Items filtered by date: February 2016

February 04, 2016

TO ALL PROVINCIAL SUPERIORS AND THROUGH THEM

TO ALL OUR DEAR CONFRERES!

FRATERNAL GREETINGS FROM THE LAND OF POPE FRANCIS!

            The New Year (2016) started with a flurry of activities starting with the return of our priest student boarders from the various parochial ministries during the Christmas break. On the 2^nd of January Fr. Silvano Marisa with Fr. Alex Valummel left for Angola. Fr. General presided over the Provincial Chapter and Fr. Alex met with the various Treasurers to explain the financial record keeping of the Congregation and other requisites for their office as provided for in our rule. The election of the new Provincial Leadership was communicated to all by our beloved General Secretary. Both returned on the 12^th of January very happy with the mission accomplished.

            Meanwhile, Fr. Joseph Bachand, left for France on the 4^th of January to officially begin his mission of Superior of the International Community at the La Salette Shrine. He continues to be a member of the General Council and will come to Rome occasionally for meetings of the Council. He will certainly remain connected and will be well informed about the activities of the General Council. He has now embarked on a serious deepening of his mastery of the French Language.

            Also in the month of January, the Region of Argentina had its meeting “Ad instar capituli” and elected their Regional Leadership. The new leadership was communicated to you on January 26. On January 28-30, the Indian Matha Province also had a chapter and  elected their provincial leaders. The Chapter was presided over by Fr. Thomas Vellappallil, M.S. as delegate of Fr. Superior General. Results of the election were subsequently communicated to you.

            Here in Rome, we have had some wintry days….with temperatures at times going down to freezing. Fortunately not for long….and not enough to have snow. During all this, Fr. Adilson Schio was basking in the Brazilian summer heat in Marcelino Ramos where he was vacationing with his family. In the latter part of January he also joined the provincial gathering of the Province of Brazil and gave a retreat to the Province. He will be back in Rome, Februay 5. Welcome back Fr. Adilson.

             On the 30^th of January, the Most Rev. Paolo Selvadagi, D.D. the Auxiliary Bishop of the Western Section of the Diocese of Rome officially presented to the Parish Fr. HENRYK PRZEZDZIECKI, M.S. as Administrator of the Parish of Our Lady of La Salette here in Rome. He too remains a member of the General Council. After this, one of his official  acts was to organize a special Mass for all the religious in the parish to mark the annual day for  Religious and the closure of the year of Consecrated Life. The Mass was attend by approximately 35 relgious sisters and our La Salette religious, after which all gathered in our community dining hall for a fraternal breakfast, roman style. (Coffee, bread, butter and jams and some cheese).  

In the afternoon of the 2^nd February, the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, the five of us, Frs. Silvano, Alex, Belarmino, Neil and myself along with two La Salette Sisters from Basilicata (Sounthern Italy) Srs. Balbina and Veronica, went to St. Peter’s Basilica to Concelebrate and assist at the Closing Mass of the Year of Consecrated Life with Pope Francis. The Mass was attended by more than five thousand Religious Priest, nuns, members of Secular Institues and lay people. I had a special privilege of being designated as one of the priests to give out Holy Communion to the faithful gathered on the Piazza outside the Basilica. It was a particularly inspiring experience for me, I am most grafeful. In his homily, the Pope spoke about “meeting”, reflecting on the meeting of Simeon and Anna with the Lord, and the Holy Family. A similar encounter with the Lord is essential to our life of consecration, and all of us are enjoined to achieve and deepen this in our lives.

January marked the last month of schooling in the Italian language for two La Salette sisters: Sr. Clotilde (Fara) Rasoamampionona and Sr. Ja Khawng (Maria). They have been going to language school since October, in preparation for the new mission they will have in the Shrine of Our Lady of the Guard in Marseille, France. The shrine is frequented by many Italians….thus the importance of the ability to communicate in Italian. The two sisters have marvelously acquired this capacity in their months of studies, during which our Generalate was their home. They returned to France February 1. Thank you for your presence with us dear Sisters…and we wish you a fruitful ministry in Marseille.

Finally, we give a hearty welcome to Fr. Adilson who returned from his vacation with renewed energy and much enthusiasm. And at the same time, we wish Fr. Alex Valummel happy trip and fruitful mission to Myanmar. He will visit our confreres and their mission, and  help them to have a better understanding of how to manage our material goods.

We take this opportunity to wish you all a blessed Lenten Season, in this year of Mercy…and the 170^th anniversary of the Merciful Apparition of Our Lady at La Salette. May Our Lord, through our Lady shower an abundance of blessings upon you and all our confreres during this season.

Very truly yours,

Efren L. Musngi, M. S.

OPENING OF POSTULANCY IN NORTH AMERICA

Ever since 1858, February 2 has had a special significance in the life of the La Salette Congregation, Provinces and Regions. For it was on that date that the Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette took the vows of religious life for the first time, thus becoming a Religious Congregation.

That is why, 158 years later, February 2 was chosen as the date for the beginning of Postulancy for three candidates of the North American Province.

One of them, Dimitri Demesmin, from Haiti, is already a diocesan priest who feels drawn to the La Salette way of life. He will spend most of his postulancy ministering in the parish of Mary Queen in Friendswood, Texas, while maintaining frequent contact with the Directors of Postulancy, Fr. Brian Schloth and Fr. Ronald Beauchemin, and with the other postulants.

The other two, Joseph Everton and Eric Burtchell, both came to know La Salette through the National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette in Attleboro, Massachusetts. They will remain in Washington, DC, taking courses for four or five months to ensure their readiness to begin theology studies in the fall of 2017.

The Novitiate will begin this summer.

The Postulancy began with a simple ceremony during a celebration of the Liturgy. On hand for the occasion were members of the Province Formation Committee: Fr. Raymond Cadran (also a member of the Provincial Council), Bro. David Eubank, and Fr. Ted Brown, as well as the Provincial Superior, Fr. René Butler.

Photo above:

From left: Fr. Ted Brown; Bro. David Eubank; Fr. Brian Schloth; Fr. Raymon Cadran; postulants Joseph Everton, Eric Burtchell & Fr. Dimitri Demesmin; Fr. Ronald Beauchemin.

Below: Fr. René Butler, Provincial, with the three postulants: Joseph Everton, Eric Burtchell, and Fr. Dimitri Demesmin

Fr. René Butler MS

January18-26, 2016
Mendiolaza, Argentina

The Regional Assembly and Chapter took place at a retreat center in Mendiolaza, about an hour’s drive from Córdoba.

Besides the 12 perpetually professed and the 2 in temporary vows, two candidates were also present, as well as several lay persons, all from Argentina with the exception of one from the USA. They were joined by the North American Provincial.

The Assembly focused on the Year of Mercy, with talks given by a Chilean priest, Fr. Cristian Mauricio Cárdenas Aguilar. He laid special emphasis on the tendency to indifference which so concerns Pope Francis.

During the Assembly the two candidates, Cesar Atahuichi Ochoa and Germán Ojopi Dasilva began their novitiate. After the meetings they traveled to Brazil where they joined the Brazilian novices at the La Salette Shrine of Marcelino Ramos.

Also, Fr. Joseph Peethuruthel, who had worked in Argentina for about 8 years, came to say goodbye before returning to India.

Friday, January 22, was a free day for the La Salettes, but for the laity it was a day to reflect together on their identity and role in the Region. They then went their separate ways before the “Ad Instar Capituli” meeting began on the Saturday.

Besides the various reports and the election of the Regional Council, the Chapter devoted its energy in particular to three areas:

 Vocations. This remains the most important issue that the Region must face. Plans were made for a Regional event drawing candidates from the different parts of the Region.
 Formation. Strategies and policies were reviewed.
 The 170th Anniversary of the Apparition. The hope is to organize three or four days of recollection in the course of the year, in each of our parishes.

Just before the Assembly, In Córdoba, we celebrated the birthday of Javier Pereira. During the Assembly we celebrated Alfredo Velarde’s 40th Anniversary of Religious Life. Two scholastics, Ariel Muratore and Diego Diaz renewed their vows on the same occasion.

In the photos, it is obvious that Alfredo has not been well. He was operated on for cancer just weeks before these meetings. Nevertheless, his spirits were excellent and his vitality was not much diminished.

Fr. René Butler MS