January 10, 2019
From Fr. Oscar Vasquez
Dear Brothers,

Visit to the District of India

Bro. Bernie Ploeger and and I are now into the second week of our visit to the District of India. This is my first visit and Bernie’s second visit. We have been impressed by the quality of our ministries and the deep conviction of our Brothers. We continue to thank God for the many Brothers from the US Province who have served in India since its beginning. 


Provincial Chapter

Reminder that the letter convoking the March General Chapter was released on January 4. Directors, please print this letter for Brothers that may not receive email. 


Perpetual Profession

This coming Saturday, January 12, Bro. Ravulapalli Showraiah will profess Perpetual Vows in the Society of Mary, District of India. I will be presiding at the Mass and Bro. Bernie Ploeger will be the homilist. Please join me in praying for our newest member in Perpetual Vows. I will bring your greetings to those attending the Mass.  
International Personnel

Your communities will be receiving copies of the International Personnel Directory. There is a limited supply of additional directories, please contact Pat Stephens if you would like an individual copy.

This Coming Week

*January 14 (late night): Return from India 
*January 15: Depart for the University of Dayton Board meeting
From Fr. Tim Kenney

Dear Brothers,

Remembering and Praying with Blessed Adèle

On May 25, 1816, courageously wanting to do more with her life and live in community, Blessed Adèle de Batz de Trenquelléon and a few women from the Association, with the support of Fr. Chaminade, founded the Daughters of Mary Immaculate–the Marianist Sisters–in Agen, France. 
Blessed Adèle took the religious name of Sr. Marie of the Conception. The Marianist Sisters sought to work in partnership with the Virgin Mary to spread faith. They nurtured the growing lay sodality, offered retreats, provided schooling and cared for the poor and sick, especially women and children.

Blessed Adèle died on January 10, 1828, at the age of 38. Today, we join with our Marianist Sisters and our entire Marianist Family in remembering this "Aristocrat for the Poor!"
Spiritual Reading 2019

What are you reading for your soul and would you be willing to share? Please, send me the name of the book and a sentence or two about it! As we move into 2019, I will share a few books from time to time in "Notes." Have you seen/read the following:

  1. Contemplative Prayer, by Thomas Merton (shared by Bro. Tom Spring): "Merton draws a good distinction between 'meditation' and 'contemplation' that is very practical and makes clear why the latter is closer to what Jesus was trying to teach us which is so different from what our church has led us to practice."
  2. Letters of Blessed William Joseph Chaminade (shared by Bro. Brandon Paluch): "This year, I have been reading the Letters of Blessed William Joseph Chaminade from beginning to end (step by step). What strikes me so far is his references to Divine Providence. He seems to refer to Providence in about every other letter, exhorting people to greater faith, accepting difficult situations with patience, discerning the movements of the Holy Spirit, and calling the Brothers to be poor and rely on the Lord." 
  3. Awesome Glory: Resurrection in Scripture, Liturgy, and Theology, by Abbot Jeremy Driscoll, OSB (shared by Fr. Marty Solma): "Starting from the conviction that the liturgy is meant to be for Christians an immediate and effective contact with the resurrection, Abbot Jeremy Driscoll draws out the riches of each celebration from the Paschal Triduum through Pentecost focusing particularly on the Scripture texts of Mass, but also on important rituals like the washing of feet, the Lucernarium, and the baptism of catechumens."
  4. Beyond Original Sin: Recovering Humanity’s Creative Urge, by Diarmuid O'Murchu (shared by Bro. Phil Aaron): "Irish writer, Diarmuid O'Murchu, has kept up his a book-a-year publication pace with this new book in which he returns to his fundamental thesis that the patriarchy under which we have lived for the last 10,000 years is the source of all our problems and has got to go!
From Bro. Jesse O'Neill
Dear Brothers,

Whats Happening

Visit to Colegio San José: This Friday, I will be travelling to Puerto Rico for visitation to the community. I look forward to returning to a place of great Marianist spirit and purpose. Colegio San José continues to be a school that truly educates in the Marianist tradition. Thank you to all the Brothers and to the entire Marianist family for bringing the gift of our charism to those we serve in Puerto Rico.

Their mission statement:

Colegio San José es un colegio católico marianista de excelencia académica para varones, preparatorio para la universidad, que desarrolla líderes cristianos, responsables y sensibles, comprometidos al servicio de Dios y el prójimo. 


(Translation) Colegio San José is a Catholic Marianist college preparatory school providing academic excellence for young men, developing responsible and sensitive Christian leaders who are committed to the service of God and neighbor.  


A Story of Hope and Joy

(Submitted by Bro. Gary Morris , director of Spacebar at Chaminade University of Honolulu)

One of my great joys as a university educator is to work with students as a director of theatre productions. You see students in a different light than in classrooms. The creative energy that, together, we bring to the theatre during rehearsals and performances is exhilarating and, in spite of the long weeks and hard work during production schedules, it is a hope-filled journey that challenges us to share the talents with which we have been blessed. This joy spills over to the audiences on campus who come to appreciate the plays and musicals we prepare.

This past fall, we presented a humorous, sensitive, quirky and thoroughly enjoyable production of a play titled Spacebar: A Broadway Play by Kyle Sugarman by Michael Mitnick. We were enchanted by the simplicity of the staging and the depth of the story. Together, we laughed with Kyle as he explained his wacky futuristic play in letters to Broadway (who he thinks is a flesh-and-blood person). We felt for him and his dad as they struggled through personal family difficulties, and we sympathized with him as he dealt with his teenage angst and longing to be loved and respected for who he was and what he could accomplish. Theatre can do that for students, faculty and audiences alike. Working with students in theatre is like taking a big slice of life -- often similar to their lives -- and making it real through the magic of performance. This gives me joy and hope. I've been doing this for more than 50 years at the secondary and university levels. It is truly a gift to continue doing it as long as I am able.
Bro. Gary Morris (front left) with the Spacebar cast after the opening night performance.
Office of JPIC - Brian Reavey
Dear Brothers,

Youth Rally and Mass for Life in D.C. 

Click here for 2019 updates from the Archdiocese of Washington. I cannot attend the March for Life on January 18 due to annual MSJC Steering Committee meetings in Dayton; our office is helping to subsidize North Catholic's Campus Ministry trip from Pittsburgh. There are several other Marianist schools planning to attend, too. 

Linking Justice & Peace in the Lectionary 

Below you will find a homily resource from CMSM members and other people of wisdom in our community for your reflection. If you are not preparing homilies, please consider sharing with your local priest.

Sunday Jan. 13th by Br. Steve Herro, O.Praem.
Sunday Jan. 20th by Dianne Bergant CSA
Birthdays
Please pray for our brothers who are celebrating their birthdays

January 10: Donald Smith
January 16: Jeffrey Sullivan
January 17: Michael Nartker
On the Calendar
January 10: Death of Blessed Adèle de Batz de Trenquelléon
January 13: The Baptism of the Lord
This publication is for members of the Society of Mary. Please do not forward it. Also, please provide a printed copy for brothers who do not use email.