On June 16 of this year, the Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity hosted the commissioning ceremony for the new volunteer hospital and nursing home chaplains who have just completed their training.

In a solemn service at the convent church of the Franciscan Sisters of Christian Charity in the Franziskus Spital Margareten, Auxiliary Bishop Franz Scharl commissioned twelve new chaplains into their important ministry. They received not only a blessing but also a cross from Mag. Traian Tamas, Head of Hospital and Nursing Home Chaplaincy, and a decree from specialist consultant Mag. Ursula Stefan.

The Managing Director of Franziskus Spital, Mag. Martin Steiner, and Superior General Sr. M. Brigit Dorfmair expressed their gratitude for the commitment of the new chaplains and praised the successful cooperation.

In his sermon, Auxiliary Bishop Scharl emphasized that hospitals and nursing homes are special places where confrontation with existential questions is inevitable. At the same time, one learns to be a merciful Christian as a visitor. Those who go to the sick can encounter Jesus directly, even if He appears in a different form.

At the conclusion of the commissioning ceremony on June 16, the head of the two-year training program, Mag. Margaret Wohlfahrt, particularly highlighted the ability to bring one’s own lifelong experiences of faith into pastoral care.

Karin Hübl was commissioned for the Franziskus Spital Margareten. The Head of Chaplaincy, Anna Köck, appreciates the enrichment that well-trained volunteers with experience in faith and life bring to the team of full-time priests and laity. Further volunteers are warmly welcome at both the Margareten and Landstraße locations!

Text: Anna Köck (Head of Chaplaincy); Photos: Anna Köck, Archdiocese of Vienna