To all the confreres of the Congregation of the Mission
Dear confreres,
May the grace and peace of Jesus be always with us!
I am writing this brief letter at the beginning of the Vincentian month, the month of September! A few days ago, all the International Leaders of the 165 branches of the Vincentian Family received an invitation from FHA and its “13 Houses” project to increase their participation in that project. If they were not yet involved in it, they were encouraged to commit to it.
The FHA initiative was launched for the worldwide Vincentian Family during the Symposium in Rome in 2017, when the whole Vincentian Family celebrated the 400th Anniversary of its Spirituality and Charism. One of its many fruits is the “13 Houses” project.
In reading the document, you will see the tremendous needs of the people around the world who are without a place to call home: people living on the streets, slum dwellers, refugees. The goal is that all the branches in a certain place, region, or country will get together behind the “13 Houses” project. It also hopes to bring together for collaboration every single branch present in a specific area.
Dear confreres, I would like to ask that, if you still are not engaged in the “13 Houses” project, please begin to involve the members of your province, vice-province, region, or international mission in it. In addition, invite the other branches of the Vincentian Family in your area to become involved too, if they are not already.
The document invites you to write to the International Coordinating Committee, applying for a grant for a project. The document also indicates the latest possible date for making such a grant application.
At the end of the document is a list of the countries where the Vincentian Family is present, but the “13 Houses” project has not yet begun. If the Congregation is present in one or more of those countries, I invite you to apply for a grant to begin the project there. If the project already has begun in your area, you still can apply for a grant to develop it further, although priority will be given to countries where projects have not yet begun.
I also would like to encourage all the confreres to participate in the webinar on 20 September at 14:00/2:00 pm (London time) at which Vincentian collaboration in the “13 Houses” project in Peru, Guatemala, the Dominican Republic, the United States of America, Nigeria, and Tanzania will be presented. You will find further information in the attached document.
We are starting the Vincentian month. What an extraordinary opportunity we have to launch the “13 Houses” project concretely in this Vincentian month! Dear confreres, thank you so very much for all your wonderful efforts in serving the poor, including the “13 Houses” project.
May Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal, Saint Vincent de Paul, and all the other Blessed and Saints of the Vincentian Family intercede for us!
Your brother in Saint Vincent,
Tomaž Mavrič, CM Superior General
