Communicationes N 48
1st November 2005
EXTRAORDINARY DEFINITORY
As you already know the first Extraordinary Definitory of the present sexennium took place at the Jesuit Retreat Centre, in an area known as Padre Hurtado of Santiago, Chile, 3rd-12th October 2005. 73 Religious were present: Fr General with the Definitory, the Superiors of the Provinces, Commissariats, General Delegations, representatives from other Regions, secretaries and translators. We thanked Fr Felix Malaxechevarria, Rector of the Sanctuary dedicated to St. Teresa of the Andes, for his organizational skills which he put at our service.
Many of our readers will already have received news of this meeting from our website:check it again for the latest news
DIARY OF THE EXTRAORDINARY DEFINITORY
by Fr Marco Chiolerio, ocd (Genova Province)
Tuesday 4th October
Almost all the participants to the Definitory arrived yesterday afternoon, which allowed them to rest after the long journey and meet one another before the talks begin tomorrow.
The day began at 7 a.m. with a concelebrated Eucharist dedicated to the Patron Saint of Italy, St. Francis of Assisi. Fr General, Luis Arostegui reminded us how much St. Teresa of Avila admired this man.
The General was suffering from a cold which he seemed to pick up on arrival in Chile. He began the Definitory wishing everyone well. His greetings were echoed by the Regional Vicar for Chile, Fr. Julio. Then Fr. James Mamic was made moderator for the day. The General introduced his two reports, on the objectives for the sexennium an on the state of the Order two years after his election as General of the Discalced Carmelites. His words created a lively exchange of opinions.
In the afternoon we listened to a presentation about Chile, its size and people, by a young lecturer and her assistant. After the break we began working in small groups. The Fathers, divided into language groups, and addressed the reports given by Fr. General, writing down their comments.
Wednesday 5th October
The Principle celebrant at our Eucharist this morning was the Provincial of Oklahoma, Fr. Gregory Ross. He was asked to be the moderator for the day. The various groups brought the fruit of their discussions to the first session of the morning. The second part of the morning and the afternoon were taken up with reports from the various Definitors, which completed the vision, began by Fr. General, of the state of the Orders health. After these there were further reports by Definitors regarding various situations under their jurisdiction.
After supper, the Conference of European Provincials met to discuss initiatives already began and other new ideas.
Thursday 6th October
This morning the Eucharist, votive mass of St John of the Cross, was presided by Fr. Paul de Bois, the Flemish Provincial. Fr. Didier Marie Golay, Provincial of the Paris Province, was asked to be moderator for the day. The first part of the morning was taken up with listening to reports from the various language groups, which had discussed the reports of Fr General and the Definitory on the state of the Order. After the mid morning break Fr Attilio Ghisleri gave his report on the finances at the Centre of the Order.
In the afternoon we listened to Fr. Guerrero S.J., an expert in ecclesiology at the Chilean Catholic Faculty and Superior of the house in which we were guests. He explained to us, in a talk that lasted one and a half hours, the challenges facing the Church in South America, with lights and shadows, a Church which is moving away from the errors of the past towards a more hopeful future, at the beginning of the third millennium. After a break Fr. Attilio spoke once again this time explaining the situations under the Definitory, above all the two major projects of the new college in Avila, Spain (CITES) and Stella Maris, in Haifa (Israel).
After supper, the Superior of the Sanctuary of Auco of the Andes, Fr. Felix Malax ocd, gave us a summary of the life and spirituality of St. Teresa of the Andes, illustrating his talk with slides.
Friday 7th October
Fr. Dominic Vas, the Provincial of Karnataka-Goa, reminded us at the Eucharist of the biblical, theological and devotional value of the rosary, an important part of our Carmelite devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. The liturgy was interspersed with Indian chants.
The morning session in the hall began with small group discussions, which took for their theme yesterdays financial report. The second part of the morning was spent listening to Fr. Pedro Zubietas competent and succinct talk on Provincial government according to our present canonical legislation.
After lunch the Definitory welcomed enthusiastically the testimony of Mgr. Santos Ascarza, Bishop of Valdivia, southern Chile, then for for the last three years Archbishop of Concepcion. He had read our Constitutions carefully. He had asked to enter our Order, and has for 15 years been a promoter and sought after preacher of our rich spirituality. He spoke about the challenges that our Order must face here in Chile, and what our Order can offer the local Bishops, as spiritual guides, preachers of spiritual exercises and teaching based on the spirituality of our Saints. After this talk Fr Zdenko, the Vicar General, spoke about some practical aspects of Provincial Government, completing what Fr. Pedro had said earlier.
After supper there were meetings of the various Carmelite missionaries and Provincial groups.
Saturday 8th October
It was the first proper day of spring, the sun was hot, after much cold and rain. The Eucharist was presided over this morning by Fr. Albert Wach, Provincial of Cracow. His homily focussed on the mystical aspect of our Carmelite Marian devotion.
Work began in groups at 9.00am, discussing yesterdays reports.
At 11 oclock we reassembled in the main hall to listen to Fr. Carlos Espinoza Ivacache, who gave us the statistics of Religious and Priests who have left religious life and priesthood, this was followed by his analysis of the causes. His report provoked a lively debate, from which we all learnt a lot.
After lunch, we listened to the reactions of the various groups to Fr. Pedros and Fr. Zdenkos reports. After a short break we returned to the hall to listen to Fr. Luigi Gaetani, one of the Definitors. He spoke on statistics prepared with great care and attention by Fr. Isidore da Silva. The focus was on the period between 1991-2005 of those Religious of our Order who have left: the statistics were divided into countries and age.
After reading these statistics and Fr. Luigis wise assessment there were further small group meetings to take in what we had just heard.
After supper there were no scheduled meetings, but one must not forget to put ones watch on one hour as summer time began the following day.
Sunday 9th October
Excursion to the Carmelite Sanctuary of Auco (The Andes), 70 kilometres north of Santiago.
A pilgrimage to the places associated with the life of the first Chilean Saint, Teresa of the Andes, Discalced Carmelite. We visited the church of Chacabuco where she played the organ. Then the house in the country which she visited on horseback.
Later we arrived at the Sanctuary of The Andes, surrounded by hills that formed a kind of amphitheatre, while looking out from the Sanctuary you could see the beautiful Andes mountains with their highest point, the Aconcagua.
There we celebrated the Eucharist, had our lunch with the local Bishop, visited the spirituality centre maintained by the Carmelite Missionary Sisters, and the enclosed Carmel.
Returning to the Hurtado Centre we paid a brief visit to the first Carmelite church in Chile, founded by the Navarre Province in 1900, the Church of the Independence.
Monday 10th October
Fr. Xavier Alpizar, Provincial of Central America, presided at this mornings Eucharist. He invited us to be, at the same time, comforted and shocked, by the Word of God, like the ancient Prophets of the chosen people, who were known as holy, a holy people.
Getting back to work Fr General invited the preparatory commission to prepare by the afternoon the message of this Definitory for the benefit of the entire Order. Todays moderator was Fr. Mark Juchem, from Southern Brazil.
There followed a lively exchange on the reports of those who had left the Order, ranging from an analysis of vocational programmes to other proposals. After the break Fr. Flavio Caloi, Vicar of Mt. Carmel, spoke about the Orders situation in the Holy Land and Egypt. We thanked the Fathers who had left small gifts for all the participants (the CD of Mary of Lebanon, a souvenir from Mexico), and the nuns of Vina del Mar, who gave every one a CD of marian hymns which they composed and sang.
The evening was spent correcting the message for the Order, first in small groups then in plenary session.
Tuesday 11th October
Fr. Greg Homeming, an Australian, presided at the Eucharist, which was coordinated by the group from the Far East: there was a distinct meditative flavour to the liturgy from this part of the world, with Fr. John Chua (Taiwan) playing a flute, Fr. Bruno (Korea), a guitar and the tenor voice of Fr. Augustin (Japan) who used to sing professionally. In Fr. Gregs homily he spoke about the cleansing of the inside of the cup from the Gospel of the day, which is only possible with meditation on the Word of God day and night.
The morning session began by listening to the reports from different situations in the Order and again there just was not enough time to hear everyone: there was the report of the Teresianum, the (Formation) Community from Santa Maria della Scala, Rome, the International College of St. John of the Cross.
Later we returned to the main hall for the reading out of the text of the Definitory message, which once again produced a lively exchange of opinions, which in the end was revised, polished and tidied up.
After lunch we received a final gift, a wood carving from Central Africa, from Fr. Aurelio, who was happy because, just as he was about to leave, his suitcase finally arrived from Air France!
The afternoon was dedicated to dialogue in different groups, while the European Conference of Provincials met in the main hall, where they quickly elected a new President for the next three years, namely Fr. Gianni Bracchi, (Venice Province), and a permanent committee (Provincials from Flanders, the Netherlands, Cracow and Catalonia) who will assist the secretary, and begin a session to organize a timetable of events; already thinking of themes to discuss, meetings to organize, such as the next encounter of our European based students in Lisieux in 2007.
The last session, in the second part of the afternoon, we read the final redaction of the message, approved in its original text, written in French, drafted by the preparatory commission, and translated into different languages. Fr. General said farewell, putting an end to the work of the Extraordinary Definitory, once again full of exchanges, initiatives, and a witness to the vitality of the Teresian Carmel.
Wednesday 12th October
The final closing took place, like the opening, with the last Eucharistic celebration. Fr General presided, greeting everyone and inviting them to the next Extraordinary Definitory in 2008, after the Provincial Chapters and before the General Chapter of 2009.
There followed an opportunity for photographs and then everyone left for their respective destinations and ministries.
INDIA: REGIONAL CONGRESS ON FORMATION
Putting into practice the decision of our General Chapter held at Avila in 2003 to take regional initiatives, Carmel in India convoked the First Regional Congress for Formators, which was attended by almost all the Formators and the Provincial or regional Councillors in charge of Formation (altogether 35 Formators from 5 provinces and 1 regional Commissariat of India). The meeting was held at Dhyana Sadhana of the Karnataka-Goa Province in Mysore from 22nd to 27th August 2005.
Four relevant topics were studied during the Congress: 1. Discernment of vocation; 2. Carmelite Formation; 3. Inculturation and Missionary Dimensions; 4. Psycho-social dimension of Formation.
Fr General, in a letter to the Congress, expressed his inability to be present personally, but, taking into consideration the big number of vocations that we have in India, encouraged the participants in their responsibility of a joyful fidelity to the vocation, a renewed search to enrich our formation work and to strengthen our commitment.
PRIESTLY ORDINATION
OF THE FIRST UGANDAN OCD FRIAR
The Washington Province is proud to announce the recent ordination in Kenya of the Order's first Ugandan Discalced Carmelite friar (as far as we know)! In a colorful ceremony of several hours duration, Fr. Joseph Baru Uri, OCD, was ordained to the priesthood by Most Rev. Anthony Ireri, auxiliary bishop of Nairobi, on 9 July 2005, in Kingero Parish, along with several members of the Franciscan Missionaries of Hope.
Fr. Joseph was born on 1 May 1971 in the Adjumani District of northwest Uganda, near the banks of the Nile River. He belongs to the Madi people and comes from a family of four boys and two girls. After elementary school he joined the minor seminary of the Apostles of Jesus, an African congregation, and completed his philosophy requirements in their School of Philosophical Studies. At that point he happened to meet one of our Mexican priests, Fr. Luis Jorge Gonzalez, OCD, who was in Africa giving lectures in psychology, and Joseph became
interested in the Carmelites. The Discalced Carmelite nuns in Mityana, Uganda, suggested that he contact our friars in Nairobi, since at that point there were no Carmelite friars in his own country.
He entered our postulancy program in 1998 and completed his novitiate in Nigeria, where he was professed on 16 July 2000. He then began four years of theological studies at Tangaza College next to the Washington Province's international house of studies in Nairobi, graduating in March 2004. In August of the same year he was solemnly professed and ordained to the diaconate. As the senior Ugandan Carmelite, the first friar from his country to join the Order, Fr. Joseph Baru is particularly interested in seeing Carmel grow in his own country, which borders Kenya.
At the time he joined the Washington Province in Nairobi, there were no Discalced Carmelite friars in Uganda, but more recently the California-Arizona Province has taken on a rural parish near the nuns in Mityana and is recruiting Ugandan vocations. The friars and nuns are working hard together to build up the Order in East Africa, where it has such a promising future. "In all this I rely on the grace of God," writes Fr. Joseph, "to follow his designs for me. My wish has always been like that of Blessed Francisco Palau, OCD: I live and shall live for the church!"
Fatima : Paul VI Centre
CONGRESS ON THE SCIENCE OF LOVE
Following up the visit of the relics of St. Therese in Portugal from 28th October to 16th December the Discalced Carmelite Centre of Spirituality in Portugal organized a Congress entitled The Science of Love in the Paul VI Centre in Fatima, from 28th to 30th October. There were several themes with a total of 12 talks given by specialists on such subjects as: a) The life and times of St. Therese of Lisieux; b) Dialogue with Christ: c) In the heart of the Church; d) For the salvation of humanity. The solemn opening was presided by our Father General, who gave the first talk.
CHILE : CENTENARIES
CHILLAN
It was a long time ago on 7th February 1905 when the Holy See canonically erected our new priory in Chillan, which arose with the help of the communities of Santiago, Valdivia, Valparaiso and from the King of Spain, Alfonso XIII.
The large building in honour of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, whose statue was the work of the well known sculptor from Barcelona, Ildefonso Serra, was inaugurated on July 6, 1913. The architects were two Carmelite Brothers from the Navarre Province, then at their peak. The building, with its three graceful towers in the neo- gothic style, situated in the centre of Chillan, is without doubt one of the most beautiful in the city.
After the building of the Church there followed the construction of the Priory, by the same architects and in the same style as the Church; perhaps in its time it was the best in the Navarre Province in Latin America. It is a true masterpiece and every time visitors gaze at it they are struck by its beauty.
VINA DEL MAR
After several changes, we could finally establish our Discalced Carmelite Friars from the Navarre Province on 24th December 1905 in the inhospitable sands, only inhabited by fishermen, to the extent that one of our Friars writing to his Superior in Europe said, without irony, from the window of my cell I can use my rod to fish in the sea. Today it is located on the street known as Libertad, the most central in Vina.
Here too it was a Carmelite Brother who constructed the Church and Priory, not the same as in Chillan. The work finished in nine months, in December 1905.