Last days of the Meeting with Provincials and District Superiors
The meeting of the General Council with Provincials and District Superiors ended on March 11. The Superior General with his council wanted to promote a moment of synergy that can be fruitful for Marist life and mission. “We discussed and deepened the intuitions for the future of the General Conference of 2022. We wish to deepen and promote Marist spirituality. We want to care for and generate life, searching for the best structures for the future of Marist life and mission. We seek to share human and financial resources. And we want to continue to respond to the emerging needs of today’s world,” says Brother Ernesto Sánchez, Superior General.
For Brother Nicholas Fernando, Provincial of South Asia, “it was an encouraging meeting with the Brothers”. The same sentiment was expressed by Brother Vincent Abadom, Provincial of Nigeria, for whom “the meeting was impressive and all the protagonists did a fantastic job. The prayers were very contemplative and lively”. And Brother RaĂşl Schönfeld, Provincial of Cruz del Sur, added: “I particularly emphasize the possibility of taking up again the intuitions of last year’s General Conference and of having structured the meeting around them. The careful spaces of spirituality that we experienced at the beginning of each day were very significant. In addition, it is always a gift to make contact and grow in awareness of the global family that we are.”
Friday, March 10
The penultimate day was dedicated to the theme of the Global Family, the central message of the last General Chapter. Brother Luis Carlos Gutiérrez, Vicar General, began the work by recalling what was requested by the General Conference last year on this theme:
- Continue to develop and consolidate NETWORKS in the various areas of life and mission.
- Collaborate more among the Administrative Units by sharing human and financial resources and promoting the availability and collaboration of Brothers and lay people within the Province or District, among the AUs and at the Institute level.
- Consolidate sustainability plans, in particular, for those AU’s who need to be more sustainable.
The participants followed the reflection by trying to envision better ways to move forward in the task of growing as a global body, which is synonymous with the Global Family: “all Marists of Champagnat belong to a single body or a single charismatic family, and we are being called to act as such,” underlined Brother Luis Carlos.
Some suggestions were made: develop a plan for the fair sharing of human and financial resources at all levels of the Institute; develop a plan of action to achieve sustainability of Marist life and mission at all levels; apply the principles found in the Plan of Discernment on the evangelical use of goods; develop administrative, financial and human resource policies based on ethical principles; ensure training in administration and finance at all levels of the Institute and insist on the effective management of resources.
In view of the proposals presented, the participants reflected together on how to move forward and how to act concretely.
Then there was time to talk concretely about new juridical structures created to assist the Marist mission and the experiences lived in the regions of Asia and Africa in terms of sustainability of the mission. Another session was presented by the Econome General, Br Jorge Gaio, who illustrated the plan for financing Marist life and mission.
Conclusion of the meeting
Saturday, the last day, was a time of synthesis, especially linked to the theme of spirituality, proposed already on the first day of the meeting, which permeated the whole week. The participants, guided by texts from the Constitutions and Rule of Life suggested by the Superior General, Brother Ernesto, deepened the meaning of Marist Spirituality, explaining it in accordance with the current contexts, according to the request of the General Chapter to cultivate a spirituality of the heart.
At the end, Brother Ernesto summarized how the meeting went: “The fraternal atmosphere and the participation were excellent, we felt like a global Marist family on the way, following the invitation of the 22nd General Chapter”. And he added: “We felt very well accompanied by Mary, our Good Mother, who continues to inspire and encourage us, as Champagnat did. I thank the General Council, the Secretariats and Departments, and the General Administration community for their support and dedication during these days.”