Marist life
It was with the prayer of praise (Laudetur Jesus Christus et Marie Mater eius) we greeted each new day. We had learnt it from our first days in the houses of formation (Carrión, Pontós and Miranda de Ebro – Spain). In thanking the good God and his Mother Mary, who have always accompanied us, I wish to salute the Marist Brothers and thank them for the invitation they addressed us to a reunion on 17 October.In the Marist house, we learned to love and praise God. The formation we received, the education, the community and personal prayer, the love of work learned from those brothers wearing the soutane with the crucifix on their breast, those brothers who gave their lives so that we might grow, such is the foundation of our lives: a life of faith and of service of others.We know the brothers as if they were our own. We know the sense of belonging. We breathe in the refreshing air of the Marist Family. We form part of this great network of the Marist mission in the world of today. We who have been part of the Institute carry in our hearts and in our lives the teachings of the exemplary men who educated us.We have integrated and made our own, thanks to what we lived in Marist life, the Christian message: « He who wishes to become great will be your servant », in the manner of Mary and in the shade of the Marial virtues of simplicity, humility and modesty.Thank you for having made yourselves so close to us and for having given us the opportunity to share with you the same ideals and the same vocation. There we learned the values and human and Christian principles which have inspired our ways of doing and acting in our personal and professional lives.In the house of all – the « Liceo Guatemala » ? we gathered to recall what were our first steps in the Christian life. In a Marist ambiance, frank, serene and fraternal, in the image of our personal and institutional origins, Brother Hipólito Pérez, Provincial, greeted us and talked to us about the works and challenges of the Marist Brothers in the Province. Thanks to the photos, we recalled places and companions, teachers and friends. During the gathering, we listened, we were listened to, and we shared part of our lives, what we are now and what we are doing, and our desires to remain always united in the Marist mission and educational work. They were moments filled with joy, with union, with satisfaction for our common past. We engaged ourselves to stay in contact, to remain in the tracks and paths of Marial spirituality AD JESUM PER MARIAM, to reflect together about a new model which integrates us fully into the life of the Institute.We clebrated the encounter in the Eucharist, and at table we shared the friendship which united us. From this « rostrum » we express our thanks, admiration and respect for all the Brothers who formed us so tenderly in the faith of our parents and who showed us the face of God. To those who are already sharing the Lord?s table in rejoicing, THANKS! All of us who shared this special Sunday of 17 October 2010 intend that the charisms and ministries entrusted to us are always at the service of others and especially of the least favoured. The task is not an easy one. But if we count on the help of the good God, everything becomes simpler.Fr. Champagnat will certainly be happy to see his children, religious and lay, remain united and sharing the joy of being Marists. That is how we were able to experience it. We have been happy and grateful for this gesture from the Marist community! We hope to remain Marists and continue to share your affection, always united through the power of prayer. This was an experience very much in the line of the first brothers.___________Tomás Martínez