Salesian Center
Pentecost 2010
You will receive a Paraclete
The Holy Spirit will descend on you.
Dear Friends,
Since the beginning of 2010, successive catastrophes have occurred in the world, bringing their share of sadness and desolation, of physical and moral suffering, of displacement and misery among the populations affected. There have been earthquakes in Haiti, Chili, Turkey, and China and floods and mudslides in Brazil, and Madagascar, a windstorm in France and some which I am sure to have forgotten. Most recently, it is the eruption of a volcano in Iceland, which led to closure of airports in most of Europe, stranding hundreds of persons.
Some events have directly affected some members of our spiritual family. In Haiti, the group of Consecrated persons and the Salesian Friends in Port Au Prince have been severely tested. Some have lost members of their families, other have had their homes damaged to various degrees. In Chili, happily, there has not been any loss of human life, among the laity nor among the SMMI. But the material destruction is major, even though the buildings are constructed to withstand earthquakes, in this country of frequent earthquakes. In Tolongoina, all the community was plunged into great disarray. More recently the cloud of volcanic ash in Europe, leading to closure of airports in most of Europe, kept in Paris all the Councilors who came from across the Atlantic for the Plenary Session and the meeting of the General Council.
All of us are united in thought and hope to sustain with prayer our friends and our sisters who struggle in the midst of difficulties. Solidarity is quickly manifested by the material aid of those who have been the most affected. Much time will be needed to erase the signs of all these catastrophes, and perhaps even more to heal the wounds and trauma. Therefore, even if the media no longer speak of them, let’s not forget our friends and continue to keep them in prayer.
During the General Assembly of 2009, the delegates and members by right reflected in small groups on three questions proposed by the General Council, using the syntheses of the Regionals which were the fruit of the work of all Groups. Following these discussions, major work was done to condense the comments in order to propose orientations for the future of our Association to the General Assembly, which voted on them. You were able to read about them in the Bond of Sept-Oct, 2009. In order to be able to organize concrete work on them, the General Council drew from them the three following objectives:
- Deepen our life of prayer
- Better form and inform ourselves.
- Dare to meet and dialogue with other movements.
We urge you to reflect in groups on these three objectives and to send to the Council your ideas, your needs, your wishes and suggestions. You may state, for example, what you need to deepen your life of prayer, what probations would help you to complete your formation, what information seems useful to you, etc. It is an important effort that we ask of you. Take time to reflect on it! The Group Directresses can plan for this discussion in the calendar of group meetings. Then the Regional Directresses would be able to make a synthesis of the responses of all the groups in their Regions and send it to the Center before March 31, 2011. Those groups who are not yet part of a Region may send their responses to the Councilor in charge of their countries. Your responses will be studied by the Council during its meeting in April 2011. They will give direction to the work and we will keep you informed in turn. A great big thank you to everyone!
For quite some time, our Church has been confronted with great problems, especially in western countries. In other countries, Catholics are persecuted, sometimes to the point of death. In such circumstances, we must, more than ever, unite our prayers and not give in to discouragement. Let us pray for our Church and pray for our Pope Benedict XVI, who is the target of numerous attacks from both within and outside of the Church. Let us ask the Lord to give him-to give us- strength and courage to confront this tempest. The Apostles, seeing Jesus sleep while their boat was being inundated by waves, woke Him, crying out, “Help, Lord, we perish!” Jesus answered with a question, “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?” And He calmed the storm (See Mt. 8: 23-17). Then, let us not be afraid! Jesus will calm the storm, if we ask it of Him with faith.
From the beginning, Fr. Chaumont wanted to put our spiritual family under the patronage of the Holy Spirit. On January 29, 1875, Pentecost became the great feast of the Society. Each year, we prepare by a Novena prepared by our General Spiritual Advisor. And, on the day of Pentecost, we renew our Salesian Consecration. We may also, as Fr. Chaumont initiated, consecrate ourselves to the Holy Spirit with this beautiful prayer:
Holy Spirit, Love of the Father and the Son,
Light of truth, Force of our Will,
Receive today our offering
and that of our spiritual family.
Consume in the fire of your love
All our faults and imperfections,
Awaken in us an ardent desire for holiness
Expand our work and projects so that, under your inspiration,
Our Society may grow for the Glory of God.
Holy Spirit,
Reveal in us the treasures of your grace and your presence.
Through us, allow others
To be able to taste the effects of your action
And radiate the joy of faith.
On this feast of Pentecost, O Holy Spirit,
May the Church, may we, and those whom you
Secretly awaken,
All contribute, through your action,
To the Glory of the Holy Trinity,
Today and for all eternity.
Amen.
At this time of Pentecost, I pray that the Holy Spirit showers you with His gifts, that He guides you and lights the way on your daily route.
United in prayer, I wish you a very beautiful feast of Pentecost,
Annie Trabichet, General Directress
