THE MARIST CALENDAR FOR AUGUST

this Marist Bulletin we are publishing the Marist Calendar for August, which appears each day on our web site www.champagnat.org

1 1988: Marist work began in Equatorial Guinea ? ?Mary earns a high respect among the Moslems and indigenous tribes? (Br. Ted Fernandez, FMS Message magazine, vol. 32)
2 St. Mary of the Angels of the Portiuncula – Marist Saturday, specially dedicated to praying for the Marist Family
3 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time ? 1847: Br. Louis, one of the first brothers in the Institute, died
4 St. John Vianney ? First Monday of the month: remembrance of deceased Marists ? ?Mary shows us how to be attentive to the needs of others? (Br. Renato Guisleni, FMS Message, vol. 32)
5 Dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome ? ?Mary leads us to experience God not as a concept but as a reality? (Br. Sunanda Alwis, FMS Message, vol. 32)
6 Feast of the Lord?s Transfiguration ? 1858: The General House was relocated from the Hermitage to Saint-Genis-Laval
7 ?Marcellin loved the Church deeply, but he also endured difficult moments in his dealings with Church authorities? (Br. Christian Mbam, FMS Message, vol. 32)
8 ?Being present to another ? a brother, young person, someone vulnerable ? under the banner of welcome. So much life to celebrate and share!? (Br. Angel Medina, FMS Message, vol. 32)
9 International Day of Indigenous Peoples ? 1896: Introduction of the cause to declare Marcellin Champagnat Venerable – Marist Saturday, specially dedicated to praying for the Marist Family.
10 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time ? 1886: The Marist Brothers opened their first school in the USA
11 ?Formation in solidarity must hold a privileged place in our education? (Br. Demetrio Espinosa, FMS Message, vol. 32)
12 1816: Fr. Champagnat was appointed parish priest in La Valla ? ?Brothers, let?s think ?simple? ? act, live with simplicity? (Br. Michael de Waas, FMS Message, vol. 32)
13 World Day of Left-handed People ? ?Genuine insertion among the poor happens in the heart? (Br. Domingos dos Santos Lopes, FMS Message, vol.32)
14 ?It?s in fraternity that people find an atmosphere favorable to their development? (Br. Afonso Levis, FMS Message, vol. 32)
15 Feast of Mary?s Assumption into Heaven ? Patronal feast of the Marist Institute ? 1885: The first Marist Brothers set out for Canada
16 Marist Saturday: specially dedicated to praying for the Marist Family ? ?To know oneself thoroughly: grace, task, and encounter? (Br. Hilario Schwab, FMS Message, vol. 32)
17 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time ? ?To accompany means to ?travel with my brother, on the same level, sharing life? (Br. Eernesto Sanchez, FMS Message, vol. 32)
18 1969: The start of our Marist life in Ivory Coast
19 1903: The first Marist Brothers left for Cuba
20 ?To let myself be accompanied is to verify the coherence of my life in discernment and in a fidelity open to the Gospel? (Br. Maurice Goutagny, FMS Message, vol.32)
21 ?Discernment is a constant search for the will of God, motivated by the Holy Spirit? (Br. Lauro Francisco Hochscheidt, FMS Message, vol. 32)
22 World Day of Folklore ? Feast of the Queenship of Mary
23 Marist Saturday: specially dedicated to praying for the Marist Family
24 St. Bartholomew, Apostle ? ?The Marist community is a privileged space for sharing and growing, humanly, professionally, and vocationally? (Br. Ataide Jose de Lima, FMS Message, vol. 32)
25 ?To build a Church of communion: the Council asked us to do that about 40 years ago. We still have a lot more to do in this regard? (Br. Andre Thizy, FMS Message, vol. 32)
26 ?We brothers are men for others and men with others? (Br. Pablo Gonzalez, FMS Message , vol. 32)
27 1936: Br. Crisanto was mur-dered in Tartareu, Spain ? ?Religious communities that open their doors to the laity are more lively and gracious? (Br. Samuel Holguin, FMS Message, vol. 32)
28 St. Augustine ? ?Go forward together? in order to respond to the needs of the young. Especially the least favored? (Br. Henri Catteau, FMS Message, vol. 32)
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30 Marist Saturday: specially dedicated to praying for the Marist Family ? You can view all previous issues of our Marist Bulletin at www.champagnat.org
31 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time ? Sign up your family and friends for their free subscription to our Marist Bulletin ? just log on to www.champagnat.org

BROTHER FRANÇOIS? YEAR (II)
6 june 2003 ? 6 june 2004

THE BEATIFICATION
This is the stage in the long canonisation process when the Church recognises that a miracle occurred thanks to God?s servant?s intercession prayers.
(Subsequent explanations will clarify the terms ?a servant of God?s intercession? and ?miracle?.)
Above all, a beatification is a tribute to God because any saint is a master piece of the Holy Spirit who opened him completely to Christ, and the miracle does reveal a God who is near and paternal. This is an ecclesial glorification, a thanksgiving, usually inserted in an Eucharistic celebration.
At the same time, it is the glorification of one of God?s servants by God?s people who recognise and admire the exemplary quality of the saint?s evangelical life.
A beatification is a great joy for the group of persons who specially venerate the beatified servant of God: he is one of us, a friend and an intercessor who was already dear to us. This joy is lived with a greater intensity on the beatification day.
A beatification is a grand encouragement: it reveals that holiness is possible, not in unknown ways but in this evangelical life that the Holy Spirit brought to life in us. The encouragement is given to me, specially if I belong to the same ?family?, specially if the Servant of God is already somebody who has his place in my heart. A beatification is a grace that creates forces and desires to become a saint since this was possible for one of us; it is a door that opens onto God?s love.
We do expect Brother François? beatification. A miracle is always possible but? we must place Brother François in the heaven of our friendship?

BROTHER FRANÇOIS? THOUGHTS:
«Out of pure love, the Son loves His Father!»
«The Good Mother will fix everything!»
Brother François never got discouraged, he always kept his serenity. Failures were simply occasions to put his hope in God.

THE VIRTUE OF HOPE
We carry on with the witnesses who lived with Brother François and who deposed their testimonies at the Lyon diocesan tribunal from 1910 to 1912. They allow us a direct and experiential look. What they said remind us a lot of what we admired in Brother Basilio: God looked at and loved as a Father; his will set above everything else; and since he is Father, God deserves our trust. Strength is replenished in front of the Blessed Sacrament and at the foot of Mary?s statue. This certainty of God?s and Mary?s help gives serenity and equanimity during times of trial. These two superior generals resemble each other and both remind us of Champagnat whom they carried in their hearts as sons and successors.

Testimonies of Hope
«I never saw God?s servant lose the calm that we find in whoever wants nothing safe God?s will.» (W. 13)
«No accident or failure could ever weigh him down, he remained serene. His trust in God was boundless. He reminded us that nothing ever occurs without our Father?s permission who loves us, who will see that we are treated with justice if we entrust ourselves in Him.» (W. 17)
«He did not get discouraged. On the contrary, the more difficulties afflicted him, the more he had confidence. All brothers noticed this, ?He speaks to God?, it was said.» (L.P.O.)
«I often heard Brother François repeat, ?Let us hope in God?s great kindness to reach heaven where we will be we compensated for the sufferings we will have endured on this earth.?» (W.64)
«He said, ?Out of pure love the Son loves his Father, whereas the slave fears his master. What glory God is preparing for me for the whole eternity! Oh what love!?» (W. 84)
«He went to seek the solution to his difficulties from the Blessed Sacrament.»(W. 9)
«I know that because of his trust in God Brother François never got discouraged. If he met with failure, he just waited for God?s moment.» (W. 63)
«His trust in God allowed him to walk boldly forward in spite of his timid nature. And this lively trust, he knew how to communicate it to others.» (W. 64)
«He knew how to inspire confidence in his letters refuting exaggerated or illusory fears. He preserved many quotations on confidence in his notes and he used them as an arsenal.» (W. 84)
«It was specially when he was the superior general that his heroic hope was the most evident. Many times, he must have felt the heavy burden of his function on his shoulders, but he had placed all his hope in God. In tribulations, he remained unswerving. He expected everything from the divine protection and from Mary?s help.» (W. 19)
«Father Champagnat?s death, made him suffer more than all the others. Yet, he cheered up the brothers who were disheartened, telling them, ?We must not lose hope. Do put your trust in God who promised life to those who rely on Him. Brother François always had recourse to God in the numerous difficulties he encountered. Even in the most hopeless cases. In all his diseases he always kept his serenity because of his trust in God.» (W. 8)
«In 1872, a terrible storm made the Gier flood the Hermitage area. But we noticed that in front of the chapel, the waters had gone down at the peak of the storm. Brother François had removed his scapular, had hung it at his window and had knelt in prayer.» (W. 64)
«His trust in God was very great. In 1846 Brother Louis Marie, councillor had been attacked by a disease that threatened his life. Brother François went down to the chapel where he worshiped the Holy Sacrament. When he returned all danger had gone.» (W. 9)

PRAYER OF HOPE
Brother François, so that God may be more glorified, we would like to see you beatified. Today, help us to love the Father out of pure love and let the Son?s love enter our hearts. Today, help us to trust the Father since our future is already filled up with his kindness. May we be able to say with you, «The Good Mother will fix everything!»
We thank you for the examples of hope and serenity that you gave us.

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