French Canada Creates Spiritual Trails

GIFTS & TASKS

"DONS et DEVOIRS"

Helping each other live the Gospel at home & around the world

International Organization of Marianist Lay Communities (IO-MLC)

Region of North America, Asia, Australia, and Ireland

June, 2021

Greetings!

June, 2021

Most of you know I live in Kansas. There is no "institutional presence" of the Marianist Family where I live. I met the Marianist brothers when my own big brother (David Fleming, 8 years older than me) left for "pre-postulantcy" at the age of 15. He discovered the Order from an ad in some religious publication and our family fell in love with the spirituality by following David around the world and meeting all the brothers and priests who embodied the charism.

Recently the World Council has been having discussions about creating "Family Councils" in our Marianist Population Centers. These Councils bring together representatives and leaders from all three or four branches of the Marianist Family (SM, FMI, MLCs, and Alliance Mariale) depending upon which branches are within a region.

The purpose of the Family Council is to build closer relationships among the branches, support each other and find ways to pray and celebrate together--like members of a thriving biological family. This "togetherness" makes our charism more visible to a broader audience and potentially has more impact on the broader Church and the world.

These are all good ideas, but I kept wondering what difference a Family Council makes for Laity like me who live in a Marianist "desert."

But I found out this month. Our family was FINALLY able to have a Memorial Mass in San Antonio for David, who died in March of 2020. THAT is when I felt the Marianist Family experience!

Representives from all three branches of the family were there. Our family met people we had not known before. We prayed together. We looked at pictures from David's albums. We shared stories. We ate a meal and drank wine together. It was like a BIG SPIRITUAL HUG from the Marianist FAMILY.

So even if we can't have Family Councils nearby, they can provide a visibility and presence to things that occur in the "hinterland" and host events that bring the "hinterland" to the population centers. That has great value for all of us!

Marceta

Marceta Fleming Reilly

[email protected]

Formation Recommendation:

Read Beatrice's Circular!

By Josee Roberge

Dear Marianist Brothers and Sisters,

What has happened to the MLC’s of Quebec in the last year marked by the pandemic? We have missed the gatherings. It has not been easy to maintain the links between us except by videoconference. However, last summer, when the sanitary measures gave us a little respite, about twenty of our members were able to take advantage of two short 3-day retreats in connection with the Marianist Center.

We also have a small monthly newsletter that offers food for thought and individual formation. Recently, our president Beatrice Leblanc sent out her circular letter with the theme: formation. (Click here to link the Circular.)

We therefore undertook to dissect her letter and to reflect on it personally through our little bulletin. The text is long, but it is well worth the effort! We already have several issues devoted to her letter and we will continue. Perhaps it will also be the subject of our next retreat.

I hope that everyone in the MLCs will be able to make use of this circular letter, because it contains an enormous amount of work and some very interesting ideas for both basic and continuing education. I recommend it: let's use it as much as we can and thank you to the international team and especially to our dear Beatrice.

Josee Reberge

National Responsible, French Canada

[email protected]

Marianist Center for Faith Education

in French Canada

by Josee Roberge

I don't know about you, but I feel that the year 2020-2021 has forced us to reinvent ourselves. We've had to embrace technologies we were a little less comfortable with and be creative in figuring out how to get close to our families, our communities, and people in need.

The Marianist Center for Faith Education has not escaped this. Now animated by a team of lay Marianists, the Center has been able to adapt itself while sticking as much as possible to its founding charism and its mission. Thus, new avenues have been born in the breath of the Holy Spirit. Here are two of them.

The first is an innovative evangelization and faith education project that aims to take advantage of the entire property; the interactive trails were born!

While taking inspiration from Laudato Si' for the environmental aspect and the beauty of creation, we are creating faith trails that will allow young and old individuals to develop their spirituality. It will be possible to walk alone, in family or in groups and benefit from a personalized animation if needed. There are already beautiful offers of journey that are available.

All this is entirely subsidized by the Providence! In fact, as a reminder, the Center has been operating, for the past 20 years, solely through the generosity of donors. All the collaborators, except for a few, are volunteers and this requires us to pray and keep looking for the will of God. Didn't Jesus say: "Seek first the Kingdom of God and his justice, and all the rest will be given to you in addition"? (Click Here to see pictures of early trail development.)

Secondly, a closer partnership with the Diocese of Quebec allows the Centre to support the proposals put forward by our bishops. The diocese is asking Catholics and pastoral teams to prioritize adult faith education now. To do this, it proposes to train animators of "houses" which are in fact small groups or cells where people can progress in faith.

The Marianist charism means that we are already engaged in this way of doing things. The former congregation of Chaminade is taking on new work but is still relevant to the mission of evangelization. The Center is happy to "specialize" in the formation and accompaniment of small community leaders as it has done since its founding. This partnership strengthens the ecclesial link and this is very important.

May the Holy Spirit continue to enlighten us and ensure that our Marianist charism is at the service of our brothers and sisters.

For more information contact

Josee Roberge,

National Responsible, French Canada

[email protected]

Let Us Pray...

A Summer Blessing

by Joyce Rupp and Macrina Wiederkehr

Blessed are you, summer,

season of long days and short nights,

you pour forth light from your golden orb,

energizing the earth and calling forth growth.

Blessed are you summer,

with your generous gift of heat.

Your warm breath animates creation,

encouraging all growing things to stretch toward the sun.

Blessed are you, summer,

you call us into playfulness,

encouraging us to pause from work.

You renew our spirits.

Blessed are you, gracious season of summer,

you surprise us with a variety of gifts from the earth.

We, too, gaze into the earth of ourselves,

beholding gifts waiting to be honored.

Blessed are you, nurturing season of summer,

your fruits and vegetables appear on our tables,

changing them into altars.

Tasting of your life, we are made strong.

Blessed are you, summer,

season of roots that reach for water.

Even through the cracks in the sidewalk

the song of your seed can be heard.

Blessed are you, summer,

season rooted in reality.

Even as the perspiration collects on our brow,

we experience your earthly joy.

Blessed are you, summer,

and your firefly evenings

you minister to the child in us.

You feed our hunger for beauty.

From the book The Circle of Life by

Joyce Rupp & Macrina Wiederkehr

Calendar of the Marianist Family

July 9 Mary, Queen of Peace

July 11 Most Sacred Hear of Jesus

July 16 Our Lady of Mount Carmel

July 26 Saints Anne & Joachim, Parents of Mary

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