Up Sails! Faith and Light international. Contents. Editorial: The final sprint celebrations. Testimonies. Reports.

Transcription

1 N 14 September 2012 Faith and Light international Up Sails! Contents Editorial: The final sprint celebrations Faith and Light has an important place in the Church 3 The messengers of joy at Grandma Saint Anne de Beaupré 4 Joy and Light at Saint Anne d Auray 5 Pilgrimage to Lourdes, testimonies 7 The most beautiful gift 9 Testimonies Dayshawn, founder of Faith and Light in the Bahamas? 10 Long live young people! 11 Reports A new community in Malaysia 12 To Atlanta with the Federation of L Arche 14 Family album 16 Reader s mail 17 Guidelines International solidarity 20 International agenda 20 Faith and Light international 3 rue du Laos Paris France T foi.lumiere@wanadoo.fr

2 Page 2 A t this end of the month of August, after the stadium Gods have competed for the gold, silver and bronze medals at the London Olympics, it is the turn of the disabled sportsmen and women to take centre stage. Even if the Paralympics receive a lot less media attention, the objective of each sports person remains the same: to excel in order to offer their country a bit of glory, the fruit of much effort and training! Certainly, the Olympic spirit is very beautiful and, for a short while, brings a bit of peace into a world of war and division. But the guns and canons don t stop everyone in Syria particularly where all community members suffer in a conflict that doesn t seem to have a solution. At the moment, several provinces are still celebrating 40 years of Faith and Light! Taking up the sports theme again, it is the final sprint! The number of pilgrimages during the two months of July and August is impressive! There was the Irish pilgrimage to Maynooth Editorial: The final sprint Maria-Guadalupe in the Guagalupe Shrine! and the Iberatlantic province one to Lourdes, the Open Hearts province organised theirs to Mexico to the Shrine of Guadalupe and the Canada West province to Winnipeg; then there was the Northern Lights province that ended its wandering pilgrimage in Rakvere, Estonia whilst the UK North province met in Sterling, Scotland; then it was the turn of the Between the Seas and Ukraine provinces to meet at Lviv (Ukraine) to go together to Hoshiv where a miraculous icon of Mary, Mother of God is venerated; during this time the UK South province made its pilgrimage to Bristol; then it was the turn of the Africans from Rwanda, Burundi, the DRC and Kenya to go to Kibeho; then there was the pilgrimage of the Poles from the Centre East province to Warsaw and finally, the ILA Trinity province (North Lebanon, Iran and Armenia) went to Deir El Ahmar Sadly, the Gokomere pilgrimage to Zimbabwe had to be put back to September due to a lack of resources; it will actually take place to Kwekwe for one day instead of the three originally planned. This amounts to twelve pilgrimages in two months! I am impressed each time because all these pilgrimages demand a lot of work, a lot of preparation work to organise, accommodate, celebrate and party! During this season, in a lot of northern hemisphere countries, it is the time for harvest and crops and a lot of Gospel texts proposed during this time make reference to the work in the fields. For two years, we have been messengers of joy; we have sown as much as we can of our message of joy and hope. This year, the Guidelines are going to help us to pick the fruits of all this effort and without doubt let us go and receive medals like the athletes in London. Let us say with St Paul: I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day me and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing (2 Ti 4, 7-8). Ghislain du Chéné International Coordinator In Lviv, Ukraine

3 Pilgrimages 2012 Page 3 Faith and Light has an important place in the Church! Father Ian Fee, provincial chaplain From 29 June to 1 July, the communities from Ireland gathered in Maynooth, County Kildare, near Dublin for a pilgrimage. Maynooth is a small town where St Patrick s College, the national seminary of the Church of Ireland, has been located since It is a superb campus with very beautiful buildings (the architect A. W. N. Pugin also worked on the Palace of Westminster in London); Julie, who came with Isabelle, thought she was in a Harry Potter film (particularly in the massive dining hall)! Four people came from the USA West province including Eileen, the province coordinator. This took place just a year after the pilgrimage to Lourdes where the Irish went with the UK North and UK South provinces. This year, they came in an approach that I found very beautiful, a very reverential approach, a thanksgiving for the beautiful pilgrimage of July I was particularly happy to meet with Father Brendan Kelly (now bishop of the Achonry diocese)! My first contact with Faith and Light in Ireland was in July 1995 when we went for a training session together in Nairobi (with Claude Madec, a Frenchman from Ireland -who was the zone coordinator for East Africa at that time and with Isabelle). Bishop Brendan and Julie discussions, work and exchanges on the theme of the Congress which was: The Eucharist: Communion with Christ and with one another. He told us that at Faith and Light, we not only naturally live this theme but also do so without question! That isn t to say that there ought not to be great theologians in the Church, but that our mission has just confirmed through what we experience their great debates. A huge thank you to Mary and to all the province team for this beautiful pilgrimage and for such a warm welcome! GdC On Saturday evening, there was a very joyful party: each person could introduce a song, piece of music, a mime Julie played Ode to joy on the piano, which she thoroughly enjoyed except when she realised that the end of the celebration wasn t a break but definitely time for bed! The most beautiful thing that I will keep from this pilgrimage was the presence of Monsignor John Kirby, the Faith and Light reference bishop in Ireland who spoke to us from his heart, telling us what an important place Faith and Light has in the Church. He illustrated this point by telling us about the recent International Eucharistic Congress that was held in Dublin in June. There were a lot of reflections, Dining Hall, Saint Patrick Seminary

4 Page 4 Pilgrimages 2012 The messengers of joy at Grandma Saint Anne de Beaupré During the 1998 international meeting that took place in Quebec, several suggestions were made to the participants to go and visit various remarkable locations in the region: I chose to go to Sainte Anne de Beaupré. So I joyfully returned to this place of pilgrimage to which more than a million pilgrims and visitors flock every year. It is indeed the oldest place of pilgrimage in North America, visited for over 350 years. The Canada East province organised its 40 th anniversary pilgrimage to this beautiful sanctuary, to grandma Saint Anne, as she is affectionately known! From 24 to 27 May, there were 271 of us including a delegation of twenty people from the Rhone-Azur province. On my arrival, I was warmly welcomed by all the pilgrims who were already there, in the crypt of the Basilica for the opening ceremony. Led by a beautiful orchestra, conducted by Denise Audet-Gravel, everyone was singing joyfully! The crypt of the Basilica is called the Chapel of the Immaculate Conception and I had no trouble linking it with Lourdes where I was the week before! The following day, there was a beautiful ceremony of reconciliation; those who went to confession received a message: Messenger of joy, do not loose your smile, others need it!. Then we left in yellow school buses for a pilgrimage to the Basilica of St Thérèse of Lisieux and the Blessed Mgr François de Laval, the first bishop of Quebec. In the evening, there was a large celebration with the mime of the story of the first pilgrimage, followed by a grand musical event: there were a lot of people on the dance floor! On Sunday, we were able to see and hear messages from our founders to the pilgrims at Saint Anne de Beaupré and then there was the mass and the closing ceremony from where we all left with a beautiful lantern to go and proclaim the joy! Finally, everything was finished off with a large celebratory meal with birthday cake! And soon it was time to go Lord Jesus, You gave us the gift of your grandmother St Anne. Shining with your love, she is a source of hope to us. With You and with her, let us celebrate LIFE! There are going to be fruits to harvest, be prepared! The following day, we washed our feet in a profound meditation and the afternoon was dedicated to a beautiful musical show of a very high quality: it began with a tribute to all the messengers of joy with the Magnificat the Ode to joy by Ludwig van Beethoven; the choir and soloists played and sang with such passion that the choir leader thanked us, saying that he felt he was giving us a great quality show! He explained it by saying that he had especially felt a communion with the people with a disability! GdC In the evening, there was a beautiful torchlight procession in the Basilica with the threat of rain that didn t fall in the end

5 Pilgrimages 2012 Page 5 Joy and Light at Saint Anne d Auray Bishop d Ornellas confirming a pilgrim Arriving from Egypt, Martinique and France West, more than 600 people with an intellectual disability, their families and friends came to experience three days (from 26 to 28 May) at Saint Anne d Auray to celebrate the 40 th anniversary of the Faith and Light communities. What a paradox to see so many smiling faces whilst intellectual and physical disabilities sadden people! I thought I d see sad people someone said to me, but you are always singing. This is the miracle of Faith and Light. aware of the inner beauty of their child and discover that it can be a source of life and unity. But then, wonder Bruno and Rozenn, can you say blessed about our 14 year old child who can t walk or sit up and can barely hold up his head? Can you say this little man deprived of verbal language, who has developed a language using his body, breathe, looks, vocalisation and touch to allow him to express the essentials is blessed? Look at the journey taken! Faith and Light began with immense distress: that of a family, who with their two disabled children, felt excluded. They couldn t even take part in their diocese pilgrimage to Lourdes. They confided in Marie-Hélène Mathieu who, with Jean Vanier, launched the audacious plan of organising a pilgrimage to Lourdes just for intellectually disabled people, their families and friends. There is no easy road. But very soon, we all felt carried by an energy, confidence, and a hope, not in the curing of our son but in possible happiness But not idealism: the suffering and the disability are not graces. LIFE, itself, is one. The grace is finding the strength and joy to live, that is to say yes every morning and to take on this heavy life. It is discovering that suffering does not exclude joy. A friend member shared this confidence: The most beautiful memory of the pilgrimage was surely the happiness that could be read on the faces of the people with a disability who, for the span of the weekend, were welcoming us home. It was the starting point of an extraordinary adventure that has continued to deepen over 40 years in order to generate this conviction of Faith and Light: At a time when a lot of intellectually disabled children are aborted before or even killed after their birth, when others are abandoned, Faith and Light makes people aware that the life of any person is unique and sacred. Even the most helpless person is called to be a source of joy and peace in the Church and in the world, to give all the wealth of their heart, affection and loyalty. During the community monthly meetings, this conviction brings vital support to parents who are fully

6 Page 6 Pèlerinages 2012 It is us, the able-bodied, who were invited to look like them. Because to have the opportunity of seeing faces so radiant and full of delight was worth the trouble of doing quite a small amount. Father Pierre Restif I was certain that this pilgrimage would strengthen our friendship. It was a done deal: travelling by coach, the experience of accompanying in pairs -Joseph for Xavier, and Maïna for me while we were in threes in Lourdes taking part in the stages of the celebration, sharing snacks and meals and siestas on the lawns of the sanctuary, have all confirmed our commitment to this simple and generous community. However, I did not expect to receive a second gift by discovering Faith and Light from within. I felt a difference, but also a gentle closeness between Faith and Light and I Arche, similar to the ties that bind two cousins. This sunny weekend, outside under the clear blue Morbihan sky, like inside, was for me a Visitation, blessed by the Spirit. A joyous meeting of cousins, with workshops, dancing and singing, the simple and fervent Pentecost Eucharist, opening and closing ceremonies and the joyful festive evening! I was particularly touched by the joy and spontaneity of the guests, that of their families and friends, despite the daily suffering not erased, but put aside for the celebration. Fruitful and bursting with joy, this 2012 Pentecost Visitation will remain forever engraved on my heart. A visitation! Two delegates from Egypt A volunteer at Sénevé l Arche (Nantes, France), I discovered Faith and Light at the pilgrimage to Saint Anne d Auray. Sénevé was invited to join the celebration. What a happy gift for Sénevé to go along with such an impeccable and warm organisation. Your charisma sharing friendship and celebration is right and good and confirms the good insight of Marie-Hélène Mathieu and Jean Vanier. Yes, your community could also be called Joy and Light! I thank you with all my heart Blandine Dahéron

7 Pilgrimages 2012 Page 7 Testimonies gleaned at Lourdes during the France Entre deux Mers province pilgrimage Interviews by Guénaël Reynaud When I first went to Faith and Light, I noticed a blind person in a wheelchair. His name was Ziad Paouli. He was playing the piano and the others were singing and dancing. Ziad came to every meeting and worked in the evening to earn money. He encouraged me. From meeting to meeting, I got to know the community more and more and now I have more confidence in myself. In particular, what I experience at Faith and Light, I cannot experience elsewhere. Faith and Light is the ideal model in my life and a road that will not fade throughout the world. Alain Habib St Vincent Naccache Community, Lebanon Delegates from Lebanon Delegates from Rainbow province I have been in Faith and Light since 1993, the date when the first community was founded in Manakara, the town where I was living, I was a friend. We only had one daughter. In 2000, it was suggested to my husband and I to take in a month old baby boy who had been born in poverty. We adopted him and gave him the name Tolotra, which means a gift. He is a gift from God for us. When he was eight months old, we learnt that he had an intellectual disability. His education has made me grow in faith, love and charity. We encounter many difficulties but he brings much joy to my family. We love him a lot. He loves us too. We thank the Lord for giving him to us. Madeleine Ravaoarisia Vice coordinator for Madagascar Faith and Light has existed on Rodriguez for 22 years now and has seven communities. This year the Rodriguez communities have doubled their efforts in order to be able to take part in the pilgrimage (not to mention the 40 hour journey to reach Lourdes!) I can say that Faith and Light is a great support to families with a disabled child, for myself I am such a mum. It has been difficult to accept the situation. However, with Faith and Light, I am able to get over these difficulties and draw strength to carry on with my child and other children in difficulty, in faith. Being a member of Faith and Light has also allowed the transformation of our character, our way of seeing things, and at the same time added value to people with a disability by giving them a place in society and in the Church. So they have discovered that they too are the children of God who loves us. I would like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude to Jean Vanier and Marie-Hélène Mathieu for allowing people with a disability to have a voice and having the idea of organising the first pilgrimage especially for them. Finally, I give thanks to God for the opportunity of being here today. May his Strength and his Light guide us always along the path of life.. Germaine Pierre-Louis Vice Coordinator for Rodrigues

8 Page 8 Pèlerinages 2012 To experience a Faith and Light meeting is above all to experience a beautiful adventure with each person who is created in the image of God. It is a bet on joy that is a certainty. It is a treasure that is opened with delight. It is to live in the presence of another and gradually discover their needs and go along a road to Emmaus. Our hearts start to burn and our eyes open up to our brothers and sisters. When we return, we have messages of joy in our hearts that we want to broadcast to all those around us. Poussières d étoiles (Stardust) community France Centre Faith and Light is the meeting of people who would otherwise not have met. Like the unlikely meeting in the Intouchables 1. Our society encourages competition and rivalry it is based on the desire to always have more. We forget the essential, being human and meeting as children of God. Meeting, that is what Faith and Light is. Jean Vanier 1) Very popular French movie about the unlikely friendship between a wealthy quadriplegic man and his socially handicapped carer. See the pilgrimage film in French at: I will leave with a treasure received from you. Mgr Lalanne Bishop of Coutances The first time that I went to Faith and Light, I was a bit frightened I was upset I had been attracted by the way that the person with a disability comes to you, smiles at you and welcomes you without looking to see if you are good or bad, rich or poor, disabled or not. And I stayed because gradually I was captivated by the disabled people and by God in the disabled people. My work as a specialist teacher was very hard, my meeting with Faith and Light lit up my life. It is a school that teaches a new way of living, accepting and loving oneself and changing one s heart. Discover a new face of Jesus through the smallest of his children. Faith and Light when you hold us Marie-Anne Virginie Ste Anne Community, Mauritius

9 Pilgrimages 2012 Page 9 The most beautiful gift The following day at the underground Basilica, I found myself next to another child who I didn t know, Quentin, who was seven years old and he too had Down syndrome and made a small gesture to me with a beautiful smile. When I sat down, he put his arms up to me so that I could lift him on to my lap. He then put his head on my chest and his arms around my neck. I understood through these meetings that the Lord wanted me to understand how much I was loved by Him and that I should just simply let myself be loved. The most beautiful gift received for the Faith and Light 40 th anniversary at the France Entre deux Mers province pilgrimage in Lourdes, was that of the tenderness of the Father! A tenderness that showed itself to me, in a quite peculiar way, through two meetings with children with Down syndrome! Two children that I didn t know and that I had never met! These are only two of the beautiful joys received but there were also so many others, experienced throughout the four days. Like that of Geoffroy, a quadriplegic person aged 34, who I had the grace of accompanying during this pilgrimage and who usually denied anything religious. He let himself be led everywhere. He even experienced the sacrament of reconciliation from which he returned radiant! What gifts were received! Thank you Lord! Odile Saint Dominique Community (France) Ferdinand, three years old, in his pushchair next to his mum watching us from afar, gave us a big smile to which both Robert and I responded! He insisted and made a sign with his hand as well as a beautiful wink to attract us to him! We crouched down to his height and talked to him! He didn t speak but we held his hand and he didn t stop smiling at us. We melted. From joy, still more joy! When he felt we were going to leave him, he blew us a kiss with his little hand. We returned it. What grace! And it wasn t over. Odile and Geoffroy There have been so many pilgrimages these past months that it is impossible for us to print all the reports and testimonies here and we apologise for that. So more in the next issue! The impatient amongst you will find all the Faith and Light summer adventures at:

10 Page 10 Testimony Dayshawn, Founder of Faith and Light in the Bahamas? Here is a beautiful story from a former United States East chaplain; he is now in the Bahamas and you will see that he hasn t forgotten Faith and Light! This young Dayshawn is perhaps going to be the start of the first community in this country! Dayshawn and his mother surprised when I suggested that we take Dayshawn with us; so she bent down, lifted him and took him in the living room with us. As we sat on the sofa, she sat in an armchair with her son on her lap. We talked about life at home, how she ended up not coming to church with him due to the whispering and nasty comments. If her son wasn t accepted, she couldn t come. As time passed, I asked if I could suggest taking her son on my lap so that she could rest a while. She was caught short because no one amongst the church people had ever suggested such a thing to her. With Dayshawn comfortably installed on my lap, we carried on our conversation and we asked what would make her life easier. At that moment, I laughed at something she said and Dayshawn s face lit up, he put his head back and started laughing too. Oh he loves laughing, said his mum and I laughed again and so did he. Together, we had found a little thing that we both liked and a bond was beginning to be created. As deacon, I have learnt that it is often the small things that are the most important. During the following months, we tried to find a wheelchair that would ease his movements and also let his mother leave the house. When we arrived with my wife Ginni on the island of Andros in the Bahamas, the three parishes to which I was appointed as permanent deacon hadn t had any clergy for four years. When I was in Boston, a priest posted in Nassau invited me to be interviewed about missionary life: after two years of discernment, we finally left! On arrival, we took a few months to get ourselves settled in then we decided to organise some religious teaching for the children. Parents enrolled their children, enthusiastic about this prospect. When we read the registration documents, we found one that seemed a little strange. One of the members of the parish had enrolled a boy we had never seen. We learnt that he had been ill. We called the parents to visit them. We discovered Dayshawn, a 10 year old boy, severely disabled and suffering from cerebral palsy. He didn t speak, his hands and feet were severely atrophied and he spent his life in a chair in front of the television. His mother, completely devoted, remained sat beside him. We talked for a long time and when I suggested to her that we would be more comfortable in the sitting room, she was Dayshawn has taken an important place in our life on this island and as our ministry has grown over the years, his family has been a great help in helping us to meet other disabled children so that we can begin to create the first Faith and Light community in the Bahamas. The weelchair is arrived! Franck Tremblay

11 Testimony Page 11 Long live young people! In our community Espérance (Hope) from Chemillé (France), we are all trying to be messengers of joy. At our monthly meetings, the place of the young people and children is important. It is a joy because the future of Faith and Light is through them, through all these young friends of Faith and Light. We are also happy with their presence at our weeklong camps during August. the persons with a disability pastoral care day. The great joy for us as friends, who would never normally cross paths with these parents, children and these young intellectually disabled people, is to understand the great insight of the founders of Faith and Light. Jean Vanier and Marie Hélène Mathieu were right to think that the meeting of these two worlds would let us wonder: who is the disabled one?? teachers, professors but all experience the simplicity of the Gospel due to the influence of our brothers and sisters with a disability because they make us experience a core theology. Elisabeth Naullet Our community had 30 to 35 members 20 years ago. Then, this number rose. It was a joy to welcome new families with a disabled child. We also welcomed other friends and their families. When it was no longer possible talk around a table (humour), we decided to spread to the town of Cholet. The Poussières d'étoiles (Stardust) community was born, not without difficulties at first, its true, it was not easy to separate ourselves. However, the summer camp always brought us together as well as the communal outing in June. The Angers diocese also gives us the opportunity to meet especially on The friends of Faith and Light are nurses, doctors, electricians, butchers, farmers, priests, nuns, Search for God not by looking at the stars but by bowing to those cast aside Jean Vanier To contribute to Up sails!, send us reports on assemblies, meetings, formations sessions, photos Send us news of the communities you guide, collect fioretti...

12 Page 12 Report A new community in Malaysia Sister Bertha had helped with the financing of the Colours of Asia pilgrimage by putting the women from the shantytowns, with whom she has lived for 25 years, to work. She really enjoyed the pilgrimage to which she was invited so that she could see what her fundraising was used for and barely had she returned when she started a new community! It isn t mentioned in this testimony from Luisa Lowe, but you can imagine the mums in this new community are those who, through their work, made the beautiful Plentong pilgrimage happen! Cheryl, Sister Bertha and Ghislain Sister Bertha thanks be to God was able to take part in the joy of the Plentong pilgrimage to Johor Bahru (Malaysia) from 9 to 12 February. Upon our return she immediately gathered a group and invited me to share the Joy of Faith and Light with them. Our first meeting was held on the 17 th February. As I do not speak the Tamil language, Sister was my interpreter. This was my first experience with a new community. Getting to know my new friends and to listen to their stories made me feel so at home. They were ever so ready to share their story. When our meeting ended, I was filled with joy and peace and thanking God for having chosen me to be His Messenger of Joy. We shook hands and even gave each other hugs and confirmed our next meeting. While driving back, I was having a conversation with myself. Who would I share this joy with? Should I be open to allowing someone else to join me in the next meeting, someone who would speak the language, someone whose life would also be changed? and my thought straight went to my dear friend, Grace. I sent Valerie Jaques (provincial coordinator) a photograph of the group and we spoke about the meeting. The very next day I called Grace to invite her to the next meeting and she was so pleased and immediately said yes. The second meeting was held on the 25 March and as planned, Grace and her son Lucas who is one of our special friends joined me that day. We opened the meeting with a prayer. As this was an inter-faith group, our prayer was direct to God. Grace led the parent sharing group together with Sister Bertha whilst I sat with our special friends and got them to do some activity. I will never forget Grace saying how glad she was to have: Life isn t as bad as I think it is. I am so happy to have met these new friends and I thank God. The new community, called Selayang, is made up of two parents (Vimala and Munimah who are mothers), two siblings (Abi and Nellamah who are sisters), one grandmother (Marysinama), four special friends (Manga, Veeteeveeran, Lavanyah and Mogana) and a friend (Sister Bertha). Valerie shared with me that she had shared this with Anne Marie Pike ( vic e in t e rna t i onal coordinator) who was all so excited and when I got Anne Marie s , I was so pleased knowing the support/prayers that

13 Report Page 13 came with sharing our actions. We are never alone in this. The challenges we faced prior to this celebration: My daughters have lessons on Sundays and it was my husband who would always fetch them. Just a few days before that he informed me that he was to travel outstation. I told him I had a Faith and Light meeting but if needed would have to postpone it to a later date. He said that it was not necessary as he would ask my son Joshua to help. Joshua usually works on Sundays but God worked in mysterious ways and that particular Sunday Joshua worked till 5pm and therefore was able to take on his father s duty in fetching his sisters for lessons. The day before the celebration, Reena who had earlier confirmed wanting to join in the celebration called to say that her Grandma was ill and therefore would not be able to join. When I called Grace that morning, Grace was so apologetic as she had been confused with the dates and had therefore arranged to have her niece over for dinner. I turned to God God I leave it all in Your hands, Your will be done. A few minutes later Grace called to say that she had rearranged her timing with her niece and therefore was able to join me. Praise God. Celebration began with a prayer. Each member was given an opportunity to praise God in their own way. We shared a little life experience the past month then split into our groups. Here are just a few of the parent testimonies: As this is our child, we should not abandon her, however did not want anymore children as wanted to concentrate on taking care of her. But now have two sons that are normal. She is not that difficult after all as she is able to do things some others are not able to. Given her the responsibility of mending a little stall we have at the entrance of our home. No matter how poor we are and with family members insisting on an abortion as I had conceived too soon after my fist child, my husband insisted that we carry this child which God has given us. We will manage somehow. When young, my brother was bitten up by tugs and as a result turned out the way he is today. My two sisters (we are all not married) and I live together with my brother. We have taken it on ourselves to take care of him as our parents are no longer alive. He may at times be very aggressive and we have no choice but to lock him up at home when we go to work. During this time, our special friends were told to do a drawing expressing their feelings at that time. They were then asked to express in words or action: Happy to be here - Happy to have new friends - I like coming here and being among all of you - I am glad I was invited to come here today, I now have new friends! Then they were taught the Welcome Song. All singing happily while clapping their hands. I was then taught an Indian Song and we enjoyed ourselves. The Song expressed the feeling of joy in knowing God (this I was told). It brought tears to my eyes to think that our Special Friends never stop teaching me the meaning of love and care, the faith they have in God. Luisa Lowe Vice coordinator for Malaysia

14 Page 14 Report To Atlanta with the Federation of l Arche With Fred Seagren, international vice coordinator, I represented Faith and Light at the General Assembly of the Federation of l Arche that took place from 3 to 10 June in Atlanta. I am not going to give an in depth report of this event here even if each moment of this week, each person met, each activity and each celebration does merit being told, that everything took place in an excellent atmosphere of warmth and friendship. The bonds that link us are solid and I am able to ascertain that what happens at international level is also a reality everywhere there are Faith and Light and l Arche communities: there is even a shared desire of mutual aid where l Arche is present and Faith and Light isn t, and vice versa. Eileen and Patrick With Patrick Fontaine (France) and Eileen Glass (Australia), who have been elected international leader and international vice leader, the bonds of friendship and cooperation that existed with Jean- Christophe Pascal and Christine McGrievy, remain the same and I rejoice because I realise how much we increasingly need each other! I will only speak about three things here: the general atmosphere and All in the same boat how this General Assembly works, the religious celebrations and the opening up and the inculturation of l Arche. This week was lived as if we were all one big l Arche community! We lived together on a college campus on the outskirts of Atlanta, we worked together (I was in charge of a workshop about the pilgrimages), we celebrated together, we prayed together and we partied together. But especially, we reflected together on the meaning of the new organisation and the new constitution of l Arche, on the mandate of the new management team; contrary to our habits and our traditions, all the debates on this constitution, this mandate and on the discernments of the people to be elected took place before the Assembly and the work in Atlanta was more about explanations, with great concern about teaching, so that each person adapts to this new way of working. The presence, in numbers, of people with an intellectual disability obliged the organisers to keep the debates and possible tensions to a minimum and that is why all that took place beforehand. Each day started with a time of contemplation, very simply, with a Bible text, a mime, an action prayer and a story; and the end of every afternoon was dedicated to a religious celebration. There was a Catholic mass (including a time of prayer before an icon for all the l Arche members who are Orthodox), a Presbyterian celebration (including a time of prayer in Hebrew for the Jewish l Arche members), an Anglican mass, presided over by the primate bishop of the Episcopal Church, Bishop Katharine Jefferts Schori, with Roger Heft, archbishop of Perth, delegated from the Anglican communion at l Arche (including a time of Hindu prayer for all the members of l Arche from this religion), an open air washing of the feet ceremony on the campus lawns, which is Bishop Katharine and Bishop Roger

15 Report Page 15 very impressive when there are 500 people! I have kept an image that very much touched me at the interfaith celebration during which we prayed, a little in the spirit of Assisi, with the representatives of the Muslim, Buddhist, Jewish, Christian and Hindu faiths. Some people came from Atlanta to join us, a Muslim woman with her disabled son and some Jews. At the end of the celebration, a gift was given to them, a painting painted by l Arche Daybreak in Toronto. But I don t know if it was intentional or not that there was only one present! I heard, with much emotion, the two women stood side by side a Muslim woman and a Jewish woman: we don t know how we are going to share this gift but we are going to talk about it and find a solution together! It is said that you sometimes hear prophetic words and clearly, on that day, yes, I heard prophetic words! The choice of Atlanta came after that of Assisi with the patronage of St Francis and that of Kolkata with the patronage of Gandhi. This year it was Martin Luther King Jr who was the personality guiding this meeting. With him, it was any culture from the southern United States that was present, from the cooking to the music: a gospel choir, who sang magnificently, came especially from Mobile, Alabama! On Friday, we left all together to go to Atlanta, following the footsteps of Martin Luther King Jr, in his Baptist parish and to his mausoleum. There, we heard great testimonies of the struggle for the civil rights of black Americans including that of a 84 year old man who was a school friend of Martin Luther King Jr. L Arche has always taken care to keep an eye on the outside, the communities are not enclosed gardens whose doors remain closed and where you feel safe. There is a confirmed desire to always leave the door open so as to be able to allow conversation with another, be it a prophet or a poor person There is still more to tell but these few lines have given you, I hope, an idea of what is happening with our brothers and sisters at l Arche International. May you be encouraged wherever you are to create or maintain the bonds of friendship that unite us! GdC With the Greater Atlanta community With Joy, Fred and Ted The General Assembly of the Federation of l Arche programme included a welcome on the first weekend into the Atlanta families. When I arrived on 2 June, I was welcomed at the airport by Joy Fuchs who is a vice coordinator in the USA East province! I was able to share 24 hours of her family life with her husband Jerry and Tadeusz (Ted) Wypych who, as his name does not show, is a New Zealander! Ted is of Polish extraction and lives in Wellington and is part of the BoD of l Arche Kapiti. Joy organised a meeting of the Greater Atlanta Faith and Light community on Saturday evening! I was delighted to meet the community, delighted also to introduce Ted to a Faith and Light community. It was a lovely evening and we shared a lot; there were also two people who came from the neighbouring parish of the Transfiguration where a community would soon be starting up. The following day, we went to mass in this parish of the Transfiguration: American parishes are very active and the liturgies very lively; each person feels very welcome (I was invited to stand with Ted when it was asked who was visiting the parish).

16 Page 16 My friend Monique Monique, my right hand has left us to become a messenger of joy in heaven and, from up there, be there for us here. I am just looking for all the photos of Monique on my computer, a way of grieving I hadn t seen much of her those last days, but there were an enormous number of Faith and Light friends, a star they told me at the hospital reception. She loved both the smallest of Faith and Light, and also in her way, when she kept her earphones in the midst of the meetings for the results of her hockey club! It was Monique who sent all the birthday cards to the disabled people in our Swiss communities and she did it very faithfully (something I am incapable of doing). When we were missing material (decoration, stamps, envelopes) she reminded my little head. We laughed a lot together, but she experienced quite a bit of solitude without complaining. I had the fortune to experience four Faith and Light camps. Monique was very happy, that is my consolation! She was unique. Yesterday, I posted the last birthday cards that she prepared. She is going to help me serve better. Gabrielle Luchinger Switzerland coordinator Family album Sad news from Syria Faith and Light has once more been subject to a terrible loss in Syria. A few months ago, one person from Damascus was killed in an attack; and on 19 June in Aleppo, Marina too was killed Let us pray in earnest for all our Syrian friends! Yesterday, we had a very sad day, we lost Marina, she was killed because of the crisis and chaos in Aleppo. She was the coordinator of the Saint George community in Alep. Marina was a very active person, always smiling, very friendly and open and always ready to help. I have heard a lot of people express their sadness at the loss of Marina who was a shoulder for them to lean on, who helped and supported daily and was a devoted friend. But we are now telling ourselves that we have a friend in heaven, who will support us in a different way. Marina was the wife of Father Georges Shehwaro who died in 2003 (he was an Orthodox priest, a member of the Ecumenical Council of Syria and had been national chaplain from 1998 until his death). They had two daughters and two grandchildren. We need your prayers! Ancillla M.H. It is with regret that we announce that the Passe Rose community in Rodriguez has lost Ancilla Momus at the age of 38 years. She was one of the oldest person with a disability in the community. Our greatest sympathy to her mum, her family and the Rodriguez Faith and Light family who were all present to pay their last respects at her funeral on 28 June. United in prayer. Judex and Marie-France Violette Rainbow province coordinators Cardinal Martini The Faith and Light communities in Italy are united by the prayers of all those who remember their dear Father, Carlo-Maria Martini, with great affection. For those with an intellectual disability, their family and their friends, Carlo-Maria was a father and a friend. For many years, he was the reference Bishop for the Italian Church, during some difficult times for our family and the National Council, with a father s heart and the wisdom of a great man led by the Spirit. We thank the Lord for having given us this great priest and we want to speak of all our love for this man of God who, through his attention to the smallest and the most fragile, was a great witness to the Gospel that he proclaimed throughout his life until the very end. Don Marco Bove Chaplain of the River of Peace Province

17 Family album Page 17 Bishop Léopold Ouédraogo Father Balon with one of his friends Former Faith and Light chaplain of Burkina Faso, Father Leopold was appointed Auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Ouagadougou. He was consecrated on August 11 th at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in a joyful atmosphere, singing, dancing and cheering. In thanksgiving, dear Father Leopold, we assure you of our friendship and prayer for your new mission. Welcome Jeanine Power who is mother of two children and friend in Faith and Light for 30 years, was nominated vice coordinator for Mauricius. Former coordinator of the Roses community in Quatre -Bornes, sh will accompany the communities of the island with Hedley and Christianne Herry. Welcome Jeanine, and have a great new journey! Jeanine, Christiane and Hedley and their daughter Christie It s happening! A Spanish language community recognised in Dodge City (Kansas). A second in Denver (Colorado) named Community of friendship. Both are found in the USA West province. A third at the Kremlin Bicêtre, Paris et le Levant province that bears the beautiful name: The five continents. Birth of a community in Castelnaudary (Aude), France Entre deux Mers province. Some communities in development at Austin (Texas) and Lake Charles (Louisiana), USA West province and one at Dunmore (Galway), Ireland province. And projects in France Centre, France Loire Rhône Auvergne and France West and France Entre deux Mers provinces. Good sailing! Regina So as to support Georgette in her awareness action in Burkina Faso, Faith and Light International took on the printing of a small booklet about her daughter Regina. I am happy that you are interested in this booklet and thank you. It has encouraged me and given me confidence in what I am doing for disabled children here in Burkina. This booklet was inspired by the love of my daughter Regina. It is a testimony and an appeal to the parents of children living with a disability so that they understand that the disability isn t a Reader s mail Regina and her mother misfortune, that we can live and succeed with our children, they are a light and a way in our lives. The booklet also invites people to have a positive outlook on disabled people. I have learnt a lot at Faith and Light, especially about sharing and the gift of love for our children. With Regina, we have been part of the community since In order to be able to spread this awareness message, we have created an association for the integration and development of people: Frère Handicap (Brother Handicap) of which I am president. It is made up of teachers and experienced people. Its goal is to organise training sessions for the parents of disabled children and other people. I will shortly sent you a copy of the recognition of the foundation that is just being signed by our authorities because you became a partner for the association. Georgette Zida

18 Page 18 Reader s mail The Swallows of Korhogo Huge first for Mauritius Following the organisation of the Day of Announcing and Sharing, the Saint Vincent community, from Marcq en Baroeul (France North), wanted the proceeds to go to the small Ivory Coast community. I am the guide of the The Swallows community at Korhogo in the north of the Ivory Coast. I am just thanking you as well as your community for your gift that is going to really help us with the organisation of our Faith and Light 40th anniversary pilgrimage that we are making to l Arche Bouaké (another Ivory Coast town about four hours away) next October. We will send you news Again, a thousand thanks on behalf of our whole community. Sr Véronique de Portzamparc Eight young autistic people had their first Communion on Saturday 14 July at the Saint Louis cathedral. Evans, 8 years old, from the Father Laval community at Sainte Croix was to have had his first communion in his parish and when the other parents indicated their intention for their child to also receive the sacrament, it was the cathedral that everyone met in for this great day. Evans is the son of Mike and Géraldine Aliphon who have been with the Father Laval community for two years. Community The Swallows chaplain for the Rainbow province. We suggested that Father Bernard would accept this mission. His nomination will be registered in the agenda of the next Commission of Bishops of the Indian Ocean meeting. What joy to also learn that Steven Miniator, the brother of Kelvin, who has always taken part with him in the meetings of the Lee Badamier community and then the Father Laval community had joined the community of Spiritain as a seminarian a few days previously. Two miracles from the Blessed Father Laval for the Faith and Light community. We met Monsignor Piat, bishop of Port Louis and had the opportunity to speak to him about the importance of having a Mike and Géraldine with their children Evans and Anaïs We are impatiently awaiting the next issue of Up Sails! to get news of each country. Let us remain united in prayer! Judex and Marie-France Violette Rainbow province coordinators On September , we went, with Marie-Hélène Mathieu, for what has now become a traditional event: a time of sharing and a meal with Jean Vanier and the international leaders of l Arche. However, on that day, two things were not as usual: The leaders of l Arche had changed Jean-Christophe Pascal and Christine McGrievy have passed the baton and I was torn between nostalgia for the good times of friendship spent with them and the joy of welcoming Patrick Fontaine and Eileen Glass, the joy of also seeing that these shared meals would to continue! This lunch took place on 10 September, a special day for Jean! Like the prophetess Anne, Jean is now 84 years old! We celebrated this birthday fittingly and on behalf of all the Ghislain, Eileen, Jean, Marie-Hélène, Patrick Faith and Light communities, we gave him a rose bush to plant beside the Lazare house where he is now living very happily. This rose bush felt amazingly good: Jean is going to take care of it and all these buds that are promises of renewal and hopes for a flourishing future, are going to flower: the beautiful roses that are going to appear will be the sign of the vitality of our movement! Happy birthday Jean!

19 Icon from Nicusor Dumitru, Master iconographer Guidelines Page 19 Easter experience with some lively witnesses. We will meet them through the Acts of the Apostles, that marvellous account where, step by step, not only is the spreading of the Gospel felt but the work of the Holy Spirit is also so visible. The Guidelines is arrived! Faith and Light has celebrated 40 years of life by bearing fruit and a fruit that stays as Jesus asked of his apostles when sending them on a mission (cf Jn 15,8 and 20,23) and carrying the flame lit in Lourdes in February 2011 to each province. All those who had an intense experience became missionaries and apostles. Let us look at Mary who hurried to the hills to share her joy with Elisabeth (Lk 1, 39-45); the shepherds announcing what they had seen and heard all over the region (Lk 2, 20); the Samaritan who ran to her village after meeting Jesus at the well to say to all the men: Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did (Jn 4, 28-29). And finally, so as not to give endless examples, let us look at the Emmaus disciples who, after their meeting on the road with the Risen Jesus, returned to Jerusalem that very evening, despite the dangers of the night and the exhaustion from travelling, to announce this good news of the victory of Jesus over death to their brothers (Lk 24, 33-35). The Guidelines helped us to better explore the fruits of joy that we have been given and how to communicate them to others. This year, we are going to experience concrete fruits of this If we have made this choice, it isn t only to explore and discover the history of the Church, but also to recognise ourselves in each of these people and to experience our Christian faith and our love for Jesus with the same enthusiasm as them in the midst of a world filled with violence and destruction. We are going to begin with a woman, Mary Magdalene, the first to be sent to announce to her brothers the unbelievable Good News of the victory of Jesus over death. The second will be Peter, chosen by Jesus and his brothers to be the rock and the leader despite his sad denial. After him, it is Saul, who converted to Paul and became the apostle of Nations. Then we continue with the first missionary couple in the Church, Priscilla and Aquila. In January, we will follow Philip, the deacon filled with the Holy Spirit. Then, will come James, the first of the apostles to be martyred by Herod, as the Bishop of Jerusalem. We will spend Lent with Stephen, the first martyr who gave his life for Jesus. We will celebrate Easter with John, the disciple Jesus loved and who cared for Mary before dying on the island of Patmos. We will welcome Cornelius the centurion, the first Gentile to enter the family of the Church. As women, colleagues of the apostles, we will go and meet Tabitha and Lydia. And we will end the year with the disciples and companions of Paul, Barnabas and Timothy. All have been models of enthusiasm, faith and courage. And thanks to them, and to so many others, the Good News has spread across the world. Today, in the midst of a world of violence where the poor and weak are crushed, may these first witnesses communicate their fervour to us so that like them, we will be tireless messengers of the joy and strength of the resurrection. Father Hans Putman Former Chaplain of Sudan

20 Page 20 International solidarity What have your contributions been used for since June? Ivory Coast, community pilgrimage to Korhogo: 34O Burkina Faso, printing of booklet Le handicap un chemin du miracle (Disability, a road of the miracle), : 130 Jesus, Light of the Andes (Peru, Chile, Columbia and Ecuador), visits to the communities: 500 Reborn (Brazil North East), visits to the communities: Eastern Africa (Rwanda, DRC Kivu, Kenya, Burundi), visits to the communities: and pilgrimage to Kibeho (Rwanda) : Zimbabwe, communities pilgrimage to Kwekwe: Open Hearts (Honduras, Mexico, Dominican Rep., Nicaragua), communities pilgrimage to Notre Dame de Guadalupe (Mexico): Between the Seas (Georgia, Lithuania, Czech Rep., Russia, Slovakia), communities pilgrimage to Lviv and Hoshiv : You want to make a donation? In several countries, Faith and Light is a recognized and registered charity association. As in France, you may be entitled to a tax deduction for each donation made locally. Check with your provincial association. Online donation: Agenda for the 4 th trimester st- 7 September, pilgrimage and celebration of twenty years of Faith and Light in the Netherlands in Lourdes September, France Rhône Azur province council meeting in Marseilles September, Colours of Asia (Malaysia, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore) province council meeting in the Philippines September, meeting of the Canada East province. 29 September, Zimbabwe communities pilgrimage to Kwekwe. 29 September, UK North province council meeting in Harrogate, Great Britain September, General Assembly of the Faith and Light Italy association in Rome. 1 st October, Ivory Coast pilgrimage to l Arche de Bouaké to celebrate the 40 th anniversary of Faith and Light together October, Meeting of the Board of Directors of Faith and Light International in Harissa (Lebanon) October, Switzerland, provincial meeting October, Jesus, Light of the Andes province (Peru, Chile, Argentina) pilgrimage to Lima (Peru). 21 October, France West province meeting at Rennes October, Egypt North province (Sudan North and Sudan South) pilgrimage to Alexandria to celebrate 40 years of Faith and Light. 1 st -4 November, France North province pilgrimage to Ars to celebrate 40 years of Faith and Light. This pilgrimage will welcome delegates from the Poland West province. 1 st -4 November, Belgium province pilgrimage to Banneux to celebrate 40 years of Faith and Light. This pilgrimage will welcome delegates from the Danube province (Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Switzerland and Rwanda. 2-4 November, formation session for community leaders from the Seas and Volcanoes province (Italy south) at Fuscaldo November, pilgrimage of communities from South Africa to Cape Town. Editorial direction: Ghislain du Chéné - Chief editor and layout: Corinne Chatain