Marianist Lay Community
of North America
Being Church in the Modern World
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Greetings!
Okay, I'll admit it. Sometimes, I am a grumpy Marianist.
Sometimes - not all the time, but sometimes - it feels like to be a Marianist is to be endlessly meeting, writing some piece, on a conference call or, of course, planning yet another meeting. These moments do not feel very life giving and... well... sometimes I get a little grumpy. I ask, what's all this for anyway? Why do I keep doing this Marianist thing?
When I'm perhaps a little less grumpy and sit back and reflect on this question, I think the best answer I have is Hope. The "big H" Hope - the virtue. The Hope I have isn't in a meeting, or a project, or a piece of writing... it's in the mission that Mary proclaims in her Magnificat: the Reign of God is coming. It is this ultimate Hope that keeps me going... that reminds me what this is all for anyway.
When I hear Chaminade's message that "we are all missionaries," I think that must then necessarily mean that we are all actively hopeful. How can one be mission oriented otherwise?
And so, if any of you are like me and feel that sometimes - maybe only in your heart of hearts - that you can be a bit of a grumpy Marianist like me, I would encourage you to join me in reconsidering the state of affairs. We may have fleeting moments of despair in which we are not our best selves, but we are also sustained and lifted up by the gift of Hope. With this in mind, I can say with certainty and confidence that whatever else I am:
I am a hopeful Marianist.
Peace,
Rob Brodrick
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The Roots Marianist Lay Community gathered recently for their annual retreat at Mount Saint John in Beavercreek, OH. The community, including thirteen children between the ages of one-month to eight years old, joined for the daylong gathering. The retreat was planned and facilitated by guest Brian Reavey, lay Marianist and director of Retreat to Broadway. Retreat to Broadway is a national non-profit project that pairs innovative programming with live theater. The Roots retreat highlighted the Marianist charism and the arts in nurturing our spirituality. The Roots community created their own live theater and wrote a wonderful song to the tune of Beauty and the Beast's "Be Our Guest."
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Nominate Someone for MLC-NA Leadership
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MLC-NA is seeking nominations for the Head of Education and Chair-Elect of the MLC-NA Leadership Council. The Head of Education serves 3 years. The Chair-Elect is in that position for a year before becoming Chair for 3 years. Position descriptions are part of the
Leadership Mode
l
.
Anyone in the Marianist Family can submit a nomination. Voting is limited to Lay Marianists.
Nominations will be accepted through an extended deadline of October 23, 2019. Nominees will be contacted for more information and for a bio.
Voting will take place in early November. Terms begin January 2020.
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Register to Explore Spirituality and Social Justice in Business
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The conference April 3-5 is sponsored by the Marianist Business Network and will be held at the Bergamo Retreat Center in Dayton, Ohio. This conference was originally scheduled for October 2019, but was just moved to April 2020. The Marianist Business network is a group of business people who are associated with the Marianist Family and Marianist sponsored institutions. They are interested in exploring Business as Vocation.
The purpose of the conference is to:
- To provide an introduction to the nature and purposes of the Marianist Business Network
- To explore how the Marianist Charism and the Catholic social justice tradition provides a foundation for:
- The role of business in building the common good
- Building communities of work
- Addressing some of the complex and difficult issues of contemporary business.
- To explore how the Marianist Charism and Marianist Spirituality can support the call to a business vocation and to a work-life balance
- The Marianist Business Network is new. At the conference we will critique and develop its nature, its purpose, and its future agenda.
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Mark your calendars for our next
Lay Marianist Assembly
Our first confirmed keynote is
Fr. Gregory Boyle, SJ
July 16-19, 2020
Being held in San Antonio in conjunction with the
50th Anniversary of Marianist LIFE
Co-chairs: Katie Gushoney and Jessica Gonzalez-Uhlig
Watch future newsletters for details and opportunities to volunteer.
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Marianist World Day of Prayer
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Each October, the Marianist Family around the world observes a common day of prayer. A new country is featured each year. This year, the scheduled date is October 13, 2019. The location, patroness and featured country are the Marian Shrine of Our Lady of Atacora, Mother of Unity and Good Counsel, in Natitingou, Benin (West Africa)
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Your individual community may choose to have a prayer service, or you local Marianist Family Council may host or sponsor one. As you assemble your prayer service, please consider using the prayer found at the end of the
attached packet
.
The rest of the packet includes background information on the featured shrine and its impact on those who have a devotion to it and to our Blessed Mother.
If you gather for prayer, please take a picture and send it to us!
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Changes for Sunday Reflections
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MLC-NA is announcing a change to Sunday Reflections in the Marianist Tradition. Beginning with the new liturgical year (November 29, 2019), reflections will be provided for Marian and Marianist Feast Days rather than for each Sunday. We are making this change to heighten awareness of those feasts holding special significance for the Marianist Family and to allow for more focused reflection on the meaning of those days.
Volunteers are invited to provide reflections for one of the dates on the
attached list
. If you are interested, please contact Margy Lisjak, at
margy.lisjak@mlc-na.org
with a request for a specific date or to be assigned one of the feast days.
Details regarding length and due date to meet publication deadlines will be shared with volunteers
.
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Sunday Reflections in the Marianist Tradition
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Deepen your connection to the Sunday readings with these reflections for
October 2019
from members of the Marianist Family.
Thank you Daniel Jordan, Michael McAward, S.M., Laura Leming, FMI, Jim Vogt, and Barb Belle for providing the reflections for the month of September.
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MLC-NA is a tax exempt non-profit organization and is self-supporting through the contributions of people like you!
Your support will help us to:
- Hire a part-time National Director for the MLC-NA
- Create an online membership portal for searching for other Lay Marianists and sharing community resources
- Support the creation and launch a new lay formation process for initial and on-going formation
Contributions can also be sent to the address at the bottom of this newsletter.
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Memorial of the Guardian Angels
Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary
Feast of Our Lady of the Pillar
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See more information and prayers for all these Marianist Feast Days
here
.
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Walking with Adele
Marie-Joelle Bec, FMI
How is Adele’s work continued? I will quote our General Chapter of 1997:
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As women, we are called to accompany life, to watch over its growth, to marvel at the fruits it bears, to always defend it when it is threatened. In all this, Adele is a living example for us. In her time and in her world, with the education she had and urged by the love of Chris, she knew well how to go out to others and help them in their needs, both physical as well as spiritual. She knew how to be creative in announcing the Gospel and in serving others….In all places, and in different ways, our mission with children, young adults, and families continues to develop. In this disoriented and rapidly changing world, they are expecting us to be attentive listeners, and to accompany them in a respectful and patience manner. They have a need to find indispensable points of reference to build their lives and give them meaning. (§§ 20-23)
Marie-Joelle Bec, FMI
Walking with Adele, p. xvii
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Lord, send us your Spirit of hope….
as we hold in prayer those who are enduring pain and suffering. May God’s healing embrace give them strength for their journey and comfort in their suffering.
for new parents and those seeking to become parents, may the example lived by Mary and Joseph instill a deep joy, patience, and understanding of God’s will in their lives.
as we ask Blessed Adele’s intercession for the immigrant children and families who are suffering. May her witness to the poor give us encouragement to continue to advocate for compassion and a just solution to this painful crisis.
as we call upon our world leaders to model compassion, work for justice, and raise up those who suffer.
as we pray for our departed Marianist Brothers and Sisters and Marianist family members who have enriched our lives through their presence. In a special away, we pray for Bro. William Farrell, (9/12), Bro. David Schmitz (9/15), Bro. John Samaha (9/27), and Rev. David Brinkmoeller (9/27) - may they be held in God’s loving embrace as they join the fellowship of saints.
Lord, send us your Spirit of joy….
for the witness and grace of our Marianist brothers in continuing Blessed Chaminade’s vision for bringing Christ to our world.
that Mary’s example of contemplation and reflection give us a model for listening more deeply to one another.
as we celebrate the gifts of the Marianist Sisters, whose presence in the United States for 70 years has been a blessing to so many.
that we, like Marie Therese, find within our hearts the joy and love in serving others.
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Thank you to all who have visited our web form - we have hundreds of updated records.
If you haven't updated your information, please take a few moments to fill out this
brief questionnaire
(it's a Google form). Each member of a family should register separately so we have individual emails for future elections, etc.
Please also encourage your community members to keep their information current. Individuals may follow the link or a community rep can send us a community roster.
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MLC-NA Area Representatives
(Click on names for emails)
Southeast (FL, NC)
Northeast (PA, NY, NJ, MD, VA)
OH, KY, IN
Central States (CO, IL, KS, NE, MO, WI)
Texas
West Coast (CA, OR, WA)
Hawaii
Canada (French-Speaking)
UD-formed Communities (Many are virtual)
To Be Determined
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NEWSLETTERS
Read the Signs of the Times and Sign Up for these Marianist Family Newsletters
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Matt Dunn
Chair-Elect
Vacant
Head of Education
Jim Barrette
LeeAnn Meyer
Margy Lisjak
Rob Brodrick
Caitlin Cipolla-McCulloch
Maureen O'Rourke
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AMAZON DONATION PROGRAM!
Did you know that when you buy stuff at Amazon.com, Amazon will make a donation to MLC-NA?
How? By using Smile.Amazon.Com.
Please consider using smile.amazon.com and selecting Marianist Lay Network as your charity. There is no additional cost to you and it really is the same site as Amazon.
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