We Would Love
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Editor: This is the eighteenth in this series of articles based on the eight Dossiers (from February 1978 to November 1981) totaling 718 pages in this study. In 1982, Fr. Eugene Barrette, M.S., the prime mover in this historic study, was elected the thirteenth La Salette Superior General (1982-1988). Other articles on Religious Life are available in our La Salette Online Library.

La Salette Rule:

Responsive to the needs of the universal and local Church and in conformity with our charism, attentive to the signs of the times and after prayer and discernment, we generously undertake those apostolic tasks to which we believe Providence is calling us. We also willingly evaluate our ministries and regularly renew our apostolic methods, adapting them to present needs and the requirements of our working conditions. (#26)

To provide more effective service we work in close collaboration with the laity, the diocesan clergy and other congregations, under the authority of the Bishop and in keeping with the pastoral guidelines of the local Church. (#28)

B 3863 Group 2003 Council of the Congregation in Liechtenstein 02aLa Salette Council of the Congregation in Liechtenstein in 2003 “Signs of the times is a phrase that gained popularity with Pope John XXIII, Vatican II, and Pope Paul VI. As used in Matthew 16:4, the phrase referred more to the miracles of the Lord, the extraordinary events. The current use, however, is an attempt to direct the Church and all Christians in the direction of recognizing a particular task that the Church and Christians have in the world – the task of interpreting human history in a Christian light; of identifying and pointing out the events which give evidence of God's presence and activity in the world through human agency.

“The Old Testament is the prime example of a people recognizing [the LORD] acting in their midst through political, social, and personal events. With this perception, they wrote salvation history, and not merely human history. What the Church is called to do in a universal sense, we are called to do locally. But to do it effectively, we must never forget that we need the ‘eyes of faith’ to read the ‘signs of the times authentically.’

“This demands that we do this in a spirit of prayerful discernment. Only by this kind of discernment can we discover God's actual promptings here and now in concrete events. The process involves the dialectic of prayer and of gathering evidence.” (1)

Reflection Questions:

  • What words come to mind when you hear the word “discernment”?
  • Other comments...

La Salette Rule:

Responsive to the needs of the universal and local Church and in conformity with our charism, attentive to the signs of the times and after prayer and discernment, we generously undertake those apostolic tasks to which we believe Providence is calling us. We also willingly evaluate our ministries and regularly renew our apostolic methods, adapting them to present needs and the requirements of our working conditions. (#26)

Why is prayer necessary in times of discernment?

LS Dagenham06cLa Salette Crucifix, marble, in La Salette Chapel, St. Peter’s Church, Dagenham, England“Fr. John C. Futrell, S.J., gives a good resumé of what can happen if a serious attempt to move into new (ministries) or to abandon old ones is done without prayer. In such situations, people:

‘... tend to look at the evidence through lenses colored by a priori desires. Then, a vigorous defense of old, established apostolates, in pious rhetoric of fidelity to the mission of a religious society within the Church, may actually be merely a selfish and short-sighted desire to preserve one's own monument.
 
“Or the declaration of a ‘charismatic call’ to engage in a new form of social apostolate may be the rhetoric to cover up a selfish desire to escape from the demands of community life or of community apostolate. Without prayer, one cannot maintain a strong faith vision.
 
“Thus, there is the risk, also, that social service will be merely humanitarian and not a response to the suffering love of God and a making Jesus Christ present in the world today, or that rejection of social service may be simply a comfort-seeking ‘cop-out.’ (John C. Futrell, S.J., “Deliver Us from Evil: The Social Welfare Mission of Religious Communities Today” in Review for Religious, Volume 30, #5, 1971, p. 872).

“Attentiveness to the needs of the universal and local Church and the ability to read the signs of the times are not skills or abilities that are accidentally or automatically given. They require the use of a process in which everyone can participate. Without this, our apostolic endeavors may well be subject to the whim and fancy of individuals or become obsolete with the resulting frustration of individuals caught in them.” (2)

Why is evaluation necessary in ministry?

“Evaluation is also a task that demands skills and cannot be effectively done if left to mere good will. Evaluation processes should be established to identify the goals and objectives of particular works. These objectives must be measurable over a period of time in terms of change. Otherwise, there can be no serious evaluation. At times the evaluation may lead to the conclusion that the work has been successful, (and) we are therefore able to leave it and find another area of (ministerial) need; (at) other times, the evaluation may conclude that there has been a failure, the next step is to identify if it comes from the individuals involved, or the approach, etc.

“All this is an essential part of what the document concerning the relationship between Bishops and Religious calls ‘apostolic diligence.’ This is necessary to devise new, ingenious, and courageous ecclesial experiments under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, who is by his very nature Creator. A responsibleness rich in the creative initiative is eminently compatible with the charismatic nature of the religious life’ (#19). Evangelii Nuntiandi also acknowledged the particular call of the religious and capacity to be innovative: ‘They are enterprising and their apostolate is often marked by an originality, by a genius that demands admiration’ (#69).

Evaluation and discernment ... go hand in hand and are a major responsibility and challenge in our (ministerial) life.” (3)

Reflection Questions:

  • When have you evaluated or simply shared your opinion about a community ministry, liturgy, or event?
  • Other comments…

La Salette Rule:

All communities and their members aim toward mutual collaboration in their apostolic works, especially when several communities are in the same area. (#43 cp)

The Missionaries always work in close collaboration with the laity, listening to them, sharing responsibilities with them, being available for their formation and lending them the spiritual support they may need. (#52 cp)

How is collaboration part and parcel of La Salette ministry?

“The La Salette Congregation does not work in isolation, does not set up its own little (ministerial) area in the Kingdom to be cultivated and harvested. We are to recognize what we have been graced to give to the Church and insert this in the joint effort of making as present as possible all dimensions of the Mystical Body.

... Religious shall pay special attention to the spiritual needs of the dioceses and foster brotherly relations with the diocesan clergy and with other Institutes engaged upon work similar to their own. (see Ecclesiae Sanctae, I, #28).
 
“The missions themselves have always demonstrated a great capacity in giving the layperson a large role in the life of the local community. There are very few parallels in non-mission countries of the role that the catechist plays in the missions ... Our enthusiasm and sustained effort in promoting the participation of the laity, and also to a great extent religious women, will depend a great deal on the depth of our understanding of the true nature of the Church.”
 
“ ... This participation and collaboration are evident in our parishes: parish councils, sisters, often as part of the pastoral team, lay ministers of communion, and the sick, in some places, lay deacons. Shrines, retreat and renewal centers also have offered great opportunities for this collaboration: retreat teams made up of religious and lay people, laity staffing counseling centers, and the mixed groups that provide the numerable services associated with such centers.

“However, much of our cooperation should not simply be to invite the laity to take part in our ministry and apostolate, but rather to make them more aware of their ministries and to provide them with adequate preparation . . . a spirit of collaboration . . . arises from a clear recognition that we are called to complement one another in the building of local communities.” (4)

La Salette Rule:

Moved by the Holy Spirit who prompted the Son of God to experience our human condition and die on the cross in order to reconcile the world to his Father we resolve, in the light of the Apparition of Our Lady of La Salette, to be devoted servants of Christ and of the Church for the fulfillment of the mystery of reconciliation. (#4)

What is the proper understanding of the place of the Holy Spirit in our lives as religious?

“Linked directly to Christ's mission and the Cross, this ‘spirit’ may be interpreted as:

  • the ‘spirit of Love,’ total love for (humanity);
  • ‘spirit of servanthood’ or even victim, which is drawn extensively from Old Testament prophecy concerning the Messiah;
  • ‘spirit of obedience,’ since Christ's mission of reconciliation was fulfilled in obedient response to the Father's will;
  • ‘spirit of sacrifice,’ resonating with Fr. (Sylvain Marie) Giraud's perspectives;
  • ‘spirit of total giving of self, of kenosis,’ of ‘self-surrender involving their entire lives,’ as an earlier draft expressed.

“All of these, and more, can be drawn in an attempt to understand the ‘spirit’ that moved Christ, especially as demonstrated in that supreme moment on the Cross.” (5)

Reflection Questions:

  • What experience of ministerial collaboration have you greatly enjoyed?
  • Other comments…

La Salette Rule:

Through its chapters and councils each Province sets the priorities that will guide its selection of apostolic works, establishes the criteria it will refer to in taking on new works and periodically evaluates its activities. (#42cp)

Who chooses new ministries and is called to evaluate them?

“Priorities will change according to the needs of the province and the local church:

  • some provinces have established vocations as a priority because of their dwindling numbers;
  • some have focused on new ministries in response to the poor;
  • some have set up the renewal of parish apostolates;
  • some have concentrated on trying to renew religious and community life.

There will always be tension: what should be given priority – the necessities of our religious life or the demands of the (ministry)? The creative response will remain an effective union of the two.

“If there is not a sense of clear orientations or direction concerning the ‘mission’ of the province, then it is only natural that the members will begin to look for their ministry or field of service. Obedience becomes more problematic when the ‘mission’ is unclear and undetermined. Unity is slowly eroded as the sense of ‘common effort in many specific areas becomes nonexistent. There is a sense of ‘(ministerial) energy’ that usually emerges when the goals are clear, and there is a challenge calling the members to participate in these common goals, agreed upon, are truly responding to a real need, and are in line with our perceived charism.” (6)

What is the place of mutual
collaboration among La Salettes –
local and worldwide?

Intra-Parish Cooperation: “Great strides have been made in this area in recent years, on the local and provincial levels. Parishes that are close together have tried, in some cases, to find ways to avoid replicating services. This is especially true when dealing with special programs – such as youth programs, preparation programs for baptism, communion, confirmation, and marriage, charismatic prayer groups, marriage encounter groups, etc. Such cooperation is necessary when we admit that we have limited energy and expertise, and the prime goal is to offer the parishioners the best possible service.

“When we enter the area of other pastoral ministries, such as the elderly and the sick, it often creates more of a problem because people often want ‘their own’ priest. But in Sindelfingen, Germany, there is the example of one priest primarily concerned with this ministry for all the parishes there. This is an area that our parishes in the same area could well continue to examine and make efforts to foster more cooperation.

“(Ministerial) solidarity should be a natural overflow of our commitment to one another in the community for service to the Church. This can offset the temptation of the ‘my little kingdom’ syndrome.

Inter-Provincial Cooperation: “(This) is manifested in many ways:
  • members volunteering for a mission not belonging to their own province;
  • members offering their services to another Province or Vice-Province for a particular need, such as formation;
  • the Fathers and Brothers from different Provinces who help out at the Shrine at La Salette during the high season;
  • financial aid given from one Province to another.
In the United States during the (1980s-1990s), a concerted effort was made to foster and effect greater cooperation. The Provincial Councils of the three Provinces and one Vice-Province have formed the ‘U.S. La Salette Conference.’ Practical results thus far have been:
  • the interprovincial novitiate program, which also welcomed novices from Spain and Italy;
  • a policy for mutual collaboration in apostolic activity; the Provinces and Vice-Province also normally communicate their various ministerial needs and openings to one another,
  • a National La Salette policy on alcoholism and related chemical dependence.

cathopic 1490957938505679 01bVocation Recruitment: “Cooperation has also been established in vocation recruitment programs, and explorations continue for an interprovincial formation program on the college and theology levels. The Norm also underlines that Superiors are obliged to investigate ways to achieve greater cooperation. ‘Grass roots’ initiatives do not often result in concrete action unless there is the support, and more, the actual promotion of those in authority.” (7)

Reflection Questions:

  • What is one of your favorite ministry assignments?
  • Other comments…
Endnotes:
(1) Fifth La Salette Dossier by Fr. Eugene Barrette, M.S., pgs. 51-52; (2) Ibidem, pg. 52; (3) Ibidem, pgs. 52-53; (4) Ibidem, pg. 56-58; (5) Second La Salette Dossier by Fr. Eugene Barrette, M.S., pgs. 59-60; (6) Fifth La Salette Dossier by Fr. Eugene Barrette, M.S., pgs. 81-82; (7) Ibidem, pgs. 82-83.