner

Patty Fawkner was born and reared in Sydney’s Western Suburbs and has been a member of the Good Samaritan Sisters for over thirty years.

Patty’s studies have been in education, theology and pastoral ministry and her ministries have been diverse. She has worked as a teacher, principal, Religious Education consultant, media officer and adult educator. Her most recent appointment was as the Director of Uniya, the Jesuit Social Justice Centre.

As an educator and communicator, Patty is committed to integrating faith and life by helping make the riches of the Catholic Christian tradition – both the spiritual and justice tradition – accessible to the women and men of our time.

In 2004 Patty began a three-year appointment on the Commission of Australian Catholic Women.

Patty’s other interests include theatre and film, current affairs and politics, hiking (she climbed Mt Kilimanjaro in 2000), and women’s issues.


veronicaSister Veronica Hoey

Veronica was born in Pascoe Vale, Victoria. She is the eldest of six children. She was educated at St Oliver’s Primary School and then attended Santa Maria College, Northcote for her secondary education. Veronica joined the Congregation in 1975.

Veronica’s main ministry focus has been the area of Special Education for people with disabilities. Her very first appointment in 1979 was to Mater Dei Special School at Narellan and her desire to serve in this rewarding ministry grew from here. Her appointment as Counsellor responsible for Social Justice reflects this desire and her willingness to help those in need.

As well as her appointment as a Counsellor and Trustee of the Congregation Veronica also service as a Director of Mater Christi College, Belgrave and is a Company Member of Mater Dei, Narellan.


carmelSister Carmel Pattinson

Carmel Pattinson was born in Ayr, educated at St Francis School and St Mary’s College Charters Towers - with a strong ‘Good Sam’ influence, Carmel - woman of enthusiasm, lover of people, dinner parties (and good red wine), music, liturgy, and the arts – began Teacher Training (1968) in Brisbane, tasted ‘good sam’ life up close at Pennant Hills Novitiate the following years.

Upon completion of Formation and Primary Teacher Education, she taught for five years in Sydney at Avalon and Dee Why.

Carmel describes herself as a pastoral practitioner with over twenty years’ full-time pastoral ministry experience, having served in parishes in Melbourne and Brisbane. She believes in collaboration – a style of leadership which seeks to be partner and companion with people as they realize their baptismal ownership of the mission of Christ.

Since April 2002 she has ministered in the Toowoomba Diocese as the Director of Pastoral Vision. This pastoral visioning and planning role has involved formation, consultation, review and change management processes in parishes and deaneries, Pastoral Council formation, and development of strategies for current Diocesan Pastoral Leadership.

 

Leadership and Authority

"Benedictine communities cannot be pictured correctly by either the pyramid or the circle. They are better pictured as a wheel with a hub and spokes. There is a centre to which all members relate while they all relate to one another.

The role of authority in Benedictine spirituality is to unify the community and to direct its attention to God who is the centre of life of each and all of them."

(J. Chittister, Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, p.135)