Rev.

Jarosaw Lawrenz CM

CONCERN FOR THE FIDELITY TO THE VINCENTIAN VOCATION

Be mature with the maturity of the faith, and strong with the strenght of the spirit
(Bl. John Paul II, Vienna, December 09,1983)

Part II

DIRECTIONS FOR LIVING VINCENTIAN VOCATION IN THE NEW ENGLAND PROVINCE

2011
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Directions of Action of the New England Province In the Spirit of 2010 General Assembly
Creative Fidelity to the Mission
INTRODUCTION
"My Savior! You know my unworthiness and my lack of faithfulness in responding to your calling. I ask You for mercy and compassion. Do not let my sins contribute to the loss of sanctity of the Congregation, which you yourself are the creator and founder. Remember, Lord, about the tasks you have entrusted to this Congregation. You yourself summoned it to serve you in the poor. Let me see any one in need of assistance. Let me see Your face in everyone. Lord, I ask You for this grace through the merits of your Blessed Mother. (St. Vincent de Paul) Jubilee Year, I mean the anniversary of death of St. Vincent de Paul and St. Louise de Marillac, inclined us, I hope, to a personal reflection on our Vincentian vocation and to this very narrow look at ourselves, and in the Community: the Province; the Congregation, as present in the modern world. Return to the sources is certainly not intended to marvel at the past, but "the history of magistra vitae". The official fruit of the discussions within the community about the Congregation were included in the final documents of the Provincial Assembly of 2009 and the General Assembly in Paris 2010.
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We need to honestly admit that we are not always invited to such a reflection, and our discussion assumes the form of an elite, that is, we are talking about it with a small group of friends and brothers in our community. Or worse, conspiracy - making of ourselves martyrs of "missed" decisions made by those in power. So I want to thank you for giving me this opportunity to share my hopes for the future. Even though, I am aware of my limitations of knowledge of the history of our Province and the whole richness of transformation process to the current state. Please forgive me, if ignorance of this matter will be visible in the further development of thought.

1. Charism
This is the key word to understanding the mystery of my vocation and becoming a member of the Congregation of the Mission. The fact that one day I found myself at Stradom in Krakow was clearly dictated by the specific charism of the Congregation. And what's interesting, in my life when I met with people of different congregations (female or male) and I witnessed the insistent search for identity of their communities. I never had any doubt as to the question: what is our charism? The question that was lost in response: how best to realize this charism? And even more specifically, I was perplexed when the situation of the country in which I found myself in, or the local church expected of me the attitude of missionary activity. There is a Polish proverb about catching all the magpies by their tails. Not to be trapped by this term, a pastoral project of the Province and the community came to aid. It also helped to prevent me from too individualistic tendencies. I am convinced that ultimately the existence and development of the Province of New England is linked to the missionary ministry of the Polish Immigration in the United States. Fr. Edward Gicewicz right from the beginning of the first paragraph of his "History of the Province," underlines this specificity, associating it with the Gods blessing and His inspiration, and though confreres working in the mission of the Province came from different parts of the world such as Poland, China, Brazil, as well as those born in the USA with the same ethnic roots. And, although it was necessary to undertake the effort of learning the English language by some, or the Polish language by others, the goal of this effort was one: to serve Polish Immigration in the U.S. in the best and most comprehensive way. They organized the pastoral life, ensured education opportunities, organized popular missions and ministry of the Word of God in the so-called Forties [forty hours devotions], helped dioceses experiencing crisis of vocations; provided chaplain ministry in hospitals and nursing homes, spiritual direction for local clergy, and also there was a time of supporting the mission ad gentes when confreres were sent out to other countries.
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No doubt the size and location of various Polish communities had changed radically. But, does this fact puts into question the meaning of our peculiarity? Is this the time wind down the sails? Does the honesty to the history of this Province, and thus to Confreres who gave their talents and life to this ministry, allows us to move away from the Polonia charism? My personal vision is the desire to open a window on the contemporary situation and give a "freshness" to continue the special character of the Province of New England. I propose to enclose the reflection, so as not to blur the "wishful thinking" in the structure: Faith, Hope, Love.

2. Faith
"In working for the salvation of souls be always guided by the light of faith" (St. Vincent de Paul) This is what protects us from losing meaningfulness of our lives. It is the faith in Jesus Christ that protects us from the fear of the continued existence 1 . Saint Vincent de Paul made Him a key justifying the rule of the Congregation. It is worth noting that the Constitutions of our Congregation make us sensitive to the very important nature of our mission, that mission to prepare the Vincentian community for apostolic activities, her constant nurturing and support. (cf. C 19) Clearly this shows that our communities are to be evangelizing, caring for the poor and missionary. As Fr. Santiago Azcarate CM stated in the article, "the Vincentian communities exist not only, for the mission, but also are animated by the missions 2 ." We cannot live only through the memories of our Congregations missionary history, losing sight of our future. We must constantly be aware of the reality in which we live. We need to learn, analyze, and love. Therefore, honest discussion in communities about the form of action, the mission, will allow us to answer the question: how to be a witness of Jesus today? How to get in his footsteps to the poor? Therefore, we must ensure that: Province encourages each Confrere to develop his spiritual life: with participation in retreats, days of formation, pastoral meetings, contacting Confreres from other U.S. Provinces and the world, good use of sabbatical time.
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cf. Lines of Action 2010-2016, Vincentiana, vol.54, no. 3, p. 402-403

cf. Santiago Azcarate CM, 2001-06-09

2

Vincentian Community, Community for the Mission, Vincentiana,

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 Province provides Confreres in different communities the opportunity to share their pastoral experience with each other, For each pastoral year from September to June, upon consultation with superiors, it indentifies and defines our pastoral program such as Year of families, vocations, etc. It encourages the meaningfulness of community prayer and community meetings: (formal) pastoral, (informal) Confreres or Congregation celebrations 3; Care for the liturgy and its fidelity to liturgical norms of the Church in our parishes is kept; The parish retreats and formation meetings for different parish groups are organized There is concern of the implementation of the catechesis for children and young people and adults; New initiatives in the development of the Divine Mercy devotion and Marian devotion, especially related to the Miraculous Medal 4 are undertaken. Parishes: Social and ecclesial analysis conducted in the United States revealed that the majority of the Congregations and Societies of Apostolic Life focused on the People of God in the ministry of the parish. This effect is called "parish assimilation 5." This is a situation which put into question the identity-charism of many religious congregations in the U.S6 . Constitutions and Statutes of the Congregation of the Mission approved by the Holy See in 1984 very clearly define the specific nature of our mission and (charism), implemented as part of the work in parishes 7.

3 4 5 6

cf. Constitutions of the Congregation of the Mission, C 21 cf. Statutes of the Congregation of the Mission, S 7.1 cf. Robert P. Maloney CM, On Vincentian involvement in Parishes, Vincentiana, 1997-10-02

D. Nygren and M.Ukreritis, The future of Religious Orders in the United States, Praeger Press, Connecticut 1993, p. 250
7

cf. Statutes of the Congregation of the Mission, S 10

3. Hope
"God expects of you that more than the body needs, you will address the needs of souls. They (the poor) desperately need spiritual manna. They need God's spirit." (St. Vincent de Paul) Establishment of Congregation of the Mission has brought to Church inner renewal and strengthening of God's hope in the hearts of people throughout the historical turmoil of the world: war, moral crises of society, church renewal, intensification of poverty 8. Therefore, we must ensure :

Undertaking an open discussion between us on the analysis of religious and social situation of society; Return to praiseworthy tradition of preaching retreats 9 in other Polish-American parishes (in Polish and English). If we create a special mission team, it is possible to "lease" a Confrere from the mission team in Poland for example for a period of two years. If we decide to not create a special mission team, then our Confreres can conduct such a ministry coming from their particular assignments. Organization of formation meetings for the various parish groups (teachers, extraordinary Eucharistic ministers, the Rosary Circle, etc.) not only in our parish, but also recommending such meetings in other parishes which offer ministry to Polish communities. In order to enrich this activity the house in Manchester, CT - could be used more centrally, and regionally, e.g. in New Haven for nearby parishes; Brooklyn. For better functioning of the program, I imagine, two Confreres who know the realities of the Polish and American communities could be involved; Our ongoing formation in connection with moral theology, as to serve through the Sacrament of Reconciliation at our best. In regard of Confreres who are about to retire, making possible to open a center for the ministry of the Sacrament of Reconciliation in extended hours every day (morning and evening), for example, at St. Stanislaus Kostka Church, Brooklyn. In the United States there is a trend noticed in connection with pastoral support of the immigrants to open so-called territorial centers. Maybe it's time for us to consider
8 9

cf. Lines of Action 2010-2016, p. 403-404

cf. John P. Cawley CM, Renewed Parish Mission Model in a North American Context, Vincentiana, 1997-0405-14 6

further maintaining of existing communities. Perhaps, because of the so-called labor market and the migration of Poles to other regions we are provoked to follow them?

4. Love / Compassion
"Love can not look at the suffering of the beloved with no compassion and no desire to remedy the evil. It makes those who love to cry with those who weep. People filled with love are filled with the same feelings. There is no true love in the heart of those, who do not anguish at the sight of the poor. We know how sensitive in this regard was the Son of God." (St. Vincent de Paul) The integral care for the human being is an interpretation of the Vincentian charism. Poor man was a "springboard" or "starting point" of further initiatives undertaken by the St. Vincent de Paul and (saying in today's nomenclature) Vincentian Family 10. Therefore, we must care for: Paying special attention to the spiritual help for couples at risk of strong trends of instability of the sacrament; Assistance in organizing the discussion groups and formation groups for the role and mission of contemporary parents; Indication of the place of non-sacramental marriages in the Church and spiritual care for them; Organization of specialized help for addicts in close collaboration with the Therapeutic Center in Greenpoint: alcohol, drugs, internet; the aging Polonia needing pastoral care of the elderly; Organization of a specific youth ministry, pastoral care of vocations, and summer camps for youth and children, especially from poor families.

5. New England Province

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cf. Lines of Action 2010-2016, p.403-404

"The essence of our vocation is to work for the salvation of the poor villagers, everything else is subsidiary. We preach a retreat for candidates for ordination, conduct seminaries, because we are convinced that it is useful to preserve the stability of fruits of the mission. We imitate these great conquerors who on the occupied territories establish garrisons, because they fear not to lose the gained with such effort lands. What a luck, that we to participate in the mission of Jesus Christ. For who better to imitate Christ, than those who preach the gospel to the poor?" (St. Vincent de Paul) We are not the beginning and I hope, we will not "turn off the last light" of the Province. I am convinced, it is important to conduct discussions between us about our "status quo". Should we continue as an independent province? Could it be better for us to get the status of the Region of the Eastern Province, or the Province of Poland? But, Im afraid discussion on this topic is connected with fear of the future, thereby removing the "punch line". As Saint Vincent de Paul pointed it out, we must have a constant belief that Christ is the Lord of Salvation, and He chose us to implement it. We create the history of the next generation of this Province. Therefore, we must take care of the "sustainability of the fruits of the mission." And this is the most important. Respect for the missionary work of the past generations and "aggiornamento" of our present. General Assembly emphasized very clearly the need to revise our legal norms to help us with fidelity to the vocation, but also the works carried out by the Congregation of the Mission (specifically by individual provinces)11. Reliable analysis of our situation must take into account the dynamics of development and changes in the world, and consequently, changing forms of human poverty.

11

cf. Lines of Action 2010-2016, p. 400-402 8

Bibliography:
Bifet, Juan Esquerda, Duchowo Kapaska, Wydawnictwo Homo Dei, Krakw 2009 Gicewicz Edward., CM, Growth of the New England Province of the Congregation of the Mission 1904-2004, New England Province Publishers, Manchester CT 2004 Forming Lay Church Leaders for the 21th century, Pastoral Instittute, Dicocese of Brooklyn Knop Zbigniew.,CM, Dzie za dniem, Pozna, 2003 Common Rules and Constitutions of the Congregation of the Mission, 1984 Roman Jose Maria, wity Wincenty a Paulo, Biografia, [Polish edition], WITKM, Krakw, 1990 Vincentiana, vol. 54, nr 3, July - September 2010