Items filtered by date: January 2022

Thursday, 27 January 2022 14:41

India - Chapter

India – Provincial Chapter

New Provincial Council:

Fr. Jenson J. Chenthrappinny, provincial superior (center)

Fr. Bino Poovannikunnel, provincial vicar (left)

Fr. Anoop Manchirayil, second assistant (right)

May the Holy Spirit enlighten the new Council in the service to the Province.

Published in INFO (EN)

Like a Tree

(6th Ordinary Sunday: Jeremiah 17:5-8; 1 Corinthians 15:12-20; Luke 6:17, 20-26)

Twice today we encounter the image of a fruit tree planted by a source of water. Jeremiah uses it to describe those who trust in the Lord; the Psalm applies it to those who delight in meditating on God’s law. Both paint a painful image of those who place their trust and delight elsewhere.

At first glance, Jesus seems to use the same language, but it is clear that “woe to you” is very different from a curse. It is a warning. We find a similar concern at times in the context of La Salette. What some people read as Mary’s threats are more correctly understood as warnings.

The theme of the tree can be applied to all of today’s readings, and to La Salette as well. The point of Jesus’ beatitudes and woes, and of Mary’s promises and warnings, is to invite us to place our trust in God and not in ourselves.

Even the second reading, in which Paul insists on the truth of the resurrection of the body, connects to the same theme. As Greeks, the Corinthians prided themselves on their philosophy, which had no concept of bodily life after death. Paul expresses a sort of woe when he writes, “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is vain; you are still in your sins.”

Returning to the idea of the tree planted by water, remember that water is a strong symbol at La Salette. Mary came to help her people have deep roots and unfading green leaves and abundant fruit.

Besides the physical stream, the Beautiful Lady reminds us of another stream that is always a source of life. “Do you say your prayers well, my children?... You should say them well, at night and in the morning.” If she had been thinking of Psalm 1, she might have asked, “Do you delight in the law of the Lord?... You should meditate on his law day and night.”

As you know, plants need not only water but light as well. Prayer can be likened also to photosynthesis, enabling us to take in the light of Christ, which will work together with the water so that we may be strong in our faith and live in abiding hope.

For storms will surely come, dark and difficult days, but blessed are we if we remain united to our Risen Lord and to his Blessed Mother.

Wayne Vanasse, and Fr. René Butler, M.S.

Published in MISSION (EN)
Saturday, 22 January 2022 22:21

Rosary - January 2022

Published in LAY ASSOCIATES (EN)
Saturday, 22 January 2022 08:40

Necrologium 2021

Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette died in 2021

Requiem aeternam dona eis, Domine,

et lux perpetua luceat eis.

Requiescant in pace. Amen.

Salette info_Rzym_2022_max_rozk.jpg

 Download a pdf file...

Published in INFO (EN)
Thursday, 20 January 2022 08:14

Monthly Bulletin 003

Published in LAY ASSOCIATES (EN)

Deeper Waters

(5th Ordinary Sunday: Isaiah 6:1-8; 1 Corinthians 15:1-11; Luke 5:1-11)

There are many similarities in today’s three readings. For example, an extraordinary encounter with the Lord caused Isaiah, Paul, and Simon to be keenly aware of their sinfulness. This may be part of our own experience, too.

Another comparison is less obvious, but equally important. Jesus tells Simon, “Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch” and, a few verses later, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” Isaiah and Paul were likewise admitted to the depths of God’s mystery, and given a mission.

At La Salette, the image is again different, but the reality is the same. We are drawn upward, to a mountain height but, with Mélanie and Maximin, we receive a mission, to make an important message known by our words and by our life.

Isaiah was especially troubled, but received a sign of God’s forgiveness when the burning ember touched his lips. Mary identified some of the sins by which her people were offending the Lord; and she reminded us of the importance of practicing our Catholic faith, especially the Eucharist which Jesus instituted “for the forgiveness of sins.” Remember this the next time the consecrated host passes your lips.

The Church also provides the sign of absolution in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, which every La Salette priest treasures in his heart. The beautiful stories we could tell!

We come once again to three key “La Salette words:” reconciliation (acknowledging and accepting our unworthiness); conversion (turning back to God and accepting his forgiveness]; and making the message known (evangelizing).

In Simon’s case, this began with his allowing Jesus to use his boat as a stage from which to teach the crowds. Little did he know where this simple act of welcome would lead.

The clear message which the Beautiful Lady proclaimed at La Salette is one which the world still greatly needs. If in our hearts and actions we let Jesus into the humble boat of our lives and go deeper at his command, who knows what good we might do?

Wayne Vanasse, and Fr. René Butler, M.S.

Published in MISSION (EN)
Thursday, 13 January 2022 11:40

Angola - Chapter

Angola – Provincial Chapter

Provincial Chapter: January 4-8, 2022

New Provincial Council:

Fr. Celestino Muhatili, provincial superior (center)

Fr. Lourenço F. Kambalu, provincial vicar (right)

Fr. Belarmino Tchipundukwa, second assistant (left)

May the Holy Spirit enlighten the new Council in the service to the Province.

Published in INFO (EN)

A Safe Place

(4th Ordinary Sunday: Jeremiah 1:4-19; 1 Corinthians 12:31—13:13; Luke 4:21-30)

We begin this reflection with a prayer, for ourselves or others in need, addressed to the Lord in today’s Psalm. “Be my rock of refuge, a stronghold to give me safety, for you are my rock and my fortress.”

God called Jeremiah to be a prophet, saying, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I dedicated you.” Imagine what it would be like to hear such words, to be certain that the Lord has a plan for us.

Jeremiah was young and inexperienced, and tried to refuse; but God promised to be with him and, as we hear in today’s first reading, to make him “a fortified city, a pillar of iron, a wall of brass,” ready for the hard life that lay ahead.

Perhaps we are more willing than Jeremiah, but we still need the same assurances he received. We need a sense of security, trusting always that the Lord is our refuge.

Consider Maximin and Mélanie, totally unprepared for their call. The sweetness of the Beautiful Lady’s voice made them feel safe, and the memory of her tenderness must have been a refuge for them as they faced the incredulity, and even hostility, of many people.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus did not initially meet with outright rejection in his hometown, but neither did he find the welcome he might reasonably have expected. His old neighbors seem to have thought that he was putting on airs. We too, when we seek to share our faith, might sometimes, sad to say, be better received by people who know us less well.

As we read St. Paul’s famous description of love, in the second reading, the image of God himself keeps coming to mind. This ought not to come as a surprise, since St. John, in his First Letter (4:16), writes, “God is love, and whoever remains in love remains in God and God in him.”

Our prayer might therefore take this form: “Your love is everything, O Lord. In it I take refuge, and I will never be put to shame.” Let us anchor ourselves to the rock of our salvation, i.e., a loving relationship with God, as we seek to bring reconciliation to our world.

Wayne Vanasse, and Fr. René Butler, M.S.

Published in MISSION (EN)

The Ambo

(3rd Ordinary Sunday: Nehemiah 8:2-10; 1 Corinthians 12:12-30; Luke 1: 1-4 and 4:14-21)

In the first reading Ezra stands on a platform specially built for the occasion, so that he may be better seen and heard, as he reads the Book of the Law.

That structure is familiar to us, of course, since we see it in most of our churches as the ambo. Its purpose is to highlight the importance of the Word of God which is proclaimed there. It is also used for the preaching of the homily and for the Prayer of the Faithful.

The ambo as an architectural element within a church is prominent. Is there a place of prominence within ourselves and our domestic church where the Word (The Law) is revered, kept, and announced? At La Salette, Mary showed that this was not the case.

So, she chose a high place, a mountain ambo, to bring her great news, a reminder of things forgotten by her people. These include the Law, of course, but not merely a list of rules and regulations. She did not come only to say that our fallen nature and sin have separated us from God, but she wanted us to know that God still wants us to be in relationship with him, if we would but convert, putting the Word back in a prominent place in our everyday lives.

The diverse ways in which we can do this are highlighted in our second reading, in which St. Paul continues his commentary on the gifts of the Spirit. We are all needed, each of us with our uniqueness, to serve the whole body. Our individuality should not create points of isolation and separation but be a gift to bring to the whole body of Christ.

It is hard to imagine two persons more different from each other than Mélanie Calvat and Maximin Giraud. But Mary chose them both. We who have received that unique La Salette missionary zeal, should also see ourselves as part of a whole, and find that one grace, that one gift, by which we can contribute to the whole and strengthen the Whole Body of Christ.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus recognizes himself in the words of Isaiah, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me... He has sent me....” We too are anointed and sent in our own way. May these weekly reflections, in the spirit of the Beautiful Lady, be an ambo from which Jesus is faithfully proclaimed.

Wayne Vanasse, and Fr. René Butler, M.S.

Published in MISSION (EN)
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