Invitation to participate in the preparatory process for the XXIII General Chapter
The 23rd General Chapter will be held in the Philippines from September 8 to October 8, 2025. The Institute is now in the last of the three phases of the pre-chapter process designed by the preparatory commission. In this phase, that happens during the months of March and April, Marists of Champagnat are called to identify the most important insights that have emerged from the dialogues held so far, listening to each other, and discerning God’s calls, imagining the future of the Institute.
The process now moves to work in each Province and District, using the synodal method of ‘conversations in the Spirit.’ This involves deep, prayerful listening to each other’s journeys, stories, opinions, and thoughts. “We’re asking you to think about what each other is saying, we’re asking you to do it in a prayerful way, so that your own opinions can be challenged by what other people are saying”, comments Br Ken McDonald, Vicar General and Coordinator of the Preparatory Commission (watch the video).
There are three phases in these conversations:
- Vocational Journey: Communities (Brothers, Lay People) meet to discuss their vocation and the future of the Marist vocation.
- Dreams for the Future: All involved in Marist Communities and Ministry meet to share their dreams for the future and the evolution of Marist Charism.
- Provincial and District Level: A meeting with all people to discern about the first two phases and to understand God’s call and future direction.
“We ask each Province and each District to write a document, not a long document, a brief document, about what they believe God’s calls are for us as we move into the future”, Says Br. Ken. That document should be sent to the Preparatory Commission by the end of April. Then, the team will look at these, at God’s call for the for the Institute, and prepare the document to send to all the delegates, before the General Chapter.
You can share, in the Institute’s communication channels, through the Communication Department, the activities the communities and Administrative Unites are undertaking for this very especial moment of the Marist Life.