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CALENDAR
Most Holy Name of Mary
Sept. 12
Our Lady of Sorrows
Sept. 15
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From Fr. Marty Solma
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District of India
At the recent meeting of the Provincial Council, three Indian Marianists were approved for perpetual vows: Bro. Pratap Guria, Bro. Julius Tete and Bro. Santosh Savarimutu. Pratap and Santosh were approved for orientation to the clerical category. The profession date has not been finalized, but will most likely take place during my visit to the District of India in early January. Congratulations to these brothers! During the next several months, they will participate in preparation programs, including the 30-day Spirit of Saragossa Retreat. Let's pray for these brothers in the coming months.
Bro. Dennis Schmitz has just concluded a month-long visit to the District of India. In addition to moderating the District Chapter, he participated in the meeting of the Formation Team and a meeting of the District Council. Dennis also had the opportunity to interview many of the brothers in the north of India and a few in the south. He will return to India in November and January.
The members of the General Council will visit all of the communities and the various ministries in the District of India Sept. 20 - Oct. 15, concluding with a meeting in Bangalore with the District Council. Let's hold this special intention in our prayers over the next month.
Commitments of life and service
Two of our brothers are preparing for important commitments: Bro. Brandon Alana will profess perpetual vows in Honolulu on Sept. 19; Deacon Bob Jones will be ordained to the priesthood in Dayton on Oct. 3. We offer our prayers and best wishes for these brothers as they prepare for commitments of life and service. Bros. Tom Giardino and Ron Overman, Fr. Oscar Vasquez and I will be present for Brandon's profession in Honolulu to represent the Provincial Council and the Formation Team. Prayers and Province goals
We have a number of brothers in healthcare communities who are quite ill. Please remember them in your prayers. Finally, thanks to everyone in the Province for your attention to the letter I sent recently asking for your thoughts and recommendations on Province goals. After a community conversation around these themes, the directors will send comments to Bro. Joe Kamis for discussion at the Directors Meeting in a few weeks.
Let's pray also for Pope Francis' upcoming visit to the United States.
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Fraternally,
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From Fr. Bill Meyer
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My Dear Brothers:
In case you missed it
Pope Francis' Message to America: "Be Courageous!"
You'll want to watch this wonderful ABC Special -- a virtual papal audience with representatives of Francis' beloved "peripheries": the migrants, the poor and homeless in Los Angeles, Chicago and McAllen, Texas. Watch the pope in action as a pastor as he responds to people gathered for a virtual audience with him.
Reminder
You can still sign up for the "on demand presentation" of the Spiritual Exercises in Preparation for the Year of Mercy by Capuchin Franciscan Fr. David Songy.
With fraternal affection,
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From Bro. Tom Giardino
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Dear Brothers:
The ministry of sponsorship
Thank you for your fraternal support during the first two months of serving you in the Office of Education. Thanks, also, to Bro. Ed Brink for mentoring me in the dimensions of the office.
Similarly, Dan Donnelly and Office of Sponsorship staff members have helped me understand the important work they have been doing over the past two years. I have been listening and asking questions of many brothers to learn what we do and don't understand about sponsorship. I have heard both enthusiasm and doubts, which seems normal to me in the situation we are in regarding our apostolic ministries. I want to hear from you so I can learn and respond, and together we can be more effective in living out our reason for existing as Marianists: "We come together to form communities of faith, and we aim to share the same faith with our brothers and sisters" (RL 3).
Over the next several months in Notes, I will lay out what is happening in the Office of Education and the Office of Sponsorship and the specific ways we implement our primary objective of formation in faith.
The ministry of sponsorship is complex. We will need to keep assessing and refashioning various parts of it. It's important that we view sponsorship in terms of its fundamental aim, which I believe is related to our vow of stability: our courageous Marian "yes" to "do whatever He tells you."
Here is this fundamental aim as I understand it:
- As a Province, we believe the Marianist charism is a relevant gift to the Church and world as it can be lived out in educational institutions and retreat centers.
- There are now fewer brothers to serve in these institutions.
- There continue to be vibrant institutions and committed Lay Marianist educators who want to be well-formed partners in Marianist apostolic ministries.
- "Sponsorship" is the name we give to the relationships, structures and processes we believe will continue our charismatic gift through schools and retreat centers.
Thank you for listening. Stay tuned as we explore this road together.
Fraternally,
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