NUNTIA – MAY 2005
(Also available in a downloadable larger file with graphics
43. General Curia
25 years evangelizing the poor. The Superior General, Fr. G. Gregory Gay, C.M., celebrated 25 years of priesthood on 24 May with a Eucharist at Casa Maria Immacolata of the Daughters of Charity in Rome. Confreres from the General Curia and the various houses of the Province of Rome, Daughters of Charity from various communities and lay Vincentians participated. In his homily, he wove different recent personal events with the celebration of his anniversary. It was not a homily about priesthood, but it touched our priestly life; it was not a treatise on the Eucharist, but it spoke of the daily spiritual nourishment; it was not a talk on the family, but it made us feel closer to our blood family; it was not a spiritual conference, but made us reflect on our spiritual life; it was not a reflection on fraternal life; but it was a loving reminder of fraternal charity in the Vincentian Family in general. Congratulations! Ad multos annos!
Visit in Ukraine. The Superior General, and Fr. Józef Kapu_ciak, C.M., Vicar General, visited Ukraine from 3-9 May. The main reason was to participate in the opening of the Formation House in Kiev. They also visited Kharkov. The visit was a blessing for all the confreres of the Vice-Province of Sts. Cyril and Methodius, for the Daughters of Charity who work in those lands and for all the members of the Vincentian Family.
The new President of the Treasurers’ Association in Rome, a Vincentian missionary. Fr. Elmer Bauer III, C.M., Treasurer General, has been elected President of the Association for English and French-speaking General Treasurers in Rome. The General Treasurers of the Congregation have, in the past and present, been very active in this Association.
New Procurator and Archivist General. Fr. G. Gregory Gay, C.M., Superior General and his council, in an ordinary meeting of the General Council on 15 April named Fr. Varghese Thottamkara, C.M., as the new Procurator and Archivist General. Fr. Varghese belongs to the Province of South India and will replace Fr. Rolando DelaGoza, C.M., who has carried out this service since 1997. Thanks to Fr. DelaGoza for all this time dedicated to this ministry!
Meeting of the Finance Commission of the Curia. This meeting was held from 18-20 May in the General Curia. The Commission is composed of our confreres: Fr. Thomas J. Stehlik, C.M. (Provincial Treasurer of USA Southern), José Luis Fernández, C.M. (Provincial Treasurer of Peru), Bernard Meade, C.M. (Provincial Treasurer of Ireland), Phillipe Lamblin, C.M. (Provincial Treasurer of Paris) and Santiago Azcárate, C.M., (Provincial Treasurer of Zaragoza). The meeting was coordinated by Fr. Elmer Bauer III, C.M., Treasurer General. The Commission reviewed last year’s financial results, this year’s balance, the funds, the investments and the budget for next year. On the next-to-last day, the Commission met with the Superior General.
United in prayer. On 10 May, Mrs. Jeanne F. Gay, mother of the Superior General died in Kingsville, Maryland, at the age of 76. Fr. G. Gregory Gay, C.M., left on 11 May for the United States to be with his father and siblings at the funeral of his dear mother. Many confreres, Daughters of Charity and members of the Vincentian Family sent the Superior General hundreds of messages of solidarity. He thanks them wholeheartedly.
Visit to Albania. From 20-22 May, Fr. G. Gregory Gay, C.M., together with Fr. Giuseppe Guerra, C.M., Treasurer of the Curia House and Postulator General, went to Albania to visit the confreres and the Daughters of Charity in the cities of Rrëshen and Scutari.
Meeting with Superiors General of Societies of Apostolic Life. On 23 May, the Superior General was the host to 11 Superiors General of Societies of Apostolic Life in Rome, who periodically give some time to study and sharing experiences. On this occasion, they reflected on the profile of the formator. The meeting concluded with lunch along with the rest of the community of the General Curia.
Assembly of the Union of Major Superiors. From 25-27 May, Fr. G. Gregory Gay, C.M., Superior General, participated in the biannual meeting of the Union of Major Superiors (USM), whose objective was to “recall the Congress on Consecrated Life and raise new perspectives.”
With the International Council of JMV. Fr. G. Gregory Gay, C.M., Superior General participated, from 27-29 May in Madrid, in a meeting of the International Council of JMV to specify aspects of the General Assembly in Paris and World Youth Day in Cologne.
In Amsterdam. From 30 May to 1 June, the Superior General, Fr. G. Gregory Gay, C.M., visited the missionary provinces of the Netherlands. He thanked the Daughters of Charity and the missionaries for all the good that they had done through their services in so many places in the world. The meeting was marked by a deep spirit of celebration and family.
44. International Missions
El Alto (Bolivia). Fr. José María Nieto. C.M., Assistant General, profiting from his trip to El Alto (Bolivia), made a quick visit to the Province of Peru (from 16-22 April) and to the Province of Chile (from 7-12 May). He visited at greater length, from 23 April to 6 May, the International Mission of El Alto. This international mission began its course at the end of 1994 and ten confreres have worked there. Presently, since the death of Fr. Franc Pavli_, C.M., three missionaries are assigned to El Alto: Fr. Aníbal Vera, C.M., from Peru (local superior), Fr. Abdo Eid, C.M., from Lebanon, and Fr. Diego José Plá, C.M., from Madrid. Their work consists in caring for three rural parishes (Humanata, Italaque and Mocomoco) situated near Lack Titicaca, on the Andean altiplano, at some 3500 meters of altitude and 200 kilometers north of the city of La Paz and of El Alto. The three rural parishes have, together, around 100 very poor, small communities of the Aymara ethnic group and culture, spread out in the mountains and valleys which are difficult to access. It is difficult to calculate the population of these parishes: perhaps between 15,000 and 20,000 inhabitants. With hope, and in the midst of difficulties, our confreres here carry out a work of integral evangelization. They visit and evangelize a large number of rural communities and dedicate themselves to the formation and animation of catechists for them. In addition, they are moving forward with various social and education projects. Our confreres also take care of two poor and very populous urban sectors of the parish of Santiago II in the city of El Alto. In addition, Aníbal works with the Vincentian Family in Bolivia; and Abdo devotes himself to the promotion of Vincentian vocations and lives in La Paz with some candidates, who later will continue their formation in our Province of Chile. The Bishop of El Alto appreciates and values the presence and work of our confreres and they collaborate actively in the life of the diocese. Recent and more extensive information on this mission can be found in our magazine Vincentiana (2004, nº 3: May-June). The mission, which at other times was composed of four or five missionaries, is experiencing difficult times, especially after the death of F. Pavli_ and in the midst of the tense social and political situation of the country. Even though, at one time, the idea had been raised to establish a “Vincentian Bolivian Region,” this does not seem possible in the near future. The Mission of El Alto continues as an international mission dependent on the General Curia. In any case, there is an urgent need for the presence of one or two more missionaries in order to be able to move the pastoral and community project of this mission forward. From here we ask you to pray for this mission that the Lord might send laborers to this harvest and we ask that some confreres offer themselves as volunteers to go there.
45. Administration of the Internet Site
New Vincentian Encyclopedia. Fr. John Freund, C.M., administrator of the Vincentian Family website, has made known a pilot project called “Online Vincentian Encyclopedia” (www.famvin.org/wiki) which “opens amazing possibilities for sharing information, collaborating on projects and for committees to create working documents without having to spend so much in expensive time and travel. The sections are varied: “Collaborative Vincentian Encyclopedia,” “Who Was Vincent,” “Do You Speak Vincentian,” “Getting to Know the Vincentian Family,” “History of the Congregation of the Mission Project,” “Using this site to collaborate on a document,” “Young People Walking the Way of Vincent,” “Expanding the Circle of Solidarity,” “Vincentian-Setonian Researchers,” “Vincentian Heritage People,” “How to post news of your Vincentian ministry,” “Vincentian Advocacy Resources,” “Additional Technical Resources.” “I hope,” Fr. Freund wrote, “that those qualified in matters of historical research recognize that this is an extraordinary tool for extending the knowledge of our Vincentian charism.”
46. Argentina
Spiritual Exercises. The second set of spiritual exercises took place with the participation of 13 confreres. The Director was Fr. Eduardo Ghiotto, Benedictine Abbot from the Abbey of Victoria-Entre Ríos. The theme was on the “Eucharist.” It “helped us to deepen various aspects of the Eucharistic celebration. We reassess this great gift for our life and in our service of the people of God… we had time to share our lives, our projects and our work. It was a time of grace and renewal of our commitment to serve and evangelize the poor.
Vocations are priority. The Province has two seminaries: in Asunción and in San Miguel. In the St. Vincent de Paul Seminary in Asunción there are 12 candidates in formation (one in theology and 11 in philosophy). In the Miraculous Medal Seminary of San Miguel there are seven seminarians (three in theology, three in philosophy and one in the preparatory year). There are four seminarians in the Internal Seminary. There are a total of 24 young men on the journey toward missionary priesthood. Entrances into the seminary, in recent years, have diminished. This vocation-crisis situation asks of Vincentians, wrote Fr. Vicente Bokalic, C.M., Visitor, “asks of us a witness of missionary life, cheerful communities, committed and simple, persevering in prayer and confident that the Lord ‘will send laborers into the harvest.’”
47. Brazil – Rio de Janeiro
Meeting of Lay Vincentian Missionaries. From 26-29 May, in Caraça, MG, Brazil, the lay missionaries associated with the Vincentian Family held their 8th Meeting. Its objective was to gather those from all branches of the Vincentian Family who are responsible for the service of the poor in order to share news, progress and difficulties and, together, to enrich and discover means for facilitating the work. The theme was: “The charism of St. Vincent de Paul in the present social situation”: a vision on the social realities where the Vincentian Family operates, the social questions and on what it works on in society, the projects it is carrying out, the challenges, the complaints, the criticisms, the people’s rights of citizenship and the work proposals that are being thought of for the future. During the meeting there was discussion on the following questions: Is it possible for people to live in peace, when thousands of persons, children, young people and adults are hungry? Is it possible to have peace when a few hold and control the purchasing power and many subsist depending on underemployment? Is it possible to have peace with the increase of violence and the weakness of public education?
48. Chile
Visit of the Assistant General. In order to speak with the Visitor and his Council about the relationship between the Province of Chile and the International Mission of El Alto, the Assistant General, Fr. José María Nieto, was in Chile from 6-12 May. Fr. José María also visited Peru and Bolivia and, while in Chile, met with the Provincial Council and held conversations with the Visitor, Fr. Carlos de la Rivera, C.M.. In addition, he visited the two communities of Valparaíso and the three of Santiago, where he was able to get to know and converse with the confreres and also with the students.
49. Slovakia
Provincial Assembly. On 9-10 May, the members of the Province of Slovakia met to hold the Provincial Assembly in the Central House of Bratislava. There was a double objective. The first: to draft provincial commitments in the light of the Final Document of the 2004 General Assembly. The second: to elect the Visitor and his Council. Fr. Stanislav Zonták, C.M., was reelected
50. Paris
Priestly and diaconal ordinations. On 7 May in the Chapel of the Maison-Mère (Motherhouse) there were ordinations: to the priesthood for Pascal Bremaud and to the diaconate for François-Xavier Nguyen Thanh Ly and François-Xavier Tran Duc Hoa. Msgr. Franc Rodé, C.M., Prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life was the ordaining prelate. With these ordinations, the province received from the Lord a priest and two Vietnamese deacons. The celebration was beautiful and simple, with much participation.
51. USA – Eastern
Visitor reelected. The Superior General, Fr. G. Gregory Gay, C.M., and his council confirmed the election of Fr. Thomas McKenna, C.M., for a second mandate as Visitor of USA Eastern. In accordance with Statute 68, § 3, 2°, this second mandate will be for three years. Let us pray for Fr. Thomas, asking Our Lord to fill him with the Holy Spirit so that he may continue to lead us with wisdom and vision as we move into the future together. The news was made public by Fr. Charlie Strollo, C.M., on 27 May.
52. USA – Midwest
Four native priests in Kenya. The priestly ordination of four native priests for the Mission of Kenya of the Midwest Province was held on 28 May: Fr. Philip Njenga, C.M., Fr. George Busieka, C.M., Fr. Angelus Njiru, C.M. and Fr. Lennoxie Lusabe, C.M. Present from the United States for this occasion were Fr. James Swift, C.M., Visitor of the Midwest Province and Ms. Teresa Manna, Director of Development. This event was the culmination of work initiated in 1981 by our former Superior General, Fr. James Richardson, C.M., who accepted for the province the invitation of Bishop Charles Cavellera, I.M.C. (followed by Bishop Ambrose Ravasi, I.M.C.) to administer Good Shepherd Seminary in Maralal, Diocese of Marsabit. In 1991, at the closing of this seminary, the Maralal candidates and their faculty moved to Christ the King Seminary in Nyeri to continue their education and formation. Over these years, the confreres had prepared many diocesan candidates for the priesthood. In 1999, the Midwest Province opened DePaul Centre in Nairobi for the formation of its own candidates. These four ordained represent the first native priests to be ordained for the province and are the hope for more to come.
53. USA – New England
Election of the new Visitor. Fr. Roman Gorowski, C.M., was elected Visitor of the Province of USA-New England. Fr. Roman was pastor in the parish of Brooklyn for a good number of years. Congratulations, Fr. Roman!
54. Vice-Province of Sts. Cyril and Methodius
Visit of the Superior General and the Vicar General. Fr. G. Gregory Gay, C.M., Superior General, and Fr. Józef Kapu_ciak, C.M., Vicar General, visited the Vice-Province of Sts. Cyril and Methodius from 3-9 May. On the 3rd and 4th, they were in Kharkov (eastern Ukraine), where the saw the social-pastoral center administered by the confreres. On the 5th, they participated in the blessing-consecration of the House of Formation, “Gift of God,” in Kiev (Ukraine). The Mass of consecration was presided by Msgr. Jan Purwi_ski, Bishop of the Diocese of Kiev-Zhitomir. Concelebrating were three other bishops and Vincentian priests. Present were Daughters of Charity, members of other religious Congregations who collaborate with the confreres, lay Vincentians and benefactors from the United States, Canada and Ireland. On the 8th the Eucharist was celebrated in the Cathedral of St. Alexander in Kiev for the English-language faithful. In the various places that they visited, there were informal meetings with the confreres, Daughters of Charity and lay Vincentians.
55. Vincentian Family
The tsunami and the Vincentian Family. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SSVP), on 22 April in Salamanca (Spain), organized a meeting to evaluate the work accomplished in the tsunami area. Participating at the meeting were representatives of the International Association of Charities (AIC), of the Daughters of Charity (DC) and of the Congregation of the Mission (CM), with the purpose of exchanging information and studying the possibility of concrete and effective collaboration in favor of the tsunami victims. There were, in addition, participants of the Permanent Session of the SSVP and the representative of the SSVP in the four most affected countries (India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand). The International General Council (CGI) of the SSVP distributed to those countries 410,000 euro from the Disaster Fund for Asia in order to initiate some projects presented. For India it is sending 160,000 euro; for Indonesia, 90,000 euro; for Sri Lanka, 100,000 euro, and for Thailand, 60,000 euro. It is recommended that the branches of the Vincentian Family which are located in the affected areas join in the various projects that the different branches have initiated and thus promote a real, concrete and effective collaboration in the stricken areas.
Day of Ongoing Formation of the Vincentian Family in Argentina. Those responsible for the Vincentian Family organized, on 23 April, a Day of Ongoing Formation in Luján (Argentina). The participants, more than 100, were members of the branches of the Vincentian Family in Argentina (JUMAVI, SSVP, Missionary Groups, Vincentian Teachers, Sisters of Jeanne Antide Thouret, Daughters of Charity, AIC and CM). The theme was the importance of the Word of God as a means of growth in faith and in apostolic commitment.
Day of Prayer of the Vincentian Family in Florence. On 1 May, the Superior General, Fr. G. Gregorio Gay, C.M., participated in a Day of Prayer for the Vincentian Family in Florence, organized by the Daughters of Charity of the Province of Siena. The central function was animated by a group of young people from the Marian Association of Catania, with a musical dedicated to St. Vincent de Paul.
Seminar of Vincentian Spirituality in Venezuela. The National Council of the Vincentian Family of Venezuela (CONFAVI) organized a Seminar of Vincentian Spirituality on 16-17 April in Caracas. The themes were: 1) Origin and synthesis of Vincentian Spirituality; 2) Christ, adorer of the Father; charity and reverence. Seeking the will of God and following his designs; 3) Christ was sent to accomplish the plan of salvation: evangelize and cure. The evangelizing Christ and the dignified Christ and the bearer of the Father’s mercy; 4) From all eternity we have been chosen to be what Our Lord was. St. Vincent taught that to the Daughters of Charity especially and asked as a response, humility and responsibility; and 5) Given to God in the service of the poor. Service, affective and effective love, and the poor in their sociological reality and seen in God and with the eyes of God. A simple Vincentian sociology and theology about the poor. The themes were presented in PowerPoint by Fr. Emiliano Hernández, C.M., Advisor of the Vincentian Family in Venezuela.
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NOMINATIONS
GOROWSKI Roman 24-05-2005 Visitor – USA – New England
McKENNA Thomas 24-05-2005 Visitor – USA – Eastern
ZONTÁK Stanislav 24-05-2005 Visitor – Slovakia
D’AMICO Roberto 24-05-2005 Director DC – Naples
DALY Joseph 24-05-2005 Director DC – USA – Emmitsburg
FLANAGAN Eamon 24-05-2005 Director DC – Ireland
PEREIRA GOMES José María 24-05-2005 Director DC – Portugal
PRIESTLY ORDINATIONS
HEMBROM Benedict InS 16-04-2005
ZYCH Pawel Pol 21-05-2005
PIKUL Bartosz Pol 21-05-2005
DUONG Tri Minh Orl 28-05-2005
FITZGERALD Joseph G. Orl 28-05-2005
HOLLIDAY John J. Orl 28-05-2005
BUSIEKA George Ocn 28-05-2005
LUSABE Lennoxie Ocn 28-05-2005
NJENGA Philip Ocn 28-05-2005
NJIRU Angelus Ocn 28-05-2005
APARICIO MALO José Manuel Mat 04-06-2005
NECROLOGIUM
NOMEN COND DIES OB PROV AET VOC
CZEKALA Henry Sac 18/05/2005 Nan 89-67
FERNÁNDEZ MARTÍNEZ Jacinto Sac 01/06/2005 Mat 93-78
PALATTY Joseph Sac 06/06/2005 InM 66-43
JAGER Bernard Sac 12/06/2005 Par 83-63
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To the Visitors:
We thank the Visitors who sent their replies to the two questionnaires that we sent from the Editorial Board of Nuntia and Vincentiana (on Communication in the C.M. and Ongoing Formation).
Likewise, we ask those who have not done so to please send them as soon as possible.
Thank you for your collaboration!
