Marist Notebooks 41

Issue 41 of Marist Notebooks was recently published. Below we reproduce the presentation made by Brothers Antonio Ramalho and André Lanfrey, of the International Commission of the Marist Patrimony, which coordinates the publication.

Editorial – Brother Antonio Carlos Ramalho y H. André Lanfrey

Although this is the Year of Marist Vocations, this issue will only indirectly evoke this topic by dealing with our Marist mission in various territories, provinces and times. In fact, many of the authors speak of the collective Marist vocation. Br. Georges Cellier reminds us that the territory of the Ardèche was a place of massive recruitment, then of sending Brothers from the Provinces of St Paul and Aubenas to the four corners of the world. Br. Gérard Cuinet evokes the golden age of the Province of Constantinople where Europe and the Middle East meet, of which the Brothers of Greece are still the heirs today. Br. Michael Green refers us to two other Marist territories born in the 19th century: Australia and Ireland. The new Andean Province mentioned by Francisco J. Flores Sánchez and Korea, founded by brothers from Mexico, remind us of a new phase of mission in the 20th century in a world that was already very different to that of the 19^th.

In the Marist vocation there is not only the diversity of provinces and territories; there is also that of activities. Without having consulted each other, several authors speak to us of extracurricular activities that are too often forgotten: in particular reviews such as Présence Mariste in France, the distant successor to the Bulletin de l’œuvre de juvénats (Br. André Lanfrey) or Stella Maris mentioned by Br. Antonio Martínez Estaún, which published the Circulars of the superiors in Spanish. In such activities, there is a whole area which deserves to be more appreciated and explored. Also worthy of greater attention are works at the forefront of art, science and pedagogy, such as the herbarium preserved in Pamplona, presented to us by Brother Victor Pastor.

For once, there are a limited number of articles on our origins and on important personalities in this issue. But we believe that they are being discussed from a relatively original angle. Thus, the article on the legal recognition of the Institute presents the founder as a political-religious personality, an angle from which we are not used to considering him. The letter of Brother François to the director of the school in Breteuil near Paris (Brother Antonio Martínez Estaún) is composed of high spirituality and realism. Is it not a good example of what we would call today prophetic and servant leadership?

A new feature, to conclude. Since issue 40 of Marist Notebooks (2022), you may have noticed that we have included a technological feature called QR Code (Quick Response Code). This feature allows access to additional content: on the cover, the QR Code invites you to a quick poll about the profile of the reader and the path taken by Marist Notebooks around the world. We will be grateful to those who take part in this survey. At the opening of each article, the QR Code goes to a video that presents the author and his motivations.

To access this interactive content in the printed notebook, point your smartphone camera at the QR Code and click on the suggested link. For the digital version of the notebook, click on the code.

We hope you enjoy the novelty and feel motivated to interact with us.

Download PDF – Marist Notebooks 41: English | Español | Français | Português