One Heart, One Spirit CONGREGATION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT Newsletter for the Province of the United States Volume No. XL, No. 3 MAY-JUNE 2012 US PROVINCIAL CHAPTER 2012 As you are aware, the Provincial Chapter took place at Duquesne University from June 4 through June 9, 2012. The Chapter brought together 92 Professed and Lay Spiritans; 69 from the Province and 23 observers, 8 of whom were superiors of other circumscriptions. Facilitated by Sr. Mary Dacey, SSJ, the Chapter addressed the four themes of Our Mission, Our Life, Our Resources and New Membership and produced a series of statements on these issues which received the unanimous approval of the Chapter members. Fr. John Fogarty was re-elected Provincial on the first ballot. Fr. Jeff Duaime was elected First Assistant with Fr. Benoit Mukamba (Second Assistant), Fr. Dan Walsh and Fr. James Okoye completing the Council. The new Council will take up office on August 15, 2012 and at that time will address the appointment of Province Treasurer and Province Secretary (S.R. L. 247.1.5). The next Chapter will take place in 2018 and General Assembly, which will be elective, will be held in 2015. The Chapter also endorsed a statement of support for L.C.W.R. in their recent difficulties with the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Since Frs. Fogarty and Duaime will be attending the General Chapter in Bagamoyo, Tanzania, from June 22 through July 24, 2012, Fr. Michael White will be Acting Provincial in their absence. We ask your prayers for the success of the General Chapter. Major Superior Table Lay Spiritan Rich Gosser and Fr. Jim McCloskey Fathers Len Tuozzolo, Frank Wright and Tom Byrne Fr. Peter Laast, DU Pres. Charles Dougherty, Group Session and Discussion Fr. Lazarus Langbiir and Fr. Samuel Oppong-Nkansah 2 [At this time of year, attention rightly turns to newlyweds, anniversaries and graduations. We honor and celebrate those who march to the altar, sit at the head banquet table or triumphantly walk across the stage to get their diplomas. If these communal celebrations include a presentation of some sort, a thoughtful notice will be made of those who “made all this possible.” In the realm of education, this includes the teacher, professor or school administrator. Four Spiritans “step down” this year from specific educational ministries only to “step up” to other ministries of service. Both Tony Gittins (English Province) and James Okoye (Nigeria South East Province) leave Catholic Theological Union after years of dedicated theological education - Tony, to devote himself more fully to retreats, seminars and presentations; James, to take on responsibility for the Center for Spiritan Studies at Duquesne, in addition to teaching a course on scripture. Barney Kelly (Trans-Canadian Province) will hand over his pioneering work as Director, Center of Spiritan Studies, Duquesne University, to return to his province of origin. Bill Headley (United States Province) will leave his post this summer as founding dean, Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies, University of San Diego, to enjoy a sabbatical before returning to teaching. He shared a closing homily he preached at a Mass for his University’s Board of Directors. It attempts to capture, in Bill’s context, such a transition moment in an educational ministry: ] University of San Diego Board of Trustees End of Year Liturgy, April 26, 2012 “The angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, ‘Get up and head south on the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.’” (Mass of the Day, first reading, Acts 8: 26-40) If you were anywhere near San Diego this last week (April 18-19), you know that His Holiness the Dalai Lama visited three major university campuses, including our University of San Diego. At our University, he spoke to an overflow crowd of four or five thousand people in our largest auditorium. I was dressed in clericals for such an auspicious occasion and seated in the front row of the hall. Minutes before, His Holiness and I had met briefly and superficially before this presentation. I had been part of the greeting party as he entered the auditorium. When his talk was finished and he was about to leave the stage, His Holiness came over to the edge of the stage, beckoned me to come over and reached down to shake my hand, commenting – I am sure a reference to my clerical attire, “my special brother.” Obviously, I was touched. When I returned a few steps back to my seat, the woman next to me said excitedly, “Don’t worry, I have a picture of the Dalai Lama greeting you!” When the photo arrived in my in-box that night, I opened it with some interest. Sure enough, there was the Dalai Lama. His image was easily identifiable if somewhat blurred. What you mainly see of me is my seriously balding head! The moral of this story: some of us are not destined for greatness! Though our School of Peace Studies was instrumental in bringing His Holiness to our campus, some of the shine and awe of his coming was missing for me. We had brought him to Pittsburgh while I was at Duquesne University some years ago. Still, it gave me a chance to listen to the man and his message more deeply. This, in turn, nudged me to ask myself, “What is his attraction?” Certainly, His Holiness struggles with big ideas: reconciling neuroscience with meditative practice, cultivating compassion, and in his latest book, Beyond Religion, searches for a secular ethics. Listening carefully, however, to the words he spoke in the presentation, it struck me how simple his message really was. With a touch of cynicism, perhaps, I thought: “If I preached at that level during my weekend liturgies at the Cathedral in San Diego, people would get restless – finding my message too simple, too basic.” So, what is it that attracts these thousands of admirers everywhere he goes? Our on-line ticketing for the event sold out in 16 minutes! Here were my answers, equally, perhaps, as simplistic as his presentation. 3 (continued on next page) University of San Diego Board of Trustees - End of Year Liturgy, April 26, 2012 First, “he” is saying it. He — the 14th Dalai Lama with his religious aura, Noble Prize, personal sacrifices and eastern mystic attractiveness — is the presenter, not balding-headed me. Then, there is his “body-spirit” integration: one senses that he is what he talks about. Then, there is the message about good, human living within oneself and among others. With the hype of our daily lives, its busyness and various frictions and frustrations in our society and world, maybe it is the profundity embedded in the simple words and message that really captures attention. In the scriptures of this particular day, it is the first reading cited above, which carries the post-Easter spirit. It is about getting that message into the world that so stirred the followers of Jesus. One of the urgencies of that time was getting the message of Jesus beyond the small Jewish enclave. How better to make the point than to tell a story a person from a distant land – Ethiopia – who gets “it,” the message? In the scripture story, an angel stirs Philip. Reminds me of a point a preacher once made about Mary’s Annunciation, that is, when an angel came to announce that she was to be the mother of God. The preacher’s advice: “When angels begin to talk to you, duck, a big job is coming your way!” Well, maybe angels are not about to come our way. But, in the spirit of Philip, the Church at this Pentecost time of year reminds us that we are alive with the Holy Spirit. We need to reach out beyond ourselves to share the good news. We must do this by the integrity of our lives. Legend has it that St. Francis of Assisi noted that we should do this by the testimony of our lives and, if all else fails, by our words. We should reach out to those “others” who are strangers and outcasts, broken and battered, separated or simply not talking to one another. Sometimes, one does this “reaching out” by one’s self, as Philip did. And, sometimes, as you have – Board of Trustees (Kroc School Board of Advisors) — one enables others to do this. You’ve been such enablers by making room at USD for the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies, the first new School at the University in around 35 years. Julie Sullivan, our Provost, is no angel; I’m no apostle Philip. Yet, she grabbed me by the gruff of the neck in 2007. She said, “Give us 3-5 years of your life to get this School started. Take a vague dream, turn it into a vision and make a plan of it. Attract people who want to change, heal and serve the world. Along the way, you can even make some mistakes, have shortcomings, be slow and dumb in some respects” (Well, she didn’t really say those last things, giving me permission to be THIS dumb…but she probably intended them.) When friends on the East Coast early on heard my dean’s task here at USD, they would often say, “Start a School of Peace Studies – the first in the country and from scratch – what an opportunity!” I came to reply, “Scratch never had it so good: three vital programs; a beautiful, peace-filled building; staff and faculty who feel passionately about making peace; and, a little money in the bank – well, actually, a lot of money in the bank; and, a Board of Trustees, an Administration and our own Board of Advisors of the School of Peace Studies who came to believe in us.