The Fire of Charism
Introduction
Brothers, the general chapter of 2006 invited us to undertake a pilgrimage of hope on
the road to communion: “descending into the interior life, nourishing our interpersonal
relationships, and lighting the fire in the sanctuary of mission.” (A Pilgrimage of Hope,
p. 17)
It was the wish of the chapter that we brothers, together with our partners in mission,
make this pilgrimage, and thus “become signs of hope for our wounded world and for
its children.” (Ibid.)
Having, in the first four circulars, dealt with the themes of interior life and
interpersonal relationships, it now falls to me not to delve into the theme of mission,
an integral part of our own charism. Persons with distinct vocations (religious, lay,
priests, etc.) are called to mission, but animated with the same charism they are also
called to realize that mission in communion.
Before dealing with the notion of sharing the charism and the mission, or rather of
communion in the charism, it would be important to articulate the meaning of the
words charism and mission, and define our own specific charism and mission as
exemplified by Father André Coindre’s lived experience of the Spirit, an experience
continually transmitted to his disciples over course of the history of our institute. May
this exercise lead us to love our vocation and to live it in fidelity to Christ in dynamic
fidelity to the original charism – the Spirit’s gift to us all.
It may be that within these pages come upon ideas that I have already developed in
preceding circulars. It is said that even the best authors only write one book, and they
repeat themselves in those that follow. If that is true for good writers, it just may be
that the same dictum applies to me. Nevertheless, brothers, I make bold to present to
you my reflections on this theme, conscious of my limitations and trusting in your
brotherly indulgence.
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CHAPTER 1. THE CHARISM, A GIFT FOR SERVICE
Why Speak of Charism?
Why begin with charism and not deal straightaway with the theme of mission? The
latter is, I must admit, a rather broad topic in itself, and I will need a lot of pages to
deal with it. But no one can speak of mission without first speaking of charism,
because the two are intimately linked.
In point of fact our mission of today flows directly from the one that Father Andre
Coindre initiated almost two centuries ago now. It is an integral part of the grace or
the charism that the Spirit granted to our founder and which we, his followers, have in
turn never ceased to receive and to cause to bear fruit. Mission is a service, and is
integral to this all-encompassing gift that we call charism. A charism is, therefore, a
grace that breathes life into the mission and includes the mission itself.
Another reason for spending these initial pages delving into the topic of charism is
that our own experience of that gift and its development teaches us the importance of
an ongoing updating of our understanding of the mission of religious life, which is to
serve the Church and the world. This adaptation, which is so essential for assuring
the future of religious life, consists in constantly finding new and authentic responses
to the needs of every time and place.
On the topic of authentic responses, some time ago I came upon the following brief
anecdote. A pilot of a small plane developed engine trouble as he was flying over a
forest. The aircraft was forced down, and the pilot ended up at the top of a tree.
“Where am I? he shouted down to a friar passing by below.
- At the top of a tree, replied the man.
- Are you a monk?
- But of course. How can you tell?
- Well, everybody knows that monks tend to say grand truths that on first
consideration don’t seem to make much sense,” replied the stranded pilot in a critical
tone of voice.
Brothers, please take no offence at this little story, it is not intended to wound, but to
teach.
New and authentic answers, renewal and adaptation, returning to the origins, refoundation, incarnation of the charism… Haven’t we spent a good deal of time talking
about the same old things? Shouldn’t we to turn the page? I don’t think so. To me at
least, at the very heart of Christian and religious life there is only Love, a Love which
puts this question to us each and every day: “Do you really love me?” And a
constantly renewed love replies, “My Love, you know I love you.”
Crossing an enormous mountain range like the Andes requires a hike of several
days. Nevertheless the adventure offers the climber a variety of climates, lush
vegetation and breathtaking landscapes, along with peaks covered in “eternal
snows,” stretches of heather with their abundant reserves of water, and the depths of
the valleys below. Add to all of that the likelihood of coming across simple and
hospitable locals, the experience will invariably prove to be a most enriching one.
However, that same adventure still remains quite daunting. For each morning
climbers has to make up their minds yet again to continue the hike, despite their
increasing weariness. Isn’t this a fair analogy of what happens in the Christian and
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the religious life, in which every morning greets us with yet another challenge to keep
on going with renewed enthusiasm?
In this life it is never sufficient to say “yes” to Christ once and for all. The zeal of our
“yes” must be rekindled every single day. Likewise, the vitality of an institute of
religious life demands that each of its members and each of its local communities
renew every day their commitment to live the charism, which is the soul and the
raison d’être of that institute. In religious life today, as in the past, it is not so much
new things that we need, but rather a dynamic fidelity to the charism.
Charism in Secular and Religious Language
The word “charism” comes from the Greek kharisma (χαρισμα), which means grace,
gift or favor. It is found in the New Testament especially in the letters of St. Paul.
Used initially in the language of theology, it has recently found its way into current
secular language. It is, for example, used to express the fascination, the superiority
or the magnetism that one person can bring to bear over others. Charismatic persons
have a way of arousing and maintaining the interest of others as much by what the
former say or do as by their very way of speaking or acting.
In the language of theology, the word “charism” refers, in the broadest sense, to
every gift conferred by God. In the pages that follow, the word “charism” will assume
the meaning that St. Paul intended for it in his letters, that is, the gratuitous gift or
gifts that the Spirit grants to a person for the good of the community. In the words of
the Apostle of the Gentiles, charism is “a manifestation of the Spirit given for the sake
of the common good.” (1 Co 12:7)
There is a diversity of charisms: wisdom, knowledge, faith, the gift of healing, the
power to do miracles, prophecy, discernment of spirits, the gift of tongues, the gift of
interpreting the latter, etc. (Cf. 1 Co 12:8-11)
The person who receives charisms does not receive them for himself/herself, but for
the building up of the Body of Christ, which is the Church. In other words, charisms
are given in order to build up the Kingdom or the community of those who live
according to Gospel values.
Charism in Religious Life
The Second Vatican Council decreed that consecrated life is not part of the
hierarchical structure of the Church, but rather is it a divine gift which concerns her
life and holiness, and consequently, its deepest sacramental nature and its essence
issue forth from the free initiative of the Spirit. (Cf. Lumen Gentium, §§ 43-45)
The Council did not use the word “charism” when referring to religious life, itself.
However, the charismatic character of this state of life appears clearly in the
dogmatic constitution, Lumen Gentium and in the decree Perfectae Caritatis. This
decree affirmed that: “The adaptation and renewal of the religious life includes both
the constant return to the sources of all Christian life and to the original spirit of the
institutes and their adaptation to the changed conditions of our times.” (§ 2).
The terms “charisms of your founders” and “charisms of religious life” appeared for
the first time in the apostolic exhortation Evangelica Testificatio, published in 1971 to
implement the teachings of the Council on the renewal of religious life. In it we find
the following:
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Only in this way (unity between contemplation and the apostolate) will you
be able to reawaken hearts to truth and to divine love in accordance with
the charisms of your founders who were raised up by God within His
Church. Thus the Council rightly insists on the obligation of religious to be
faithful to the spirit of their founders, to their evangelical intentions and to
the example of their sanctity. In this it finds one of the principles for the
present renewal and one of the most secure criteria for judging what each
institute should undertake. (Cf. Lumen Gentium, § 45 and Perfectæ
Caritatis, § 2) In reality, the charism of the religious life, far from being an
impulse “born of flesh and blood” (Jn 1:13) or one derived from a mentality
which “conforms itself to the modern world” (Rm 12:2), is the fruit of the
Holy Spirit, who is always at work within the Church. (§ 11)
Despite the fact that this text may be considered somewhat archaic, in reality it
still is topical. We must bear in mind, of course, that it deals not only with the
charism of founders, but equally with the charism of religious life. Both were
inspired by God through the action of the Holy Spirit, who is continually at work
in the Church.
In order to truly understand this quotation from Evangelica Testificatio it is
important to bear in mind the paragraph that precedes it. (§ 10) A great deal of
emphasis is placed on the importance of religious men and women to seek the
Lord above all else, as they maintain an equilibrium between contemplation and
apostolate. Regarding contemplation in love, religious adhere to Him with all
their hearts and minds; regarding apostolic love, they associate themselves to
the work of redemption and the expansion of the Kingdom (Cf. Evangelica
Testificatio, § 10; cf. R 177).
Consequently, the message of paragraph 11 of Evangelica Testificatio is that
the union between contemplation and action is indispensable for the renewal of
religious life, which consists principally in reawakening “hearts to truth and to
divine love in accordance with the charisms of your founders.” And so, to use a
word that was coined over two decades ago, it is a matter of the “re-foundation”
of religious life in each institute in the light of the charism of its founder. And
this, of course, implies being faithful to his spirit, to his Gospel-inspired
intentions and to the example of his holiness.
It is to be noted that the text is an invitation to the reawakening of hearts and
not of minds. As St. Ignatius of Loyola affirms, “It is not the acquisition of great
knowledge that refreshes and satisfies the soul, but truly feeling and tasting
things interiorly.” (Spiritual Exercises, 2) Of course, knowledge is always
necessary, but life is not essentially about filling one’s head with theoretical
knowledge. To awaken hearts to the truth and to divine love, only knowledge
that leads to love is worthwhile.
In point of fact, very few men and women founders of institutes of religious life
could be said to have been persons of singular knowledge; others, even less.
Nevertheless, all of them were great-hearted persons. Just consider our own
beloved founder, Father André Coindre, and of course, Brother Xavier and
Brother Polycarp who followed in his footsteps, and who remain for us constant
examples of generous service.
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CHAPTER II. THE CHARISM OF FOUNDERS
In this chapter, I’m going to present the charism of founders, and in the next I’ll speak
specifically of the charism of our own founder.
CHARISM IS A GIFT…
The document Mutuæ Relationes defined for the first time the charism of founders.
This document was published in 1978 by what was then called the Sacred
Congregation for Religious and Secular Institutes. In it we read:
The very charism of the Founders (cf. Evangelii Nuntiandi, § 11) appears
as an "experience of the Spirit," transmitted to their disciples to be lived,
safeguarded, deepened and constantly developed by them, in harmony
with the Body of Christ continually in the process of growth. "It is for this
reason that the distinctive character of various religious institutes is
preserved and fostered by the Church" (LG, § 44).
This distinctive character also involves a particular style of sanctification
and of apostolate, which creates its particular tradition, with the result that
one can readily perceive its objective elements.
In this hour of cultural evolution and ecclesial renewal, therefore, it is
necessary to preserve the identity of each institute so securely, that the
danger of an ill-defined situation be avoided, lest religious, failing to give
due consideration to the particular mode of action proper to their
character, become part of the life of the Church in a vague and ambiguous
way. (Mutuæ Relationes, § 11).
…spiritual and gratuitous
As we read the preceding text carefully, several aspects become glaringly obvious.
To begin with, it would seem that the notion of charism of founders turns our thoughts
to that movement of the Spirit that these persons underwent and which was then
transmitted to their respective followers. This experience of the Spirit was
characterized by their way of seeing and of living a particular aspect of the mystery of
Christ. By the very fact that it is defined as an experience of the Spirit, that charism is
a spiritual and gratuitous gift which does not emanate from human nature.
It is worth underscoring yet again that a charism corresponds neither to a simple
intellectual knowledge nor to a mere philanthropic sentiment which might lead a
person to establish a benevolent work, for example. As specified in Mutuæ
Relationes, a charism is an experience, which is to say something lived, a reality that
a person lives through in an intense way in every dimension of his or her being: body,
heart, soul and mind.
…personal and collective
Again in the text cited above we read that the Spirit grants a charism to founders and
then, in turn, to each of their immediate disciples and to all those who will follow after.
The charism of a founder is therefore not a mere historical event with a sentimental
or romantic connotation; quite the opposite, for through it the Spirit makes that
charism present each day by granting it to each member of an institute throughout
the history of their institute.
The charism of an institute is the concrete way in which members are able to live the
charism of the founder. We can equally define charism as the particular gift that each
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of the members receives from the Holy Spirit in order to take on a specific mission in
the service of the Church and the world. Usually this mission is realized through the
carrying out a function or role that we call a ministry.
The charism is therefore, both a personal and a collective gift. It is personal because
it is a particular grace of the Holy Spirit granted to an individual, the founder, and to a
group of persons who identify with him in order to realize a shared vision (life project).
….constantly alive
Let us consider now something that, to my way of thinking, represents the overall
meaning of the above quotation taken from Mutuæ Relationes.“‘The very charism of
the Founders’ appears as an ‘experience of the Spirit,’ transmitted to their disciples to
be lived, safeguarded, deepened and constantly developed by them, in harmony with
the Body of Christ continually in the process of growth.” (§ 11)
The charism of the founder is and experience of the Spirit with a view to foundation.
As a result, the particular charism does not encompass all the graces of founders, but
only those that the latter lived and which were later to be transmitted to the members
of the respective religious families that they founded.
Here I emphasize the fact that a charism is a reality that is lived and that is guarded
as a precious treasure, for the lived experience gives the true meaning to existence.
That is to say, that the experience allows the recipient to experience a sense of
fulfillment despite life’s inherent difficulties.
…ecclesial
The text Mutuæ Relationes (§ 11) asserts that a charism is lived, is guarded, is
deepened and is developed “in harmony with the Body of Christ”, that is, in
communion with the Church. And a charism is lived out with deep love for the
Church, and can never be understood or justified except in the Church, for the
Church and by the Church. It is the Church that confirms the various charisms as it
declares and confirms their authenticity.
Charisms are always given to accomplish a particular service, and the ultimate end of
every Gospel service is the building up of the community of the Kingdom, where all
may live as brothers and sisters in the dignity of children of God. Now, the Church is
the sacrament of the Kingdom. And thus charism, takes on an ecclesial dimension
because through the person of the founder and his successors, that charism is
offered to entire Church community, for its welfare, for its growth and its fulfillment.
…for a service
The experience of the Spirit that the founder undergoes consists in holding fast to the
person of Christ, seduced as he/she is by a particular aspect of His ministry. This
specific aspect can be compassion, mercy, poverty, obedience to the Father,
intimacy with Him in prayer, etc.
This holding fast to, this intimacy with the person of Jesus by a founder is translated
at the same time by a deep love for the Father and for all his well-beloved children.
And it is precisely the love for the well-beloved of the Father that drives founders to
live in close union with them, to detect in one or another essential needs, to
experience a great interior desire to satisfy them, and with boundless creativity,
boldness, and tenacity to undertake a concrete work to that end. The perceived need
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can be great spiritual or material poverty, lack of education or lack of adequate care,
physical, mental, etc.
In other words, the harsh reality that a founder discovers begins to be changed in the
light of a fundamental reading of the Gospel, which tends to highlight particular
features of the person of Christ. And from the “binomial” Gospel-reality an apostolic
service is born for the sake of the Church and humanity, a service which takes
substance through the life of the religious community.
...dynamic
A charism is an energy that emanates from the Spirit; it is a life-giving power which
must be communicated to others. In other words a charism can never be static, but is
always dynamic. It is thus that the words from Mutuae Relationes:
“experience…safeguarded, deepened and constantly developed” must be
understood. It is always possible to live out the charism with greater depth or
intensity, to develop it, to live it with greater radicality, and use it to bring new
answers to new situations.
Therefore, a charism is not to be identified with the work of founders, and by means
of which he responded to the needs of time and place; rather is it contemporary; it is
the breath of the creative Spirit spurring on those who seek to find creative answers
to the need of the here and now.
We must not conceive of the founding charism as a thrust whose initial motivation
would, still today, allow the religious family to, in a sense, freewheel its way though
life. “No! The grace of the charism of foundation is daily renewed and given to us
Brothers, not individually, but corporately, in as much as we are all linked together.”
(René Sanctorum, Father Andre Coindre’s Founding Charism, Alex, France, June 18,
1995. General House Archives, Brothers of the Sacred Heart, Rome, J14.352.02b)
….which determines the character of an institute
A charism is the profile that each religious institute takes on as it seeks to follow
Christ. This implies the practice of common principles of the Christian life, that all of
the faithful are called to live, as well a certain specific aspects which characterize
each religious family.
The teaching that especially stands out from Mutuæ Relationes is that the charism of
the founder determines the character or the specific nature of each institute, that is to
say, its constituent elements, the style of life of its members, the way they live out the
Evangelical counsels or their “particular style of sanctification and of apostolate”. In
other words, the charism implies, simultaneously a specific end for the institute and
the style of spiritual, human and social life of its consecrated members.
We can compare the charism of an institute of religious life to the genetic code or
DNA of a person. Just as the latter contains all the characteristics of an individual, the
charism of an institute encompasses all the elements that determine its specific
identity. This identity is a rich spiritual patrimony, not only of the past, but equally of
the present. For as was said above a charism is not something static; it is constantly
evolving.
Finally, it is important that each institute preserves its specific identity. Were an
institute to lose its identity, the entire Christian community would be the poorer. For
stripped of its reason for existence, that erstwhile institute would have nothing
specific to contribute to the Church and to the world.
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Dimensions of Charism
A few years ago at a meeting of religious men and women, I caught the drift of the
following exchange between two sisters:
“What is the charism of your institute? asked the first one.
- Well, that’s not easy to say, replied the other.
- Ours is very straightforward: education,” declared the first, without the slightest
hesitation.
Having overheard this exchange, I began to ask myself a few questions. Is education
really a charism? Or is it a mission? Or is it simply a profession or a service? Is it
really that easy to define the charism of an institute? Can charism be reduced to
simply a mission?
Considering everything said earlier in this chapter, we can conclude that education in
itself cannot be understood as a charism. The reality is that it is not necessary to
receive a special gift from the Spirit to be an educator. Later on when we deal with
the topic of mission, we will see that education in itself is not a mission either.
Demonstrably, charism cannot be identified with mission.
The charism of the founder, and consequently the one his followers inherit, may be
said to have three dimensions:
- The specific aspect is that intimate relationship that the founder has with God, which
is born of the fascination which he/she experiences for the person of Christ and the
attraction which the founder feels for a particular aspect of His mystery.
Simultaneously, this special relationship with God colors every other relationship
that the founder has with the people around him, and it enlivens and motivates all
his activities, this is the spiritual dimension (spirituality).
- Fraternal life in community means a fraternal life in which brothers share the grace
of following Christ as they try to take on His style of life is the brotherhood
dimension.
- Responding to the needs of one’s contemporaries means a response born of a
desire to identify oneself with Christ who did not come into this world to be served
but to serve, this is the mission dimension.
Spirituality, brotherhood and mission are the three dimensions of this unique reality
that we call charism. By making such a statement, I do not disregard the fact that,
according to the exhortation Vita Consecrata and our Rule of Life, the fundamental
dimensions of religious life are consecration, brotherhood and mission. Yet, I prefer
to stick to the outline of the ordinance of our last general chapter. I wish to stress that
our relation with the Lord (spirituality) is like a perfume permeating all our life, that is
the way we are, communicate with others and act.
We can thus say that spirituality and consecration are related notions. Actually,
spirituality, or the special relationship with the God of Love that the Holy Spirit reveals
to us in Jesus, urges us to dedicate ourselves to God with what we are and what we
have.
Each one gives life to the other two, and, in turn, receives life from them. They may
be compared to the interplay between the head, the heart and the lungs, for example.
No single one of these three organs can do without the other two. Likewise, each
dimension of a charism gives life to the other two, all the while receiving life from the
others. The three are in total harmony and inter-dependent, which means that the
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equilibrium among them is indispensable for living an authentic and truly prophetic
religious life.
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Chapter III: The Charism of Father André Coindre, the Charism of the Institute
We all have an identity, that is to say external features and a way of being that
characterize us. Sometimes it is difficult to recognize people that we have not seen
for a while because, of course, with age people do change. Other times the outward
change is starker, even dramatic. There was a young mom I knew who used to take
her son to our school every day. She always seemed to be so pleasant, and so
recognizable. I would see her most mornings, and whenever I saw her I would always
greet her. Once, I had not noticed her and so she said, “What no greeting, this
morning?” I turned round and, as she was had a new “look,” I replied, “Well, Madam,
are you really the same person I saw yesterday?” In these days of cosmetic surgery
and makeovers anything is possible. With all due respect to women, young or less
young, I am reminded of the gentle chiding that Cyprian of Carthage gave women
with his tongue-in-cheek humor, “Don’t put on too much make-up, otherwise it just
might happen that the Lord may not recognize you when you arrive at the gates of
Heaven.”
A charism is not something superficial. Quite the opposite, for it encompasses the
graces that determine the underlying identity of a founder in his capacity as founder,
and the graces he bequeaths to his disciples as they gather together as an institute
to realize a shared vision for a specific Gospel work. It goes without saying that,
acquiring such an identity is a very demanding and a long-term exercise.
Nevertheless, in this chapter we shall endeavor to familiarize ourselves even more
with the charism of André Coindre and that of the institute, and hopefully thereby
become more aware of who we are and what we are called to be.
The Charism of Father André Coindre
“How can anyone who is already old be born again?” And Jesus replied: ‘In truth I
tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born through water and
the Spirit’.” (Jn 3:4-5)
I can hardly call myself an expert either in religious life or in the charism of our
founder. And so I must admit feeling that as I delved into the area of charism I was to
a certain extent treading on unknown territory. Nevertheless, I ventured tentatively on
that path, relying especially on documents I found in our own, many of which are the
result of research by brothers far better informed on the matter. The latter are
brothers who, from the early nineties served at the André Coindre International
Center (CIAC) in Lyon – the very site of our foundation. They really lived the
experience of our founder and, armed with the results of their research, they tried to
spread their findings on the early days of our institute to the brothers at large, through
books, articles, conferences, retreats, renewal sessions, etc.
I want to give credit where credit is due, and express my deep gratitude to them for
their generous work. I’m sure they will forgive me if, given my own limitations, I do not
manage to translate clearly and succinctly enough their knowledge and insights on
our charism. I also ask them to be indulgent with me if I do not manage to transmit
sufficiently well to you the fire of André Coindre and the essence of his legacy to us.
Led by the Spirit
One of the personal charisms of Father Coindre was that of preaching. So how can
we account for the fact that he ended up by founding two institutes (one for men and
one for women) dedicated to the education of children and young people? Here’s my
attempt at an answer. A little earlier on I said that a charism is an experience of the
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Spirit. Father Coindre, in the midst of his daily faith journey, allowed himself to be led
by the Spirit. And the Spirit led him to discover day after day, and each time with
even greater clarity, the Heart of God. And as he contemplated that Heart, a fire of
love was kindled into an ever brighter flame in his own heart. It was this same fire
that impelled him to give him self to God and to the children and young people whom
he met it in the prisons and on the streets of Lyon. And a little later on he was to
include in his vision of a Gospel work, children and young people from rural areas.
The Lord’s work
We know that a few months before the foundation of the Institute, most of the
brothers from Valbenoîte separated from the group to return to the pastor of the
Valbenoîte parish. Likewise, we are aware of the tremendous efforts of Father
Coindre in securing and establishing the Monistrol site as a formation center for his
Missionary Priests of the Sacred Heart, and for his own brothers. Unfortunately, the
project was soon to fail because the Local Ordinary repeatedly re-called priests
responsible for the formation of the seminarians, in order to appoint the most gifted of
them as pastors of parishes in his diocese.
The surprising equanimity with which Father Coindre accepted each of these
reversals is an evident sign of his docility to the Spirit and his trust in Providence. He
saw himself as a simple laborer in the Lord’s vineyard, and that no matter what
happened, the work of God would be realized one way or another.
Dimensions of the Charism
We saw above that the charism of a founder appears “as an ‘experience of the Spirit’,
transmitted to their disciples” (Mutuæ Relationes, § 11) A Charism is, therefore, a gift
that the Spirit bestows on founders for them to experience and live out for
themselves, in the first instance, and then in turn, to bequeath to their followers so
that they too may share in and live a similar spiritual experience. It follows that the
charism of a founder and the charism of an institute are intimately bonded together.
That is why I will link them together in the following paragraphs, as I make a brief
presentation of their dimensions.
Spirituality
“The Heart of Jesus beats for us with love and compassion.” (Translated from Notes
de prédication du Père André Coindre, 1787-1826, Rome 1963, p. 52)
The spirituality of Father Coindre was born of his contemplation of the open side of
Jesus crucified, the sublime expression of a love full of the compassion, gentleness
and mercy of the Heart of God.
Father Coindre was a man with a heart overflowing with goodness and compassion.
Brother Jesús Ortigosa maintains that in his letters to Brother Borgia, Father André
Coindre, “appears as the best of fathers and the kindest of men, as a person imbued
with deep faith and gifted with a practical sense, positive and full of confidence in
people. The saying, ‘a mother could not have more tenderness for her children,’
expresses well Father Coindre’s own affection for his brothers.” (Jesús Ortigosa, The
Concern, the Attachment and the Love of Father André Coindre for his Brothers,
Lyon, May 19, 1998, pp. 10-11. General House Archives, Brothers of the Sacred
Heart, Rome, J14.373.1)
The spirituality of the open side shows through in Father Coindre’s letters to Brother
Borgia. In Brother René Sanctorum’s view, “We can discern that our founding father
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had a heart open to all. He shared in the joys and in the sorrows of each brother. He
would continually urge them on, and encourage them, inviting them to gentleness,
patience and tender love.” (Translated from René Sanctorum, Le charisme du Père
André Coindre, notre fondateur, Alex, June 18, 1995, p.6. General House Archives,
Brothers of the Sacred Heart, Rome, J14. 352.02a )
In a similar way as in the case of our founder, the spirituality of our institute is born
out of a contemplation of the open heart of the Crucified One, which manifests the
love of God for all men and women.
The entire life of a brother must therefore be a response to this same love, as he
identifies with Christ gentle and humble (cf. R 14), and in a love for his brothers (cf. R
15) and for all men and women. (Cf. R 16) That is why the charism is not primarily a
mission which is concretized in an educational or charitable work. The charism is,
first and foremost, a gazing upon Christ, eyes focused on his open side, and it is a
life that witnesses to this contemplation.
Brotherhood
“Let our brothers never be motivated in their work by self-interest; the greatest
misfortune would be division.”
(André Coindre, Writings and Documents, 1, Letters 1821-1826, Letter no. III, p. 61)
In September 1821 Father Coindre preached a community retreat for ten men, who
at its conclusion were to pronounce private vows, and thus become the first members
of our institute. We thus see that from its very foundation our institute and our
charism were endowed with a community dimension. Our founder intended that, even
from the earliest days of the institute, its members were to be brothers living in a
community of brothers. He might have chosen to send his brothers as coadjutors to
his missionary priests, for example, but such was not his desire. His letters bear
witness to an unremitting concern for unity and honest relationships among the
brothers. In letters XI and XXIII he manifests a good deal of reluctance to sending
brothers to any apostolic work whatsoever, where the brothers would not be able to
live in a community setting.
Our institute emphasizes the importance of fraternal life among the brothers. They
share a community life marked by a spirit of simplicity, acceptance, family spirit, and
close relationships, and all regardless of the positions of authority they might exercise
either inside or outside community. (Cf. R 15)
Mission
“‘Those who teach others will shine as stars for all eternity,’ says the prophet.”
(André Coindre, Writings and documents, 1, Letters 1821-1826, Letter no. VII, p. 85)
André Coindre’s listening to the Spirit is manifested through his concern for others.
That is why he focused his attention on the needs of the deprived children and young
people of Lyon, and then later, on those of youngsters in rural areas.
And it was in this way that the missionary dimension of his charism took shape.
Brother René Sanctorum has this to say on the subject: “A work of formation and of
human advancement, especially for the poorest youngsters – abandoned, orphaned,
wretched, delinquent, illiterate – with the intention of evangelizing them, that was
12
(Father Coindre’s) goal: a human advancement for, and in a certain way, through
evangelization, the two aspects always being linked closely together.” (René
Sanctorum, The Way Evangelization and the Founding Charism of Father Andre
Coindre, Lyon, November 6, 1997, p. 21. General House Archives, Brothers of the
Sacred Heart, Rome, J14.352.05b).
In the next chapter we shall develop the theme of the mission of the institute. Article
13 of the Rule of Life provides us with a kind of précis of it. Everything begins with a
recognition and knowledge of the love of God for us, that is to say, of spirituality.
Obviously we are not referring here to intellectual knowledge, but to the gradually
deeper and deeper mark which the experience of our intimate relationship with God
leaves upon us. This experience which fills us to overflowing is something that we
cannot keep to ourselves, and we feel a need to share it with others. It is principally
through our state of brothers and by our service for the advancement of humanity
within the framework of education that we work together towards our common
objective of evangelization.
In dealing with the theme of mission we will see that even the practice of charity itself
through our efforts on behalf of a given service is already an evangelization.
Obviously our mission also requires that we commit ourselves to establishing within
our field of ministry a Christian community which lives the Gospel of Jesus.
Specific Identity
Father Coindre’s intuition was that his young religious family did have an individual
charism, a specific identity, and in consequence, its own particular contribution to
make to society and to the Church of its day. That is why he was diametrically
opposed to merging our institute with that of the Marists, for example. This had been
the intention of Mr Cattet, one of the vicars general of the diocese of Lyon. At the
beginning of the last letter that we have written in Father Coindre’s hand, our founder
criticizes the proposal of the vicar general, in these terms: “Anyone who considers
such mergers knows precious little about the workings of men and God. It is as if all
families had to be fused together to make a single one, or all the countries of the
world merged together to establish a single nation”. (André Coindre, Writings and
documents, 1, Letters 1821-1826, Letter no. XXIII, p. 144)
An integrated life
As already underscored above each of the dimensions of charism – spirituality,
brotherhood, mission – is life-giving to the other two, and conversely receives life
from the former. Therefore, no authentic mission is possible without spirituality and
community life. The work of Father Coindre on behalf of forsaken youth was born of
his spirituality of compassion and his experience of community life with the
Missionaries of the Cross of Jesus (the Chartreux). And his lived experience teaches
us that his founding of the institute did not consist solely in the gathering together of a
few men who sought to realize a humanitarian task on behalf of abandoned youth.
Institutionalization of a charism
In adapting the first sentence in Genesis to our theme, we could well say that “In the
beginning was charism,” a charism which was to last. In order to guarantee the future
of that charism Father Coindre began by establishing a structured community of
brothers, an organization with a leadership and authority that promoted unity among
the members of the group and fidelity to the original idea or vision, a rule that set out
13
the way of living the charism, the implantation of works to confirm an apostolic activity
relying on sound infrastructures and reliable organization, etc.
With the passage of time institutes run the risk of losing their charism. The result is
that structures become like bodies without souls. And the danger is that those who
exercise authority are reduced to playing public-servant-like roles; the rule ends up
becoming a dead letter, and apostolic activity becomes a matter of efficiency and
profitability. The sole objective becomes supremacy of the individual, even though
this may be on the backs of the others in the group. So that in the end, it just may
happen that the charism which breathed life into the members of an institute in its
early years, eventually becomes shrouded in the mists of distant memory.
Charism always remains living
It is not only in turning towards Father Coindre that we must seek our institute’s
charism. We must pay attention as well to the history of the institute, especially to
those key moments, such as the election of Brother Polycarp as superior general, his
decision to send brothers to America, the dissolution of the institute in France in
1903, and the institute’s admirable missionary expansion early on in the twentieth
century, etc.
At all times and in all places we must remain attentive to the Spirit so that our
charism does not die. Such was the continual attitude of Brother Polycarp, himself.
After his election as superior general in 1841, he embarked upon new and prophetic
initiatives like the drafting of the new Rules, opening several schools, and the
foundation in America. These initiatives and so many others constitute more than
sufficient evidence that Venerable Brother Polycarp advanced the work of the
Founder.
And inspired by these realities, Brother Jesús Ortigosa writes: “What Brother
Polycarp said and did challenges us today to return to the original charism of our
institute. (Brother Polycarp’s) reverence for Father André Coindre is indisputable. As
a legislator, as the founder of new schools, and as the one who launched our works
in the United States of America, Brother Polycarp proved himself always faithful to
the charism of the Founder, and contributed decisively to the development and
increase of the grace of our original charism on behalf of children and young people
in the Church.” (Translated from Jesús Ortigosa. Le Frère Polycarpe et sa fidélité au
charisme du Père André Coindre. Lyon-Rome, mai-juin 2004, p. 5. General House
Archives, Brothers of the Sacred Heart, Rome, J14.373.2)
New times and new situations call us to incarnate our charism with renewed faith,
trust, availability, and boldness, as we seek to find new and authentic answers to the
needs of children and young people, and the Church and the world of today. Here is
what Brother Jesús Ortigosa writes on this theme: “The end of the 20th century is a
time when the future of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart as a religious congregation
is being tested. It is a time when Jesus is calling us to stir up our faith and to have
confidence in Him. It is a time when Father Andre Coindre invites us to keep
listening, to continue the way of history, to make our way, to have courage, to begin
new projects, to dream, to struggle, to open up new ways.” (Jesús Ortigosa, The
Concern, the attachment and the Love of Father Andre Coindre for his Brothers,
Lyon, May 19, 1998, p. 12. General House Archives, Brothers of the Sacred Heart,
Rome,
J14.373.1))
14
CHAPTER IV
In this chapter, relying on the writings of our founder and on the traditions of the
institute, but especially on our Rule of Life, I will endeavor to present our mission in
congruence with the charism.
Some while ago one brother mentioned to me that to his way of thinking the chapter
of the Rule that deals with the apostolate is incomplete, lacking in breath and depth
of inspiration. In reality it is not only in this particular chapter that the theme of
mission is dealt with. Of the first 208 articles contained in the Rule, some 60 refer to
mission. What’s more, as we shall see later on, the concept is amply dealt with and in
a good deal of depth and clarity.
The Goal of the mission
Helping to discover the meaning of life
We saw earlier on that the charism is a gift of the Spirit to a specific person or to each
of the persons endeavoring to advance in common a Gospel-based work for the
service of the community, that is to say the Church or the world. I put it to you that
this service consists in responding to the needs of people and that this response
must be continually adapted to the circumstances of times and places. Now, just
what are the needs of today?
Over the course of these past three years I have made several trips to visit our local
communities around the world. It is quite rare to come across empty airport, as was
the case when I arrived in Harare, the capital of Zimbabwe, at the beginning of 2009.
It has come to a point where only a handful of people can offer themselves the luxury
of travelling by plane, whereas thousands of people now invade the bus and train
terminals.
When I see this great throng of people on the move, I can only wonder at the passion
which drives so many among them on to new horizons reveals about them, perhaps
their desire to give meaning to their lives, to discover in some far-flung corner of the
world the paradise that they can not find “back home”. In all likelihood theirs is a
journey in search of some sort of meaning and a share of happiness which eludes
them.
Most young peoples from developing countries have not had an opportunity for a life
that adequately responds to their dignity as human persons. They grab hold of life as
they struggle to get the best out of it, but more often than not, they simply lack the
means or the know-how to succeed. Moreover, especially in developing countries,
many of these youngsters lead lives of emptiness and futility. Too many of them
grope about in the cavernous gloom of their lives trying to find a way out. But far too
often they fall into the abyss of alcohol and drugs, sexual depravity, etc. This goes
some way to explaining the very high rate of suicides among the young in these
countries.
As we contemplate this reality our mission today, both as Christians and as religious,
our efforts must be oriented towards trying to help young people, as well as adults, to
find a meaning for their lives, helping them to see that their lives are not meaningless,
that do have purpose, that they do have worth, that they are gifted with a unique
dignity, and that they are called to achieve great things in this world.
People will only come to realize this truth when they feel affirmed, valued and loved,
and when they respond to the affection that they receive. But this human love is not
15
an absolute guarantee nor does it always manage to slake the great thirst for human
love. That is why that the question, “Do you really love me?” constantly re-echoes
around us.
In the God of Jesus, the Christ
It is only when we feel loved by God that we can find true meaning in our life. The
Spirit helps us to discover this immense and rock-solid love. It is this discovery that
we experience the sublime love of God for us, a love which day after day,
accompanies us on our way as we continue our pilgrimage towards that ultimate and
blessed communion with Him.
It is especially through Christ that God manifests himself to us. That is why we can
say that in Him our life finds meaning. He is truly “the Way, the Truth and the Life.”
(Jn 14:5; Cf. R 1) In the final communiqué from the Conference of Bishops of Latin
America and the Caribbean held in May 2007 in Aparecida, Brazil, we read. “The
best gift that we can receive is the gift of knowing Jesus; the best thing that can ever
happen to us is that of having met Him, and our greatest joy is to make him known
through our words and deeds.” (Translated from Aperecida, § 29)
In order for a mission to be truly realized it is essential to experience an encounter
with God through Christ. (Cf. R 2) For, it is in Him that we come to know the
compassionate God, who cares for the poor and is overflowing with gratuitous love. It
is of this very experience that Paul the great Apostle of the gentiles speaks when he
says: “It is not I who lives, but it is Christ who lives in me.” (Ga 2:20) All of Paul’s
letters speak of his love for Christ and of his identification with Him.
Proclaiming the Gospel that is Christ, Himself
Our mission is to proclaim the Gospel that is Christ, Himself. This is what the
Aparecida declaration affirms:
Throughout the story of human kind played out before his compassionate
gaze reveals that God never forsakes his own. God so loved the world that
he gave it his Son. He is the one who proclaims the Good News of the
Kingdom to the poor and to sinners. And that is why we, as disciples of
Jesus and as missionaries desire to proclaim the Gospel which is Christ,
Himself. We proclaim to the peoples of the world that God loves them, that
his existence does not represent a threat to humanity. With the saving and
liberating power of His Kingdom God is very near to us. In times of
adversity God constantly stirs up our hope in the midst of all kinds of trials.
(Translated from Aparedica, § 30)
Our Rule of Life declares that our mission consists in spreading the love of God, (cf.
R 13) of kindling on the earth “the fire of redeeming love whose source is the Heart of
Christ,” (Decree of Approbation of the Rule of Life, p. 12) of bringing “everything
together under Christ, as head,” (Ep 1:10; cf. R 16) of realizing the Ametur Cor Jesu,
(cf. R 12) of responding to the love of Jesus by loving our brothers and sisters and
the young people entrusted to our care, (cf. R 118) of making love the inspiration for
our apostolic and missionary activities, (cf. R 12 and 149) and of contributing to “the
Church's educational mission of manifesting the real and effective presence of the
Incarnate Word.” (R 63) These are very straightforward expressions, but abounding
in meaning. But I do not have the luxury of being able to linger and wonder at them
any further; I entrust you with that gratifying duty.
16
Building up the Kingdom
Our mission is to contribute to the building up of the Kingdom of God, (cf. R 1) “which
is the unity of all human beings in Christ.” 1 In other words, it is a matter of cooperating in the building up of a fraternal world, of an ever-increasing community
living by Gospel values, that is to say the values of Jesus, Himself. Brothers, it is
precisely Gospel values that anchor both our brotherhood and our community
mission. And these values bear witness that communion is the vocation par
excellence, and that the Church is the People of God and community. At the same
time these values foster unity of objectives by placing diverse talents at the service of
the Gospel.
Living in brotherhood requires, among other things, that we be willing to affirm and
value those who share our daily lives. I remember one brother, who, not long before
his death, confided to another brother: “Brother, you’ve done a good job.” These
were the last words anyone heard him speak. They were not simply a casual
comment, rather were they the distillation of his way of living and of communicating
over a lifetime.
In the light of all of this we are able to better understand the importance of realizing
our mission in communion with the Church. The Rule of Life invites us to be
deferential towards the pastors of the Church, to follow their directives, (cf. R 8) to
develop our apostolic actions in harmony with the pastoral goals of diocesan and
national synods. (Cf. R 9 and 10)
It seems to me opportune to reiterate here that that it is in the name of God and of
the Church that we realize our mission. In the final analysis, like St. Paul we are
simply instruments (cf. 1 Co 3:6-7) who, trusting in God who is always faithful, (cf.
Rm 8:31-32) stirred on by our love for Christ, (cf. 2 Co 5:14) and sustained by his
grace, (cf. Ph 4:13 and Rm 8:26) we co-operate in joy (cf. Ph 4:4) in the realization of
the divine plan.
Realizing the mission is to …
…cultivate spiritual life.
To begin with I would say that we realize our mission much more by what we are and
who we are than solely by what we do. The spiritual life is the fundamental character
and source of our ministry because it is part of our deepest identity.
On the one hand our apostolic dynamism is born of our spirituality. More specifically,
it is born of our intimate relationship with the Lord who gives shape and structure to
all our relationships and all our activities. On the other hand, it is we who bring these
relationships and these activities to Him in our intimate exchanges with Him. This
dual movement can be translated as those of prayer of life and life of prayer. Our
prayer is the expression of our love for God and for neighbor, and it is this very love
that helps us to discover the “paths of prayer.” (R 133)
1
Translated from Timothy Radcliffe, Je vous appelle amis, Paris, Cerf, 2001, p. 184
17
Our own spirituality is centered on the contemplation of the open side of the Crucified
One, through which we are enabled to glimpse the boundless love of the Heart of
God for us.
The Spirit helps us to discover this love, and spurs us on to respond, that is, to love
God by committing ourselves to the mission for the sake of our fellow men and
women. That same Spirit sustains us in our apostolic difficulties by bolstering our
faith and trust. (Cf. R 152) What is more, the Spirit urges us on to accept in a spirit of
reparation, “the hardships inherent in our lives as consecrated men and apostles.” (R
117)
Our Rule of Life might be summarized thus: As brothers, we are united and
consecrated in the Heart of Jesus for service in prayer and in ministry. And so clearly,
prayer is a service of inestimable value to the Church and to the world, and
comparable to even the most apostolic and generous of works.
Ministry and prayer go hand in hand. Our Rule of Life tells us that in the midst of our
apostolic tasks and our difficulties “we will sometimes need to show courage to
establish interior silence, to retreat into solitude, and to persevere in prayer.” (R 133)
In another article, the Rule reminds us that in order to orient young people to the
person of Christ, we must possess a “dynamic relationship with the Lord.” (R 158)
Our celebration of the Eucharist and our devotion to the Blessed Sacrament
constitute the basic nourishment we need to undertake and persevere in our ministry.
The very act of gathering together around Jesus for the Eucharist, the body of blood
of Christ, broken and shared, is a sharing in God’s service and in the service of
neighbor. (Cf. R 24) And that is why in our houses the chapel is the venue par
excellence where we offer Jesus our ministry and ask him to make it prosper. (Cf. R
43)
… bear witness to
“One picture is worth a thousand words,” goes the saying. And this notion is very
much in line with a reality of our ministry. The witness of the apostle’s zeal tends to
remain etched ineradicably in the minds and in the hearts of those around committed
religious, and spurs them on constantly to confront with courage and confidence
every material, emotional and spiritual challenge.
There is no lack of anecdotes to support the above contention. For example, even
after 40 or 50 years many people still remember Brother Angel Moraza (Julian).
Founder of our institute’s works in Colombia. He was a man gifted with good sense,
human and spiritual. He was a good man, full of compassion especially towards the
poor. A self-made man with an enviable degree of competency, Brother Angel was
filled with and vivified by a spirit of humility and true brotherhood. He had been
appointed regional superior, and at the end of the 70’s he was the dean of the
community and bursar of one of our schools. A former student told me once that
every morning after community prayer and Mass, just when the early birds were
arriving at school, he would go down to the school yard, and armed with a broom and
dustpan he would proceed to gather up the “little gifts” that passing dogs had left
during the night.
18
The former Master of the Dominicans writes that, “apostolic life is not so much what
we do as what we are.” 2 In other words, we must become a living word for others
rather than limiting ourselves to saying important words . In that same vein, the Rule
of Life declares that “the brothers carry out their mission by the example of their
lives.” (R 163; cf. R 18) Elsewhere, the Rule underscores that elderly and ailing
brothers, through their union with the Heart of the suffering Jesus, through their
serenity and their courage in dealing with their illness, and through their prayer are a
genuine support of their brothers engaged in the active ministry. (Cf. R 161)
We are called to be witnesses to the infinite love of God for his children. And for that,
as Father Radcliffe suggests, it is not necessary to do anything extraordinary. “Being
a witness does not involve having to do any propaganda, or even of actively seeking
to convert people, but simply being a living mystery. This means to live in such a way
that our lives would have no meaning if God did not exist.” 3
….of fraternal life
The source of Brotherhood is to be found in the love of God. Father Radcliffe puts it
this way: “Saint Thomas Aquinas taught that at the heart of God who is love, there is
friendship, an indescribable friendship between the Father and the Son, and this is
the Spirit.”4
Brotherhood is the distinctive sign of every genuine religious community, but this
relationship does not exist solely for its own sake. Forming community is not a matter
of establishing somewhere “out there”, in splendid isolation, a kind of haven of
tranquility and bliss. We must not yield to the self-absorbed temptation of living
together in a mutual admiration society. Quite the opposite, community life exists only
in order to advance and realize the objectives of an institute.
Fraternal life in community exists only as a means to the mission, though there are
those who might consider community an obstacle to mission. One day in Colombia
we had a visitor who said to us at table “Brothers, I know you reasonably well, I can
see and appreciate your qualities and I am convinced that you could be far more
effective than you are already. All you would have to do is send all your brothers to
be principals of schools instead of running a single school staffed by a community.”
This view flies in the face of the spirit of the document Fraternal Life in Community. In
it we read, “all of the fruitfulness of religious life depends on the quality of the
fraternal life lived in community,” and that “fraternal communion is in itself already a
ministry; that is so say that it contributes directly to the work of evangelization.” (§ 54)
Fraternal life in community is not only important to the mission, it is an essential
element of the mission, since it renders the evangelical call to brotherhood credible.
(Cf. Jn 17:21)
2
Id., ibid., p. 204.
Translated fromTimothy Radcliffe, Pourquoi donc être chrétien? Paris, Cerf, 2005, p. 9.
4
Translated from Timothy Radcliffe, Je vous appelle amis, Paris, Cerf, 2001, p. 215.
3
19
The same document goes on to make clear that the love that unites the members of
a community is the same that “urges communities on their path of mission, whether
this be contemplative, proclamation of the Word or ministries of charity.” (Fraternal
Life in Community, § 56)
First and foremost, religious life proclaims the Gospel of brotherhood by the very fact
that it is itself a true brotherhood. Religious life is, therefore, at one and the same
time a sign of the Trinity, and its members are disciples of the Lord (cf. Jn 13:35) who
calls them all to communion. Religious life is also a sign of the Kingdom, of the
Church and of what the world is called to be. It proclaims the inviolable and primordial
dignity of the human person, and anticipates eschatological communion. (Cf.
Religious Life in Community, §§ 54, 55)
But that is not all. I once heard a priest who was working in a very poor city say that
the objective of every ministry is the formation of community. In order to tend towards
such an end, a prophetic commitment on the part of a community is fundamental.
Moreover, quality community life constitutes a help to its members to live their
respective vocations authentically and is an aid to perseverance in it. Thus, the first
beneficiary of the ministry of a community is the community itself, a community which
periodically to periodically meets to review, willing to examine their community
attitudes and actions, their apostolic objectives, projects, and availability. (Cf. R 27)
Finally, our Rule of Life emphasizes repeatedly the intimate relationship that exists
between fraternal life and mission. The Rule reminds us that we live in community to
share our lives and our mission, (cf. R 15) to show concern for the needs of the world
and spurs us on to action by the gift of ourselves. It invites us to mutual support, and
to bear witness in our ministerial mileu. (Cf. R 15) The Rule further calls us to
develop a team spirit as we realize our ministry by giving preference to community
works, (cf. R 49) and to witness to charity and “the nature of the Christian vocation.”
(R 153)
…of consecration
The consecrated life is in itself already and apostolate, for it proclaims the love of
God and is an expression of that love. In reality, the life of a consecrated person has
no meaning except in the light of this love. In other words, the prophetic and atypical
life style of the consecrated person can only be understood as a loving response by
one who has been seduced by the one who is all-Loving.
The Rule of Life authenticates that our consecration is itself a form of ministry. The
Rule teaches that in consecrating ourselves in exclusive service to the love of Christ
(cf. R 117) we proclaim the love of God and we recall the vital importance of
conversion and universal brotherhood. (Cf. R 5) By our consecration we reveal the
compassionate countenance of the Lord, (cf. R 152) the solicitude of Christ for all
men and women, (cf. R 118) and we are witnesses to the spirit of the beatitudes. (Cf.
R 64) Through the Rule we commit ourselves to exercise a ministry in congruence
with the mission of the institute and the Church, (cf. R 67) we render ourselves more
available for the service of love, (cf. R 60) we bear witness to a life offered totally to
God for the sake of men and women, (cf. R 48) and we awaken them to the heavenly
realities. (Cf. R 62)
20
The Rule also establishes the apostolic character of each of the vows. Thus, through
consecrated chastity we embrace the Jesus’ life style, and we consecrate ourselves
to the service of the Gospel. (Cf. R 68) Through chastity we witness to an authentic
love for young people, and are a call to spouses to fidelity. (Cf. R 70) Through
consecrated poverty we assume the common condition of all human persons through
the daily charge of building up the earthly city, (cf. R 83) of serving the world,
especially the most needy, (cf. R 80) of being in solidarity, (cf. R 84) and challenge
the false values of money and power. (Cf. R 85) Finally, through consecrated
obedience we dedicate ourselves to an unselfish apostolic service, (cf. R 101) and
we discover together the will of God, relying on the mediation of our superiors who
are the promoters of unity and of the apostolic spirit. (Cf. R 102)
In a world that has, in good measure, lost sight of the meaning of life, a world where
so many desperately pursue power and popularity, consecrated persons who give
authentic witness of simplicity, joyful, generous and gratuitous service to God and to
humanity, shine with dazzling light.
…serve children and young people
“Following Jesus as brothers of the merest little ones, we want to spread in a more
intense way the preference of André Coindre for children and youth, poor and without
hope, as well as his educational heritage marked by compassion and trust.”
(A pilgrimage of Hope, p. 25)
The fundamental aspiration of our lives as brothers is not self-aggrandizement, but
the service of God and our brothers. It is in this sense that our mission is a service for
the advancement of the human person, and it is primarily for the evangelization and
education of young people that we develop our talents. As has been made clear
above, this advancement is not merely for the sake of evangelization, but already
constitutes in itself genuine evangelization. It is evident that explicit evangelization
implies that we are well prepared to dedicate ourselves to education in the Faith,
whenever and wherever the circumstances allow.
The mission that I referred to in the preceding paragraph is part of our founder’s
charism and part of ours, too, for we are his followers, after all. Father Coindre turned
his compassionate gaze toward the many abandoned children and young people of
Lyon. Some of them were simply wandering the streets aimlessly; others were in
prison paying the price for their delinquent acts; and some had already completed
their prison sentences.
In the prospectus for the Pieux-Secours foundation Father Coindre says of those
young people:
Guilty at an age when boys tend to be reckless rather than wicked,
impetuous rather than incorrigible, hope or their transformation must never
be lost. They must be surrounded with every possible help in order to form
them to good habits…What therefore is to be done? They are rejected
wherever they go. Honest employers are unwilling to hire them. All the
religious establishments refuse to admit them, despite the fact that
substantial sums have been offered to cover the cost of apprenticeships.
Are they to be left to return to their former ways? Are all the noble
21
expectations for them to perish, due to an inability to provide suitable
accommodations for them? No, such a thing would be out of keeping with
Christian charity. A safe haven must be found for them provided with
workshops where they can be taught and honest trade. (André Coindre,
Writings and documents, 3, Pieux-Secours, pp. 29-30)
Between 1816-1821 Father Coindre, moved to the core of his being at the plight of
young people, responded to their needs by setting up not only Pieuse-Union, but two
other providences; he also founded the institute of the Religious of Jesus and Mary,
and our own institute.
Thanks to the many missions that Father Coindre gave with his missionary
companions he discovered the educational needs of children in rural areas. In his
letter of January 10, 1822 he writes: “If I open another foundation [Brother Augustin]
will go there as a teacher.” (André Coindre, Writings and documents, 1, Letters, Letter
no III, p. 57). On January 21 of the same year, he returns to the same idea: “Should
we found a second house, it will be to teach reading and writing to children, as do the
Brothers of the Doctrine [Brothers of the Christian Schools].” (Ibid. Letter no IV, p. 64)
Beginning from that moment and until his death in 1826 he undertook to found
several schools in various rural areas, even going beyond the bounds of his own
diocese.
Just as did the followers of Father Coindre, we realize our mission principally through
the education of children and young people (cf. R 158) with a preferential option for
the neediest children. There are many articles of the Rule of Life that confirm this:
“The Institute of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart owes its origin to the apostolic zeal
of Father Andre Coindre for instructing neglected youth and bringing them to the
knowledge and love of God.” (R 11)
The Rule of Life adds that the brothers take part in the mission of Evangelization of
the Church, (cf. R 18 and 157) and they realize it in communion with Her, (cf. R 150)
in their state as religious educators, “especially through their ministry in Catholic
schools,” (Decree of approbation of the Rule of Life, p. 11; cf. R 13 and 162) through
their teaching of subjects both profane an religious (cf. R 163), through education in
the Faith (cf. R 164 and 168) and through appropriate campus ministries. (Cf. R 150)
I would like to emphasize that our educational commitment is not simply a
philanthropic work or a humanitarian service to society, but a genuine mission. We
are speaking here of a definite mission, according to a specific charism. Even in
those works where we do not actually evangelize in an explicit manner, we are still
truly evangelizers. For through these works we make visible the love of God through
the human and Christian quality of our service.
If our educational service were to be only a social work, it would amount to nothing
more than being a supply teacher, pure and simple. And we could call a halt to it all
when the State eventually came to a point that it was able to meet all the educational
needs of society. But such is not the case. It is precisely because the State does not
want to fulfill the mission of evangelization that we are called to guarantee it in the
works that we direct.
This said, we should not hang on at all cost to works that are entrusted to us at a
given moment in time, as if there were meant to be ours till the end of time. They
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meet concrete needs in a particular time and place, according to our particular
charism. None of our works is meant to last forever; it is the charism that must
endure in perpetuity.
I would like to emphasize yet again, that our service is part of a specific mission. We
are not speaking, therefore, of a mere job or task. In our discipleship of Father
Coindre this conviction must spur us on to ask ourselves continually what is our
particular contribution to the works that we direct, and what concrete services must
we take on in order to facilitate and increase this contribution. We must also evaluate
the works we do have to see if they are in conformity with our charism and
adequately meet the needs of today.
As we have seen, the Rule of Life affirms that we realize our mission principally
through the service of education. (Cf. R 162) What is more, we are invited to make a
preferential option for the poor. Fidelity to the poor, in whom God is present, is the
sign of our fidelity to God himself, and a sign of God’s preference for them. The Rule
presents them to us in different guises: the destitute, (cf. R 82) those who suffer
material or spiritual want, (cf. R 152) the oppressed and the forsaken, (cf. R 50) those
who suffer injustice, (cf. R 150) underprivileged children, and inhabitants of less
favored regions. (Cf. R 155)
In addition to challenging us to seek the face of the poor, the Rule invites us
emphatically to realize with them the designs of the Father, (cf. R 50) to serve Christ
in them, (cf. R 10) and to serve them as Christ would. (Cf. R 80) The Rule commits
us to show them compassion, (cf. R 10) and conscious of our own poverty, to
cultivate a special sensitivity towards them. (Cf. R 152). The Rule wants us to be
concerned with helping them concretely, (cf. R 82) and to promote their natural and
supernatural advancement. (Cf. R 150)
As followers of Father Coindre we realize our mission today mainly through formal
education in schools of all kinds, in centers for tertiary education, in teachers training
centers, etc. But we do so equally through informal education as we accompany
groups, sharing our life and faith with them, (cf. R 159) We can even do so by helping
to set up projects for human and Christian advancement and/or by sensitizing them
to the ecological wealth of the earth, or by welcoming and supporting children and
young people forsaken by society, those who are humanly challenged in any way, by
organizing services of rehabilitation on behalf of people struggling with addictive
behavior, by organizing leisure time activities, etc.
We realize our mission in day schools, boarding schools, young people’s hostels,
summer or winter camps, etc. In the exercise of our mission we keep our hearts full
of compassion for all, especially for the neediest and most neglected. This
predilection for the poor spurs us on to give both an affective and effective support
that is concretized by our commitment to live for the poor, with the poor or like the
poor. In all our works, even those where we are at the service of people who are
financially well-off, we are to give preferential attention to those who are least in the
eyes of others, and to develop in all a concern for those who are less gifted, and to
develop in all a sense of social justice. Secondly in those works situated in poor
regions or sectors we can live with the poor, in their very midst. Finally in other
cases---an area reserved for those who are called to a special vocation, we will live
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like the poor, accepting privations and working side by side with them. We are called
to live an evangelical poverty wherever we are through generous work, fraternal
sharing, and the selflessness of those who make do only what is absolutely
necessary.
Nevertheless, it would be a grievous error to claim that those who do not accomplish
explicitly the duty of evangelization or who do not work directly in the service of the
poor are not true evangelizers. Because so long as a ministry of whatever hue is
exercised through prayer, community discernment, and in concurrence with
legitimate authority, than that ministry is in conformity with the charism of the institute.
(Cf. R 162)
We have a single mission, but we exercise various ministries, and in diverse works.
This diversity is a great wealth. Each local community gives life-giving breath to its
ministries, but at the same time the brothers must appreciate and affirm through
words and deeds the service rendered by other brothers committed to other and
different ministries in other local communities, other than those in their own provinces
or countries.
Finally, I wish to emphasize that the Rule of Life is the hallmark of missionary spirit.
For, it invites us to respond in generosity to the missionary needs of the Church (cf. R
51) so that the world may be built upon the foundation of Christ. (Cf. R 6) This
invitation is for us an incitement to participate in the expansion of the Church in the
transmission of the Good News in accessible language, (cf. R 153) in a spirit of
enculturation, (cf. R 154) in willing dialogue, and always seeking to meet and interact
with people of different ideologies. All the brothers of the institute, through their
prayer, their relations with missionaries their help and availability must involve
themselves in whatever way they can in this missionary enterprise, even to going to
countries where the Church and the institute may call them. (Cf. R 165)
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CHAPTER V: A Brothers’ School with André Coindre’s Charism
Before delving into my next topic I would like to offer a word of explanation about the
title of this chapter. To begin with, as articulated earlier on, the founding charism of
André Coindre is the movement of the Spirit that he experienced at a signal moment
in his life, and that was later transmitted to his followers. And so, our charism [as
brothers of the Sacred Heart] is a gift of the Spirit received as a consequence of
following in the footsteps of our founder.
Again, let me underscore that the charism is a gift to persons and not to institutions.
In our case it is not any particular school that receives the charism but rather those
who are realizing the educational mission, each according to their own vocation.
Clearly, of course, an individual school does benefit from this gift, a gift that causes
the grace of communion to bear fruit in plenty. I do recognize that the expression
“communion in the Charism” probably deserves a more in depth explanation, but
unfortunately I won’t be able to develop the concept in this circular. I will, however,
return to it in the next.
You have doubtless noted that my chosen title is “a brothers’ school and not
“brothers’ schools.” There is a difference, of course. The former is an educational
work characterized by a predominating spirit of brotherhood, or to put it another way,
by its family spirit---its community spirit. All members, independently of their
respective vocations, live in open fraternal relationship with all, mutually recognizing
their equal dignity. The latter might easily give the impression that charism and
mission are the sole and exclusive property of a particular local community, which, as
we shall see, is not the case. A more comprehensive explanation of this notion will be
given in the next circular.
In this chapter, my intention is to highlight in broad lines the particular hallmarks of an
authentic brothers’ school---hallmarks which must be shared by and subscribed to by
all those who labor within its walls. Though I am very much aware that most of our
brothers in active service realize their mission and ministry in a formal educational
setting, the word “school” as utilized here indicates mission in all its forms of ministry,
as discussed in the previous chapter. Therefore, no brother, whatever his ministry,
need feel excluded.
During our visits to the various sectors of the institute, as members of the general
council, many principals of our schools and those in charge of our other educational
works ask us to address their respective faculties and staffs so as to underscore the
importance of the mission and express our deep gratitude to them for the singular
service that they provide [to children and young people]. The hallmarks that I am
going to underscore in the next few paragraphs are the fruit of sharing sessions with
our many collaborators in the mission on their commitment to the educational
mission. They shared their ideas on the flame of the charism, on the spirit which
breathes life into the mission with which they have been entrusted as well as into
them personally, on their own vocation as educators, on the way in which they
respond to that calling, given their own identity as lay people, and on the challenges
for the mission in today’s world.
Our collaborators in the mission have been exposed to these experiences of the
charism for some years now. They include, the Coindre Leadership Program in the
United States, the Tutelle (Trusteeship) in France, formation programs for our
educators in Spain, in Latin America and elsewhere. You have probably heard of
some of them or even participated in them yourselves.
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They have been and continue to be a wonderful grace for our religious family. That is
why I would encourage you to pursue enthusiastically and full of hope, the paths that
you have already taken or others that you may soon begin to follow, though I must
caution on the ad experimentum nature of the latter. None of this is about theories for
the sake of theories, but rather is it a matter of sharing and celebrating life, of
journeying together in the present so as to be better able to venture into the future.
And, of course, in all of this the pedagogical dictum,”learning is doing,” remains quite
valid. It is all well and good to develop and draft beautiful position papers on our
mission, but none of this will amount to very much if they are not the fruit of what we
have discovered by working, sharing, realizing, experimenting, evaluating,
deepening, celebrating and planning together.
Conscious of what I have just asserted, I would nevertheless like to underscore a few
fundamental characteristics by which our educational works can be identified. In what
follows, most of the subtitles are drawn from the synthesis developed in the Coindre
Leadership Program, a curriculum drawn up to present the essential elements of our
educational tradition. This is, in my view, an excellent and faithful presentation of who
we are, in which I for one, can easily identify. Those of you who are familiar with the
content of the program will note that for my own purposes I have opted for a different,
more personal order of presentation.
Some of the features of our apostolic works are common to all Catholic educational
works; others are specific to us because we give them a particular nuance.
You will also note that I make no distinction between the terms “school,” “educational
work” or “establishment,” etc. each one tends to echo the other, in the various
modalities of our mission to the exclusion of none.
The school font of knowledge
The word “school” as a place of learning calls to mind, almost immediately, images
such as a focal point or a font of knowledge, if you will. In this sense it is a place set
aside for pupils or students to learn what is known about the world and the creatures
in it, at the same time as they acquire the skills necessary to be able to discover in
the future what still remains unknown.
Our human knowledge has contributed greatly to the outstanding scientific and
technological advancements in our world, and to the development and invention of a
diverse range of machines and tools. It is undoubtedly very important to pay very
close attention to the teaching of both the sciences and the arts in our educational
establishments so that our students can achieve a high academic standard. But it is
equally important to acknowledge that knowledge is not, in itself, the end of
education. Knowledge, no matter how extensive, can never fully satisfy the
tremendous aspirations of the human spirit. Knowledge can be turned either to the
benefit or to the detriment of humanity, and this is a fact to which history repeatedly
bears witness. All of which lead one sage to declare “Knowledge be damned, if it
does not lead to wisdom.”
The school guide to wisdom
The meaning that I intend here for the word “wisdom” corresponds to that found in
Holy Scripture. The wise person is not presented as one who is necessarily learned,
possessing a wide-ranging, acquired knowledge. Rather, the wise man is seen as
living in a way that is pleasing to God, that is, as a child of God, as a brother and/or
sister to all. Jesus, God made man, is the paragon of wisdom. No other human
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person had a greater awareness of being Son of the Father and brother to all. No
one ever before or since has ever lived in such a consistent and coherent way, the
dimensions of Sonship and brotherhood. And this is why Jesus must be the
fundamental reference point in our educational works that see themselves as schools
of authentic wisdom. And for this, Jesus Christ, himself, must always be at the heart
of our schools.
Spirituality of the Heart of Christ
Therefore, it is essential that all our institutions facilitate those vital encounters
between children and young people and the humanizing message of Jesus of
Nazareth. (Cf. Mission Statement of Schools in Spain) In our own schools and
centers, the objective is an encounter with the Heart of Christ, the symbol par
excellence of the love of God---the God who desires to share entirely our human
condition. The spirituality of the Heart of Christ, the expression of the compassion of
God for humanity, breathes life into every aspect of our school communities. This
spirituality is manifested especially if the hallmarks of our interpersonal relationships
are recognized as those of compassion, affection and respect. For, in large measure
education is a matter of establishing and maintaining good human relationships.
Formation of the whole person (Holistic education)
The humanizing message of Jesus highlights the extraordinary dignity of the human
person. After God, himself, nothing, neither person, nor even the Sacred Law,
surpasses man. “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath.” (Mk
2:27). Faithful to the Gospel which proclaims this dignity, our schools opt for
exclusive service to their pupils and students, journeying with them and supporting
them in every aspect of their human growth, moral, spiritual, physical, intellectual.
(Cf. R 168) In essence, therefore, the objective [of education in a brothers’ school] is
to create an environment that fosters the formation of the entire human person (cf. R
149 and 151) through academic, recreational, sporting, artistic, pastoral activities,
etc. In order to attain this goal, it is particularly important to develop a common vision
for the promotion of values like sincerity, openness, respect, solidarity, community
spirit, commitment, (cf. R 157) justice, concern for the environment, accountability,
(cf. R 159) good work ethic, etc.
The wealth and genuine value of our educational institutions is to be found in the
persons who labor in them. And I offer the following anecdote by way of illustration. In
one ultra-modern educational establishment directed by the brothers, equipped with
all the latest didactic gadgetry and replete with wide-open spaces for recreation and
sport, one pupil made so bold as to ask the principal:
“Is it true that our school is one of the best brothers’ schools in the whole world?”
After a few moments of reflection, the brother-principal replied tentatively,
“Well I have worked in schools in rural areas and in big cities, in poor areas and in
rich ones. And for me the best schools are not those that have the latest and best
equipped and most modern buildings, and best sports fields. It’s true that such things
are important, but there’s more to a school than its equipment and buildings. The
best school is the one that has the best students, the best parents, the best teachers,
in other words the best people in it. And God alone is the judge of that. So, tonight
I’m going to ask God what he thinks of the people in our school. You do the same,
and tomorrow we’ll compare notes. O.K.?”
“It’s a deal,” said the boy, “I’ll get back to you tomorrow.”
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Congruence between faith and life
The comprehensive formation of the human person must encompass growth in the
faith and congruence between faith and life, since faith is revealed by actions as the
Apostle James declares so emphatically: “Show me your faith without works, and I by
my works I will show you faith.” (Jm 2:18)
Community Spirit
The love of God and of neighbor summarizes the Law and the Prophets. (Cf. Mt
22:40) All of which means that the Gospel of Jesus is the Gospel of brotherhood. And
so, another hallmark of our schools is community spirit, that attitude of life that is
revealed especially by our close relationships to one another, (cf. R 156) by our
openness, our concern for the welfare of others, by our spirit of hospitality, by the
warm and friendly atmosphere we create in our local community houses, (cf. R 160)
by our communion in the charism and in the mission, and by our teamwork. Another
particularly distinctive sign of this spirit is the understanding and collaboration that
exists between the teaching staff and the parents who are, after all, the primary
educators of their children.
Preference for the poor and commitment to justice
It is especially through service that a person truly experiences love for others. The
school is a privileged venue for the provision of a formation that will contribute to
building a better world, a more human world, more livable, and more just. Service to
the poor and commitment to justice must be two other pressing concerns of those
who teach in brothers’ schools. We must be committed to justice. And, as with
charity, justice too, begins at home, it begins wherever we exercise our ministry. It
takes tangible effect in the special attention we give those persons in our
establishments who are experiencing the greatest difficulty.
In other words, service to the poor encompasses a sensitization of the members of
an educational community to the situation of the people in their very midst. (Cf. R 159
and 169) Such sensitization implies a formation to justice and the initiation of
imaginative and creative solutions and programs that pave the way to a better future.
Education in compassion and in trust
Holistic formation requires a particular pedagogy, that is to say a way of education
adapted to, and in coherence with, our charism. Our pedagogy is the pedagogy of
Jesus. It is pedagogy of the heart, one born of the spirituality of compassion. As
Brothers of the Sacred Heart we must have an overwhelming and authentic love of
the children and young people entrusted to our care. Anyone who truly loves affirms
and values the one(s) loved. The person who loves, trusts others, and in this way
helps them to feel valued, and to learn self-confidence. Our pedagogy is, therefore, a
pedagogy based on trust, and that trust is translated principally by our acceptance of
children and young people, by our respect for them, by our faith in their capacity for
change and growth, whatever difficulties they might encounter.
This pedagogy equally requires a genuine presence and availability---being present
to young people through a presence founded upon watchfulness, kindness,
openness and a concern for providing them with the accompaniment and support
they need. A pedagogy based on trust is also pedagogy of listening, and of dialogue,
(cf. R 160) of healthy relationships, (cf. R 158) and of prudent and reasonable
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expectations. Finally, underpinning all of this the school should to be able to rely
upon the services of a competent and experienced team of guidance persons.
Atmosphere of good order and organization
The final hallmark of a Brothers’ school is the atmosphere of good order and
organization which reigns within. As emphasized in the “Coindre Leadership
Program,” this kind of environment is vital “to lean and experience the love of God,
the love of others and the love of study.” We brothers want our pupils and students to
be shaped by and to value, both respect for authority and self-discipline. Formation to
discipline implies and requires a respect for the dignity of all. It also means
establishing mutual relations of trust, (cf. R 159) and cooperation, without
discrimination or preference.
The organization of the school is summarized and articulated in a mission/charism
statement and amplified in its organizational vision. Everyone involved in the
administration of the school, either directly or indirectly can take ownership of these
two instruments because they all contribute to its drafting. (Cf. R 156) Beginning with
its declaration of identity, and recognizing the particular conditions of the milieu, the
statement of the educational philosophy of the school articulates specific objectives,
defines its organizational structures, both pedagogical and didactic, prepares a
flowchart, outlining and delineating clearly the duties and responsibilities of each
member of the school community, decides on a management structures, and agrees
upon and determines programs for ongoing formation of its faculty.
This organizational vision must be reviewed and updated periodically. It must also be
accompanied by an equally comprehensive pastoral plan which includes formation to
values, integration of faith, culture and life, and the process of growth in the faith, (cf.
R 158) so that at its heart the institution will be transformed into an authentic
Christian community that witnesses to a Gospel-motivated life and vision.
The pastoral element of the educational plan might be said to be its heart, soul, and
its very marrow. All the members of the educational community according to their
respective vocation recognize that they are at the service of the school, and
depending on the particular service that they are called upon to render, support the
educational plan and the pastoral plan by what they say and what they do. [They
really ought to “walk the talk.”]
A sound integration of the educational plan, the educational philosophy, the pastoral
plan and the school organization pave the way to attaining the school’s objectives
and fosters a greater unity of action among faculty. The end result of all of this is that
the entire school community will be soundly evangelized, and will itself become in
turn a better agent for evangelization. For everything must lead to a better service of
the mission.
In the next circular, I will highlight the person of the educator in a Brothers’ school, as
I endeavor to sketch the profile of those who work in our schools and who espouse
and endorse our educational mission.
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CONCLUSION
Our mission as disciples of Father Coindre and heirs of Brother Xavier and Brother
Polycarp, and of all our predecessors is to do whatever we can so that the world of
today, especially its children and young people, will find a renewed taste for life, feel
comfortable within themselves and learn through their daily experiences that life is
indeed worth living. Our role and our objective are to teach our students that life only
finds meaning in the God of Jesus, and that true happiness lies in grateful
acceptance of the gifts they receive, and in response to offer themselves to God
throughout the length of their days.
This mission flows from a particular experience of the Spirit. It consists in discovering
the compassionate love of God through the Heart of Christ, whose open side reveals
that he loved us to the end. (Cf. Jn 13:1) Our mission also implies that we must
imitate to the best of our ability this same compassionate love for the people of God,
particularly through children and young people. This gratuitous action of the Spirit
within us, this gift given to each one of us, thanks to our state as members of a
religious family for the service of our community, the Church and the world, we call
charism.
One of the risks of our consecrated life at the service of education is that we restrict
ourselves to being men practicing a mere trade, however effectively and efficiently, in
a specific milieu, and as such we end up by doing what everybody else does, a job
(profession), with nothing to distinguish us, nothing specific to offer, without a specific
identity of our own. Were this to be the case, it would signal the death knell of our
charism, and the loss of our reason for existence.
To be authentic signs means to be different, to be distinct, perhaps even unique. To
be signs means to have our own identity with hallmarks that are recognized by those
around us, and that enhance elements that we share with our lay colleagues. Every
religious family in the Church has its own specific charism, which is its “salt” to give
taste and “light” to illumine. (Cf. Mt 5:13-14)
In order to truly return to the essentials of the consecrated life we must constantly
draw the pure and fresh water to be found in the wellspring of our original charism. It
is thus that our consecration will be revitalized and find resurgence. Brothers, today
more than ever, we need to center our religious life on the charism of our founder,
Father André Coindre, as did our predecessors.
Relying always on the grace of the Lord we have the responsibility of rediscovering
our charism, and use it to respond to the glaring needs of the world of today, by
discerning and embarking upon well-considered and well-adapted courses of action.
The next circular will deal principally with communion in the charism and the mission
shared between religious and lay collaborators, and the necessary formation to live
the mission in truth. But before dealing with these two topics I will present the lay
vocation and the vocation of the brother as a religious-educator.
In closing, my prayer for us all is that through the intercession of Mary, that faithful
virgin, mother and educator, the Lord grant us the gift of fidelity to our charism, so
that we may be witnesses of hope on the way of communion.
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QUESTIONS FOR PERSONAL REFLECTON AND COMMUNITY SHARING
N B: Though the questions are set in the plural, as though they were to be used for
community sharing, they may be answered personally, as well. And, of course, you are
welcome to add others.
1. What enlightenment does this circular provide?
2. Are we living our religious life in a balanced way, incarnating adequately each of the
dimensions of the charism? In other words, are we living our charism fully?
3. What can we do in order to make progress in living our charism more fully?
4. In order to better live our charism, how can we remain more attentive to the conditions
of people around us, their concerns, their suffering, their needs, their struggles, their
hopes?
5. What are the signs that can identify our actions as not simply a job (profession) but an
authentic mission?
6. As consecrated persons what must be our specific contribution to our apostolic works?
7. What services --- teaching, campus ministry, guidance, administration, leadership, etc.
ought we to prioritize in contributing to our apostolic works?
8. What are the commitments to which our charism seems to be drawing us today?
Introduction
Chapter I: The Charism, a Gift for Service
Why speak of charism?
Charism in secular and religious language
Charism in religious life
Chapter II: The Charism of Founders
Charism is a gift...
... spiritual and gratuitous
... personal and collective
... constantly alive
... ecclesial
... for a service
... dynamic
... which determines the character of an institute
Dimensions of charism
Chapter III: The Charism of Father André Coindre, the Charism of the Institute
The charism of Father André Coindre
Led by the Spirit
The Lord’s work
Dimensions of the charism
Spirituallity
Brotherhood
Mission
Specific identity
An integrated life
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Institutionalization of a charism
A charism is always living
Chapter IV: Our Mission
The goal of the mission
Helping to discover the meaning of life
In the God of Jesus, the Christ
Proclaiming the Gospel that is Christ, Himself
Building up the Kingdom
Realizing the mision is...
... cultivating spiritual life
... bearing witness to...
... fraternal live
... consecration
... serving children and young people
Chapter V: A Brothers’ School with André Coindre’s Charism
The school font of knowledge
The school guide to wisdom
Spirituality of the Heart of Christ
Formation of the whole person
Congruence between faith and life
Community Spirit
Preference for the poor and commitment to justice
Education in compassion and in trust
Atmosphere of good order and organization
Conclusion
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