To the Visitors, Rectors of Seminaries, Formators, Vocation Directors, and Seminarians
Dear confreres,
May the grace of Jesus Christ, evangelizer of the poor, be with us all!
At this time, we have seen how the pandemic has made us find new options for relating or has intensified many other areas and manners of doing so. One of these options is the virtual platforms that have made it possible for us to meet. Taking advantage of what this new method affords, the initiative emerged from a group of seminarians of holding a meeting of the young men in all the formation stages for priesthood or brotherhood in the Congregation of the Mission. For this reason, I asked the Communications Office to take charge of preparing this event. With the support of a team of seminarians, it is already carrying out this task.
At this First International Meeting, I wish to meet with all our students in this space for reflection on the identity and the present and future of our Congregation. The vast majority of them are young men born in this era of technological progress. Thus they belong to the so-called “millennial” generation. They are and will be part of generations of the Congregation of the Mission who challenge us to reflect on our mission and our encounter with the poor; for example, on the “digital continent,” which many of us barely know and enter as digital migrants.
We would like to extend the invitation to this International Meeting of Seminarians to everyone. Its theme will be, “Vocational culture, identity and vision of the future of the CM.” It will be held on Saturday, 5 December, at 15:00/3:00 pm (Rome time), through the Zoom platform, which you can access at the following link:
https://famvin-org.zoom.us/j/88584320606
The Commission formed to prepare the meeting proposes the motto: “The CM today, our Congregation in the era of Millennials.” To register for the event, you must fill out the form that appears at the following link: https://forms.gle/t5e6Bga285EJziM87. Please specify whether your participation is by group or individually.
For the program it is preparing, the Commission also will seek collaboration from some provinces specifically. I ask them to be very available and creative.
Without further ado, I beg Jesus, through the intercession of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, Saint Vincent de Paul, and all the other Saints, Blessed, and Servants of God of the Little Company, as well as of the entire Vincentian Family, to bless your life, ministry, and mission. I affectionately bid you farewell.
Your brother in Saint Vincent,
Tomaž Mavrič, CM
Superior General
