In Rome these days – from Oct. 21 – 26, is the International Initial formation Team at work!  They are having their last meeting as a Team.  Hence the main purpose of this gathering is to do a re-reading of the work they have done together as a team for the past 6 years.  
This evaluation is based on the feedback received from the different Units, on their lived experience in the field of initial formation.  The team is evaluating the impact of their work at local level so as to be accountable to the General Chapter for the mandate given to them. They will also be working on proposals to be presented to the Chapter 2020 for the future of formation in the Institute with two vocations.

The dates of the Special Synod for the Amazon: from Sunday, October 6 to Sunday, October 27, 2019
The General Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops announces that the Holy Father Francisco has convoked the Special Assembly of the Synod of Bishops for the Pan-Amazonian Region, from Sunday 6 to Sunday 27 October 2019 to reflect on the theme “Amazon: new paths for the Church and for an integral ecology “.
Pope Francis convened the meeting, to discuss environmental and religious issues in the Amazon and give special attention to the needs of indigenous communities there.
The region includes parts of Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Surinam, and French Guiana. The Vatican has invited 184 bishops and priests from those countries and from around the world to participate in the synod and vote on measures. Thirty-five women, mostly religious sisters, and nuns have been invited but will not have voting rights.
There will be 17 representatives of the Amazon’s indigenous populations, including 9 women, will attend as well.
A ‘green’ synod
The agenda includes points on appreciating and protecting indigenous rituals and herbal medicine, especially when exploited by pharmaceutical companies; regulating industry which pollutes the environment and takes land from indigenous people; protecting the rainforests of the Amazon and assisting the poor and women.
Highlighting with the ecological theme of the meeting, the Vatican announced that it will introduce some environmentally friendly measures for the event, including biodegradable drinking cups, natural-fiber tote bags, and recycled paper.

Let us dare to be and create family today
The above theme is addressed to the members of the council of the family; this important Family meeting began today 16 September 2019 in Martillac, France. Relating to our founder’s dream – the opening prayer distinctively portrayed the growth of our big Family, comparing it to the process of a tiny acorn becoming a mighty oak tree. The call to mission was a theme and during the prayer each member went in procession with a seed in hand, planting it in the pot prepared, signifying their dream on the whole. It was also a moment of thanking God for the growth experienced in the recent years in each vocation groups.
The day continued with the opening address of Ana Maria ALCALDE our superior General, which followed the presentation and sharing of the lived experience of the commitments of the 2015 Council of the Family by each vocation (Lay Associates, Apostolic, Secular, Contemplatives and Priest Associates respectively). The first day evening came to a close with the Eucharistic celebration presided over by our priest Associates.

In Martillac, this morning of the 11 September 2019, the 3 Leadership teams of Holy Family  Consecrated life – the Secular, the Contemplative and the Apostolic – came together for a two day reflection and sharing on Holy Family life and mission.
This time, the meeting is organized by the team of the Secular group and Maria Dolores, the leader, initiated the day with a prayer.  Later she invited each one to introduce herself so as to come to know one another before they began the days’ work. 
The objective of this meeting was “seeing together what our consecrated life brings to today’s society and looking for a way to renew our actions.”  The main focus of the day was on reflecting the meaning of our consecrated life from where we are living, from our contexts, relating it to the life experience of the Founder.  
After a brief introduction in the morning, the participants went into personal reflection, followed by sharing in the small language groups.  A view of this was presented to the assembly in the afternoon.

Calendar
The Season of Creation calendar has been revised to make it more international and ecumenical in character and more adaptable to the calendar expectations of different countries and traditions. Each community and country is; of course, free to modify this calendar so that it fits the dates, days and themes of the local situation.
 
The basic pattern for this calendar is:
September 1 – Day of Creation (as in Orthodox traditions)
Four Sundays – four domains of creation e.g, Forest, Land, Ocean and River Sundays
St Francis of Assisi Day
Blessing of the Animals
Special Sunday – appropriate to the country or community
Second Sunday in October – Final Sunday of the Season
 
THE SEASON OF CREATION – 2019     Series C: Wisdom in Creation
September 1       Creation Day
September 1      1st Sunday in Creation – Ocean Sunday
September  8     2nd Sunday in Creation – Fauna and Flora Sunday
September 15     3rd Sunday in Creation – Storm Sunday
September 22    4th Sunday in Creation – Cosmos Sunday
September 29    5th Sunday in Creation – Blessings of the Animals
October 6           St Francis of Assisi Day  (Oct 4)

“I pray that image and likeness of God in each person will enable us to acknowledge one another as sacred gifts endowed with immense dignity.” (Message from World Day of Peace, Pope Francis 2017)
At the beginning of August, the Cardinal of our Diocese had invited all the Catholics in Bordeaux to help the immigrants in our city. We were informed that three hundred immigrants were found in the streets after several squats in the city, and were dismantled and were desperately in need of help. The Pastoral Care for the Immigrants of the Diocese of Bordeaux joined the efforts with a Libertarian Group that had already been functioning and found a temporary residence for the Immigrants in a place at St. Michel district until the end of August.
We as a community discussed among ourselves reflected and decided that we would also encourage people to get involved in our efforts of helping our affected brothers and sisters. Our hearts were broken, and we plunged into immediate action to help and support them. On a Sunday Mass, we informed our parishioners, about the arrival of the Immigrants in Bordeaux   and their plight at present and their needs and gave an open invitation to support and contribute with food items  and any kind of essential items that would help the immigrants. They were very generous and compassionate, and lots of people responded immediately to our request and brought plenty of food items, like bread, milk, sugar, coffee powder, butter, cheese, eggs, jam, vegetables, fruits, biscuits, canned food items, rice, clothes, and varieties of useful items. The collected items in our house were loaded into two big vehicles. The next day our parishioners volunteered and transported these provisions to the Center at 7 rue de Muguet, in Bordeaux, where the immigrants were received and provided with breakfast and dinner. We had delivered the provisions twice to this Center. Again we made an announcement and our third collection would be delivered today.
The Pastoral Care for the Immigrants of the Diocese of Bordeaux had sent emails to different Associations inviting the members to help in serving the immigrants during break-fast and to support them in their engagement with the immigrants. We as a community accepted this invitation to work at the Center in serving our brothers and sisters. At different days Anne, Christaline and I go with another lady who is a volunteer, welcome the immigrants and do our service at the Center in Rue Mueguet. In the mornings, we travel by car, by tram, and by bus and reach the Center. We arrange the tables and chairs, clean and set the tables for the breakfast, and serve them. We are moved by the presence of the immigrants at the Center and our hearts are filled with compassion. We serve them with love, zeal and with the generous spirit. The Immigrants are looked after well with care, empathy, and human dignity.  The center is well organized and there are volunteers who take different responsibilities in the functioning of the Center. There are volunteers who cook the dinner daily, except two days when the Center does not open to them. In the evenings dinner is served from 6.30 p.m till 8.30 p.m
The Immigrants consist of young ladies, young men, and families with infants and children. For their meals, they need to come to the Center from their temporary residence. So they arrive in groups at the Center at different times until noon. At times some Immigrants help the volunteers. We work together with several volunteers. We start our service at 9.30 a. m and usually we do five services till mid-day and return home in the afternoons. They happily accept and appreciate the service done to them. But it is very painful when we speak to them. They have left their countries, their relatives and friends, lost their homes and jobs. We could trace their worries, anxiety, and sadness on their faces. They live with worries due to the uncertainty of their future and security, due to their health, due to the difficulty of finding a home and work to support their families, due to the need of educating their children, etc. Further, at the moment they have no official documents for their stay here.
At this juncture, I recall the statement of Gustavo Gutierrez, a Latin American theologian, a man of the people, “Authentic love tries to start with the concrete needs, and not with the ‘duty’ of practicing love. Love is respectful of others and therefore feels obliged to base its action on an analysis of their situation and needs” (We Drink from Our Own Wells: The Spiritual Journey of a People, Gustavo Gutierrez)
At the end of this month, the Center for welcoming and providing with meals to the Immigrants will be closed and the Pastoral Care for the Immigrants of the Diocese of Bordeaux is searching for a place to continue to help and support the Immigrants. We give thanks to the Lord for all who have given themselves and contributed in different ways in helping the Immigrants. It is a good experience of doing a little help to the people who are fragile, broken and in search for a new beginning in another land. We will continue to pray and have our hope that something good will continue to happen by the people who have a loving and generous heart for humanitarian action. Universal love and fruitfulness of life will nurture a just, peaceful, sustainable and reconciled world.
 
Jeevam Philip
Martillac Community.

Responding to the need for the formation of formators, the UISG (Union of International Superiors General) organized a five-month programme in Rome from February to June 2019.  Three of our Sisters from Pakistan, India, and Sri Lanka, who participated in this, share their experience.
Parveen Falaksher (Pakistan) …
Jesus continuously searched how best to live as an authentic human being, before a loving God.            
 “We become fully human when we become more human, when we let God bring us beyond ourselves in order to attain the fullest truth off our being. Pope Francis.” (The joy of the Gospel #8)
I greatly appreciate the five-month formation programme – a challenge and an invitation to grow in awareness of my deepest desire in life.  It was for me an inner personal journey to be my best self,  integrating my past and present, discovering the purpose of life, living freely and lovingly embracing my first vocation ‘To Be Human.’ 
I am convinced that life is all about relationships – with God, self and others. The quality of my relationships reveals who I am and the lens through which I see life. I learnt to recognize the sacredness and giftedness of each person.  I learnt different and creative ways of praying the Word of God which enabled me to fall in love with Jesus for whose mission I have dedicated my whole life.  This experience of love gives me inner peace and joy to be on fire for Jesus’ mission which is nothing but Love.
As a formator, journeying with young women, I learnt how important it is to honour, respect and appreciate the giftedness of each person, treating them as equals.  Creating an atmosphere of trust – a place where one can be her best self without masks – facilitates honest communication. The best gift I can offer is to be fully present and listen attentively to each one with a compassionate heart, inviting the young women to be in touch with their deepest self and make the right decisions. I am called to be a joyful presence.
It is a life long journey – challenging and transforming. Now I need to dive deeper into all my learnings and experiences and be open to use and develop the skills, in helping the young women.
I am grateful to God and the Leadership Teams in Rome and Pakistan who gave me this opportunity to be of service, living mission more meaningfully.
*****
Jeraldine Annammal (India) …
How can I give you up, how can I abandon you, my heart will not let me do it! My love for you is too strong, I the Holy one am with you” (Hosea.11:8-9)
The above words touched and moved me in my formation journey during this programme.   In many ways, I experienced the deep love of God, the source of energy, a healing embrace, which helped me to look at my inner journey with all my strengths and weaknesses.  Seeing God’s intervention in my personal life, the unique way I’m formed, I grew in trust in the God who is present and works in my life.
It was my first experience to be out of the country and interacting with an International community. It was a very rich experience of being together. This session made me to understand deeply the meaning of interacting with different cultures, to respect the cultures of the young women who I will journey with and be open to discover the giftedness in them.  I felt that this was a time of self-transformation.  Working with my own inner self helped me to understand the challenges in the process of formation.  I became convinced of God’s loving compassionate intervention in each person as a unique individual, allowing the best of herself to emerge.
I was able to discover that to become more human is the purpose of my being here.  Life is all about relationship- communion with God, myself and others.  Therefore as a formator, the most important task is to enable the young women through my love, to become their best selves, with their strength and vulnerabilities.  The quality of my presence, listening, the tone of my voice and positive affirmation play a great part in opening them to see God’s loving intervention in their own lives.   I am convinced that the Formator has to walk the talk which is a challenge and a Joy too.
Among the many skills learnt, I value most – listening by being one with myself and with others, integrating, Discerning, Different ways of contemplating the Word of God, creating an atmosphere for the young women to open themselves freely and understanding and respecting different cultures.
I thank our dear Srs. Ana Maria and Council and Srs. Mary, Jeya and their councils for this great opportunity given to me. 
I thank Jesus’ love for me, the fire of love that challenged me to change and be on passion for mission.
Thank you Jesus, being my Formator, my guiding light urging me to bring new life to others
Let this gratitude flow from me towards others.   
*****
Gresa Soosaithasan (Sri Lanka) …
Passion for Jesus and (Com)passion for Formation
For me, the five months’ programme for preparing Formators, is an integral, ongoing growth process and a journey which is a blessing and an enrichment.  It was a rich intercultural experience and I would like to highlight some of my learnings during this programme.
We were 33 participants, from 25 countries, and 21 congregations. Interculturality was very much integrated; group dynamics and interaction with one another enabled us to see in a new lens, contextualizing Formation
 “This experience is like new wine in new wineskins.” It is a privileged opportunity to count the blessings and graces received and move forward with a heart full of gratitude. I take courage to continue my journey towards the future taking on me the great responsibility of continued integration. The inner resources, learnings, and skills gained, are a golden hallmark in my life and through this experience, I am affirmed and encouraged to embrace new insights with openness to unlearn the ‘old wine’ with humble acceptance of my true self.  I discovered the empowering energy in me, which urges me to see my inner being as interconnected with Divine energy.
During this grace-filled time, I was enlightened and began to cherish very much, the rich gift of our Congregations’ patrimony – our Constitutions, our Sources and our charism of Communion as well our spirituality of God Alone.
Here, I would gladly extend my heartfelt gratitude to our General Leadership Team as well the former Provincial of Jaffna Unit, Sr. Christa Mariathas and her council for giving me this precious opportunity to deepen my consecrated life as an integral process of Formation.
“My soul magnifies the Lord”
*****

Our one-month mobile Pilot project “UPLIFT GIRL CHILD” came to its end on 29 June 2019. We were glad to have this function on this day as a gift to our Dear Good Father Venerable Peter Bienvenu Noailles recalling his Feast Day.
Every experience was an excitement…….They made us to be conscious of the presence of God……our being together as a Team was the strength at moments of difficulties and disappointments at the same time to enjoy life.
It was not an easy journey on both sides …to help others to open to newness and to open oneself to newness…..A Paschal Mystery……The journey was superbly tough in the beginning ….gradually became smooth and finally, the destination was joyful…. Rejoicing…

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To speak of the Good Father is to evoke dreams… Dreams and dreams again… whose realization is in time… a time sometimes long but, for God, “a thousand years are like one day…”
“Every year, the sisters celebrated the feast of St. Peter by offering him small gifts, objects that were supposed to be useful or pleasant.
When it came to the Island of All Graces, the Good Father was offered what was called the “flowers of his feast”, to be used.
But even if the collection was abundant, it is not enough to build up the terracotta groups that were meant to signify each station of the pilgrimage. The expense seemed too great …”
But that was without counting on his daughters of the La Solitude, who, in preparing for the bicentenary of the foundation, had the idea of doing like their ancestors did, raising the necessary funds, with the help of all their friends, to realize this unfinished dream.
They had recourse to an artist steeped in the spirituality of the Holy Family, Maribel Cortes, who put all her talent into making magnificent ceramics. A collaborator of the Holy Family made the supports and the stations found their natural place on the island.
On June 29, as we celebrated his feast day, we surprised our Founder by inaugurating the new Pilgrimage. Thank you Maribel, for the joy you have given us, making it possible to live such a beautiful contemplation.
The sun and heat did not stop our enthusiasm and dynamism. A good group of Sisters of the Holy Family and many friends joined us to celebrate the dawn of this Jubilee Year. A team of sisters and lay people organized the day.
After the significant morning marked by the pilgrimage, a picnic in the countryside followed, with a playful moment around the stories of Martillac. Many had drawn inspiration from “Memories of Martillac”. That’s how we listened to the Good Father’s conversation with the village priest, found the cow and played with the orphans… The old oak tree did not fail to teach the new one, insisting on the importance of transmission…
A beautiful mass on the island closed this lovely family day presided over by Pierre Meunier, one of our associate priests… A new ‘stony rock’ on our way towards 2020.

“Rethink and update the discernment process for the vocation of God Alone”

In accordance with the above call – 2014 Chapter, the team members; Áine HAYDE Colleen MOORE, Sile McGowan and Ana Maria ALCALDE (our superior General) are meeting here in Rome, revising the process of discernment for the vocation of God Alone.