Foreshadows of Communion: Interconnectedness from Science and Indigenous Cosmologies and Marist Spirituality [Traduction française - voir ci-dessous] 1. Introduction Laudato Si' shines a very positive light on science and indigenous cosmologies. Both fields can teach us many things on how to live sustainably as Marists. Pope Francis' positive approach to these two fields invites us to search for the various ways science and indigenous cosmologies can broaden and deepen how we understand ourselves and our mission. Both science and indigenous cosmologies envision an intimately connected universe. Both situate the human person in a universe he/she is totally dependent on for survival. The deep ...

SEASON OF CREATION 2023: LET JUSTICE AND PEACE FLOW From 1 September – the World Day of Prayer for Creation – to 4 October – the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the Marist Family around the world joins in the annual ecumenical celebration "Season of Creation". It invites us to celebrate the beauty and pain of our world, praise and thank God for his love and goodness, and take steps to defend our common home, especially in this time of ecological emergency. Each year, the Ecumenical Steering Committee that organizes this Time suggests a theme. For 2023 the theme is "Let Justice and Peace Flow." In this link you will find all the indications about the Season of Creation. Season of Creation is ...

Artificial Intelligence appears to be the new issue of interest according to the attention it is receiving in the media. L'Intelligence Artificielle (IA) apparaît comme le nouveau centre d'intérêt majeur, à voir l'attention qui lui est portée dans les médias    voir le français ci-dessous … I'm afraid that AI will spell the end of what we know is true. … The technology that is currently being developed, whilst making a positive contribution to society, in the long-run, it is doing more harm than good. On both sides, we won't know what is true and already there are things on the Internet that many of which are fake or influenced by artificial intelligence that destroys the soci...

Major Livestock Producing Countries Commit to Mitigate Methane in Agriculture  - article from the Global Methane Hub:   https://www.globalmethanehub.org/ Les pays d'élevage les plus importants s'engagent à limiter les émissions de méthane dans l'agriculture                                           - voir traduction ci-dessous Cover Photo: Leaders from 20 countries, representing 50% of agricultural methane emissions at the First Ministerial Meeting on Lower Emission Food Systems, Santiago, Chile, April 2023. [Photo de couveture] Les responsables de 20 pa...

Given the fact that our youngest Marist Units, who have the most vocations, are in countries most affected by Global Debt – I would like to present this article [from Aljazeera] for our awareness. Extract: "In Africa, the amount spent on interest payments is higher than spending on either education or health. Developing countries in Asia and Oceania [excluding China] are allocating more funds to interest payments than to health,"  "Similarly in Latin America".  Almost half of humanity lives in countries that spend more servicing interest on debt than health or education, UN says. Approximately 3.3 billion people – almost half of humanity – now live in countries that spend more mone...

Fr Yean-Yves Denize sm writes from Marist Provincial House Paris:  Le P. Yean-Yves Denizel sm écrit de la Maison provinciale mariste de Paris :  voir ci-dessous Historical: Created in 1945, the "Secours populaire français" = "French Peoples Aid" is the heir of popular movements whose values it has, throughout these decades, preserved while evolving considerably. Its orientation, its missions, its independence make it possible today to bring together people of heart regardless of their personal commitments, their political, philosophical or religious sympathies, without any distinction of sex, age or social level. Day after day, here as elsewhere, the "Secours populaire", an as...

This week's post comes from Fr Paul Walsh sm - Irish Marist, working in France:   Le message de cette semaine vient du P. Paul Walsh sm - mariste irlandais, travaillant en France : voir la traduction française ci-dessous  Father Colin invites Marists to work for a synodal Church Reading the documents from Rome accompanying Pope Francis' invitation to the synodal process, I was struck by echoes in our Marist tradition reflected in the words of Jean-Claude Colin. I give a series of sentences taken from the documents presenting the synodal process, followed by a few brief references to the Founder of the Marist Fathers. I hope that these few lines will motivate you to make your o...

JUSTIFYING AN INTEGRAL CAPABILITIES APPROACH TO SUSTAINABLE HUMAN DEVELOPMENT   [Abstract: John Guo SM]   The idea that development should be sustainable has been refined and widely accepted. It is no longer a new discussion topic, but is part of the concern of human development already. The concern for the well-being and quality of life must be sustainable. The Brundtland Commission Report Our Common Future described sustainable development as "development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." People is the only end of sustainable human development. The Brundtland Commission's definition ...

Jeudi 23 mars : pour la mi‐carême, le site de Meyzieu a accueilli des étudiants en STAPS et des jeunes en situation de handicap pour vivre une journée festive à l'occasion de la Journée Nationale du Sport et du Handicap (JNSH). Cette journée a pour objet de sensibiliser au handicap et de promouvoir le sport adapté, qui permet d'intégrer les personnes en situation de handicap. L'accessibilité brise les barrières sociales et lutte contre l'isolement. Thursday 23 March: for mid-Lent, the Meyzieu site welcomed STAPS students and young people with disabilities for a festive day on the occasion of the National Day for Sport and Disability (JNSH). The aim of this day is to raise awareness of disabi...

This article was forwarded to us by Kiwi Marist: Phil Cody SM:  it is written by Mary Betz, an associate of Phil's in ministry: Mary Betz: Originally from Canada and USA, Mary has lived in New Zealand for nearly thirty years. She is an ecologist, theologian and writer, has two grown daughters, and lives with her husband Peter in the Titirangi bush.https://acsd.org.nz/spiritual-director/mary-betz/ Mary Betz recommande que nous travaillions ensemble avec le courage et la résolution de l'Esprit pour réduire le chaos climatique en notre monde.   https://hail.to/tui-motu-interislands-magazine/publication/UecNnu0/article/LacE7TG      voir ci-dessous Mary Betz recommen...

This week's post was sent to us by Fr Francois Grossin SM, New Caledonia, from NZ Catholic, 6th March 2023. It is an address from Cardinal Soane Patita Paini Mafi who is the first ever cardinal from Tonga and the youngest member of the College of Cardinals. He is also the President of Caritas Oceania and represents the region on key issues, especially climate change.    Traduction française : voir ci-dessous : Across the Pacific, people are picking up the bones of their ancestors like shells on the beach. Burial grounds are being washed away by rising tides. Communities are shoring up seawalls with old tyres. I was raised on the beautiful island of Tonga. When I was a child, my par...

San Isidro Care Centre was founded by the late Br. George van der Zant of the Society of Mary in 2007. Sr. Maria Fe Rollo SMSM  continues Br George's dream of changing the lives of deaf students in the Solomon Islands. Sr. Maria Fe Rollo has been a Missionary Sister of the Society of Mary for 15 years. Born in Davao City, Philippines, she joined the congregation when she was 36, drawn to its missionary charism of going out to the frontiers, proclaiming the Gospel inspired by and confident in Mary's help. She trained as a secondary teacher but has taught religious education in primary, secondary and tertiary settings, mostly in Davao City, Maitum, and General Santos City in the...

Our blog this week has been submitted by Br Ivan Vodopivec SM - agreed by Anei - a South-Sudanese Refugee who made it to England. Anei requested to keep his original name for his article. Notre blog de cette semaine a été soumis par le Frère Ivan Vodopivec SM - accepté par Anei - un réfugié sud-soudanais qui s'est rendu en Angleterre. Anei a demandé de conserver son nom d'origine pour son article. Name / Nom: Anei                      Country / Nationalité : South Sudan                       Ethnicity / Origine ethnique : Shilluk I was born in Malakal Town South S...

Fr Donato Kivi SM presented the following "Care for our Oceans" to the Federation of Catholic Bishops Conferences of Oceania - a regional grouping that comprises the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, the New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference, the Catholic Bishops Conference of Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands and the Episcopal Conference of the Pacific (CEPAC) – which includes Cook Islands, Fiji, French Polynesia, Guam, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, New Caledonia, Northern Mariana Islands, Samoa, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Wallis and Futuna. At their recent Assembly held in Fiji from 5th – 10th February. Care for the Oceans Ferdinand Magellan and his exploration group g...

Our blog this week was referred to us by Fr Petero Matairatu sm, Director of Marist Training Centre, Tutu, Fiji. The booklet can be downloaded here – in English, French, Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese. It is the fruit of a common endeavor between the Vatican Dicastery of Integral Human development and the Stockholm Environment Institute. It is a useful resource for groups, parishes, schools in addressing current issues in 'Our Common Home'. Notre blog de cette semaine nous a été référé par le Père Petero Matairatu sm, Directeur du Centre de Formation Mariste, Tutu, Fidji. La brochure peut être téléchargée ici – en français, anglais, espagnol, italien et portugais. C'est le fruit d'un effor...

Aotearoa/New Zealand poet, Brian Turner has written a poignant little poem called Sky. Made all the more poignant with the recent weather bomb in Tāmakimakarau/Auckland it reads; If the sky knew half of what we are doing down here it would be stricken, inconsolable, and we would have nothing but rain.[i] This poem points to what American ecologist Eileen Crist calls the human supremacy complex[ii].In such a complex the human community and all its noble endeavours reigns supreme. Human industry takes over our planet home in almost every sphere. Extreme, and all too common, examples of human supremacy show up in what are called sacrifice zones[iii]. Almost every nation on Earth has its sacrifi...

Child Labor- now and then   [article sent by Jim Carty sm - Australia] The NOW How many times each day do you use your iPhone, or your Cell-Phone of whatever you call it. Next time you do, think of the "rare-earth" metal cobalt hidden inside- a critical component- Then ask yourself: where did it come from and who mined it and how was it mined? Chances are it came from the so-called Democratic Republic of Congo which is the world's largest cobalt mine, and was mined by either a large international Company or by one method known as artisanal mining That is to say, by a small-scale miner (ASM) who is a subsistence miner not officially employed by a mining company, but works independen...

Prière pour un Futur qui émerge Source de compassion, toi qui contiens toute vie, Rejoins-nous alors que nous tendonsvvers un futur qui naîtra de nos humbles efforts. Guide-nous dans ton futur qui émerge. Donne-nous la force de réduire les dommages que nous causons. Transfigure nos désespoirs, qu'ils deviennent les champs fertiles où germera un monde renouvelé. Nous t'invoquons, Esprit de bonté, pour que tu enveloppes toute chose d'une plénitude de bénédiction. Ouvre-nous à la force de vie qui anime tout ce qui vit, donne-nous le courage, enseigne-nous l'art de la co-création dans notre monde. Whaea nui o te Taiao katoa, inoi mō mātou. Mère de la nouvelle Création, prie pour nous Peter ...