Assembly and Chapter of the Province of Brasil Centro-Norte
From 13 to 18 December, the Brothers of the Province of Brasil Centro-Norte participated in the Assembly and VII Provincial Chapter, to outline the paths of the Administrative Unit for the next three years, to elect the Provincial Council and to define the calls and priorities of the Marist Mission in the Province. In addition to the Brothers of the Chapter, the other Brothers of the Province participated in virtual mode. Also present were the General Councillors and link Councillors with the Region of América Sur, Brothers Óscar Martín and Sylvain Ramandimbiarisoa, and the Vicar General, Br. Luis Carlos Gutiérrez.
The theme of the two meetings was: “embracing the future with prophecy”.
On 16 December, the first day of the Chapter, Br José de Assis Elias de Brito took office as the new Provincial Superior, replacing Br Ataide José de Lima, who had led the Province for the last six years. “I will strive tirelessly every day, renewing my ‘Yes to the Lord’ for the service of the Kingdom, as a Brother, defending the Marist Charism in its three fundamental axes: Spirituality, Mission and Shared Fraternal Life. I know that I will not be alone in this journey, given that the fraternity has given me Brothers, ‘wonderful companions’, who show, by their availability for the service of the Kingdom, a great predisposition to walk together, with a great missionary spirit at the service of children, adolescents and young people”, said the new Provincial.
On the second day of the Chapter, the Brothers who will make up the Provincial Council were elected. They are Brothers Adalberto Batista Amaral, Davi Nardi, Lúcio Gomes Dantas and Márcio Henrique Ferreira da Costa. Brother Adalberto accepted the challenge of becoming Vice-Provincial and Director of the Religious Organisation. Br. Iranilson Correia de Lima will assume the role of Vice-President of the Academics Institutions.
Calls and priorities of the Marist Mission in the Province
As a result of the reflections and discussions of the capitulants, four calls for the next triennium have been approved:
- Tot Witness the prophecy we proclaim.
- To revive consecrated religious life
- To assume humanization and equity as fundamental criteria for decision making.
- To deepen the option for the poorest as a commitment to build global citizenship.
The first call aims to make fraternity a goal and a means in all relationships, always guided by the cultivation of Marian, Apostolic and Marist spirituality. The second call seeks to broaden the conditions, strategies and disposition to accompany the Brothers, favoring community relationships that articulate singularity to communion. The third call concerns governance and leadership and aims to consider, in all decisions, the dimensions of expected outcomes, effort and possible adverse effects. Leading with humanity and equity should be a central criterion in decisions. Finally, the last call refers to the Mission dimension, and asks the Province to take a more effective stance and focus effectively on advocating for the poorest and to consider planetary citizenship as a reference point for educational actions and administrative referrals.
More information on each of the days of the meeting can be found here.