Stephano Kim (Korea) has been approved by the Korean Regional Council and ratified by the Provincial Council to begin the Novitiate in Dayton in January 2021.

The new International Personnel Books were mailed to communities late last week. There is a copy of the International Personnel on the portal as well. Please destroy copies of last year's personnel; do not simply recycle them. We have a limited supply of these personnel books; please contact Pat Stephens if you need additional copies.

In our world today, sometimes it seems that we only hear about the negative or only see the news that places the Church in a bad light.  Recently, the Catholic News Service had a wonderful article about the Marianist Student Communities at the University of Dayton. Read the article here. Enjoy!

After Bro. Kumar's return from the United States, the India District Administration assigned Bro. Kumar to the Scholasticate community with the ministry of teaching in the UD-Deepahalli Program. Recently, Bro. Kumar decided on his own, without authorization, to leave the community and to return to his family. Calls to Bro. Kumar for his return have been unsuccessful. I am very concerned about this unacceptable situation. Should he contact you, please inform me. Please pray for Bro. Kumar.

Following is a helpful resource on surviving in this time of COVID.

Recently, Fr. Tim Kenney gave me a copy of Sr. Joan Chittister’s book The Time Is Now: A Call to Uncommon Courage. Much of it is a call for us, Catholic Christians, to step up a new level of prophetic spirituality. In the chapter on “Audacity,” she describes a figurine of a prophet that sits on her desk, "It looks to the casual observer to be made of heavy lead, just right for a person of power and influence. In actuality, once the figurine is picked up, anyone can tell it is very light because it is not metal and is hollow. And then I understood. So, too, is the prophetic spirit empty of anything but the Word of God, of everything but what it means to be true to the coming of the Will of God for creation.”

This came to mind when I read today’s readings. In the Gospel, we hear how John the Baptist rejects all the titles of power and authority that the Jewish priests and Levites wanted to place on him. Instead, he quotes the prophet Isaiah, “I am the voice of one crying out in the desert, ‘make straight the way of the Lord.’” John is very clear about his vocation. He is simply to announce the coming of the Messiah and help the people prepare for his arrival through repentance. On the other hand, this week’s first reading is the same passage from Isaiah that Jesus chooses to read in his hometown of Nazareth at the start of his public ministry (LK 4:14). Jesus takes on a much more ambitious agenda, “to bring glad tidings to the poor, to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and release to the prisoners, to announce a year of favor from the LORD and a day of vindication by our God.” Both of these figures allow the Spirit of God to fill them and direct their lives and mission.

In the Responsorial Psalm today, we hear Mary’s Magnificat. She, too, in a more physical way, has allowed the Spirit to fill her in order to bring forth our Savior. She knows this action of faith will change the course of her people by quoting the earlier prophetess, Hannah (Samuel 2) “He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. He has come to the help of his servant Israel for he has remembered his promise of mercy.” Let us use this Advent to be more open to the action of the Spirit in our own lives, so we too can be a prophetic call to “uncommon courage.”

To conclude, I offer a couple of Advent prayers that may also lead to further reflection.

St. Vincent-St. Mary High School recently signed the renewal of their Sponsorship & Services Agreement. This agreement was first signed by the school in 2017 as a new member of our sponsored schools’ family. Here is a link to

the YouTube site where you can see the event. They did an excellent job celebrating!

Please click this link to view the December issue of The Fulcrum, our LIFE newsletter. The link includes a video of the 50th anniversary of LIFE that many will enjoy.

December 10: David Betz, William Grundish

December 12: Thomas Spring

December 13: DuWayne Brisendine

December 14: John Putka

December 16: Thomas French

December 12: Our Lady of Guadalupe

December 13: Third Sunday of Advent

December 17-18: Provincial Council Meetings

December 17: Notes from the Provincial Council 

December 24: Christmas Message from the Provincial Council

December 31: New Year’s Message from the Provincial Council

January 7, 2021: Resume regular schedule of Notes from the Provincial Council