Associates offer women and men chance to enrich their faith

The history of Associates within the Catholic Church dates all the way back to the 17th century with the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet. But many may not fully understand what being an Associate entails.

Annmarie Yellico, an Associate with the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, said Associates are men and women who are looking for something “more” with God.

“They want something more than weekly Bible study or even retreats,” said Yellico, who added that in the past few decades there’s been a renewed interest in women in becoming Associates. 

As a result, they are people who seek others who carry that same desire to deepen their faith with a goal to live out the specific charism of that congregation. For the Associates of the Sisters of St. Joseph, they “strive to live the Gospel, manifesting their fidelity to Jesus Christ through prayer, faith and service. Endeavoring to embody Christ’s reconciling presence in the world, they gather in regional groupings, pray individually and communally with the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet and encourage one another to deepen attitudes of wonder, reverence, gratitude, opened to change, growth and loving commitment,” according to the www. csjalbany.org website.

Yellico remembers a need for something more constructive and intentional to enliven her faith, saying she was drawn to the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet community because their “call and desire to unifying love” resonated with her. She reflects on how the congregation originated at a time of so much division in France. 

“Women thought, ‘How can we bridge this division?’ We see division in everything nowadays. This is certainly not what our Lord wanted, so this is what a Sister Associate (of St. Joseph of Carondelet) lives by,” Yellico said, “bridging that division.” 

The group practices that charisma in the 21st century, where they live through the idea of bridging division and unifying love, whether that be within their community or even in their family, Yellico said. 

There are Associate programs in other congregations as well, such as the Sisters of Mercy, Sisters of the Holy Names and the Dominican Sisters of Peace. Associates are active in their church, community and congregation and meet regularly for study and prayer with the sisters. 

Becoming an Associate is an entirely different process compared to becoming a sister, however. Although both are rigorous, the two processes are separate from one another. Someone who is on the path to become a sister, for instance, would not participate in the CSJA formation program, Yellico said. 

“We’re lay people in all different facets of life,” Yellico said, “we’re not moving toward evangelical vows.” 

For the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Carondelet, as with most congregations, the formation process takes between one to two years, depending on the individual’s readiness to commit, Yellico said. The Associates mentor new members throughout their formation process, and last Sunday the group had a commitment ceremony after a Mass to officially welcome new Associates at the St. Joseph’s Provincial House in Latham; it was part of a weekend of events, with a retreat on Saturday. 

The group meets once a month, as each province does, to discuss a book, article, movie, or CD and reflect on it in the light of their spirituality. Yellico calls the “Sharing of the Heart” — a discussion group about something they have read or watched and how it spoke to them as a CSJA, or helped them to better understand their life — the crux of being an Associate. 

The group also participates in a plethora of causes that align with the congregation’s core values. “We get involved in a lot of different areas of social justice” Yellico said, “We might work in a soup kitchen but we also might be writing letters to a legislator about an unjust law, or marching in The March for Life, or combat human trafficking.” 

Several St. Joseph of Carondelet Associates sit on the CSJ Peace and Justice Committee for the Albany Province. Together with the sisters, they work to raise awareness not only of human trafficking, but of humane treatment of immigrants and food as a human right, among other ­areas of concern. The community also belongs to the Coalition of Catholic Organizations Against Human Trafficking (CCOAHT), a group that consists of more than 20 international Catholic agencies dedicated to ending human trafficking, and providing safe places for teenagers and young adults in the U.S.
“Our Associates are called to serve the ‘Dear Neighbor’ without distinction,” Yellico said.    

In July 2018, Yellico became a part of the Albany province’s three-person leadership team. The group oversees 135 active Associates throughout the state. As someone who has been an Associate for over 10 years, Yellico says the rewards are plentiful. 

“I love it. I’ve grown so much not just in the faith but learning to understand people better. (I’m) exposed to a lot of different areas of spiritual growth. I have found I have been able to realize my desire for a fuller spiritual life, and that’s really what I was looking for,” Yellico said, “I have found the joys and wonders with a group of people moving in the same direction.”