Champagnat Journal Contribute to Our Seeking; to As Well As How We Respond to Those Around Us

OCTOBER 2015

Vocation

Engagement
Spirituality

AN INTERNATIONAL MARIST JOURNAL OF CHARISM IN EDUCATION

volume 17 | number 03 | 2015

Inside:
• Standing on the Side of Mercy
• Marist Icons: essential to our Life and Mission

Champagnat: An International Marist Journal of Charism in Education

aims to assist its readers to integrate charism into education in a way that gives great life and hope. Marists provide one example of this mission.

Champagnat: An International Marist Journal of

Editor

Charism in Education, ISSN 1448-9821, is

Tony Paterson FMS published three times a year by Marist Publishing [email protected]

Mobile: 0409 538 433

Peer-Review:

e papers published in this journal are peerreviewed by the Management Committee or their delegates.

Management Committee

Michael Green FMS Lee McKenzie Tony Paterson FMS (Chair) Roger Vallance FMS

Correspondence:

Br Tony Paterson, FMS Marist Centre,

Peer-Reviewers

PO Box 1247,
e papers published in this journal are peer-

reviewed by the Management Committee or their delegates.e peer-reviewers for this edition were:
MASCOT, NSW, 1460 Australia

Email: [email protected] Views expressed in the articles are those of the respective authors and not necessarily those of the editors, editorial board members or the publisher.
Michael McManus FMS Tony Paterson FMS Kath Richter Roger Vallance FMS
Unsolicited manuscripts may be submitted and if not accepted will be returned only if accompanied by a self-addressed envelope. Requests for permission to reprint material from the journal should be sent by email to – e Editor: [email protected]

2 | ChAMPAGNAT OCTOBER 2015

Champagnat

An International Marist Journal of Charism in Education

Volume 17 Number 03

October 2015

1. Editorial and Contributors

4

6

Tony Paterson

2. Marist Icons: Fourviére, Montagne and La Valla

Karen Prendergast

3. Reﬂections:
3. 1 Standing on the Side of Mercy

Brendan Geary

9

3. 2 Remembering our most recent Senior Marist Brother

12

13 15

James Gray

3. 3 Marist Schools – Place of Encounter?

Robert O’Connor

4. A Marist North-South Conversation (Part 2)

Richard Dunleavy and André Lanfrey

OCTOBER 2015 ChAMPAGNAT | 3

in my view...

EDITORIAL AND CONTRIBUTORS:

of Jesus Christ. at destination calls us to find one’s way together in community and with those that we encounter each day in our ministries. It calls for loyalty to our Church, to our Marist charism, and at the same time acknowledging that the journey is always taken within the framework of our human differences; within the framework of “the other person”whose opinion on how to move forward may be very different to our own.
e newly created Australian Marist province is three years old. More than five-thousand people are involved in our Marist ministries in Australia and our off-shore ministries in countries like Cambodia, Melanesia and Timor-Leste. In any such organization, there is always one person who is the leader; who leads in consultation with many people and agencies, but at the end of the day is responsible for the organization.

New Provincial Br Peter Carroll (left), Br Emili Turu (Superior General) and former Provincial Br Jeﬀrey Crowe (far right).

Brother Jeﬀrey Crowe has just completed three years as the ﬁrst Provincial of the new province. In this time the province has consolidated its structures; created new ministries and established the Association of St Marcellin Champagnat. In a nutshell, a strong foundation has been put in place

CHANGEOVER OF MARIST LEADERSHIP…

ne of the ﬁrst and many lessons for those seeking a spiritual path is to ﬁnd one’s

O

way. All of us, as Marists, or simply as seekers,seek the same destination: namely,the light

Australians at the International Mission Assembly in Kenya 2014. L to R: Br Tony Leon (Rome), Br Michael Green (Melbourne), Sarah Nowlan (Forbes), Br Chris Wills (Rome), Jack Stammers (Melbourne), Br Jeﬀrey Crowe (Sydney) and Frank Malloy (Sydney).

so that we can continue to develop and build our at St Joseph’s College at hunter’s hill. In his Marist life into the twenty-first century. is is not reflection he recalls the life of the late Brother a question of just bricks and mortar, but more to Julius Walsh, who at the time of his death, was the the point, a foundation has been laid that allows us oldest Brother living in Australia. e reflection to move forward, to seek Jesus Christ through our tells all of us something of what it means to be Marist lives as Brothers and Lay-Marists; and to Marist, to be loyal to one’s commitment to the do this in the context of dialogue and respect for journey, and open to all that tomorrow holds.

the other opinion. is has been a strength for us

• Robert O’Connor has had many years of

and we sincerely thank Brother Jeﬀrey for his experience as a school administrator, and more leadership over the past three years. Our gratitude recently as a spiritual director. his reﬂection on and our prayers go with him as he takes a well- Marist schools as places of encounter – where we

deserved break.

encounter in the name of the Marian Church- is

e contributors to this edition of the of signiﬁcance for all of us in our own personal lives
Champagnat Journal contribute to our seeking; to as well as how we respond to those around us.

our forward movement as Marists:

• Richard Dunleavy and Andre Lanfrey present

their second and final paper where they discuss our
• Karen Prendergast is a senior teacher at Marist Constitutions in light of the process to
Newman College in Perth. She is currently the update them. As mentioned at the commencement Acting head of the Senior School, and has been in of this editorial, one of the crucial characteristics the process of completing post-graduate studies at of our Marist charism is ‘the other’. We all have Notre Dame University in Fremantle on a part- opinions on what should happen and how it should time basis. her paper reflects on the significance happen. Our charism calls us to dialogue, to listen, of Fourviere, Montagne and La Valla as spiritual and to reflect. is dialogue between Richard and

icons for us in our Marist ministries.

Andre has the potential to enrich our

• Brendan Geary is the Provincial of the Marist understanding of the Constitutions,and to possibly
Central West Province in Europe. he has form an opinion on what we see as central to the previously written for this journal, and his short revision process.

reﬂection here challenges us to think in terms of

Our sincere gratitude to all who have

just how inclusive our Church is.is is a question contributed to the publication of this edition of the that Pope Francis has also put before us and seeks Champagnat Journal. a response at the forthcoming Synod in Rome.

• James Gray is a former teacher and archivist Tony Paterson

THANK YOU

Our gratitude to those who have contributed papers to this edition, and to the proof-readers and to those who have assisted with the peer-review process.e Management Committee.

KAREN PRENDERGAST

Marist Icons – Fourvière,
Montagne and La Valla

INTRODUCTION

THE ICON OF FOURVIÈRE

n his letter of April 2014, Br Emili Turú, the

ere has been a shrine, a place of pilgrimage, at

Superior General of the Marist Brothers, looks Fourvière in Lyon, since 1170. It was at this shrine

I

ahead to the bicentenary of the Marist that the first Marists gathered on the 23rd July,
1816, the day after they were ordained. On this day twelve newly ordained priests and seminarians, including Father Marcellin Champagnat, went to the Chapel of Notre Dame de Fourvière and made their pledge to form the Society of Mary. ese Marists had a strong devotion to Mary, which developed throughout their years in the seminary and which is reflected in their pledge, as each of them promised to “ Spend ourselves and all we have in saving souls in every way under the very august name of the Virgin Mary” (“Fourvière Pledge – e Marist Places,” n.d.). Br Sean Sammon comments that the early Marists believed Mary “Was calling their Society to a renewed way of being Church; at Fourvière they pledged themselves to make that dream a reality” (Br Estaún, 2007, p. 9). e icon of Fourvière clearly reflects this strong devotion to Mary, one of the defining characteristics of Marist spirituality.
e icon of Fourvière illustrates the Marian face of the Institute and also highlights the importance of the various branches that make up the Marist family. e first Marists believed that the Marist project “Would be structured like a
Institute, in January 2017. In the video, Bicentenary

of the Marist Brothers. Message from Br Emili Turú, Superior General (2014), Br Emili refers to the

bicentenary as “A new beginning”for the Institute. To guide the Institute for the next three years, Br Emili (2014) identiﬁes three icons, or dimensions, which will help Marists “Recall essential aspects of our life and mission”(p. 1).e icons are Fourvière, Montagne and La Valla and they illustrate three “Fundamental Christian and Marist dimensions: mission, shared life and spirituality”(Estaún, 2009, p. 34). Br Emili (2012) discusses the value of icons when he says, “In the West, we underline the importance of words, of logic, of the need to listen. In the East, by contrast, importance is given to the image, to intuition and the need to contemplate” (p. 44). Before considering the signiﬁcance of each icon, it is important to understand that they are not paintings, or works of art, but places and events that give an insight into the Marist charism. is paper will consider the role each icon plays in understanding key characteristics of Marist identity, mission and spirituality.

multi-branched tree by including lay people, priests, sisters and brothers” (Estaún, 2007, p. 25). Over time, the branches of the tree became separate and individual congregations of Priests, Brothers and Sisters were formed. Champagnat formed the Marist Institute, an order of Brothers, in 1817. As the Marist Institute approaches its bicentenary, Br Emili (2014) suggests that the origins of the order reﬂect the fact

Karen Prendergast teaching Brothers for the country districts” (McMahon, 1989, p. 34). e mission of the Brothers was “To bring the good news of Jesus to people on the margins of Church and society” (Estaún, 2007, p. 24). Br Emili (2014) emphasizes the importance of the Montagne icon when he states it “profoundly marked Father Champagnat’s life, and clearly brought about the birth of the Marist Institute” (p. 2).
is early experience had a signiﬁcant impact on
Champagnat and shaped the mission of the Institute. It conﬁrmed for Champagnat the need for an order of teaching Brothers, to educate the young and vulnerable. Br Emili (2014) illustrates the relevance of this icon, as it represents ‘e need to direct our mission in a clearer and more decisive way towards the children and young people who are on the margins”(p. 2). Br Emili (2014) stresses that this fundamental aspect of Marist mission is as important now as it was in Champagnat’s time, and he comments that all Marists must respond to the “Call to get going and meet the Montagnes of today, wherever they may be” (p. 2). is is a particularly important message for teachers in Marist schools. that Brothers and lay “Come together for mission and are called to be the Marian face of the Church” (p. 3). e icon of Fourvière is a reminder that the Marist family has always been comprised of several branches and that the recent increase in involvement of lay Marists is both an opportunity and a challenge for the Institute.

THE ICON OF MONTAGNE

e second icon of Montagne clearly reﬂects
Marist mission. Shortly after Champagnat was ordained, he was sent to the rural parish of La Valla, as curate to the Parish Priest, Father Rebod. According to Br Michael Green (Personal Communication, 27/4/2014) “Rebod was a troubled character, a pessimist and a drunk” and Champagnat believed that Rebod’s ministry left much to be desired. In contrast to Rebod, Br Manuel Mesonero (2014) comments that Champagnat’s “Ministerial work…went above and beyond his duty as a curate” (p. 8). On October 28th, 1816 this ministerial work took Champagnat to the Montagne household in

THE ICON OF LA VALLA

e third icon, the house at La Valla, has as much significance today as it did for the first Marists. On 2nd January 1817, Champagnat brought the first two Brothers to live in the house

Les Palais, to tend to their dying son, seventeen year old Jean-Baptiste.Champagnat was saddened to ﬁnd that JeanBaptiste had no knowledge of God, due to his lack of education.After the boy’s death, Champagnat reﬂected on the experience and considered it to be “A summons from God” (Estaún, 2007, p. 24), a sign that he should progress with his vision to form “An Institute of

Marist Icons – Fourvière, Montagne and La Valla and the Institute was born. Unusually for a curate, Emili (2014) emphasizes the importance of Champagnat spent the majority of the eight years Marists cultivating this interiority so they may he was in La Valla living in the house with the become “Contemplatives in action”(p. 4), a central Brothers, rather than residing in the Priests’house. characteristic of Marist spirituality. To minister to Champagnat and the Brothers remained at La the young people in their care, Marist educators Valla until 1824, when they moved to the Gier must become spiritual contemplatives, who take valley to begin building Notre Dame de time out from the busyness of their daily life to L’hermitage. It was in the house at La Valla that develop their own spirituality and reﬂect on their

the unique characteristics of the Marist charism mission.Br Emili (2012) emphasizes that this mission

were formed.

must focus on servant leadership, “A leadership

e house at La Valla has three floors, each of from below” (p. 53) and that this must form the which relate to aspects of Marist identity, mission basis of the teacher-student relationship. e icon and spirituality.Br Emili (2014) comments that the of La Valla is a powerful reminder to Marists of first floor is the space of mission, as it is open, these key characteristics of the Marist charism. bright and outward facing and represents “e call

CONCLUSION

to move to the frontiers and to the margins of
e three icons illustrate the central characteristics of Marist identity, mission and spirituality. e icon of Fourvière relates to a spirituality with a Marian face and provides insight into the mission of the different branches of the Marist family. e Montagne icon reflects the society” (p. 4). Br Michael Green (Personal Communication, 27/4/2014) also identifies a link between this top floor and mission, as he says that this floor is related to a Marian way of educating the young, which focuses on nurturing and maternal practices.
e ground floor is dominated by the original table from Champagnat’s time and this floor symbolizes “Building community around Mary’(Br Joseph McKee, Personal Communication, 17/4/2014). A focus on fraternity and community is important for Marists, as these are the key ways in which evangelization occurs and their relevance

is illustrated by this ﬂoor.e ground ﬂoor symbolizes

the ways in which Marist educators gather their students around the same metaphorical table as Champagnat gathered the first Brothers.e main message from this floor reflects that of the Fourvière Pledge underlining the importance of the relationship between Brothers and lay Marists as “Partners in mission” (Br Emili, 2014, p. 5), working together to take the word of Jesus to the young and vulnerable in their care.
e basement has only recently been fully exposed to the public. Many consider this floor to be the most important part of the house, because it is related to spirituality and is the foundation on which everything else is based. Br Emili (2014) comments that the basement “Symbolizes the inner space in which each of us is inhabited by the Mystery” (p. 4). is inner space, or interiority, represents the mystical dimension of life, the “Getting in touch with one’s inner-self”(Br Joseph McKee, Personal Communication, 17/4/2014). Br

Karen Prendergast importance of reaching out to the poor and those same table. Rome: Institute of the Marist Brothers. on the margins of society. is icon demonstrates

Fourvière Pledge - e Marist Places. (n.d.).

that the fundamental nature of Marist ministry is Retrieved August 28, to be non-judgmental and accessible to all, a http://www.maristplaces.org/Fourvière/ message that is as relevant now as it was in McMahon, F. (1989). Marist Milestones: a Champagnat’s time. e La Valla icon symbolizes Champagnat pilgrimage. Rome: Marist Publications

2014,

from

.

the importance of community and of the spiritual

Mesonero, M. (2014). From asceticism to

dimension of one’s life, with a focus on creating an mysticism. e life of Marcellin Champagnat. interior space that allows one to seek God in the Marist Notebooks, 32, 7-22.

depths of one’s heart. As Br Emili (2014)

Turú, E. (2012). he gave us the name of Mary.

illustrates, consideration of these icons “Will guide Circular from the superiors, 32(1), 12-82. us on our journey”(p.1),as the Institute approaches

Turú, B. (2014). Bicentenary of the Marist Brothers .

the ‘New beginning’ that the bicentenary oﬀers.

Message from Br Emili Turú, Superior General.

Bayonne, NJ: Marist Brothers Provincial Oﬃce.

Turú, E. (2014, May 29). Bicentenary of the Marist

brothers. Message from Br Emile Turú, Superior General. (Video ﬁle). Retrieved July 15, 2014, from

http://www.champagnat.org/400.php?a=6&n=3271

REFERENCES

Estaún, A. M. (Ed.). (2007). W a ter from the rock.

Rome: Institute of the Marist Brothers.
Estaún, A. M. (Ed.). (2009). Gathered around the

BROTHER BRENDAN GEARY, PROVINCIAL, WEST CENTRAL EUROPE

Reflections

1. Standing on the side of mercy

wo years ago I attended the funeral of one them and reminded them that they were there to of our Brothers where I was struck by an honour the memory of the Brother who was their

T_{intervention by the Parish Priest. Just}

cousin and friend, and not to conform to the before Communion he approached the microphone and informed those present that only those who were in a state of grace should receive Communion. he then went further and explained that being in a state of grace required attendance at mass every Sunday and adherence to the Church’s teachings. he then said that anyone not in a position to receive communion could ask to receive a blessing. expectations of the Parish Priest. Some of those beside me chose to receive communion. Most stayed in their seats. e priest who was presiding at the mass, who was the Vicar General in another diocese, was shocked at what he had just heard.

POPE FRANCIS AND MERCY

e 14th ordinary General Assembly of the
Synod of Bishops will take place in the Vatican between 4 - 25 October.e theme chosen by Pope
I was sitting beside the family of the Brother who had died and the shock and upset they Francis is, “the vocation and mission of the family experienced was palpable. I quickly tried to console in the Church and in the contemporary world.”

Standing on the side of mercy According to the Introduction to the Instrumentum wasting his time. While staying in Saint Sauveur

1

Marcellin had the good fortune to meet Fr. JeanBaptiste Soutrenon, a young priest with similar personality and gifts as Marcellin, who developed an eﬀective pastoral approach which showed sensitivity and understanding of the people among whom he ministered. It is highly probable that Marcellin looked to this outstanding young priest
Laboris, “it will “reﬂect further on the points discussed" at the 2014 ird Extraordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops that was held in October 2014,"so as to formulate appropriate pastoral guidelines" for the pastoral care of the person and the family.
As a result of the statements, gestures, and changes to the management of the Synod initiated by Pope Francis, there have been high expectations regarding possible changes in the area of family life and the Church’s teaching on some aspects of sexual morality.ese expectations are in line with the central message of Pope Francis who has highlighted the importance of mercy in the mission of the Church.