News/Circular Letter


FMA PCI MEET 2014 - GUWAHATI

Inaugural function of PCI


The Six Provincials of FMA India with the Provincial Delegates for General Chapter XXIII gathered at Auxilium Provincial House, Guwahati for the PCI Meet 2014 from 14th to 16th April. The meeting was headed by Sr. Kathleen Tylor, the General Councilor from Rome.
Sr. Kathleen Taylor, General Councilor, Six Provincials of India, Province Delegates for GC XXIII with 17 vibrant Juniorate Sisters of INM, INC, INS, ING

 
CANONICAL VISITATION 

Hearty Welcome to Dear Sr. Kathleen Taylor

to the Province of Mater Ecclesiae, Guwahati


                       
FMA, ING, Provincial Circular
              
                        Auxilium Provincial House

                 Christian Basti, GMC Road, Dispur

                   Guwahati – 781 005, Assam, India



Cir. EG/05/2014                                                                                                              May 4, 2014

Be very devoted to the Virgin Mary, our most tender Mother. Imitate her virtues, especially humility, purity and reserve. If you act this way you will be happy in life and in death”

St. Maria Domenica Mazzarello

 My dear Sisters,

Affectionate greetings from Auxilium Provincial House!

We are still in the Season of Easter and so I wish all of you the blessings of this holy season. For our reflection this time I have chosen a passage from the letter of St. Paul to the people of Corinth: The foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength. (1Cor 1:25)

Jesus knew very well that his mission had to be continued by others after he returns to his Father.  Therefore before accomplishing his task on earth and commending his life into the hands of his Beloved Father, he chose and trained His successors who would ensure continuity to this all important mission of the salvation of the human race. But the Lord who said ‘my kingdom is not of this world’ used an interesting selection strategy.  He never looked for a group of perfect people. He never looked for their academic qualifications. He never asked them to show their credentials, because he could read into their hearts. His interview techniques were so different, so fascinating and so compelling. He just called them by name in most cases. He invited them to follow him and to stay with him. His core group consisted of 12 men whom He trained to be his apostles and closest collaborators.

The 12 were from different backgrounds and of different temperaments. Yet He chose them and accompanied them for 3 years before He could send them out as His messengers.  He chose Peter and Andrew who were fishermen. Among them, Peter was impetuous by temperament and blundered to the point of being called Satan and an obstacle to His divine mission. But he repented and turned to the Lord every time he faltered. Jesus called Mathew, the tax collector who was hated for his lucrative skill of extortion of money. He called Thomas, the unbelieving one who later would be very skeptical about His resurrection.  He called James and John, the fiery sons of thunder who wanted immediate destruction of the cities that refused to welcome Jesus and who were ambitious to sit at His right and His left.  He called those who, after all his lessons on humility and servant leadership, were disputing as to who among them was the greatest. He chose the greedy and treacherous Judas Iscariot inspite of knowing that he was going to betray him. Indeed Jesus’ way of looking at people was so different.  For all human standards and calculations Jesus had done the most foolish thing to choose men of this type and entrust to them His work.

Jesus could have called as Apostles men who were more cultured and educated, men who were more eloquent in worldly terms, men who would be more loyal to him etc…. But he chose these men to be the foundation of his kingdom, proving that the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength. As a master trainer and excellent human resource manager he accepted them as they were, accompanied and transformed them into a powerful team of men that made the maximum impact on the world. 

Looking at our vocation stories we see a similar situation. We could apply to our call the words of St. Paul addressed to the Corinthians: “Consider your own calling brothers (sisters), not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. Rather, God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong, God chose the lowly and despised of the world, those who count for nothing, to reduce to nothing those who are something, so that no human being  might boast before God…….. ‘Whoever boasts should boast in the Lord”. (1 Cor 26-31)

Like the Apostles He chose 2000 years ago, Jesus chose each one of us to share in His mission. He picked us up from different backgrounds and brought us into where we are today. We too are of different temperaments. Some of us blunder like Peter and get into trouble. Some are like the sons of thunder with avenging attitudes. Some are like the unbelieving Thomas with tendency to argue, question and demand proofs. Like Judas some of us may have mixed values and say “what a waste” or “what a show” or “what is the use” when a good action is done by another. While Jesus was talking about his passion and death there was a group of them talking about who was the greatest among them. Likewise, our actions may be coloured by petty jealousies and childish rivalries forgetting the real essence of our call. We need not be ashamed or discouraged if we happen to fall in the category of any of these.  We just have to allow Jesus into our lives. Allow Him to transform our lives as He transformed the Apostles. Allow him to write a new page in our personal history each day. We will then experience the power of God working through our weakness. Let us also cultivate the attitudes of Jesus towards one another – the attitude of love, of compassion and the readiness to look at each other with a positive glace.

 “Rejoice”
This is running theme of the Easter season. This is also the theme for the Year of Consecrated life. Referring to it, our beloved Mother Yvonne, in her Circular No. 945 elaborates beautifully the theme of Joy. In it she gives us the reason to rejoice. She says: Rejoice, because the Lord has thought of you. Rejoice because as in the life of Mary the Lord is doing great things in our life as well.  Joy comes from the Lord’s presence, from being in vital relationship with Him.  The Lord is Joy!   May we discover each day more and more the beauty of our consecrated life and the joy of being “mothers who generate life”.

Honour to Mary and Our Salesian Saints
May is the month dedicated to our Blessed Mother and we are privileged to honour her under the title of Help of Christians. Love for Mary is something engraved in the hearts of each of us her daughters and Mary occupies a special place in the history of our vocation to this dear Congregation willed and desired by her. Let us strive each day to resemble her more and more and become an active stone contributing to the beauty of the Living Monument to Mary that Don Bosco wanted us to be. Don Bosco told our first Sisters: “You belong to a religious family that is all Mary’s……. Let your beautiful title of Daughters of Mary Help of Christians be your glory and often think that your Institute is to be a Living Monument of Don Bosco’s gratitude to the great Mother of God under the title of Help of Christians”. (Cronistoria pg 303)

I wish you a very Happy Feast of our Mother as well the feast of St. Dominic Savio on the 6th of May and the Feast of our Co-foundress on 13th May. May the example of Dominic Savio, the teenage saint, the fruit of the Preventive System inspire us in our mission among the young. We look up to St. Mary Domenica Mazzarello and ask her to help us to make our communities  Mornesian communities where the young people can breathe a happy and serene atmosphere of joy, a home where they will experience the presence of Jesus.

Working Document of GC XXIII
We have received the English translation of Working Document of GC XXIII.  Each one of you will receive a copy of it. It is the ardent desire of our Mother General that every FMA feels part of this mega event taking place in the Institute. One way to be part of the GC XXIII would be to deepen this document at personal and community level. One of the deliberations of PCI, recently held at our Provincial house, Guwahati was to take up this document for study at community level. Therefore, I recommend that we join the entire institute in its journey towards GC XXIII through a more personalized study and sharing of the Working Document.  You are encouraged to read side by side the apostolic Exhortation of Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium, which was constantly referred to in the preparation of the Working Document.

Canonical Visitation
We continue to accompany our dear Sr. Kathleen Taylor in her visitation to our communities. Her visits and her inspiring presence are certainly means of personal and community renewal which we will cherish.

Seminars and Retreats
Seminar on Family Pastoral: Twenty Sisters, including those of the Intensive Juniorate participated in the two-day course on Family Pastoral in the context of North East India organized by Sacred Heart Theological College, Shillong on May 2-3, 2014.

Animators’ Seminar:  Six Community Animators will participate in the Animators’ Seminar organized by the National CRI at Bethel, Barapani from May 5-9, 2014.

Principals’ Conference: Eight Sisters will participate in the 6th National Seminar for Principals of Schools organized by Don Bosco Institute, Kharghuli from May 21- 23, 2014.

Seminar on Tribal Societies of NE: Two sisters will participate in the National Seminar on Social Organization in Tribal Societies of North East India organized by North Eastern Social Research Centre (NESRC) in collaboration with Tribal Study Centre of Eastern Theological College, Jorhat at Inspiration, Kharghuli on 26-27 June, 2014.

Seminar on Spirituality of Don Bosco: As part of our preparation for the Bicentenary of the birth of  Don Bosco  we are organizing two seminars on the Spirituality of Don Bosco in the month of July for two separate group of sisters  divided profession-wise. Dates and other details will be communicated to you later.

Khetri Retreat: There are series of retreats for sisters organized at the Khetri retreat Centre, Sonapur in the month of July. We have booked 5 seats for the retreat starting at 4 p.m. on 7th July and ending at 10 a.m. on 12th July. As it is a holiday month, you can avail of this good opportunity. Those interested kindly give your names in the Provincial Office by May 15th.

Language Courses: Knowledge of the language is a tool for greater effectiveness in our mission. Therefore, kindly look out for opportunities to learn local languages during the summer vacation.

Family Apostolate: In his letter to the Families the Holy Father Pope Francis wrote: In your journey as a family, you share many beautiful moments: meals, rest, work, leisure, prayer, trips and pilgrimages and at times mutual support……….. Nevertheless, if there is no love, then there is no joy, and authentic love comes to us from Jesus. He offers us his word, which illumines our faith; He gives us the bread of life which sustains us on our journey……… May the protection of the Blessed Mother and St. Joseph always accompany you and help you to walk united in love and in caring for one another”.

As we look around, we see that the family life has become so fragile. There is an increase in broken homes, resulting in neglect of children, who are the future of the Church and the future of the society. This year being the year of the family, let us intensify our family apostolate, starting from the homes of our own children. One of the proposals made in the PCI is to make our schools Parent friendly. As our General Chapter is strong on the theme of relationship, let us make it point to build up happy relationship with the parents and families of our children, in this way making our communities truly evangelizing presences.

I wish you once again a fervent month of May.  I am sure you have already thought of creative ways of honouring our Blessed Mother together with our children in the schools and boarding and with our parishioners.

Affectionately,
Sr. Elizabeth George
Provincial




FMA, ING, Provincial Circular

Auxilium Provincial House

Christian Basti, GMC Road, Dispur

            Guwahati – 781 005, Assam, India


 
Cir.EG/04/2014                                                                                                          April 11, 2014

 

 


                                      “We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again;

death no longer has domination over Him” Rom 6:8-9

 My dear Sisters,
Greetings from Auxilium Provincial House!

 The month of April brings in seasonal changes which are more marked in some parts than in others.  Trees begin to give new shoots and the nature which looked barren during the cold winter months now begin to be alive with green foliage and colourful blossom. Birds that had migrated to escape the cold are seen to return. There is a feeling of freshness and newness all over. In several parts of our Country particularly in NE India there are spring festivals associated with new life in nature, fresh harvest of crops, all emanating a sense of joy and well being.

 For us Christians, the Feast of Easter celebrated during this period is of great significance as it is the celebration of the triumph of Jesus over sin and death. He brings to us the new life of grace bought at the cost of his precious life, for we know that before Jesus rose to the triumph of the resurrection he had to undergo the shameful mockery and trial, the experience of being betrayed and denied by his own, make the painful journey to Calvary, be crucified between two criminals, suffer the excruciating agony and give up his life in total atonement for our sins in obedience to his Father’s will. The lesson for us his followers is clear. In our life too, the sequence is this. We need to follow the master to Calvary before experiencing the joy of the resurrection.  In other words, the Good Friday is always a prelude to the resurrection Sunday.  

 We will soon be in the Alleluia mood. The symbols used to represent Easter speak of a transformation which is expected of every believer. We are invited to destroy the old nature with all its sinful habits and tendencies and put on the new nature befitting God’s children. St. Paul exhorts us in his letter to the Colossians “As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourself with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness and patience…….. above all clothe yourself with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony and let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body”. (Col 3: 12, 14-15)

 Welcome to Sr. Kathleen Taylor

Sr. Kathleen TAYLOR, Visiting Councilor is already in our Province. After a long preparation and anxious waiting because of her health problem, she reached the Provincial house on April 7, 2014. She was   received at the airport by Sr. Mabel Gothorp, Vice Provincial and the Animators and Sister representatives of the Guwahati Communities. Having arrived at the Provincial house she was accorded a grand and colourful welcome by the Sisters. In the evening Most Rev. Thomas Menamparampil, SDB, DD, Archbishop Emeritus of Guwahati celebrated the inaugural Eucharist in which a good number of Sisters from the nearby communities participated. She is now on her first round of visits to Tinsukia and Dibrugarh. We thank God for granting her the good health to be able to visit us and we continue to accompany her with prayers. As you understand from her itinerary, due to constrains of time and entry restrictions she is not able to visit some of our communities. However we have made the best possible arrangements so that everyone can have the opportunity to meet her. Those communities she is not able to visit could bring some visual presentations like PPT or albums depicting your activities. We pray for her good health and the success of her visit.

Welcome to the PCI Delegates

FMA ING is privileged to host the PCI 2014 at our Provincial House from April 14-16, 2014. We welcome Sr. Kathleen Taylor the presiding General Councilor, all the Provincials of India and the delegates of the PCI, who are also the delegates to the General Chapter XXIII. The main focus of the meeting will be the study of the GC XXIII Working Document and plan for an effective participation in the General Chapter. From our Province Sr. Lydia Komuhra, Chapter Delegate and Sr. Mabel Gothorp, the Substitute will participate. I would request the communities to pray for the success of this meeting.

Thank you Rev. Fr. Pascual Chavez


We express our sentiments of gratitude to Rev. Fr. Pascual Chavez for the inspirational and dynamic leadership rendered to the Salesian family. We are greatly indebted to him because as the successor of Don Bosco he has extended his spiritual animation to our institute through the annual Strenna, occasional visits and other forms of spiritual animation. Most of us have had the opportunity to meet him and be inspired by the depth of his spirituality. As we thank him for the 12 years of his service as Rector Major, we promise him our prayers for his future ministry.

Congratulations              


We join the Salesian Congregation to thank God for the gift of the new Rector Major, Rev.Fr. Angel Fernandez Artime. We congratulate Fr. Angel on his being elected as the tenth Successor of Don Bosco during the 27th General Chapter of the Salesians.  


Fr Ángel Fernández Artime, 53 years of age was born on 21 August 1960 at Gozón-Luanco, Spain. He made his first profession on 3 September 1978, his perpetual profession on 17 June 1984 and was ordained priest on 4 July 1987. Originally from León Province, he has been Youth Ministry Delegate, Rector of the school at Ourense, member of the Council and Vice Provincial and from 2000 to 2006, and Provincial of León. He was a member of the technical commission in preparation for General Chapter 26. In 2009 he was appointed Provincial in Argentine South, a task he has carried out until now. On 23 December last he was appointed Provincial of the new Province of Mary Help of Christians in Spain, an office which Fr. Angel will obviously not be able to take on now, since he will exercise his ministry as Father of the whole Salesian Family.

We also congratulate all the General Councilors – newly elected as well as those renewed in service. We congratulate particularly Rev. Fr. Ivo Coelho, the new Councillor for Formation and Fr. Maria Arokiam Kanaga who has been re-elected as Regional Councillor for South Asia.  We wish Rector Major and his team of Councilors God’s blessings that they be able to lead the Congregation in creative fidelity to the spirit of Don Bosco.

 Two Popes to be canonized

Pope Francis will canonize two Popes of the recent times – Pope John XXIII who judiciously guided the Church from 1958 -1963 and Pope John Paul II who had a long pontificate of great impact from 1978 - 2005. They will be canonized at Rome on April 27, 2014 - the Divine Mercy Sunday. We thank God for the gift of these two saintly Pontiffs who were giants in their spiritual leadership. Now that their sanctity is officially recognized by the Church let us seek their help and intercession in our effort to be witnesses of Christ.

 Happy Feast to our Beloved Mother Yvonne

We are already in the month-long preparation for the Feast of World Gratitude Day. Last year around this time all eyes were turned towards India and this year the entire FMA world looks towards the St. Francis Xavier Province, Bahia Blanca, Argentina. Let us unite ourselves with the whole FMA world to greet Mother Yvonne and thank her for her service of animation carried out through her visits to the different parts of the Institute, her circular letters which give us direction and spiritual food and all other spiritual helps that we receive in order to live our Salesian FMA call with joy and enthusiasm. The forum of the Institute Website www.cgfmanet.org which will be opened from 20th April 2014 will enable us to express our gratitude to our beloved Mother.

It is an ardent desire of our beloved Mother that we sent missionaries for Mission Ad Gentes as we celebrate the bicentenary of the birth of Don Bosco, who dared to send some of his best Salesians to the missions in the very initial stages of the Congregation. Those who feel a call within a call may make your application to Mother General through the Provincial.

 Parliamentary Elections

Several parts of our country have already entered into Parliamentary Elections. As citizens of this country, let us exercise our franchise and pray that God will give us God-fearing leaders who will work for the welfare of the people and the progress of the nation.

 Child Friendly Guwahati (CFG)

CFG is a new project which aims at ensuring that no child is left out of school in the City of Guwahati. It was a challenge thrown to the religious of Guwahati by Archbishop John Moolachira of Guwahati.  The idea was seriously taken up by several Religious Congregations; the SDB’s taking a great lead in it. We are happy that all the four FMA institutions in Guwahati are actively involved in the cause of the poor either through the CFG centres, parallel schools or evening coaching centres. This is a concrete way of living the Chapter theme.  With this venture many children are mainstreamed and others are in the process. Public awareness has been created resulting in several people of good will joining hands and keen interest is seen among parents of the children. I congratulate Sr. Alphonsa Kurisinkal who is a centre Co-ordinator of 10 centres. She and the Sisters working with her have made a positive impact through their commitment. Thanks to all the Sisters who are committed to the cause of the under privileged children of the society and are passionate about building their dreams and hopes.

Condolences to:

v  Fr. Vattathara Thomas and the Salesians of Guwahati Province at the premature death of Cl. Manuel Mardi who went to his eternal reward on March 24, 2014

v  Sr. George Mary Vijila Rani (INM) who lost her Grandmother and paternal Uncle on March 29 and March 30 respectively.

v  Sr. Magnificat Soosai and Sisters of INM at the demise of Sr. Antoniette Aloysius who passed away on April 6, 2014

v  Sr. Margaret Barla whose nephew passed away on April 7

May Jesus who is our life resurrection console the bereaved family members and give eternal bliss to the dear departed.

 
Prayers requested for:

Ø  The mother of Sr. Roseline Ekka who is ill and undergoing treatment

Ø  Elder Brother of Sr. Ronai Maria Goretti who is hospitalized in Delhi

Ø  All our students and Students Sisters who will appear for their University final examinations during the coming days/months.

 Dear Sisters, before I conclude, I wish each one of you a very Happy and Holy Easter. May Jesus, the Risen Lord give us his Spirit and power to be his effective witnesses and evangelizers like Mary Magdalene and the Apostles. Alleluia! Christ is Risen. May our lives continue to reflect the joy of the resurrection.

Affectionately,

 Sr. Elizabeth George, FMA
Provincial

 


FMA, ING, Provincial Circular
 
Auxilium Provincial House
 
Christian Basti, GMC Road, Dispur
           
           Guwahati – 781 005, Assam, India

 
Cir. EG/03/2014                                                                                                        March 5, 2014

 “Turn away from your sins and be converted to the Lord”
My dear sisters,
Today (Ash Wednesday), we entered into an important season of the Liturgical Calendar.  The ritual of the imposition of the ashes on our foreheads and the accompanying words reminded us of the three-fold task traditionally attached to this liturgical period viz. prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Indeed this season invites us to go beyond the fulfillment of some rituals of prayer, fasting and almsgiving, and bring about inner purification and cleansing of our thoughts and intentions in order to make our works truly pleasing to the Lord.

The Holy Father Pope Francis with His Lenten message for 2014 entitled: ‘He became poor, so that by His poverty you might become rich’ gives us certain helpful and practical thoughts on the path to conversion as individuals and as community. “Christ the eternal Son of God, one with the Father in power and glory chose to be poor;…….. He set aside his glory and emptied himself so that he could be like us in all things”….. but the reason for all this is his love, a love which is grace, generosity, a desire to draw closer, a love that does not hesitate to offer itself in sacrifice for the beloved. ….. Love makes us similar, it creates equality, it breaks down walls and eliminates distances. ………..”. Here is a point of reflection for us.  We too chose to be poor in imitation of Jesus. How far do we identify our life with his? Let this season of Lent with a powerful theme “He became poor, so that by His poverty you might become rich”, help us question our personal and community style of identification with the poor. Speaking on our witnessing lives, the Holy Father says:  “God’s wealth passes not through our wealth, but invariably and exclusively through our personal and communal poverty, enlivened by the Spirit of Christ”. The Pope continues that through the imitation of our Master, we Christians are called to confront the poverty of our brothers and sisters, to touch it, to make it our own and to take practical steps to alleviate it. He goes on to elaborate three forms of destitution: material, moral and spiritual which are interconnected and creates situations of helplessness and hopelessness. The Pope however makes an important distinction between poverty and destitution saying that destitution is poverty without faith, without support, without hope.

 Dear Sisters, in this year dedicated to the Family, let us hearken to the invitation of our Holy Father and make all efforts to alleviate the various forms of destitution under which people suffer and look for help.  Let us make sincere and honest efforts to really touch the poverty of our brothers and sisters who live not far away from our communities.  May this season of Lent find us disposed and convinced at personal level first and then at community level about the evangelical attitude of poverty and become poor like Jesus so that through our poverty we can enrich others. If you go through the Provincial Chapter document you will find that we have identified our weak areas and have taken up certain commitments in favour of the poor. These commitments can become real only if each one of us can say “it has touched and transformed my life”. So kindly take up the reading and reflection of the Chapter Document at community level.

 Before I conclude this part of my Circular I would like to quote Pope Francis again:Lent is a fitting time for self-denial; we would do well to ask ourselves what we can give up in order to help and enrich others by our own poverty. Let us not forget that real poverty hurts: no self-denial is real without this dimension of penance. I distrust a charity that costs nothing and does not hurt”. Does our poverty hurt us in any way?........

 Month of St. Joseph
 The month of March is dedicated to St. Joseph, the Spouse of Mary and the Foster Father of Jesus.  The Gospels do not speak much of St. Joseph, but a single phrase “just man” speaks everything about him. It is interesting to note that his silence is more remarkable in the Sacred Scriptures than his words. But he is remembered as one who silently carried out his responsibilities as a father and spouse, for being a man of faith, honour, trust and justice.  St. Joseph was a witness to the poverty of the Son of God right from his infancy. Let us follow the example of St. Joseph, the patron of interior life and seek his intercession to be able to reach holiness by sanctifying each day through our fidelity and   abandonment to the Father’s will. Happy Feast of St. Joseph to all, especially the Community of Tezpur, which is named after St. Joseph.

 International Women’s Day
"Inspiring Change for Empowerment” is the theme for International Women’s day 2014.   It is the combination of the United Nations' proposal, "Equality for Women and Girls is Progress for All" and its other proposal, "Inspiring Change".

Inspiring change for what purpose?

-For greater awareness of young women and girls' rights

-For more leadership roles for young women and girls

-For equal recognition of young women and girls in the arts

-For growth of female-owned businesses

-For increased financial independence for young women

-For an increased number of young women and girls in the fields of science, engineering and technology

-For fairer recognition of young women and girls in the area of sports and athletics

It encourages advocacy for the empowerment of young women and girls in all areas.  It calls for challenging the status quo and inspiring positive changes in equality and progress for women and girls.  Uniting the terms 'equality', 'progress', and 'advancement' into the single term, 'empowerment', has a deeper significance in the world today especially in speaking of women and girls.  I would encourage you to read the message sent from our Centre and reflect on this theme in a more biblical, ecclesial and Salesian way as given therein.

ANNUNCIATION OF THE LORD
Mary’s “Yes” was a decisive moment for the whole of humanity because on it depended God’s master plan of saving the human race. With her “Yes” began the dawn of Salvation because in Mary God found a worthy and willing dwelling place for his Son to assume our human nature. For humanity it was a victory but for Mary it was a leap into the dark which was sustained only by her complete faith and trust in God expressed through the simple word “Fiat”. As we adore the great mystery born in Mary’s womb, let us learn from her the great virtue of humility and faith, virtues which strike out in the event of annunciation. The angel said “Nothing is impossible to God”. In our daily events of life which may at times make us raise the question “How”, let us learn to trust the wisdom of God rather than our human intelligence and reasoning.  

It is a tradition that all our candidates in formation make their application for the successive stage of formation or for the final profession on this date. Let us send ahead our prayers for them to make the right choice under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit and Our Blessed Mother.

FEAST OF GRATITUDE 2014
A letter from the Vicar General, Sr. Emilia Musatti, has officially announced that the World Feast of Gratitude for Mother Yvonne Reungoat will be celebrated on April 26, at Bahia Blanca, in the Argentinian Province of St. Francis Xavier (ABB). “The wind of your Spirit makes us fruitful” is the theme that St. Francis Xavier Province proposes for the preparation and celebration of the feast.

Dear Sisters, you will be receiving separately, the letter of Sr. Emilia Musatti. It is our duty to join the entire Institute in this event and send ahead prayers for the intentions of Mother General. As the feast is on 26th April, our preparations should begin on 25th March. All those who have access to internet, please use it to send messages to Mother General in the Institute’s website. 

THE 27TH GENERAL CHAPTER OF THE SALESIANS
The 27th General Chapter of the Salesians of Don Bosco officially opened on March 3, 2014.  This Chapter signals a very important moment for the entire Salesian Family and particularly for the Salesians as major decisions and deliberations that affect the life of the Congregation will be made during this period.  There will also be the election of the Rector Major and other General Councilors. As members of the same Family, it is our duty to pray and support them that they may be led and inspired by the Spirit all through the days of the Chapter.

PCI 2014: I request your prayers for the success of the PCI meet that will be held at Auxilium Provincial House, Christian Basti, Guwahati from April 14-16, 2014.

Public Examinations: Our student Sisters and children who are appearing for the various examinations ask our prayers for the success of their exams. This is also an auspicious time for us to organize vocation camps in the different centers.

Training of Youth Pasch Animators: There will be training of Animators for the Youth Pasch organized jointly by NEEC and DBI from March 29-30 in Guwahati. Details will be communicated by the organizers.

Cancellation of the Canonical Visitation
As already communicated to you, we regret that Sr. Kathleen Taylor is not able to come for the Canonical Visitation this year due to her ill health. I am assured that we will have the Canonical Visitation, in the first half of next year. Sr. Kathleen also feels much about this last minute cancellation and she has written to each one of us expressing her feelings. We surrender to God’s plan and pray for the good health of Sr. Kathleen.  I will be beginning my official visitation to the communities from March 10 onwards as per the itinerary given.

“REJOICE”- the first circular letter addressed to Consecrated Life
The Holy Father has declared the Year 2015 as the Year of Consecrated Life. The year will be officially inaugurated on November 21, 2014 and will conclude on November 21, 2015, the 50th anniversary of Perfectae Caritatis. Vatican is planning several meetings and programmes to celebrate the year meaningfully.  “Rejoice” is the first Circular Letter written by the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life and was presented on February 26 at the Urbanianum Pontifical University, Rome.  We look forward to the Year of Consecrated Life as a special gift of God.


The Three objectives of the Year of Consecrated Life are:
1.    To “make a grateful remembrance of the recent past.”
2.    To ‘embrace the future with hope’
3.    To “live the present with passion”

Prayers Requested for the Sick:
Ø  For  Sr. Elizabeth Condpan and Sr. Rebecca Hajowary who are undergoing treatment in St. John’s Hospital, Guwahati and Sr. Bernadette Sangma (INS) who is undergoing treatment in CMC, Vellore.
Ø  For the Father of Sr. Elizabeth Kunnel
Ø  Mother of Sr. Teresa Karottukunnel
Ø  Parents of Sr. Arati Rabha
Ø  Sister of Sr. Teresa Edattukalayil

Please pray for the community of Imphal that is facing serious problems during these days.
I wish you a fruitful and holy season of Lent. Let us reach out to families, catechize them and prepare them and our Catholic children to live meaningfully the Easter mysteries.

I convey also the greetings of our Sisters from Rome who always remember and pray for our Province. Let us also support them with our prayers.

Affectionately,

 Sr. Elizabeth George FMA
Provincial

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