Society of Mary Calendar. The Marist Way: A Contemplative Way THE MARISTS IN THE UNITED STATES

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1 ociety of ary HE ARI IN HE UNIED AE he arist ay: A Contemplative ay Calendar

2 ary of Nazareth, the first disciple of the Lord and other of the Church, is the heart of our identity as arists. his remarkable woman of faith has called us to this way of life. e believe that we have been called by a gracious choice into the family of ary. It is her work that we do and so we commit ourselves to think, judge, feel and act as she did. As a consequence, these qualities mark us as arists: mercy and compassion, availability, welcome and hospitality, simplicity manifest in everyday ordinariness and a common touch. e are self-effacing apostles who demonstrate a spirit of joy and respect for others; we are called to be humble and hidden and unknown in the world. Our spirituality, which is both mystical and practical, responds to the reality and circumstances of today s world. Jean-Claude Colin, acting on what he believed to be ary s desire, encouraged us to establish a arian Church, a Church with the heart of a mother beating at its center. At our best, we are instruments of God s mercy working to help others taste the boundless love of the Lord, especially those who find themselves on the margins. As arists, we seek to go where the Church is not. e should enable all with whom we come into contact to experience the gift of reconciliation as well as peace of heart and mind. ary is the icon of God s pirit. As her fellow disciples, we pray that with God s grace we become the same. tatement of Identity, U Province of the arists Assembly and Chapter of June

3 he arist ay, a Contemplative ay Our arist General Chapter that gathers every eighth year with representative arists from around the world became intensely aware of our growing numeric fragility as a group, like so many other religious congregations. hey were even more taken with the effects of secularizing individualism that tears apart communities and Church congregations now even in our missionary territories. he reports of the Provinces and regions found our nations and cultures often spinning into fragmentation and polarization across the world as secularism the ideology that trumps all other approaches to life with radical individualism, materialism, consumerism, and even polarization spreads everywhere. It is no surprise that the Chapter members would be drawn back to our arist origins and recall the fullness of our vocation as Jean-Claude Colin, our ounder, envisioned it. Communities under threat from surrounding culture or society have no choice but to refound themselves by returning to their original meaning and purpose, or else, to quietly pass out of existence as outside forces pull them apart. A group cannot survive without a clear sense of who they are and why they exist. Diminishment in numbers does not necessarily have to fall into processes of decline and decay; many communities (and companies) find diminishment to be a abbath time as they deeply reflect on mission, purpose, and spirit, all while engaging in deep processes of change that keep the group rooted in its origins, yet better able to adapt itself to a different era, society, and culture. he great Cardinal Newman once said: o live is to change, and to change often is to become more perfect. In a fast-changing world, a refusal to change is often a choice for death or growing rigidity. But a group rooted in Gospel faith has the additional strength of boundless hope in the pirit and of the Providence of God in bringing about change. his kind of hope can create a future when there is no future - to paraphrase artin Luther King, Jr. A God of Resurrections is always looking forward to newness of life, just as does each sunrise and spring. he Chapter was drawn to the theme of contemplation as one of its areas of focus. oday s arists has focused on this approach, and it is our theme for this year. he definition of contemplation has been clear enough in Catholic spirituality: hat is basic is that it has to do with awareness of the presence of God apprehended (perceived?) not by thought, but by love (he New Dictionary of Catholic pirituality). ore poetically, it has been described as a loving gaze into God as a form of quiet and wordless prayer. t. Paul has his own graphic description of it: or us baptized with our faces unveiled, we are like mirrors reflecting more the glory of the Lord and are being transformed by it. his is the work of the pirit in us, ho is the Lord Cor :. or our ounder, through devotion to this type of prayer, it would gradually form us into arists who think as ary, judge as ary, feel and act as ary in all things, so that we become ary to the Church and world. his type of contemplation transforms the heart, mind, and imagination, enlivening our ability to discern God s will; and it fills our actions with the presence of God, thus freeing us from focus on our own ego, even when we are intensely serving others. his is a spiritual path over a lifetime that never ends with the pirit that overshadowed ary always present to us at some level. hen we are ready to understand our ounder when he urged that we should only be engaged in what God calls us to and not so much in what we think or plan ourselves, as if we can pull it off alone. Once asked what he understood God to want the ociety to do, Colin spontaneously replied, nothing, nothing because then you would think that you are doing it. e enter into true discernment more like our paradoxical ounder. But as so often happens when a group looks deeply into its past, this theme is nothing new for us as arists. Our Constitutions say: he spiritual life is nourished by contemplation of the ord of God. his heightens awareness of the presence of the risen Jesus in the everyday life and work of arists. His presence inspires them to make of their lives an unceasing prayer (Constitutions ). he General Chapter itself reminds us: Contemplation as the energy source, the mystical heart of arist mission, is intimately linked with our identity as arist religious. o form a communion for mission, we need to deepen the contemplative dimension of our lives. ith Jesus at the center we can, like ary, be missionaries of hope ( General Chapter, 0). o this is not exactly new territory for us; we have a ounder whom we have often seen as a mystic not because of visions or strange phenomena but because he seemed often to be coming from a deeper connection with God, ary, and the Church, through a profound contact with the ways of God that would often surprise his listeners. Another great ounder, t. Ignatius, summarized it well when he said: here are very few people who realize what God would make of them if they abandon themselves into His hands, and let themselves be formed by His grace. Nothing is more practical than finding God, than falling in Love in a quite absolute, final way. hat you are in love with, what seizes your imagination will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the morning, what you do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, whom you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. all in Love, stay in love, and it will decide everything. Pedro Arrupe, J, ormer Jesuit General Painting: ary by Henry Ossawa anner

4 ary reminds us that the love of the vulnerable heart is not concerned with ever more action, but rather a contemplative gaze purity of heart that opens us up to the love of God and to those who are struggling, offering them her maternal welcome. John Larsen, Reflection from the uperior General, June

5 UNDAY ONDAY UEDAY EDNEDAY HURDAY RIDAY AURDAY olemnity of ary, other of God New Year s Day Epiphany of the Lord Acceptance of issions of Oceania, ass and Prayers for the ociety of ary 0 he Baptism of the Lord Dr. artin Luther King, Jr. Day t. arianne Cope t. rancis de ales econdary Patron of the ociety of ary t. homas Aquinas econdary Patron of the ociety of ary 0 January 0 DECEBER 0 0 EBRUARY

6 If I were in charge, I would see the novices individually twice a week. I would try to simply unite them to God, to bring them to a spirit of prayer once he tastes God, a novice will turn to Him again and again. Jean-Claude Colin (ounder of the ociety of ary) A ounder peaks

7 UNDAY ONDAY UEDAY EDNEDAY HURDAY RIDAY AURDAY east of the Presentation of the Lord arists Renew heir Vows Valentine s Day 0 President s Day Approbation of r. Colin s Constitutions, ass and Prayers for the ociety of ary ebruary JANUARY ARCH 0

8 he contemplative way, if it means anything, means that we allow God to work in us and through us - as God wills. ichael helan, he arist ay, a Contemplative ay oday s arists, pring, Volume, Issue.

9 UNDAY ONDAY UEDAY EDNEDAY HURDAY RIDAY AURDAY Ash ednesday Laudatory Brief of Pope Pius VII ass and Prayers for the ociety of ary irst unday of Lent Daylight avings ime Begins 0 econd unday of Lent t. Patrick s Day t. Joseph Patron of the ociety of ary hird unday of Lent t. Oscar Romero he Annunciation of he Lord 0 ourth unday of Lent arch 0 EBRUARY APRIL 0 0

10 I am reminded of the (contemplative) call at the very heart of Biblical revelation. It is revealed, for example, in amuel s peak, Lord, your servant is listening! (amuel :) and ary s Here I am, the Lord s servant. Let it happen according to your word! (Luke :) ichael helan, he arist ay, a Contemplative ay oday s arists, pring, Volume, Issue.

11 UNDAY ONDAY UEDAY EDNEDAY HURDAY RIDAY AURDAY ifth unday of Lent 0 Palm unday Holy eek Begins Holy hursday Passion of the Lord Good riday Easter unday Resurrection of the Lord Easter onday unday of Divine ercy t. Peter Chanel, artyred ass and Prayers for Vocations to the ociety of ary Pontifical Approbation of the ociety of ary by Pope Gregory XVI, ass and Prayers for the ociety of ary 0 April 0 ARCH 0 AY 0 0

12 while no particular arian devotion captures the heart of the arist spirit, the arist charism calls us simply to be ary in the Church. ed Keating, ary, odel of Contemplation In Action oday s arists, pring, Volume, Issue.

13 UNDAY ONDAY UEDAY EDNEDAY HURDAY RIDAY AURDAY hird unday of Easter 0 ourth unday of Easter other s Day ifth unday of Easter ixth unday of Easter ass and Prayers for Living Benefactors emorial Day Ascension of he Lord Visitation of he Blessed Virgin ary 0 ay APRIL JUNE 0

14 we realize that we are called to something much deeper as arists; more than committing ourselves to specific devotions, we are called to become ary s devotion in the midst of the Church. Edwin Keel,, as quoted in ary, odel of Contemplation in Action oday s arists, pring, Volume, Issue.

15 UNDAY ONDAY UEDAY EDNEDAY HURDAY RIDAY AURDAY eventh unday of Easter t. arcellin Champagnat died 0 Pentecost unday 0 he ost Holy rinity ather s Day Corpus Christi he Nativity of aint John the Baptist he ost acred Heart of Jesus ts. Peter and Paul, Apostles 0 June AY 0 0 JULY 0 0

16 o form a communion for mission, we arists need to rediscover the contemplative dimension of our lives (see Constitution ). Jesus and ary should be at the center arist General Chapter

17 UNDAY ONDAY UEDAY EDNEDAY HURDAY RIDAY AURDAY Independence Day t. Peter Chanel, born 0 0 Pledge at ourvière to found the ociety of ary,. ass and Prayers for the ociety of ary ts. Anne and Joachim, parents of ary t. Ignatius of Loyola 0 July 0 JUNE 0 AUGU 0 0

18 Our emphasis is not to look at ary, talk about ary, nor do we have many arian images and statues in our houses....because that is not our point....e are ary. hat is the point. And ary would not talk much about herself but would get on with it. his is the ultimate Christian form of arian devotion not to have a particular devotion to someone, but to be that particular person. Alois Greiler, arist Retreat, onday Day : Like ary arist Identity

19 UNDAY ONDAY UEDAY EDNEDAY HURDAY RIDAY AURDAY t. Alphonsus de Liguori econdary Patron of the ociety of ary t. Peter Julian Eymard, ormer arist ounder Blessed acrament Congregations he ransfiguration of the Lord r. Jean-Claude Colin,, born 0 0 olemnity of the Assumption of ary arists Renew heir Vows 0 August JULY 0 0 EPEBER 0 0

20 or us to live our Christian faith, a leading question based on this short formula could be: I find myself in such and such a situation, I am confronted with a decision from where do I draw my inspiration? he answer could be to imagine: How would ary respond and decide? Alois Greiler, arist Retreat, onday Day : Like ary - arist Identity

21 UNDAY ONDAY UEDAY EDNEDAY HURDAY RIDAY AURDAY Labor Day irst Vows of arist isters, Nativity of he Blessed Virgin ary 0 olemnity of the ost Holy Name of ary arist Patronal east ass and Prayers for the ociety of ary Our Lady of orrows Election of irst uperior General of ociety of ary, irst Profession of arists ass and Prayers for the ociety of ary t. Paul VI t. Vincent de Paul econdary Patron of the ociety of ary t. ichael Archangel with Archangels Gabriel and Raphael Patron of the ociety of ary 0 eptember AUGU 0 0 OCOBER 0 0

22 eister Eckhart said: his above all else is needful: you must lay claim to nothing! Let go of yourself, and let God act with you and in you as He will. ichael helan, he arist ay, a Contemplative ay oday s arists, pring, Volume, Issue.

23 UNDAY ONDAY UEDAY EDNEDAY HURDAY RIDAY AURDAY t. hérèse of the Child Jesus t. other héodore Guérin t. rancis of Assisi Our Lady of the Rosary t. John XXIII 0 Columbus Day t. John Paul II 0 October EPEBER NOVEBER 0

24 Contemplation is not born of techniques or deliberate effort. It does not come to us as conquest but as gift. It therefore requires a capacity and commitment to listen to what is happening, to face the truth of our experiences, and to submit to that truth. ichael helan, he arist ay, a Contemplative ay oday s arists, pring, Volume, Issue.

25 UNDAY ONDAY UEDAY EDNEDAY HURDAY RIDAY AURDAY All aints ass for Deceased arists Daylight avings ime Ends ass for Deceased Benefactors Veterans Day t. rances Xavier Cabrini Death of r. Jean-Claude Colin,, ass and Prayers for the ociety of ary 0 Presentation of the Blessed Virgin ary Christ he King hanksgiving Day 0 November OCOBER 0 0 DECEBER 0 0

26 Jesus went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart. (Luke :) Effective listening in the minutiae of our days and a genuine desire to face the truth of what is actually going on is absolutely fundamental. ithout it, we are building our spiritual house on sand. (atthew :-) ith it, we are disposing ourselves to taste God and to liberate the life-giving principle that slowly becomes the contemplative way. ichael helan, he arist ay, a Contemplative ay oday s arists, pring, Volume, Issue.

27 UNDAY ONDAY UEDAY EDNEDAY HURDAY RIDAY AURDAY irst unday of Advent econd unday of Advent Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin ary Our Lady of Guadalupe 0 hird unday of Advent ourth unday of Advent he Nativity of the Lord Christmas he Holy amily of Jesus, ary and Joseph arist issionary isters Constitutions Approval by Rome, 0 December 0 NOVEBER 0 JANUARY 0 0

28 ociety of ary Province in the United tates he agnificat he Prayer of ary y soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit rejoices in God my avior for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant. rom this day all generations will call me blessed: the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name. He has mercy on those who fear him in every generation. He has shown the strength of his arm, he has scattered the proud in their conceit. He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty. He has come to the help of his servant Israel for he remembered his promise of mercy, the promise he made to our fathers, to Abraham and his children forever. (Lk :-) OCIEY O ARY INORAION Please contact us about arist locations in the U.. and abroad by contacting arist Provincial House in ashington, D.C. at - or info@maristsociety.org. O UPPOR HE ARI IN HE U.. arist athers and Brothers of the United tates Office of Development Beacon treet, Boston, A 0-0 r. Paul Carr, Director s. Denise D Amico, ecretary elephone: -- ax: -- maristdevelopment@gmail.com O UPPOR HE ARI IION arist oreign issions Beacon treet, Boston, A 0-0 Rev. alter Gaudreau,.., Director s. Denise D Amico, ecretary elephone: -- ax: -- aristorldissions@gmail.com COVER ary on the ay by ister aria Van Galen, fmm e imagine this art work being the movement of ary from the contemplative moment of the Annunciation on the way to being of service to her cousin Elizabeth. Rev. Paul rechette,.., Provincial uperior he ociety of ary in the United tates of America Varnum treet, NE ashington, DC 0 At our best, we are instruments of God s mercy working to help others taste the boundless love of the Lord, especially those who find themselves on the margins. As arists, we seek to go where the Church is not. e should enable all with whom we come into contact to experience the gift of reconciliation as well as peace of heart and mind. ary is the icon of God s pirit. As her fellow disciples, we pray that with God s grace we become the same. (tatement of Identity for the U Province ) societyofmaryusa.org