A Call to a Prophetic Mission

Our prophetic mission today and tomorrow as followers of Christ the Prophet

Circular of the Superior General, Brother José Ignacio Carmona Ollo, s.c.

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IntroductionIn January 2013 you were sent the report of our latest general chapter, which concluded over a year and a half ago. Since then, time has marched on. Taken up by our daily activities and responsibilities we often fail to pause occasionally, to take the time to consider the real reasons for our journey, to reflect on the road already covered, and to recharge our batteries.

In this circular I would like to invite brothers, lay people and others in the service of the mission of the institute, to stop and reflect on the following questions. Where are we in terms of a renewed, shared and enduring prophetic mission? What has been our response to it thus far? What will our response be in the future? Where and how are we going to find the strength to continue the journey?

In the first chapter there will be a brief consideration of the life, work, and mission of the prophets of Israel. They were champions of faith in the One True God. They were God’s spokespersons, repeatedly calling their contemporaries to conversion. They were builders of hope for the people, especially the poorest and most deprived.

The second chapter is dedicated to Jesus, the Prophet par excellence, “the Prophet powerful in action and speech before God and the whole people”. (Lk 24:19) Jesus is the prophet who is intimately united with the Father; he is the prophet who speaks with authority, who shows forth the authentic face of God, and proclaims the Good News to the poor.

The third chapter will provide a few theologico-spiritual foundations for the General Chapter’s ordinance, and will at the same time present a synoptic table of its decisions and orientations. Its objective is to encourage us all to live a prophetic life, to remind us briefly and succinctly that the fundamental call of our chapter assembly is meant to take root in our lives.

Finally, in light of the ordinance of the general chapter, I will sketch out in the fourth chapter the broad lines of how I envisage the prophetic mission of the institute for the future. In so doing, I hope to provoke reflection, discernment, decision-making and commitment by everyone involved in our mission of service, a service especially oriented to children and young people1. Thus motivated, may we respond even more generously to the call of the Spirit to a prophetic mission in keeping with our charism.

May these reflections help us to be daily more faithful to our vocation of service for building up the Kingdom of God.

1 In the ordinance of the General Chapter of 2012, and in its accompanying decisions and orientations, the expression “children and young people” recurs often. Similarly, this circular is meant to serve as a reminder of the message of the Chapter; and that is all it could possibly be. The circular is obviously intended for those involved directly in the service of children and young people. But it is also addressed, and no less earnestly, to those brothers involved in other ministries, either in the service of the institute or of other persons or groups. Here I refer particularly to our elderly brothers who, through their prayer, the offering of their lives, their witness, and their many and varied services, support the mission of the Institute in the service of children and young people, and in an exceptional way. The next circular will be dedicated to these brothers.

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CHAPTER I: The pagan prophets and the prophets of IsraelIn this chapter I shall make a brief presentation of the pagan prophets and the prophets of Israel. This should help us to appreciate the difference between prophets, genuine and false, recognizing that we all doubtless possess features of both.

The pagan prophetsWe who live immersed in a Christian culture are all quite familiar with the prophets of Israel. But the prophets of old did not arise exclusively from within the Hebrew nation. There were other prophets among the cultures of the ancient world.

The prophets of the pagan nations offered messages to the people claiming to have received them from the gods in their prayers, visions, and revelations. The people were led to believe they were intimately united with their divinities, resulting in the popular belief that their leaders and governments were in some way linked to divinity. Within this context these prophets understood their role as that of leading people in worship and giving legitimacy to established authority.

In the eyes of the people therefore, pagan prophets were defenders of those who held the seats of power. Sometimes these prophets would call down curses on the people and disasters upon those perceived as the enemies of those holding the reins of power. Others would sing the praises of members of the royal court, to the great joy of their listeners. On yet other occasions pagan prophets condemned the political systems of enemy nations, all the while flaunting their own perceived greatness. To the Hebrews, these were false prophets speaking in their own name and proclaiming what was to their advantage or in the interests of those highly placed.

The Prophets of IsraelFor the people of Israel true prophets were messengers who proclaimed or announced the authentic message of Yahweh. And thus, these prophets took on a specific identity, altogether distinct from that of foreign prophets.

The prophets of Israel were not seen as mere soothsayers; they did not speak in their own name, but rather in the name of Another. They were seen as authentic spokespersons for the One True God. And through their lives, their deeds, their symbolic actions, and their oracles they transmitted, not their own words, but the Sacred Word of God. Everything about them was prophecy. Moreover, they were very much aware of their status as real prophets, not because of any merit of their own or of any personal initiative, but because they had been called by God, and they could not turn their backs on that call.

Though their message was situated within the limited scope of a particular setting, it can nevertheless shed light for us on the present and on the future. Through their being and their doing the prophets were the living memory of the Covenant between God and his people. And it is thus that the prophets proclaimed their disturbing message to an unfaithful people, condemning them for having separated themselves from God. But the message of the prophets was at the same time a message of consolation and of hope.

The fundamental mission of the prophets of Israel was:

to proclaim faith in the One True God who had committed himself to a Covenant with his people;

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to call the people to conversion, i.e. to faithfulness to that Covenant;

to re-awaken hope in a people faced with adversity, pain, anguish and uncertainty.

The prophet, herald of faith in the One True God

The prophet is that person of faith who reminds the people of Israel of the Covenant sealed between Israel and the One True God.

Hosea presents God as He who is full of tenderness, He who is concerned for the welfare of all his sons and daughters. Generally speaking, the prophet knows that God is very near both to him and to the people. The prophet is grateful for the interest that God has in him personally and in his nation. For the prophet, God is a Friend, and this conviction leads him to become himself a friend of God. That is what I wish to convey when I declare that the prophet lives a deep experience of God.

Living as he did an ever increasing experience of God, Elijah was one such prophet. His whole life is a powerful affirmation of his faith in the One True God. Elijah is the fiery prophet who, armed with the zeal of his early years, challenges false prophets, ridiculing and dispatching them. Then, as he gains experience in life, he encounters God in the ‘still, small breeze’. Finally, at the end of his days on this earth, his entire being ablaze with love, Elijah is taken up to meet God.

The prophets proclaimed with great ardor their faith in the One True God. They were full of passion for Him in the dual sense of the word “passion”; that is, love and suffering. “When your words came, I devoured them; your words were my delight and the joy of my heart.” (Jer 15:16) But God’s word can also be a source of anguish. The prophet was sometimes rejected and persecuted for proclaiming God’s message. “I never sat in the company of scoffers amusing myself; with your hands on me I held myself aloof, since you had filled me with indignation. Why is my suffering continual, my wound incurable, refusing to be healed?” (Jer 15:17, 18)

Passion for the One True God, Wellspring of love and of life, Friend and Protector, spurs the prophet on to be the journey-companion of his people, condemning idols: these works of human hands, meaningless, static and lifeless. Idols personify nothing, since it is impossible to establish a relationship with a void. Idol-worship becomes a sham, an unthinkable absurdity, a pretext that humans conjure up for self-adoration, creating for themselves utterly self-interested lives, very far away from God and from their neighbors.

The faith of the prophets and their passion for the One True God prefigures our own faith, we who proclaim the God of Jesus in and for this new age. With John we can declare that we have believed in love (cf. Jn 4:6). In faith, gift of the Holy Spirit, we know that God, through and in Christ, is very close to us; He loves us with infinite love. This conviction stirs up in us an immense trust in Him. And throughout the long road of life trust is our faith-response to the divine gift of faith.

The prophet, the herald who calls us to conversion

The challenging call to conversion that the prophets set before us, can take on various hues. Hosea highlights faithfulness to God, and invites believers among the people to be faithful to Him. Isaiah, for his part, urges the people to walk the straight and narrow way so as to make visible the holiness of God. Jeremiah emphasizes the importance of trusting in God, rejecting the false security of the Temple and of earthly powers. Haggai and Zachariah shake the people from their lethargy and apathy, as

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they condemn people’s estrangement from God. Amos and Micah insist on the coherence between faith and action.

The prophet, voice of the poor

In Ezekiel proclaiming and restoring hope in a people who had strayed from God are presented as a resurrection. In Deutero-Isaiah they represent liberation for a people saved by a new exodus; in Amos and Micah they point to a preferential service of the poor.

The prophet is passionate for the people, especially the poor and oppressed among them. The poor are frequently represented in the Bible as foreigners, orphans and widows. But these are the favored ones of God. Because of his intimate relationship with such a God, the prophet himself comes to love the weak and oppressed in the way God loves them. Aflame with that divine love, the prophet proclaims the urgent need to practice charity and justice as the expression of fidelity to the God of the poor.

John the Baptist, more than a prophet For many years the light of prophecy had been extinguished in Israel. Because other nations now ruled over the Promised Land, it was patently impossible to enforce the observance of the Law of God, let alone remain faithful to it. Many had already lost all hope.

It was then that John the Baptizer appeared on the scene. Of him Jesus said that he was the greatest “among the children of women,” (Matt 11:11) that he was “more than a prophet.” (Matt 11:9) Why such assertions?

The answer is simple. The prophets that had preceded the Baptizer had passed on to the people the messages they received in their visions, dreams, and inspirations. But the Baptizer, for his part, actually proclaimed Jesus as the Messiah, the Expected One, and the Word of God in person. That is why this precursor was “more than a prophet.”

In the desert there are simply two options: either to stare down at the earth or look up to heaven. That is why the desert is described as the most promising place to encounter God. The Precursor lived in the desert in utter austerity doing without even the essentials of life. His way of life was out of the ordinary, and his fiery words drew people to him. He called them to conversion, to draw nearer to God, to practice justice and to show mercy to the needy.

In his last days, probably sensing his coming martyrdom, the Baptizer sent his disciples to meet Jesus, so that they might be witnesses to the marvels done by the One who is much greater than himself, and of whom he did not feel “fit to carry his sandals.” (Matt 3:11; cf. Jn 1:29-30; Lk 7:21-33) For in John’s time this was the kind of duty that servants were expected to perform for their masters.

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CHAPTER II: Jesus, the Prophet par excellenceI, Yahweh, have called you in saving justice,

I have grasped you by the hand and shaped you;I have made you a covenant of the people

and light to the nations,to open the eyes of the blind,to free captives from prison,

and those who live in darkness from the dungeon.(Is 42, 6.7)

The prophecy reaches its culminating and definitive point in Jesus, “a prophet powerful in action and speech before God and the whole people…” (Lk 24: 19; cf. Lk 7 16-17; cf. Matt 21: 11; Jn 6: 14; cf. Jn 7: 40)

Jesus is the Son of the Father. And He lives in deep intimacy with the Father, in an exchange of continuous and intense love. What is more, this exchange is so perfect that it causes a third, very real and distinct person to be revealed, the Holy Spirit.

The intensely close relationship of Jesus with his Father, spurs him on to declare, “The Father and I are one.” (Jn 10: 30) By virtue of this relationship Jesus knows the Father perfectly, and is thereby in an unsurpassable way, empowered to convey His message. And by the same token, the will of the Father is for Jesus, his daily bread, his food (cf. Jn 4:34), for was Jesus not born with the mission of accomplishing the will of the Father? (cf. Heb 10: 7-9)

The message that Jesus proclaims about God is a continuation of the message of the prophets of Israel. But His message goes much further, and Jesus gives it a revitalized face and an enthralling freshness. And what is more, his message is absolute and perfect, to which nothing can be added.

If the prophets of Israel of old received messages from God and conveyed them in his name to the people, Jesus for his part presents his message by speaking for himself, with great self-assurance; he speaks on his own authority: “You have heard how it was said… But I say this to you…” (Matt 5: 21-48; cf Mk 1:22; cf. Matt 7: 29)

Jesus’ authority comes to him precisely from his intimate union with the Father: “Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, just as no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” (Matt 11: 27) Jesus is, therefore, that Son who is in constant intimate conversation with the Father, and who never ceases to reveal Him.

Jesus ratifies his prophetic mission with extraordinary deeds and signs: amazing healings, resurrections, a mastery over natural phenomena, and astounding conversions. And the people marveled saying, “ We have seen strange things today”. (Lk 5: 26)

The perfect unity among Jesus’ thoughts, words, and deeds issues from his intimate union with the Father. Jesus’ life is entirely coherent. He is not content with describing divine action and human action with ‘beautiful words’; he speaks also through his deeds, which themselves become prophecies revealing the face and heart of God, etching those features onto a restored humanity. Jesus accompanies his message by extraordinary gestures that reach their pinnacle in his own tragic death and glorious resurrection.

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Through his message Jesus reveals the true face of God, a God who is a community of Persons: a Father who deeply loves his son, Jesus Christ, and all his adopted sons and daughters; a Son who is responding to the love of the Father with boundless love for him, and for his brothers and sisters in this world; a Holy Spirit, fruit of the love between the Father and the Son. And it is through the Holy Spirit that we come to know the immense love of God; it is the Holy Spirit who spurs us on to love God with all our heart, our whole mind, and our whole strength, and to love one another.

Jesus reveals to us a loving-Father God, gentle, kind and full of compassion and mercy, concern and generosity. Jesus reveals to us a proximate God, a friend-God, a God who desires to share the life of men and women through the person of his Son, Jesus, who accompanies us and sustains us constantly through the Spirit of love. Jesus reveals to us a God who offers us a salvation that is pure grace, a salvation that we could never have merited simply by being good, and/or respecting the Law. Jesus reveals to us a God who sees us not as his slaves but as his sons and daughters. Jesus reveals to us a God who invites us to live a filial relationship of love and trust.

The poor, the gentle, those who suffer, the persecuted, the compassionate, and the peace-makers, these are God’s favored ones. That is why the poor are also Jesus’ favorites. He lives with them, he lives like them, and he lives for them.

Undeniably, Jesus’ greatest prophetic act remains his entry into the Pascal Mystery of his Passion, Death and Resurrection. As were many of the prophets, Jesus was persecuted by his enemies who finally managed to have him put to death. But unlike the prophets, Jesus’ death is not merely a testimony to his faithfulness, but also the cause of the Salvation of all people who believe in him. Jesus dies on the cross, the food of Salvation. And having declared at the Last Supper: “ This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me. ” (LK 22: 19) Jesus does not limit himself to faithfully proclaiming our Salvation; he IS our Salvation.

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CHAPTER III: The Call of the General Chapter of 2012The general chapter of 2012 took place from the end of April to the end of May. In January 2013 the general council published the chapter report booklet that was sent to all the sectors of the Institute.

At this point in the circular I would like to offer a synopsis of the chapter’s message. In so doing I have a dual objective: on the one hand to make the chapter’s message more accessible, and on the other to encourage you to make it a part of your daily lives. But before beginning the synopsis, I would like to underscore what constitutes the rationale for the chapter’s ordinance. Normally speaking there is always a ‘why’ behind each directive. And in this particular instance, the reason is quite obviously of a theologico-spiritual order.

FoundationThe ordinance of the chapter and the decisions that accompany it invite us to action so as to respond to “urgent needs of young people for whom no one else is concerned ”2. But it is not a matter of a reaction motivated by purely philanthropic reasons, since as Pope Francis puts it so very well, ‘The Church is not an NGO.’ What is required is an action whose source is to be found both in a strong faith and in a spirituality centered on the Heart of a compassionate God.

The compassion of God is made manifest in his Son, Jesus. In Him, God comes to meet us. It is especially in the Resurrection of Jesus that God reveals to us His own boundless love and forgiveness. Whenever we experience this love we are led to ask ourselves: What must I do so that the love of God that was revealed in Jesus Christ can be known by all men and women? How can that love transform my own heart and the heart of my brothers and sisters? To borrow words from our Rule of Life, How can I better live “ out our motto and our shared hope- Ametur Cor Jesu! ”? (R, art. 12)

The answer is quite simple; it is by being persons of faith. Faith is first a gift received from God, and then a response to that gift that we offer Him in return. For God, who gifts us with faith, expects a response from us in faith.

We have seen that the prophet is first and foremost a person of faith. Faith is the conviction that God is very near to us; that God loves us with immeasurable love; that God trusts us and is always ready to forgive us. This conviction spurs us on to live with ever renewed trust in Him.

The prophet lives his faith on a daily basis. As Timothy Radcliffe has written:

The prophet does not predict the future. Rather, he speaks the Word of God, which brings joy to people, and helps them to develop. To be a prophet is to speak words that are fruitful, nourishing, and revitalizing. (cf. Eph 4: 29)We exercise this ministry hundreds of times a day…by our way of speaking to others and our way of speaking about them… our way of chatting, joking, commenting… our way of blessing or condemning, praising or accusing.

2 In this circular any text in quotation marks without a footnote is an expression or a textual reference to the ordinance of the General Chapter of 2012 or to related orientations and decisions.

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‘Prophetic’ implies speaking words that respect the dignity of others, that emphasize what is good in them. Even when it is necessary for us to condemn, we should do so in the spirit of that love that God places in his sons and daughters, and never scornfully3.

This quotation helps us to understand that the prophet shows his faith firstly through his style of life. We know that not all prophets lefts us writings, yet they scattered generously the seed of their prophetic deeds.

Pope Francis began his pontificate with several very powerful gestures, gestures very much in keeping with our own prophetic mission. Allow me to remind you of a few of them.

Above all, like a kind of background music, he invited us to live lives centered on Jesus.

Kindled by the fire of the Spirit and the words of the pope let us seek our joy only in the God of Jesus, and let us open our hearts to his love. Let us be people of faith, gentle and humble of heart, after the example of Jesus. Let us love God with all our heart, all our soul, and with all our strength, and let us love one another as God loves us. Let us ask the Lord to change our hearts so that we may always desire genuine conversion.

The ‘Good evening’ with which he greeted the crowds just after his election as ‘Bishop of Rome’ ---as he is so fond of saying--- manifested simplicity and a nearness that speak volumes.

His option to continue wearing his own well-worn shoes, his decision to opt for a more modest residence, the way he frequently gets down from the “pope-mobile” to meet people, etc., are all so many expressions of Gospel poverty.

These gestures invite us to be genuinely poor, living for, like and with the poor. Let us live our consecrated poverty in simplicity of life, with detachment, dedication in the work we are called to do, in service to the poor, the sharing of goods, dependency, avoiding keeping money for our own personal use, without the director’s knowledge, neither bothering to ask permission, nor being in the least accountable. (cf R, art. 89)

By all means, let us use cars, equipment and technology for the service of the mission, but let us remain temperate in our personal use of the material means available to us. It may not be easy, but it is possible to live Gospel poverty in the mission, even surrounded as we are by well-equipped buildings. Everything becomes possible if we are people of God. Isn’t it true that in many local communities there are excessive numbers of vehicles, many of which are for exclusive personal use? And, aren’t these cars far too often top-of-the-range?

His decision to meet young prisoners or immigrants, exhausted and having lost everything, is yet another eloquent sign of Pope Francis’ option for the poor.

He reminds us to be ‘shepherds who smell like their sheep’, that is to say we must be close to people, living the fruitfulness of our consecration in authentic service (diaconia).

3 Translated from RADCLIFFE, Timothy. Faites le plongeon, Paris, Cerf, 2012, pp 221-222.

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We have received everything. Let us live out our religious lives, therefore, with a view to giving ourselves entirely to God and to our brothers and sisters. We have not been called to this life to serve ourselves.

Francis emphasizes that we are not to be like civil servants, especially the kind who work with indifference, who are not focused on service to others, who lock themselves in their offices, and who are busy about mere things, ignoring people and their situations.

In a gesture of collegiality, Pope Francis appointed a commission to study important matters relating to the life and mission of the Church today.

This act encourages us to live our mission of charity and service in community, not as mere performers in one-man shows. As I have previously said, we have in the past tended to practice a paternalistic and individualistic solidarity, as if we were the ‘owners of the business’. We must never allow that attitude to exist again. Our mission must be thought out in community, decided upon in community, organized in community, and lived out in community.

SynopsisBelow you will find the first page of a synopsis of the ordinance. The pages that follow summarize the orientations and decisions of the chapter concerning a renewed prophetic mission, a prophetic mission in communion, and an enduring prophetic mission. Each of these sections contains a call, a discernment and a response.

In the synopsis of the ordinance we read that the prophetic mission of the institute is exercised in conformity with the charism of Father André Coindre. Inspired by this charism we partners in this shared mission -brothers, lay persons and others- must always look with compassionate eyes upon the children and young people, especially those with urgent needs with no one to attend to those needs. We look with compassion on those who are in our own apostolic works, as well as on those we encounter in other places, because in each of them there are children and young people in need of help. Our regard for these children and young people must be allied to discernment, both personal and communal, supported by prayer, which extends far beyond simple emotion, leading to concrete action on their behalf.

This call is not limited to the brothers who, strictly speaking, are the actual members of the institute. In this circular, to speak of the whole institute is to include every person and group of persons who collaborate in any way with the mission. This includes, brothers, lay-persons, as well as persons with other vocations, local and educational communities, the provinces and delegations, and those with responsibility for leadership and administration.

If it is evident that this mandate is addressed to everybody, the chapter nevertheless emphasizes the special role of “those responsible for animation and administration” at every level. In a particular way they are mandated to “revitalize the prophetic mission of works and communities” by stirring up enthusiasm and showing leadership for initiatives in their respective localities.

And here I would like to clarify a point. In speaking of a shared mission, that is, of a mission in communion in the institute, we have tended to use the expression ‘brothers and their partners in the mission’. I propose adopting instead the simple phrase ‘partners in the mission’. Therefore, whenever you encounter the latter expression in this circular understand that it always refers to brothers, lay people and other persons involved in the mission of the institute.

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These are reasons for my preference. Firstly, the word “partners” (“partenaires” in French and “colaboradores” in Spanish) suggests an enterprise: persons, institutions, or companies join together to work for the sake of a common mission. In our case, brothers work alongside lay persons and others to accomplish the same mission together; hence, the brothers themselves are partners. At the same time, lay people work alongside brothers and others to realize our mission together; thus they too are partners. Other persons who work alongside brothers and lay-persons are also considered partners.

Our purpose is to highlight that these persons, with their distinct vocations, share one and the same dignity. “Partners in [the] mission” effectively expresses co-responsibility for a shared Charism in the service of common mission, lived out in the communion of the Church.

And so I set before you the synopsis of the General Chapter of 2012.

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Institute of the Brothers of the Sacred HeartGeneral Chapter of 2012

A CALL TO A PROPHETIC MISSIONSynopsis of the Ordinance

Persons(s) responsible

Commitment

The entire institute

(partners in the mission, local

and educationalcommunities)

In fidelity to the Charism of Father André Coindre, the institute “commits itself with renewed determination and in a spirit of ongoing conversion to highlight the prophetic dimension of its mission… [and to] re-envision how its mission is expressed in light of the urgent needs of young people for whom no one else is concerned.”

Those responsible

for leadership and

administrationat all levels

A PROPHETIC MISSION

RENEWED SHARED ENDURING

Commitments

Achieve a level of discernment that leads to decision- making that inspires a renewed sense of prophetic mission in “the works and communities” and promotes theiradvancement.

Organize and support for all partners a program of shared formation in the prophetic mission for today,in keeping with our Charism.

Foster among young people vocation awakening and commitment to prophetic mission by challenging them to “encounter Jesus and, together with the brothers, to be in close solidarity with marginalized children and youth.”

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Decisions

1 FOR A RENEWED PROPHETIC MISSION

Approach Persons responsible

Commitments

Call Entireinstitute

- In our prophetic action giving priority to “children and young people” struggling with “urgent and unmet needs”;

- Center our spirituality on the expression of the compassionate Heart of God with a view to discerning “urgent needs,” and finding ways to respond;

- Look upon children and young people “with the eyes of Father André Coindre” and “draw closer to them”;

- “Make our communities and our works sanctuaries for young people;”

- Denounce “when necessary” …all injustice against children and young people;

- Be prepared “to take risks for a prophetic mission in close communion with one another”.

Discern-ment

Eachentity

“Each entity will undertake a discernment process within local communities, and if necessary, with representatives of our ministries, to determine the urgent needs of young people and to evaluate how each work is responding to those needs”.

Throughout this process of discernment, the objective will be “to seek to identify” the urgent needs to which we wish to respond, and the means required to do so. Likewise “the types of commitments that the brothers will take on in this mission” must be clearly articulated: whether these be “administrative responsibilities or a more personal accompaniment of young people.” It will also be essential for us to discern the best means to update our “concern for evangelizing the young people entrusted to us.”

Decisions13

1 FOR A RENEWED PROPHETIC MISSION (Continued)

Process Persons responsible

Commitments

Response

Councilsof the

entities

Relying on the conclusions of their discernment process, the respective provincial councils and delegations create an action plan for “a prophetic response to at least one of these urgent needs either in existing works or in a new work. This action plan “will be submitted to the General Council for approbation.”

The process of discernment, the action plan and its implementation must have been achieved by 2015. A report will “be presented by the various entities during the general conference of 2015.”

GeneralCouncil

- Encourage the partners in the mission to foster the prophetic mission. This should include “the promotion of a lifestyle that is consistent with these responses.”

- Evaluate and approve the action plans of each entity.

- Keep the institute informed of initiatives undertaken by the entities and provide whatever assistance may be deemed useful for their implementation.

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Discern-ment

Partners in the mission

The discernment process will aim at drawing up a common formation plan to foster:

- The prophetic mission of the institute, Building up the community of partners based on “sincere and fraternal relationships” that find expression through “small daily gestures.”

- Sharing the faith.- “A greater level of participation” in the

prophetic mission, growing awareness of our mission, and a greater co-responsibility in decision making.

Response

Every entity

- Draw up, “a plan of common formation” for the partners in the mission, with a view to a prophetic mission” for our partners in the mission; this plan should develop “the essential elements of our charism”: spirituality of compassion, pedagogy of trust, preferential option for the poor, teamwork, and an acknowledgment of the complementarity of vocations, etc.

- Encourage experiences for the partners that strengthen their bonds of communion in the Charism.

Councils ofthe entities

Accompany, evaluate and inform the General Council of the experiences of communion in the Charism that have been realized in the local communities and in the works.

GeneralCouncil

- Support plans for shared formation.- Encourage mutual support among

provinces and delegations with a view to an improved shared formation.

Decisions

3 FOR AN ENDURING PROPHETIC MISSION15

Decisions

2 FOR A PROPHETIC MISSION IN COMMUNIONProcesses Persons

responsibleCommitments

CallEntire institute,

partnersin the mission

Everyone committed to “a common formation according to the charism of Father André Coindre for a prophetic mission.”

Approach PersonsResponsible

Commitments

Call Partners in the mission

Commit ourselves to a vocation ministry to provide for continuity of the prophetic mission.

Discern-ment

BrothersBegin a process of personal and community discernment on the type of witness to religious life that we are giving “to the men and women, especially young people of our world.”

Entities,local and

educational communities

Begin a process of discernment on the most effective way to achieve a vocation ministry with a view to a prophetic ministry.

Response

Each Brother

- Pray for vocations.- Promote vocations by “the witness of

consecrated life and by the quality of our presence to young people ”.

- Get involved, within the limits of our abilities, in youth ministry and vocation ministry

Everycommunity

- Pray for vocations.- Encourage experiences of involvement

among the young on behalf of the disadvantaged and those in need.

- Evaluate “periodically the quality of its presence and hospitality to young people”.

Every entity

- Develop programs “of youth ministry and vocation ministry with the power to mobilize” the partners in the mission, “to challenge the young and to nurture their growth toward personal maturity ”.

- Consider the possibility of establishing a hospitality community for young people desiring to share a community experience with the brothers as part of their vocation discernment process.

Decisions

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3 FOR AN ENDURING PROPHETIC MISSION (cont.)

Approach PersonsResponsible

Commitments

Response(cont.)

ProvincialSuperior

During his visits encourages the brothers “ to persevere in their commitment to vocation ministry ”.

General Council

During their visits to the entities “give special attention… to the dynamism of vocation ministry”.

CHAPTER IV: Prophetic Mission of the Institute: Vision for the future4

4 The material in chapter IV is virtually the same as I used in my presentation to the school leadership teams of the three United States provinces, gathered together a St. Stanislaus College in Bay Saint Louis, Mississippi last July. There were some 110 participants. Brother Ivy Leblanc had invited Brother Raymond Hetu and me to participate in the assembly. We are both grateful to Brother Ivy for having invited us to the event, which was an opportunity to spend several days in the company of such marvelous people.

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Relying on insights I have gleaned from the keynote message of the general chapter of 2012, I would now like to share with you my dream regarding the prophetic mission of the institute for the coming years. To speak in organizational terms, I will try to present my ‘vision’ of prophetic mission.

And just what is my vision for tomorrow regarding our prophetic mission? Remaining faithful to the Charism of Father André Coindre, to what type of prophetic mission in the service of children and young people is the institute being called today? Toward what ideal of prophetic mission is the Institute being called to aspire in the coming years? Finding answers to these questions is very important, for it is not good simply to amble about aimlessly. As they say in Colombia, ‘If you don’t know where you’re going, any bus will do’.

Before attempting answers, I would like to remind us all yet again that for our purposes here, the word “Institute” has a broader meaning. The Institute in this sense is not simply a group of brothers, but encompasses all the partners, all the men and women involved in the mission, the brothers, lay persons, and others as well.

My answer, based on insights from the chapter, is a personal one. In suggesting it I am hoping to kindle reflection on the part of all those involved in the mission. I am firmly convinced that truth is a light that we discover together. In other words, truth is neither “my” truth no “your” truth. Real truth can only be “our” truth. And in this section I will endeavor to sketch out an answer, firmly convinced in my conviction that it is the responsibility of the entire Institute---of all the partners in the mission---to discern the nature and the characteristics of the prophetic mission of the Institute for the future. And hopefully, my answers to the questions will serve as a departure point for a journey that I invite us all to undertake together.

We will perceive this vision for the future in the light of the Word of God, the Rule of Life, the history of the Institute, its present-day reality, the orientations of previous general chapters, particularly those of 2000, 2006 and 2012 that drew up clear-cut and practical orientations for a more meaningful mission.

The Chapter of 2000 invited us to listen for the cry of children and young people who are poor and without hope, and faithful to the charism of Father André Coindre, to try to respond. The Chapter of 2006 exhorted us to kindle together a flame in the sanctuary of our mission in the service of children and young people. The chapter of 2012 calls us to commit ourselves “with renewed determination, and in a spirit of ongoing conversion to highlight the prophetic dimension of (our) mission….in light of the urgent needs of young people for whom no one else is concerned.”

These three general chapters dealt definitively with the theme of mission; the chapter of 2012 afforded it a central and exclusive place, and drew up clear and concrete paths able to lead us step by step towards the goal of a renewed, shared and enduring prophetic mission. Therefore my vision of the prophetic mission of the Institute will rely especially on the ordinance, and the decisions and orientations of this most recent chapter.

Over the course of these past seven years, I have had the opportunity of visiting all the local communities and the works of our Institute. As I went from one to the other, it became clear to me that they were quite remarkable in their diversity. And, understandably, making allowances for the considerable differences among the diverse regions and cultures in the Institute, a general chapter can only make general proposals, which then go on to be implemented in each entity according to its particular situation.

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That is why I am keen to say from the outset that my vision of the prophetic mission of the Institute, in the light of the ordinance of the chapter, can only be a generalized vision, whose value consists in stimulating discernment so as to foster in every part of the Institute a renewed, shared and enduring prophetic mission of the local communities and the works.

My vision of a renewed prophetic mission Let us return to the icon of Jesus the Prophet. We read in the Gospel according to Luke:

When the men reached Jesus they said, 'John the Baptist has sent us to you to ask, "Are you the one who is to come or are we to expect someone else?" At that very time he cured many people of diseases and afflictions and of evil spirits, and gave the gift of sight to many who were blind. Then he gave the messengers their answer, 'Go back and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind see again, the lame walk, those suffering from virulent skin-diseases are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, the good news is proclaimed to the poor’. (Lk 7:20 – 22)

Jesus is the Prophet, the Friend of God and of all God’s children. We can see this clearly in the above passage: Jesus has a preference for the poor, the sick, for the physically or psychologically wounded, the forsaken, those left to fend for themselves, and those who live as if they were dead because they have lost all hope of existence.

In keeping with Jesus’ preference for those most in need and in fidelity to the charism of Father André Coindre the ordinance of the General Chapter of 2012 calls the Institute to “commit itself with renewed determination and in a spirit of ongoing conversion to highlight the prophetic dimension of its mission…in light of the urgent needs of young people for whom no one else is concerned.” This chapter ordinance fills me with an array of dreams and hopes for all of us who are heirs to the charism of Father André.

To begin with, in the future I can envisage partners in the prophetic mission being men and women who live, both personally and communitarily, in a deep intimacy with our compassionate God, that God whose heart beats in cadence with the littlest and most forsaken ones. For it is in this intimate love that may be found the source of generous devotion of all people dedicated to the mission of education in the service of children and young people, especially the most deprived.

Secondly, I can envisage that the deep friendship of these partners with the God of Jesus is manifested through education as a service to children and young people, a service characterized by trust in the unbounded possibilities for the latter and by the close relationships woven among all those who play a role in the mission of education: students, educators and parents. This can also be seen in an educational climate characterized by kindness, simplicity, nearness, interpersonal dialogue, listening, and mutual support.

Thirdly, I can envisage that all our works, those that open their doors to children and young people from families in uncertain financial circumstances, as well as those populated by the children and young people of more well-off parents, will accommodate increasing numbers of students. I can envisage that both kinds of educational centers will be sanctuaries of protection for all, but especially for those who suffer from material poverty or from any sort of physical, intellectual,

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psychological, emotional, or spiritual want, or who have lost the sense of God or the meaning of life, etc.

I can envisage as well, that in all our works, in keeping with the charism of Father André we will not lose sight of other needy children and young people, either where we are of in more distant locations, and that we develop on their behalf a gamut of initiatives: sponsorships, study grants, bursaries, missionary and/or volunteer experiences.

Fourthly, I see partners in the mission engaged in an ongoing process of discernment, focusing on the most urgent but yet unmet needs of children and young people from a range of backgrounds, and that this discernment will not remain a dead letter, but will be given shape through the creation and support of new works whose specific objective is to respond to these needs.

My vision of a shared prophetic mission Let us consider the icon of Jesus the Servant. We read in the Gospel according to John:

“I have given you an example so that you may copy what I have done to you.” (Jn 13:15).

These are the words that Jesus addresses to his friends after having washed their feet. Jesus’ mission is not just his, but as followers of Jesus, his mission is ours as well. We all share in Jesus’ prophetic mission as we proclaim with him the message of the Father. We do so when we open our hearts to a new life, to the seed of a future life, as we together build a community of persons who help and support one another, and who support others, especially the neediest.

We who are trying to live out a ministry oriented toward the good of our neighbor -a mission dedicated to the welfare of children and young people- we are the living memory of Jesus the Servant, who knelt to wash the feet of his disciples.

The General Chapter of 2012 encouraged us to share a prophetic mission. And in so doing, it emphasized the importance of a “common formation according to the charism of Father André Coindre”.

In light of the Gospel that invites us to be the living memory of Jesus in our service especially of the littlest among our brothers and sisters, and all the while desirous of remaining faithful to the charism, I would like to share with you a few of my own hopes and dreams.

First of all, in my mind’s eye I can see our religious family becoming a global community, that is, a communion of communities. By this I mean communities5 in which each of the members, faithful to his/her own specific vocation, strives to live the charism of Father André Coindre in the service of the prophetic mission, as authentically as possible.

5 The communities that I refer to in this paragraph, and in the ones to follow, could be communities made up solely of brothers or communities of lay persons living close to one another and sharing a rhythm of life consistent with the vocations of the members. Those constituting these communities share the mission, as well as times of prayer, celebration and relaxation. They might be communities of brothers who welcome younger or older adults into their midst, that is, young people interested in participating in an experience of community life. They might be groups of lay people who live in proximity with other families, sharing in the mission, as well as in times of prayer, celebration, and recreation. They might be communities of persons with differing vocations that join with the brothers and lay people to participate in the mission and share together occasions such as mentioned above.

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Secondly, I can envisage that in this global community “sincere and fraternal relationships” are being woven, and that members share joyfully and enthusiastically, faith, spiritual life, and the mission, with particular concern for the neediest of children and young people.

Thirdly, I can envisage our shared prophetic mission in harmony with our charism, and sustained by a serious formation of every person, all the while respectful of the specific background and training of each. This common formation is based on shared experiences in which an array of different persons and groups nurture one another in an ongoing dynamic of giving and receiving.

Finally, I can envisage a prophetic mission that is characterized by total co-responsibility among the partners, to the extent that the various and differing ministries and functions, even those at the highest levels, are shared in accord with the competencies of each person and for the greater good of the mission.

My vision of an enduring prophetic missionListening to the Gospel according to Luke, let us now contemplate the icon of Jesus the Master.

After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them out ahead of him in pairs, to all the towns and places he himself would be visiting. And he said to them, 'the harvest is rich but the laborers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send laborers to do his harvesting’. (Lk 10:1-2)

This passage presents Jesus to us as a master calling out and sending forth his disciples.

We have been called by the Lord to lead a prophetic mission for today. At the same time we ardently desire to see this mission endure well into the future. In order to secure this continuity it is crucial for us to rely on persons qualified to guarantee that continuity. To this end the General Chapter of 2012 calls us to commit ourselves to vocation ministry with a view to assuring the enduring nature of the prophetic mission in keeping with our charism.

Fostering varying vocations relies on the willingness of communities to live and share the Faith. These must be communities that give witness, communities that pray for vocations, communities close to young people, communities committed to youth ministry and vocation ministry, communities that invite “young people to encounter Jesus and to be in close solidarity with marginalized children and youth.”

Charisms are gifts of the Spirit to every person. But usually people are more likely to receive a charism as they work side by side with other persons and communities that are living an intensely prophetic and radical way of life. This is so because the witness of such persons and communities stirs up in certain men and women the desire to live the charism in a similar way. This desire moves people to ask for the charism in prayer; and the Spirit, in response, grants it to them.

And here, allow me to open a parenthesis. It is important that all these partners in the mission contribute to developing our prophetic mission. We need each other: lay persons and brothers, mutually interdependent. To assure the future of the mission the institute needs committed lay people and brothers. Moreover, I believe it would

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be very difficult for the charism to endure without the influence of dynamic communities of brothers who are deeply rooted in it.

In terms of an enduring mission, my dream is that the Institute be made up of communities that live the charism of Father Coindre in a prophetic way. By this I mean communities that offer “to women and men of today, and especially to young people”, a significant witness of their intimate relationship with the Lord. These must be communities of continual prayer, fraternal life, and joy; communities of generous service to the mission; communities that never fail to look with the eyes of compassion on children and young people, especially those most in need.

I envisage local communities accessible to young people, opening their hearts to them, building up and sustaining them with relationships characterized by respect, kindness, simplicity, and availability, with a view to a gratuitous service.

I can also envisage communities deeply committed to and involved in youth ministry and vocation ministry. These must be ministries that encourage formation to human values, growth in religious culture as a support for the Faith, growth in that Faith, and a Christian community life-style. In this way, my dream is that our apostolic endeavors will form the nucleus of fervent, dynamic and challenging Christian communities.

The kind of youth ministry I propose is centered on the accompaniment /mentoring of young people in order to:

Support their growth as persons in relationships with others;

Encourage them to develop in their lives healthy and critical attitudes, enabling them to discern what is good for them and for others, along with the moral strength to choose that good;

Foster in them the desire to seek encounters with Jesus ;

Spur them on to commit themselves to working side by side with the brothers, lay persons and other partners, thus creating and developing along with them initiatives on behalf of the most needy, especially children and young people struggling with the most urgent needs…and for whom no one is concerned.

Youth ministry of this kind is already a vocation ministry, since it prompts young people to discover, when the moment is right, the tangible call of the Lord. Vocations are varied and each person is made aware of it and responds to it in his or her own time and manner.

Finally, I envisage communities that pray for vocations, for all vocations, asking the Lord send workers to bring in His harvest.

There you have it, my brothers and sisters, my modest vision of the way to live the prophetic mission of the institute. The time I have spent preparing this little reflection has helped me to deepen even more my own vocation in the service of the mission. I sincerely hope that it will serve to motivate you to commit yourselves even more to a renewed, shared and enduring prophetic mission, to which our most recent general chapter has invited us.

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CONCLUSIONThe General Chapter of 2012 issued a call to the entire Institute to take on the challenge of a prophetic mission consistent with the charism of the Founder. Achieving this objective requires us to be, first of all, men and women passionate for God and dedicated to the service of children and young people, especially the most needy among them. This calls for a firm belief in the love of God and a form of loving the Heart of God which includes God, ourselves, others, and children and young people. Such a vision means seeing ourselves and one another, the children and young people we serve, with the Eyes of God. We are committed to a life-long practice of seeing with the eyes of compassion.

To be prophetic is to proclaim the One True God through our way of being and acting. It means to converse with God and to speak of God. It also requires denouncing the false gods of power, possessions and pleasure; living in a state of ongoing conversion; and building up and affirming the hopes of children and young people, especially those most in need.

To be prophets today in the footsteps of Father André Coindre, means discerning and discovering the urgent and unmet needs of children and young people. We must be alert to their need for God and to their aspiration to live with the dignity that their condition as sons and daughters of God deserves. Being prophetic today means allowing ourselves to be challenged by the vulnerability and needs of deprived youth. Above all, it means responding boldly and creatively in a way that will enable them to build a future of greater possibility.

In this circular, I did not speak of our Mother, the Virgin Mary. Yet, she is present throughout these pages. Through union with God and her availability in realizing the designs of the Father whose Spirit worked in her, she is the Queen of the prophets. Her life was centered on God, lived in simplicity and poverty and service to those around her. May she journey with us, may she protect and encourage us always in our renewed, shared and enduring prophetic mission in the service of children and young people.

Rome, January 12, 2014Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

Brother Jose Ignacio Carmona Ollo, s.c.

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SUGGESTED QUESTIONS FOR PERSONAL REFLECTION AND FOR COMMUNITY SHARINGIn what way do I resemble authentic prophets? Do I possess the characteristics or attitudes of false prophets?

Do I seek God, proclaim and serve him? How does human selfishness prevent my seeking, serving and proclaiming the Lord in my life?

Do I strive to be a person of faith? Do I believe in the God of Love? Do I have sufficient trust in Him? Vested with this strength, do I have a reasonable confidence in myself?

Do my life, my words, my gestures and my actions reflect the prophetic ministry of Christ?

In response to God’s fidelity to me, do I try to live in ongoing conversion as a faithful response to a God who is always faithful? 

John the Baptist proclaimed Jesus in an original way. How do I proclaim Jesus?

Jesus spoke with God and spoke of God. Is this what I do?

People recognized that Jesus the Prophet was united to the Father. It was manifested in the authority with which he spoke, in the consistency of his life, word and actions, in his message about God, and in his concrete preference for the poor. What does this mean to me personally?

In my day to day ministry, how do I live with, for and like the poor?

Am I sufficiently open to the mission of the Institute, shared or in communion, and in equal measures of co-responsibility with persons of other distinct vocations, who are called to live out the same Charism? Am I open to the concept of shared formation, of “formation together”, to which the General Chapter is calling us?

Am I interested in vocation ministry? In what way(s) do I collaborate for the advancement of that ministry?

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INDEX

Introduction

I The Pagan prophets and the prophets of Israel

The pagan prophets

The prophets of Israel

John the Baptizer, more than a prophet

II Jesus, the prophet “par excellence”

III The call of the General Chapter of 2012

Foundations

Synopsis

IV The Prophetic Mission of the Institute: Vision for the Future My vision of a renewed prophetic mission: the Icon of Jesus the Prophet

My vision of the shared prophetic mission: the Icon of Jesus the Servant

My vision of the enduring prophetic mission: the Icon of Jesus the Master

Conclusion

Suggested questions for personal reflection and community sharing

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