Presentation Through the initiative and invitation of the Superior General of the CM and the Daughters of Charity, Robert Maloney, CM, an invitation was addressed to all the provinces of the two Communities to participate in the First Vincentian Month for Advisors of the Lay Groups of the Vincentian Family, which was held in Paris, 7-26 July 2002. The response was very positive with 64 Daughters of Charity, 44 members of the CM, two religious from other Congregations and one laywoman participating. We were able to count on the leadership presence of some of the branches of the Vincentian Family who accompanied us, especially during the second week of this meeting. The Organizing Commission (Roberto Lovera, CM, representing SIEV; Sr. Margaret Barrett, DC; Marina Costa, AIC; and Benjamín Romo, CM) began preparations by selecting topics that would most likely help participants reflect on the Advisor’s role and tasks in today’s Church. The Commission set the meeting’s objectives: deepen the understanding of our Founders’ doctrine, know the branches and works of the Vincentian Family and discover better our role as Advisors. They divided the topics into three parts: 1) Faithful to the Gospel, the Church and St. Vincent; 2) the Being and Work of the Vincentian Family; 3) the Role of the Advisor to the groups of the Vincentian Family. The deepening of these three themes was achieved through conferences, group work, summaries, sharing experiences and a weekly syntheses. The location of the meeting (Motherhouse of the Daughters of Charity) and visits to Vincentian places in Paris, allowed participants to deepen their fidelity to the Gospel, to the Church and naturally to our Founders, for they too were animators of Confraternities of Charity and the two nascent Communities. The International Heads of the AIC, SSVdP, JMV, AMM, and MISEVI participated in this Vincentian Month, giving conferences, responding to questions and being present in work groups divided into Associations. In this way they helped us know better the being and work of the Vincentian Associations. Their presence contributed significantly to a better current knowledge of these Associations, their projects and their formation plans. Their conversations gave us the possibility of specifically clarifying our task as Advisors for we were able to listen to their expectations of us. One of the important points of thew work in common was to strengthen awareness and collaboration among councillors and laity within the Vincentian Family in such a way that, together, we can offer more efficacious answers to today’s poverties. We have come a long way but there still is a long way to go. 1 The third week we directed our attention toward what is specific to us: the role and tasks of the Vincentian Advisor. The topics reflected upon led us to focus our work as Advisors in relation to formation, the spiritual life and the Vincentian lay apostolate. Work groups by Association allowed us to take on specific commitments. Thanks to the work of a commission composed of some participants, we were able to have a Final Synthesis at the end of the meeting that summarized the three weeks. They presented the contents in an outline form with order and precision: realities, convictions, commitments and suggestions. Certainly, this material offers us an idea of all the richness contained in what was presented, both in the conferences and in the work groups. The prayer in common at the beginning of each day and the four Eucharists celebrated with all the participants were important times that helped to live and work in a climate of God and of openness to the Spirit. The wonderful disposition of everyone created a very positive and joy-filled environment in the midst of hard work. In the final evaluation the participants indicated a very positive experience of the Vincentian Month. We want to thank all our brothers and sisters who, with much love and dedication, gave the best of themselves in doing their bit in order to provide a quality meeting. We thank, in particular, the Translation Center of the Daughters of Charity of the Motherhouse for the enormous work undertaken before, during, and after the Meeting. We also thank the members of the Editorial Board of Vincentiana. Thanks to them, we will be able to offer to all of you the material that today we are placing in their hands. We offer it to you who participated and also to all who, for various reasons, were not able to be present, but with love and perseverance, accomplish this mission of support to the lay groups. Lastly, we offer it to all those who are convinced that “It is not enough for me to love God if my neighbor does not love him” (Coste, Conferences to CMs, N° 207, p. 583). Vincentian Month Organizing Commission 2 Vincentian Month 2002: Advisors of the Vincentian Family Participants NAME Group Province/Country 1. ABI-SAÏD Gladys JMV Lebanon 2. AGUASANTA María Teresa JMV Dominican Republic 3. ALVARES Margaret DC Northern India 4. ANDONAIRE Vilma DC Peru 5. ARGÜELLO María DC Bogotá, Colombia 6. ARMANI Gherardo CM Turin, Italy 7. ARMELLINI Francisco CM Venezuela 8. AZZI Rania DC Near East 9. BAGALSO Francisca DC Thailand 10. BANASZEK Teresa DC Warsaw, Poland 11. BARRETT Margaret DC General Council, Paris 12. BAUMANN Denise SCS France 13. BEWERRA Carla DC Mozambique 14. BIN Patrizia DC Siena, Italy 15. BUENO Consuelo DC Santo Domingo 16. BURGOS Faustino CM Puerto Rico 17. ČAKŠ Andreja DC Slovenia 18. CAMARGO Gilson CM Curitiba, Brazil 19. CASTILLERO Juventino CM Central America 20. CASTILLO Pedro CM Venezuela 21. CHAFIC Marie DC Near East 22. COCHLA Lila DC Haiti 23. COSTA Marina AIC Italy 24. DE PAULA Agnaldo CM Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 25. DE LA OSA M. Paz DC Madrid, Santa Luisa (Spain) 26. DEBES Claire DC Emmitsburg, USA 27. DEL PINO Clotilde DC Canary Islands, Spain 28. DI TANO Antonia DC Naples, Italy 29. DÍAZ-TORREMOCHA José Ramón SSVP Spain 30. DISU Bienvenido CM Philippines 31. DOSMAN Olga DC Cali, Colombia 32. DOYLE Angela DC Ireland 33. ECHEVERRÍA María Isabel DC Pamplona, Spain 34. ESCOBAR Orlando CM General Curia, Rome 35. ESPINOSA Rosa DC Mexico 36. EZEIMO Felizia DC Nigeria 37. FALCO Biagio CM Naples, Italy 38. FORTI Roberto SSVP Italy 1 NAME Group Province/Country 39. FRANGIE Zahya DC Near East 40. GARCÍA Argentina DC Venezuela 41. GARCIA Martha DC Los Altos Hills, USA 42. GAVEN John CM Australia 43. GONÇALVES Carlos CM Fortaleza, Brazil 44. GONZÁLEZ Alicia DC Cuba 45. GROETSCH Sharon DC St. Louis, USA 46. GROSSI Mario CM Turin, Italy 47. HAMPEL Donata DC Salzburg, Austria 48. HARIO Heribertus CM Indonesia 49. JURADO Isabel DC Granada, Spain 50. JURKYOVÁ Alena DC Rome, Italy 51. KIÉ Anastasie NDP Ivory Coast 52. KOTTO-WAWE Etienne CM Congo 53. KRAUSE Bruce CM USA, East 54. LARANJEIRO M. Adelia DC Portugal 55. LETTEMARIAM Mogos DC Eritrea 56. LÓPEZ M. Cruz DC San Sebastián, Spain 57. LOVERA Roberto CM Turin 58. LUPA Lidia DC Kraków, Poland 59. MACÍAS Fernando CM Chile 60. MANUNTA Piera DC Cerdeña, Italy 61. MARRAS Angelo CM Rome, Italy 62. MARTÍNEZ Francisca DC Chile 63. McCULLAGH Michael CM Ireland 64. MENU André DC Belgium 65. MONJAS Concepción DC Madrid, San Vicente (Spain) 66. NAVA Patricia de AIC Mexico 67. NIETO Felipe CM Madrid, Spain 68. NTAWE Immaculée DC Central Africa 69. PALACIOS Lucía DC Central America 70. PANZERI M. Felicita DC Turin, Italy 71. PARTH Florian CM Austria 72. PASCUAL Ángel CM Zaragoza, Spain 73. PASCUAL M. Josefa DC North Africa 74. PATO Andrés CM Salamanca, Spain 75. PAUCAR María Gladys DC Ecuador 76. PEREIRA J. Gil CM Portugal 77. PÉREZ J. Gerardo CM Cuba 78. PÉREZ Oliday DC Cuba 79. PERUGACHI Segundo CM Ecuador 80. POLÁKOVA Damiana DC Slovakia 2 NAME Group Province/Country 81. PREVOT Bernadette DC France 82. RAKOTONIRINA J. Lucien CM Madagascar 83. RALAIVAO Ruffine DC Madagascar 84. RAMSON Ronald CM USA, Midwest 85. RICHARDT Sharon DC Evansville, USA 86. ROMO Benjamín CM General Curia, Rome 87. SALAZAR Lady DC Bolivia 88. SALVO Dolores DC Barcelona, Spain 89. SÁNCHEZ A. Servando CM Mexico 90. SÁNCHEZ Miguel CM Mozambique 91. SANTILLÁN Gloria JMV Spain 92. SANTOS Ricardo CM Salamanca, Spain 93. SCHMITZ Erich SSVP Germany 94. SCHOEPFER Bernard CM Paris, France 95. SEBESTYÉN É. Marianna DC Hungary 96. SERVITO Nieves DC Philippines 97. SHELBY Charles CM USA, Midwest 98. SILVA Ileana DC Puerto Rico 99. SOARES Juarez CM Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 100. SULLIVAN Theresa DC Evansville, USA 101. TALAPKANYCH Mikhaylo CM Sts. Cyril and Methodius 102. TAMLYN Gwen DC Australia 103. TECLEMICAEL Tewolde CM Eritrea 104. TESFAY Medhin DC Ethiopia 105. TINKLER Maureen DC Great Britain 106. TORO Rogelio CM Colombia 107. TYPAMM Emmanuel CM Paris, France 108. URDAMPILLETA Edurne JMV Spain 109. UREÑA Fulvio CM Costa Rica 110. VARELA Francisca DC Gijón, Spain 111. VÁSQUEZ Diego L. CM Colombia 112. VELASCO Rosa DC Seville, Spain 113. VICUÑA Concepción DC Cameroon 114. VILLAR Eva MISEVI Spain 115. WALKER Margaret DC Albany, USA 116. YAACOUB Caroline DC Near East AIC: International Association of NDP: Sisters of Our Lady of Peace Charities SCS: Sisters of Charity of CM : Congregation of the Mission Strasbourg DC: Daughters of Charity SSVP: Saint Vincent de Paul Society JMV: Vincentian Marian Youth MISEVI: Vincentian Lay Missionaries 3 Vincentian Month for Advisors of the Vincentian Family Paris, 7-26 July 2002 Program 1st Week FAITHFUL TO THE GOSPEL, TO THE CHURCH AND TO ST. VINCENT Monday, 8 July 08:30 Conference Room 08:45 Welcome: Juana Elizondo, D.C. (Superioress General) 09:15 Eucharistic Liturgy, Robert P.