Get to know Sister Jenn Schaaf, OP and learn about her
experience in the ForMission program.
Thriving in the ForMission Program
Sr. Jenn Schaaf, native of Washington state, is a Dominican Sister of Blauvelt, NY. She holds a Bachelors in Music Education and a Masters in Pastoral Ministry from the University of Portland, Oregon. She currently ministers at the Saint Thomas More Catholic Chapel and Student Center at Yale University.
It was around this time two years ago that my prioress asked if I would be willing to attend a program to become a formation director. I was in the throes of completing my dissertation, having done most of the work on Zoom while also trying to serve as a campus minister via Zoom school and with slowly loosening regulations for in-person gatherings on campus. I was also on our Chapter Planning Committee.
Why not add one more thing to my schedule? How hard could it be? I am the youngest in my congregation, having entered 12 years ago. We don’t currently have anyone in initial formation, nor do we necessarily expect anyone anytime soon. So, why would I say yes to this?
As a young-ish sister, my whole experience of religious life has been collaborative with other Dominican sisters and with other men and women religious. Through representing my congregation at our Novitiate meetings, providing support to newer members in Dominican life, and working with young graduate students in my ministry, formation takes on a different role than may be typical. I’m not living in a formation house - in fact, I live in an apartment above an Italian restaurant with the smell of pizza wafting in - but my commitment to religious life and community life runs deep and has breadth.
Arriving at the first cohort gathering of my ForMission class, I joined my group: men and women who hail from or serve in Brazil, Peru, Colombia, Zambia, Uganda, Mexico and the U.S. We are a picture of the global Church and religious life today. Through English and Spanish, plus a bit of Spanglish or relying on our colleagues to translate, we shared about our congregations, our ministries, our love for and struggles in the Church. We enjoyed quiet walks together, meaningful liturgies, good food, competitive games, and group dances with our mentors and the cohort that came before and after us.
Vatican II theology and the Synod on Synodality marked our developing ecclesiology as we listened to our speakers and shared insights in small groups. Practical skills surrounding building community, challenges of those in formation entering with trauma and previously undiagnosed psychological disorders, and questions of canon law that impact those desiring to enter our congregations, were tools for daily living and unique circumstances. Examining spirituality through a variety of lenses assisted us in deepening and better articulating our own personal spirituality and that of our communities and of religious life. New understandings of Scripture heightened our integration, and for me as a preacher, preparation for ministry. Intercultural living was not only discussed, but really lived, through our experiences of being together.
Most of all, I appreciate having time to grow in relationship with men and women who believe in the future of religious life, even as they know it is changing.
New friendships and renewed friendships exemplify the best of what our life is about - living community, praying together, sharing about ministry and how we preach the Good News, and studying the growing edges of formation and religious life as a group. (Yes, that last sentence fits neatly into the four pillars of Dominican life: prayer, study, community and preaching, but the experience could be reflected through the lens of any of our charisms.)
I still have an outstanding writing prompt and a project to complete before I will be finished with ForMission and know that I can turn to my cohort or the mentors for advice and feedback as this part of the journey comes to an end.
I trust that, like the disciples, the relationships will continue even after we are sent out to live God’s mission.