TO ALL THOSE WHO KNOW THAT CHILDREN BRING US CLOSE TO THE KINGDOM OF GOD

Transcription

1 Prot. S TO ALL THOSE WHO KNOW THAT CHILDREN BRING US CLOSE TO THE KINGDOM OF GOD To educate, proclaim, and to transform We set up and establish in the Roman House of these Schools a single Congregation of the Pious Schools, directed and governed by a single Prefect called hereinafter Pauline Congregation of the Poor of the Mother of God of the Pious Schools... To our beloved son Joseph Calasanz, current Prefect of the schools, we charge and commend, according to our pleasure, the prefecture, care, government and administration of the Pious Schools those of Rome, those founded at less than twenty miles of this city, and those that will be founded in the future- and of his Congregation". (Paul V, brief "Ad ea quae per", given on March 6, 1617 in Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome). Since, in the Church of God, all religious Institutes, guided by the Holy Spirit, pursue as their ultimate goal the perfection of charity through their specific apostolate, likewise, this is what our Congregation is determined to accomplish through our specific apostolate, which was approved by the Holy Father and Vicar of Christ on Earth, Paul V, of happy memory,. (Constitutions of the Pauline Congregation, n. 1). The Pious Schools, work of God and the result of the daring and ever-enduring patience of Saint Joseph Calasanz 1, are the Evangelical response of a man of faith to the reality of the poor child. Also, they are the response of so many people that throughout history have contributed to build the dream of Calasanz. And they are called - today and tomorrow- to continue being Gospel for those who dream of a different world, a world in which brotherhood is a shared task and a gift for everyone; in short, a world that is capable of hosting the Kingdom of God that already is among us 2. In the year four centuries ago-, the Church erected the Pious Schools as a Religious Congregation and entrusted to Joseph of Calasanz its care and direction. What had begun in a small church of Roman Trastevere, had been consolidated as an institution carrier of life, evangelical mission, dedication to education and love for the poor. 1 Constitutions of the Pious Schools n Lk 17, 21 1

2 In this way an extraordinary chapter of the history of the Christian community and human society began, and a new road in the fight of men and women for a world in which justice and peace are possible was open: education for all, integral and based on the keys of the Gospel. Calasanz conviction that the good or bad life of the man throughout the rest of his future depends on children good education" 3 inspires and supports all efforts of mankind for a quality education for all, public and popular. That s why we, sons and daughters of Calasanz, are preparing to celebrate, in an attitude of profound thanksgiving, a CALASANCTIAN JUBILEE YEAR in all places in which we operate and in all contexts in which - with or without our physical presence - people feel blessed by the love of God in Calasanz. On behalf of children and young people, especially the poorest; on behalf of all those who feel transformed by the Lord through the example of Calasanz, and on behalf of the whole of the Pious Schools, the General Congregation of the Order, with the approval of his Holiness Pope Francis, calls the CALASANCTIAN JUBILEE YEAR and invite all those who wish to live it to do so from the same options that held Calasanz life : his passionate love for the Lord Jesus and his Mother Mary; his unconditional surrender to the Mission of evangelizing by educating; his commitment to make possible the Pious Schools as a space of communion and mission, and his deep trust in the child and in the young, carriers of life and fullness. 1. A Jubilee year is essentially an opportunity of Grace and encounter with God, deep within each of us. We cannot plan what is essential in the Jubilee Year, because it is free and new; it does not depend on our calendar or on our decisions, but on God's unfathomable love. For this reason, our first invitation is this: "God's voice is the voice of the Spirit, which comes and goes, touches the heart and passes away; we do not know from where it comes or when it will blow; that s why it matters much to be always vigilant, so that it will not come suddenly and pass without result" 4. We wish you a year full of faith, of search, of questions, of discernment, of vocational response; a year in which all of us can present ourselves to the Lord, open to his Word, because we want to start afresh from Christ, and not from ourselves; starting from his questions, his invitations, and from there walk as Piarists In this Jubilee Year we celebrate jointly Calasanz and his work. We are in a year in which we reach the 400 years of the erection of the Pauline Congregation of the Poor of the Mother of God of the Pious Schools, and also the 250 years of the canonization of Calasanz. For this reason we can and we must celebrate Our Holy Father and the Work to which he gave his life and of which we are now heirs and carriers, for the good of children and young people. We know that a charism is an experience of the Spirit transmitted to his own disciples to be by them lived, guarded, deepened and developed constantly in tune with the Body of Christ in perennial growth 6. So we invite you all to live, guard, deepen and develop your Calasanctian 3 St. Joseph CALASANZ, Memorandum to Card. Tonti. 4 St. Joseph CALASANZ, L th General Chapter of the Order of the Pious Schools, Disciples and Witnesses n Mutuae Relationes n

3 and Piarist experience. This will be, undoubtedly, the best way of celebrating this Jubilee Year. 3. For us, Calasanz is Gospel. The Gospel acquires new tones - vocational - through Calasanz. I wish we would be able to live it always in this way. When we Piarists go to a place, we don't carry the Gospel as if we were its owners, because the Gospel is already there, delivered by God. On the contrary, when we go to a place to carry out our mission, we receive, welcome and announce the Gospel; and through our charism, full with the seeds of the Kingdom, that place changes. That is why we have chosen as jubilee theme three absolutely related verbs: TO EDUCATE, PROCLAIM, AND TO TRANSFORM. Live them with passion, make them real with generosity, and take them as horizon of life and mission! 4. Our grateful look is addressed in the first place to all the Piarist religious who live our vocation in so many different places. In particular, thanks to all the elderly Piarists, who have worn their life as Calasanz for children and youth. Thank you all for your life, example and generosity! Thank you for trying to be signs humble signs - of God's love for the little ones. We wish that this Jubilee Year strengthen our wish of fidelity and vocational authenticity, and help us to understand that there is only a way to live the Piarist vocation: in fullness, never in a half way. "Called through Baptism to the summit of perfect charity, we leave everything for Christ and follow Him in a community of consecrated life as the only thing necessary" 7. Courage, brothers! God blesses us with many young people seeking to give their life. Let us be for them sings of encouragement and hope. 5. Equally, we address all the people who are part of the Fraternity of the Pious Schools, present already in many places and deeply responsible with us of the Piarist life and mission. You are carriers of Calasanz charism. By your promise, you decide to "follow Jesus and live the vocation according to the spirit of Calasanz" 8. We wish everyone that this Jubilee Year may be for you an occasion to renew your faith and your desire to live it with intensity. This is our prayer for you. 6. To all teachers men and women who make possible the Piarist Mission in our schools, colleges, parishes, homes, boarding schools, educational centers and on all platforms where we forward our mission, THANKS! As educators, you are called to offer to those children and youth the best of yourselves, so that they may grow from the best that they have. This is to educate. We wish that this year will help you in your life, and that God's blessings bring consolation and joy to everyone and to your families. Also, our gratitude to all those who make possible the Piarist mission from a service that sometimes is less visible, but which is essential: administration, secretariat, cleaning, attending the school dining room, sacristy, transportation, maintenance, headquarters, etc. To all of you, thank you very much!! 7. We think of all the people who come on contact with Calasanz in so many different ways: the families who entrust the education of their children to our institutions; the Christian communities to which we serve in parishes; religious congregations with which we 7 Constitutions of the Pious Schools, General Congregation of the Pious Schools, The Fraternity of the Pious Schools, 2011, n.19. 3

4 collaborate; local churches; civil institutions; forums in which we participate, and all men and women of goodwill with which we try to build a better world: may this year of grace be for all good and fruitful. 8. Finally, we address the more important people: children and youth to which we are dedicated. You are the center of Calasanz vocation, you made possible that the Pious Schools arise as a ripe fruit of the heart of Saint Joseph Calasanz. You transformed Calasanz into a Piarist, and you make it possible for us to be Piarists. We want that you be in the middle of this jubilee year. You have a gift, boys. You know how to get the best out of the hearts of the people, as you did with Calasanz, because we adults see in you the future for which we work and dream. God blesses you through Calasanz. You are fortunate because the base of Piarist education is trusting in you. The education that prompted Calasanz has a purpose: to make you capable of grow integrally so that you can transform the world. Maybe it sounds a bit strong, but that is the intuition of Calasanz and, therefore, it is the essential matter that you must discover and incarnate in your educational process: you are able to make a different world. But do not forget ever that Piarist education, configured from the confidence in the young, holds and strengthens in its capacity of inviting you to meet the One who is the reason of life for all of us. The discovery of faith and progressive education in it, is the essential engine of Calasanz proposal. I hope you will be able to discover it and you want to live it. 9. We invite all of you to live happily and intensely this Calasanctian Jubilee Year. To this end, we announce you the major dates that will mark our Calasanctian experience of this special year. a. Opening and closing. The Calasanctian Jubilee Year will be solemnly opened on November 27, 2016, in our Church of San Pantaleo in Rome, with a Eucharistic Celebration presided over by His Eminence Joao Braz, Cardinal of Aviz, Prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. In that celebration the Bull of the Jubilee Year, given by the Holy See, will be read. To all those who will participate in the Eucharist or follow it through the technical means of communication, the Holy Father Francis grants plenary indulgence according to standards laid down by the Church. The Jubilee Year will be closed on November 25, 2017, with the Eucharistic Celebration in San Pantaleo, presided over by Fr. General. b. On January 31, anniversary of the approval of the Constitutions of our Order, we will celebrate Thanksgiving Day for our Vocation. c. On February 6, Memory of Saint Dorothy martyr, we convene a Day of renewal of our Ministry of Christian Education. It was in the sacristy of the Church of Saint Dorothy where this extraordinary story began in We invite all to renew that day our Ministry of Christian education. d. March 6, anniversary of the erection of the Pauline Congregation, will be the Central Day of the Jubilee Year. We invite all Piarist religious to the solemn renewal of 4

5 religious vows in public, in the context of the Piarist presence. Also, we invite all members of the Piarist Fraternity to renew their promises on that day. And all this in the context of a shared and joyful Eucharist. e. On March 25, anniversary of the reception of the first Piarists, we convene a Day of prayer for the novices of the Order. Our prayer for them will be inspired by the Constitutions, asking to the Lord that each one of them be able to respond to the call of the Lord in a sincere and generous way 9. f. On April 2 we usually celebrate the Day of the Piarist missions. It will be good to dedicate that day to the reflection and prayer on the missionary spirit of the Pious Schools, and for those who assume with missionary availability their being sent to the new presences of the Order. g. April 15 is the anniversary of the approval of the new Constitutions of the Order, renovated according to the guidelines of the Council Vatican II. We want to commemorate on this date a Day of discernment on the keys to renewal of the Pious Schools. h. On May 8 we celebrated the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God of the Pious Schools. We ask that all Piarist presences renew the consecration of the Pious Schools to Mary. i. May 31, anniversary of the declaration of Glicerio Landriani as Venerable, is the Day of prayer for the Piarist vocations. We wish that in all our Communities and Works we gather in prayer to the Lord of the harvest that He send out laborers into his harvest. j. July 8, Day of the Homes, we want to live it as a Day of attention to the poor child, treasure of the Order. I call upon all to renew on that day our Ministry of attention to the poor for social transformation. k. On July 16, 250th anniversary of the canonization of St. Joseph Calasanz, we invite you to live a Day of prayer for the gift of Holiness in the Pious Schools. l. August 25, solemnity of Saint Joseph Calasanz. With deep joy, let us celebrate Our Holy Father. m. On September 26 we celebrate usually the Day of Prayer for the Young Piarist in Initial Formation. Let us do it also in this Jubilee Year, in thanksgiving to God for so many young people who are preparing to give their life as religious in the Pious Schools. As it is logical, if there would be any coincidence with any significant date of the liturgical year or any special circumstance of the place, we can make the changes that are considered timely. 9 Constitutions of the Pious Schools, n

6 10. In this Jubilee Year, we want to celebrate in a special way the gift of the Calasanctian family, and together with all our brothers and sisters from the different Congregations born of the common trunk of Calasanz, to thank God for the charism of all founders and foundresses of the Congregations of the Calasanctian Family. There will be a Day of the Calasanctian Family in this Jubilee Year, but its celebration date is not decided yet. Obviously, all our brothers and sisters of the Calasanctian Family are invited to celebrate, by themselves or in conjunction with us, all the events of this Jubilee Year. 11. A special invitation: let us offer on this Jubilee Year a gift to Calasanz. We ask all the demarcations and fraternities to make any concrete decision in homage to Calasanz: a new presence, a new mission, a new response to the challenge of needy children and youth. We are confident that this is the way in which Calasanz wants to celebrate this anniversary. 12. We want to insist on that: even when we plan and organize things carefully, God always surprises us. Let us live this Jubilee Year in a spirit of faith, aware that only God knows what is good for us, and only to Him corresponds to give us what we need, according to his will. We invite all of you, therefore, to live this year in the presence of God, as sons and daughters who know that God is good. 13. Together with all of you, we raise our grateful and needy prayer to the Lord, knowing that everything is in God's hands and that in Him we find the answer to our concerns and the strength to keep on walking, always to give our lives in this rich harvest that is the education of children and young people, especially the poor. God, Father of mercy, you wanted that Calasanz were father and teacher of so many children and youth, and you have given us his charism as an invitation to live fully our following of Jesus, your Son and our Lord; look with generous love this small flock of the Pious Schools and give us the force of your Spirit to live always faithful to our vocation and docile to your will. Bless with Father's love all children and young people to whom we are dedicated, and all those who do not have a parent or a teacher accompanying them on the road. Strengthen and sanctify all Piarists, of every age and condition, so we may fully live our apostolic commitment and our consecrated life. Grant to all educators the gift of passionate love for their vocation, to be transformed into generous consecration to their students. Bless the Piarist Fraternities, a renovated fruit of the heart of Calasanz, so that they may be always places of communion and mission. You have made fertile the charism of Calasanz, bless and protect all the sister Congregations, members of the Calasanctian Family, called each of them to express, in a particular way, your love for the little ones. Grant us the gift of Piarist vocations, so that the dream of Calasanz might continue being ferment of the Kingdom wherever you will send us. Maintain and increase in us the apostolic zeal and the desire to serve. That we never yield to the temptation of living a life in which passion for your Son and our Lord and the wish 6

7 of surrendering to the mission, weaken or wither. May we always be open to your call, always new and always missionary. All this we ask you through the intercession of Mary, our Mother, under whose protection and patronage we want to live, and of our Holy Father Joseph Calasanz. AMEN. We thank you all for your life and your love of Calasanz. Do not forget ever that to love Calasanz is to love what he loved. Calasanz intensely loved Jesus and his Mother Mary, the Pious Schools and children and young people, especially the poor. May God bless us all. Given in Rome, at the General Curia of the Pious Schools, on July 26, 2016, memory of Saint Joachim and Saint Anna, parents of the Virgin Mary and secondary patrons of the Pious Schools. Fr. Miguel Giráldez, General Assistant for Europa Fr. Francisco Anaya, General Assistant for America Fr. József Urbán, General Assistant for Asia Fr. Pierre Diatta, General Assistant for Africa Fr. Juan Carlos Sevillano, Delegate of Fr. General for Vocational and Formative Culture Fr. Javier Alonso, Delegate of Fr. General for Ministry Fr. Emmanuel Suárez, Delegate of Fr. General for Participation in the Pious Schools Fr. Francesc Mulet, General Secretary Fr. Pedro Aguado, Father General 7