NUNTIA N° 9 – SEPTEMBER 2008

From the General Curia: New assignments; The Superior General recounts his September activities; The International Executive Committee (IEC) for the celebration of the 350^th anniversary; The Delegate for the Vincentian Family. From the Provinces:From Chile, the Visitor writes; Meeting of the Councils of the Three Italian Provinces. Nominationes. Ordinationes. Necrologium.

From the General Curia:

New assignments: With the arrival, on 27 September, of Brother Milton de Jesús Pereira, from the Province of Rio de Janeiro, all those newly assigned to the General Curia are now present.  Previously, Father Mario Grossi, from the Province of Turin, and Father Luis Moleres, from the Province of Zaragoza, had arrived.  These three appear in our front page photo, in the order mentioned from left to right, at the feet of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal in the garden of the Curia, ready to initiate their new services.  May the humble handmaid of the Lord’s designs stimulate and support their enthusiasm.

The Community of the Curia is composed of 15 members: 13 priests and two brothers.  All of us are anxious to serve you from our different assignments and will be delighted to have the opportunity to meet you in our house.

The Superior General: Recounts his September activities:

“From 5-24 September, I was in Madagascar.  From the second day, the whole trip was on land and on some roads in lamentable condition.  After a few days I began to consider the trip to the different sites in Madagascar as a pilgrimage in which the holy places were the confreres’ houses and the meetings with the different branches of the Vincentian Family, including many visits to the Daughters of Charity and to the Nazarene Sisters, founded by our confrere Blessed Marco Antonio Durando.  In each of them I could give thanks to God for the apostolic zeal and tenacity of Saint Vincent and the first missionaries that still survives in the bold and creative initiatives of the missionaries who work today on that dear Island.

Among many other places, I visited Farafangana, where I had a very pleasant meeting with the bishop, our confrere, Msgr. Benjamin Ramaroson.  He is extremely impressed by the work that the Vincentian Family is doing throughout Madagascar, a poor country, abandoned by its own government.

Another place that caught my attention is Tanhomoja (Vohipeno), where the Missioners and the Daughters of Charity work.  The Superior is Father Emeric Amyot d’Inville, former Secretary General of the C.M.  Tanhomoja is a center for physically handicapped persons, who are excluded from society, rejected for what they are.  Father has a very interesting project for the integration of children from the excluded community with children from the regular community.  The project is a school, constructed with money from the Systemic Change Award.

I was in Fianarantsoa too, which is where our seminarians, those in the preparatory year, and the philosophy and theology students live and work.  I was pleased to be there on Sunday, the 21^st, for the taking of vows of three young Malagasy men.

The closing Mass was in Antananarivo, at Akamasoa, the community constructed with the support of the confreres, especially Father Pedro Opeka.  At the Mass, there were more than 6000 young people, who were beginning their school year with an anticipated feast of Saint Vincent de Paul.  Many others could not enter for lack of space.  All of them came from the different schools constructed at Akamasoa.

From the 25^th to the 27^th, I was at the Berçeau, where I was accompanied by Sister Evelyne to meet the Board of Directors of the Berçeau, which is planning alterations in this site of so much importance to the Vincentian Family.  On the feast of Saint Vincent de Paul, I took part in the Eucharist presided by the Bishop of Dax at which the confreres, after having lived through the experience of the Internal Seminary in Avila, Spain, made their ‘Good Purposes.’

Returning to Paris, from the 28^th to the 30^th, I accompanied the CIF group, 14 missionaries from various areas, especially Asia.  I also was able to talk and celebrate the Eucharist with a group of 90 Daughters of Charity, who are participating in a Vincentian Session at the Rue du Bac.

I take advantage of the opportunity to greet everyone and to give you my blessing on the Feast of Saint Vincent de Paul, even if it is already passed.”

The International Executive Committee (IEC) for the celebration of the 350^th anniversary met on 20 September 2008 at the Curia House of the C.M. in Rome.  This Committee consists of the Coordinating Commission, made up of Father Józef Kapuściak, Father Manuel Ginete and Sister Palmarita Guida, and the persons responsible for the five commissions of the IEC: Fathers Hugh O’Donnell, Giuseppe Guerra, Bernard Schoepfer, Claudio Santangelo, and John Gouldrick, Sisters Rita Ferri, Ana María Olmeda, and Antoinette-Marie Hance and Mrs. Anne Sturm.

The purpose of every commission was fixed and the general lines of the methodology to be followed laid down; the group made precisions it considered opportune.  It noted the desirability of developing our own slogan and logo.  It suggested the advisability of adding to the membership of the Vincentian Heritage Commission, especially with persons from Asia and Africa to represent the internationality of the event.  The same was suggested for the Project Commission.

It insisted, from the beginning, that the 350^th celebration must not serve to present us a history, which is more or less known to us, but rather to show the vitality of the charism that the Vincentian Family makes present in our world today.

It was noted that Father Portail, inseparable collaborator of the Founders, died in the same year that Saint Vincent and Saint Louise did.  Likewise in 2010, we will celebrate the 150^th anniversary of Saint Justin De Jacobis’s death, an event entrusted to the Province of Naples, but that undoubtedly will have repercussion on the entire Vincentian Family.

The Delegate for the Vincentian Family: (Father Ginete’s news)

“In the past months, Manuel Ginete, the Superior General’s Delegate for the Vincentian Family, has visited several countries, participating in various meetings.  In July he travelled to Australia with the Superior General for the Vincentian Family Gathering in Bathurst, New South Wales.  This was an event organized by the Vincentian Family of Australia in conjunction with World Youth Day.  This gathering brought together more than 300 people from 33 countries and it took place the week before the World Youth Day celebrations.  During the WYD week itself, the Delegate attended the one-day meeting of the SSVP International, graced in a special way by the presence of José Ramón Torremocha, SSVP International President, and Michael Thio, SSVP International Vice-President.

In August, he travelled to Kenya to conduct a week-long retreat for the Vincentians Fathers, Brothers and seminarians, as well as for some Daughters of Charity.  He developed his talks around the theme of the Vincentian Family’s worldwide partnership in the service of the poor, the reality involved and the challenges that it poses for the entire Vincentian Family.  After the retreat, he gave some of these conferences to the internal seminarists.  He also visited the DREAM center in Nairobi, the CM parish in Kamulu, the nursery school and the center for street children in the Kibera district.  Likewise, he met with some members of the Brothers of Charity, and spoke with some leaders of the Vincentian Club, who inspired young students to renounce violence during the recent ethnic and political conflicts.

From 1-6 September, he attended the 21^st “Semana de Estudios Vicentinos” (Week of Vincentian Studies) in Lima, Peru, where he contributed a conference on systemic change and its repercussions on our Vincentian mission.  These well-attended week-long evening sessions ended on Saturday with the Vincentian day of prayer at which he also gave a talk on Vincentian spirituality.  During the day, he met with various groups from the AIC, SSVP, DC, the Missionary Sisters of Charity, AMM, JMV, MaCoVi (Movement of Vincentian Acolytes), Alumni of Vincentian Schools, etc.  In these meetings and in his visits to their places of ministry, he witnessed the great dedication that these VF branches offer to our service and love of the poor.  His experience was rounded out as he attended the funeral of a much-loved confrere and pastor, Father Jesús Esparza Vidán.

Towards the end of September, he travelled to Poland to be with the Vincentian Family in their annual gathering at the national Shrine of our Lady of Czestochowa.  More than 500 people participated in this meeting which started on the feast of Saint Vincent de Paul and finished the following day.  It was a truly spiritual experience which showcased the deep Catholic faith of the Polish people and their great devotion to our Lady.  At this gathering, he spoke to the VF members about the groups, projects and challenges facing the worldwide Vincentian Family.  While in Poland, he was able also to visit the parishes, centers, and communities of the confreres and of the Daughters of Charity, and met with some groups of the AIC, SSVP, etc.

In these past months, the Delegate was furthermore involved in the preparatory meetings for the celebration of the 350^th anniversary (2010) of the death of Saint Vincent de Paul and Saint Louise de Marillac.  At the same time, he was busy helping organize the Continental Sessions on Systemic Change for VF Leaders and Advisors, particularly those scheduled for 2009, namely, Mexico (February), Brazil (June), Africa-Cameroon (July), and Asia-Thailand (November).”

From the Provinces:

Up to the drafting of Nuntia, different echoes of the Vincentian Family celebrations have arrived.  Surely there have been many, many more.

From Chile, the Visitor, writes:

“Besides being the ‘Month of the Fatherland’ in Chile, September is also the ‘Vincentian Month.’  It has been thus from top to bottom, this time among ourselves.

In addition to the memorials of the martyrs of the French Revolution, Ozanam, and Saint John Gabriel Perboyre and the solemnity of Saint Vincent, this month was full of celebrations and activities for the Congregation and the Vincentian Family in Chile.

In fact, between the 8^th and 13^th, the CLAPVI Meeting on Vincentian Parishes was held in Santiago, at which about 40 Latin American missionaries took part, including almost all from the Province of Chile.  In the context of this same meeting, four students of theology were instituted as Lectors on 11 September, feast of Saint John Gabriel Perboyre.

On 13 September, the National Day of the Vincentian Family was held, at which the missionaries assisting at the CLAPVI meeting also participated.  During this Day, the reflection was on ‘Systemic Change.’

On Saturday, the 20^th, with the fatherland festivities concluded and the ‘Vincentian Week’ begun, four other students received, this time, the alb, as a sign of beginning their priestly formation.

Finally, on 26 September, in the Cathedral of Santiago, together with the entire Vincentian Family, we celebrated Saint Vincent’s Feast with a Eucharist presided by the Auxiliary Bishop of Santiago, Msgr. Andrés Arteaga, and that had the massive participation of the faithful, belonging to the different branches of the Family.  So many others took place in Valparaíso and other cities on Saturday, the 27^th.”

Meeting of the Councils of the Three Italian Provinces: They met in Rome, from 1-2 September 2008, for the verification of some commitments and common initiatives.

They discussed the state of the Albanian mission, after the insertion of two new missionaries, its economic situation and solution perspectives.

They received information on the draft of the Vincentian Calendar, with the topic of the campaign on the problem of water in poor countries, “a drop for life.”  In that respect, they determined the way to proceed: the campaign will have a duration of three years; what is obtained from each of the initiatives will be deposited in one bank account and will be distributed proportionally among the different projects that are presented.  This campaign will be the concrete work of charity that will mark our journey toward the celebration of the Vincentian Year 2010.

They reviewed the functioning of the Alberoni National Scholasticate and confirmed the formation team.  In this line of formation, they noted the European meeting organized, in Valencia, Spain, by CEVIM for young priests.  They publicized a week on missionary activity in parishes, to be held on the European level from 26-30 January 2009.

Finally it was decided to hold the upcoming Provincial Assemblies in a united way, in the same place and at the same time, with meetings by provinces and with other moments of interprovincial meeting for prayer, celebrations, meals, and recreation.

Nominationes

Ordinationes

Necrologium