From Rome February 7, 1998  

General Commission for Financial Affairs to meet

The General Commission for Financial Affairs will be meeting in Rome during week of February 8, 1998. While this commission has many tasks the Plan: "We the Congregation, in service to the Mission" 1997-2003 spells out some of its more important duties (cf. 30. 3. Operative Choices). The commission consists of the following members:

A question

Recently we received some comments about the scj curia homepage from Bob Bossie (US), Province Directory of Justice & Peace, as well as a staff person at Eight Day Center based in Chicago. Bob wrote: "I was wondering if a call could go out for summaries of 'prophetic community' efforts by the various provinces/regions to stimulate thoughts/ideas for others."

While the development of prophetic communities around the congregation is certainly in its infancy Bob's question is worth asking and pursuing. The idea to establish prophetic communities in the congregation was approved by the XXth General Chapter and has become a part of the the Plan: "We the Congregation, in service to the Mission" 1997-2003 (cf. 15. 3. Operative Choices).

Heading for the missions

Sebastião Pitz (BM) completes his ESL (English as a second language) studies on March 3, 1998. Departing Hales Corners for Europe on March 12, he will visit the novitiates of the Portuguese, Spanish and Italian provinces before traveling on to Rome. Sebastião arrives in India on April 7. He will become the first novice master of the new Indian SCJ Territorial Community. Currently there are four postulants preparing to enter the novitiate (cf. News November 30,1997).

Burying the dead

US SCJ Cemetery/Mausoleum Hales Corners, WI

The fellowship which unites us finds its full realization in eternity.
And so we stay united with our deceased brothers
through prayer and in hope. [ORL #69]

Burial customs vary throughout the congregation. In the US Province, scjs are buried in a common above ground mausoleum located on the grounds of Sacred Heart Monastery/Sacred Heart School of Theology. The new Sacred Heart Monastery opened in 1968, and later was transformed from an exclusively scj school into Sacred Heart School of Theology serving the needs of adult vocations for both religious congregations and dioceses.

Before the construction of the mausoleum scjs were buried in a small traditional cemetery located just south of what is now Villa Maria, a community for senior and retired scjs, and site of the original monastery. The founding German scjs purchased this old convent property from the Dominican Sisters of Perpetual Adoration in the late 1920ties converting it into the orginal Sacred Heart Monastery.

 Chile South Africa