About us

Sisters of the Nativity of Makurdi Diocese of Nigeria, are African women called by God from different background to be religious with a common vision to bring Christ to different cultures, to witness the unity of the Church in the Spirit of the incarnation. Consecrated apostolic life is at the heart of our Origin in Makurdi, Nigeria, West Africa. On 4th January, 1969, we the Sisters of the Nativity were brought into being by the action of the Holy Spirit through the instrumentality of our Father Founder, Bishop Donal Joseph Murray, C.S.Sp of Makurdi Diocese. The events at the historic time of our founding were: • The absence of any women of our tribes, in the then middle belt of Nigeria, to portray the Consecrated life amongst us • The example of the Missionary Sisters of the Holy Rosary (MSHR) who educated and inspired us with the vision of what we too could be. We do this by constantly seeking God in prayer and living out the virtues of obedience, reconciliation, simplicity, humility and truthfulness. We live in loving interdependence and are committed to the service of the poor and marginalised. We were founded by Bishop Joseph Donald Murray and nurtured by the Missionary Sisters of the Holy Rosary

MISSION

We the Sisters of the Nativity, as witnesses to the gospel of our time, share in the mission of the Church to promote basic human right, good governance and authentic community living with special care for the poor and the marginalized.

VISION

We envisage a Congregation that incarnates the gospel values through the quality of our presence and service, through the nurturing of individual giftedness towards the promotion of authentic community living and collaborative ministry.

The Postulancy and Novitiate/Location

These are the formal formation years. They last for four years – two years of postulancy and two years of novitiate. Postulancy years are basically for deepening of the Christian faith and further nurturing in the young woman, the movements of the spirit in her heart and an introduction to the charism of the Congregation. The two years of Novitiate are years when the young woman is introduced to the basic tenets of the religious charism. When those responsible for the training of the candidate evaluate them as suitable and ready, the Congregation admits them to the First Profession where they make vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. The vows are lived after the example of Christ the master, as set out for us in the gospels.

Our Postulancy is at Agyaragu, Catholic diocese of Lafia, Nasarawa State and Novitiate is at Okwungaga-Ugbokolo in the Catholic diocese of Otukpo. All in Nigeria.

CHARISM

The charism of this vibrant, close knitted group of the Sisters of the Nativity is joyful celebration of the Incarnation of Christ, God-made man. We express our Charism today by trying to reproduce in our lives the special virtues of the Nativity, such as: hospitality, simplicity in life style, humility, obedience, reconciliation and a love for each other that turns outwards to people making them at home with Christ as Mary did in Bethlehem. learn more

Ways to Support Our Missions

– Be an associate member

– Sponsor a young woman in formation Include a bequest for the Sisters of the Nativity in your will Contact us by email

OR The vocations Directress, Sisters of the Nativity P O Box 813 Makurdi, Nigeria learn more

Formation

Our formation is divided into three phases: aspirancy, postulancy and novitiate. The aspirancy period is the come and see state when the young woman make the initial contact with us. This period can last for a year or more depending on the readiness of the candidate and the assessment of the vocation committee. When the young woman has her five credits including English language and mathematics and she is deemed suitable, she is then admitted into the postulancy. Other candidates who posses higher certificates also have a place in our Congregation. learn more

Requirements

Membership is open to all young women who are Catholics with:

– Sound health and Strong faith – the desire to dedicate their lives to God in response to his loving call

– possess 5 credits (with English Language and Maths as Compulsory) in basic Secondary School Certificates or from Institutions of higher learning. Minimum age: 18 (Applicants who are 35 and over must have completed their third level education.) learn more

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