SUPERIORE GENERALE
CONGREGAZIONE DEI SACERDOTI
DEL SACRO CUORE DI GESÙ
________
Rome, 31 May 2004
Prot. 183/2004
Purpose: Letter Convoking the Meeting of Major Superiors
To the Provincial, Regional and District Superiors
Dear Superiors,
In an aura of preparation for the Feast of Pentecost and with gratitude to God for the recent approval of the beatification of Father Dehon, we are pleased to convoke the meeting of provincial, regional and district superiors of the Congregation. According to our calendar which was given you at the end of last year, the meeting will take place from the 18th to 29th at the SCJ Generalate in Rome.
As the first such meeting after the completion of the XXI General Chapter, this meeting is invested with particular importance for putting into practice the directives and chapter orientations we made in view of a re-foundation of our religious life and the specificity of our mission in the present world. Even if this is not a chapter kind assembly, we are all aware of how important participation by various entities is, as is sharing and responsibility in the service of the governance committed to the Superior General and to his Council.
In addition to this, it is important to come together as brothers who have the same mission of animating and coordinating life in the various entities of the Congregation. Certainly, everyone will have delightful news and worries to share, opinions and propositions to forward.
So that we can have a truly global vision of the Congregation, we thought as well of convoking also the superiors of districts dependent upon provinces (MUK, BIA, URU) and also representatives from new SCJ presences (Ecuador, Angola, Albania and Vietnam).
We ask you to look at the agenda of our meeting and make the necessary preparations for it since some topics require prior reflection and collection of certain information to give during the meeting.
The topics we shall treat are:
1. A reflection on the foundation of our religious life and on the beatification of our Founder.
2 The 5th General Councilor.
Faced with the problem of finding a substitute for Father Peter McKenna, who resigned his charge, the General Administration has decided to put the question to the judgment of the major superiors. In the consultations which have already been done, in addition to the presentation of names of various individuals, the US and BH provinces and the Canadian Region, have suggested not to nominate a new councilor but to share his responsibilities among the four remaining. The General Administration did not believe it opportune to decide the matter without first hearing the views of the superiors.
3. The Proposals for agenda matters are:
A. Spirituality:
The Theological Commission and its responsibility;
The history and important figures of the Congregation;
B. Formation
Formation Personnel. A course will be organized at Rome from October 2005 to June 2006;
Ongoing Formation;
Affective Formation: orientations in cases of abuse;
C. Justice and Peace and Social Commitment:
How to give continuity to the Conference of Recife and to the meeting in Montreal;
Information on activities of Justice and Peace and Social Works;
D. Learning and communication:
A meeting of communicators, how and when;
How to give continuity to guidance of the educative sector at the level of high schools and universities;
E. Missions:
The preparation of the General Conference of 2006;
The new missionary undertakings: Angola and Vietnam;
Others: China, Burma?
F. The Dehonian Family
The formation of Lay Dehonians
Coordination among the various forms of the Dehonian vocation;
G. Administrative Structures:
Regions and Districts;
What structures for our new presences: Angola, Ecuador, Vietnam…?
What structures for those entities that are decreasing in size?
H. Finances:
Norms for the Administration of Goods
Financial policy for the Congregation;
Courses of training for treasurers. Two courses are expected, one in English and one in Spanish that will last two months each. How, when and here?
Maredsous Project, continuation and computerization of the Dehonian Archives;
Information: the 2003 Financial Report, the General Aid Fund, and study grants (These topics shall be treated in the presence of the General Finance Commission).
4. Juridical and Practical Questions that superiors frequently have to face: how to resolve them? An entire day will be given over to this topic.
5. Centro Studi. Information on its activities and prospects for development.
6. Geo-cultural areas.
There are activities which are not worth promoting at the general level of the Congregation for various cultural, financial and logistic factors…. Others cannot be undertaken in this way by every province, without some distinction between the small and the large. Several can be carried on at the level of a geo-cultural area. To reflect on this point, a specific amount of time will be reserved for area meetings.
The topics to be treated are:
New challenges for our religious life within the area;
Prospects for development;
Coordination within the geo-cultural area;
Interprovince collaboration;
Organization of means of ongoing formation;
Timeliness of various meetings of superiors and sectors of activity;
Establishment of a calendar of meetings that are of short, medium and long duration.
7. Other topics? Superiors who hope to propose other topics for the agenda should get them into the General Secretary’s hands by the 31st of August.
Arrival Date
You are asked to communicate in advance the means you intend to take and the time of arrival and departure to the Secretaries Frs. Marek Stoklosa or Odilo Leviski. The Villa Aurelia will be reserved for the participants of the meeting from October 16th to October 30th. Those who intend to arrive before and remain after these dates should consult the secretaries in advance.
Reception
The night of Sunday, the 17th, will be a time for welcome. Each one will be able to bring along some food typical of the country he comes from to share with the confreres.
At this time, we rejoice at your coming to Rome and we ask the light and gift of the Holy Spirit on your works and daily preoccupations.
Fraternally in the Heart of Christ,
Fr. José Ornelas Carvalho, SCJ
Superior General
and his Council