ICSS NEWSLETTER No. 9 October-November, 2001

 

SALESIAN STUDIES

WORLD WIDE

______________________________________________________________________________

 

PUBLISHED BY THE INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION ON SALESIAN STUDIES (ICSS) OF THE OBLATES OF ST. FRANCIS DE SALES. ITS PRIMARY PURPOSE IS TO DISSEMINATE ON A GLOBAL SCALE INFORMATION DEALING WITH SALESIAN STUDIES (ST. FRANCIS DE SALES; ST. JANE DE CHANTAL; FR. BRISSON, THE FOUNDER OF THE OBLATES;THE OBLATES OF ST. FRANCIS DE SALES,THE OBLATE SISTERS OF ST. FRANCIS DE SALES; THE VISITATION OF HOLY MARY AND OTHER RELIGIOUS AND LAY INSTITUTES WHO ARE MEMBERS OF THE SALESIAN FAMILY.)

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Editor: Alexander Pocetto, OSFS

E-mail: alexander.pocetto@desales.edu

 

Fax: (610) 282-2059 _______________________________________

 

AN OBLATE WITH COURAGE

 

With Heart and Mind Renewed is a recently published collection of essays honoring Fr. John Harvey, OSFS, on the occasion of his 80th birthday and 55th anniversary of priestly ordination. It is edited by Fr. Thomas Dailey, OSFS. In his very entertaining and informative "Introduction", Fr. Dailey highlights some of Fr. Harvey's outstanding traits and achievements. He notes Fr. Harvey's pastoral concern fashioned by Salesian humility and gentleness to assist those who want to live a moral life. This pastoral concern is particularly evident in his work of some fifty years with those who have same-sex attractions and want to live a chaste life in keeping with the Church's teaching. At the request of Cardinal Cooke, then Archbishop of New York, Fr. Harvey established COURAGE, an apostolate of the Roman Catholic church whose purpose is to minister to those with same-sex attractions and their loved ones. It is the only such organization in the Catholic Church approved by the Vatican and currently numbers some 84 chapters located in 29 dioceses of the United States,5 dioceses in Canada and locations in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Poland and the Philippines. The late Cardinal O'Connor, Archbishop of New York, remarked that COURAGE is the only viable pastoral program for homosexuals that the Church has to offer. The COURAGE website can be accessed at: http://CourageRC.org/

 

In a very penetrating and thought-provoking essay entitled "Reflections on Salesian Anthropology," Fr. John Crossin, OSFS, provides the Salesian approach to human relations, which lies at the heart of Fr. Harvey's life-long ministry. Drawing on current Salesian scholarship, Fr. Crossin emphasizes how essential the right kind of relationships is for spiritual growth.

 

Dr. Diane Irving, one of Fr. Harvey's former students and close friend, pays him the following tribute: "His dauntless courage, boundless enthusiasm, incorrigible search for and defense of truth, and deep gentle love for God, His people and His Church, are truly unique, and shine endlessly as an example and source of strength for all."

 

Among other essayists are additional friends and associates of Fr. Harvey -- Dr. William May, Dr. Jude Dougherty, Fr. Benedict Groeschel, C.FR, Dr. Rosalind Edman, and Msgr. George Kelly. The book may be purchased from Fr. Thomas Dailey, De Sales University, 2755 Station Ave., Center Valley, PA 18034 or by email: tdailey@desales.edu.

 

 

SALESIAN SAINTS

 

 

The following news item appears on Boscolink, service of the NORTH AMERICAN SALESIAN NETWORK, complied by Joseph Boenzi, SDB (www.donboscowest.org):

Among the many proposed as models of holiness in 2001, there are several who lived the Salesian charism and whose canonization or beatification has been scheduled for the coming months.

On 25 November 2001, a group of 6 founders and 3 religious will be canonized. Of these, two founders have Salesian roots.

 

The first is LEONIE FRANÇOISE DE SALES AVIAT (1844-1914), foundress of the Oblate Sisters of St. Francis de Sales in Troyes (France) with Fr. Louis Brisson in 1866. The institute of the Oblate Sisters was founded to come to the relief of girls and young women exploited by industrialization in France. Their apostolic commitment moved them into the area of education, social justice and advocacy for women; they did all according to the spirit of St. Francis de Sales as expressed in his "Directory," founding document for the Visitation Order which he founded with St. Jane Frances de Chantal.

 

The second is GIUSEPPE MARELLO (1844-1895), founder of the Oblates of St. Joseph in Asti (1878), and later bishop of Acqui (1889). As a young priest he visited Don Bosco at the Oratory in Turin, became friends with Don Bosco's first group of priests, and joined the Salesian Cooperators. As bishop he took St. Francis de Sales as his model, making this his motto: "Be strong and gentle like St. Francis de Sales." The people and priests of Acqui called him "the new Francis de Sales."

 

Two others will soon be beatified - both of whom grew in Salesian apostolic spirit in Latin America. The date of their beatification is not set, but the path was cleared on 24 April 2000 at the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints in the presence of Pope John Paul II.

 

The first is the venerable servant of God, ARTEMIDE ZATTI (1880-1951), professed brother of the Society of St. Francis de Sales. Trained in nursing, he operated clinics and served the poor and the young of Viedma and other parts of Argentina for over 40 years.

 

The other is the venerable servant of God, MARIA ROMERO MENESES (1902-1977), Daughter of Mary Help of Christians. This native of Nicaragua worked many years training catechists and caring for poor families in Central America. She too had the gift of caring for the sick, rallied support for the building of schools and training centers for the poor, but especially knew how to touch hearts and lead people to recognize the call of God in their everyday lives.

 

 

 

Movie and Video on De Sales

 

 

A film company located in Annecy, France is planning to make a 2-million dollar, animated film on Francis de Sales for TV, highlighting a crucial moment: the Chablais period from 1594 to 1598 --four years that greatly influenced the history of Savoy and the Catholic Church. The film will be financed via the Association for the Film of St. Francis de Sales, a non-profit corporation that will distribute any profits to charities. The film will first be marketed for television viewing in French and English-speaking countries. It will then be distributed on video and DVD. It will be produced using 3D technologies, but all original artwork will be traditional illustrations.

 

The planned release of the film is June 2004 at the world-leading Annecy International Film Festival. To date the project has received the official support of the diocese of Annecy, the Parliament of Haute Savoie, the Regional Parliament of Rhône Alpes, of the three sitting Haute Savoie Senators, and of the cities of Annecy and Thonon. The website notes that "no major animation or film on the life of St. Francis has been produced. His story, beyond its holy dimension, is full. His challenges, his generosity and his perseverance make for a wonderful plot." This ambitious undertaking is another indication of the relevance of St. Francis de Sales for our world. The project is in need of additional financial backing. For more information see its website containing sample illustrations and other details at: www.desales.9p.com.

 

 

Archives of the Generalate

 

Fr. Roger Balducelli, Archivist of the Oblates, has recently completed a new edition of the Instructions of Father Brisson to the Oblates in the original French which is to be known as the Edition Millénaire to distinguish it from the Tilbourg edition. It comprises 5 volumes for a total of 1712 pages and currently exists as a computer manuscript with indexes for each volume and a general index. This edition was produced to correct some of the typographical errors that crept into the excellent Tilbourg edition which the late Fr. James Langelaan, OSFS, of the Dutch Province, edited. To complete Fr. Balducelli's edition, two projects are in the works -- an analytic index modeled after the Table Analytique of the Annecy edition of the writings of St. Francis de Sales and a critical study of the spirituality of Fr. Brisson. The Oblate sisters in charge of formation see the need for such a study, which can also be useful in the formation of Oblates.

 

Another major project that Fr. Balducelli is working on is the Program of Formation undertaken at the request of the Mother General of the Oblate Sisters. This program consists of four major sections: (1) Theoretical Foundations, (2) Program of Formation (3) Spiritual Readings and (4) Historical Readings. Included in the historical readings is an edition of the Cahier de Fribourg (The Fribourg Notebook) of Mother de Sales Chappuis, which is considered to be of great importance because it reveals the origins of the apostolic vocation of the Good Mother, the vocation which eventually brought about her participation in the founding of the two congregations of Father Brisson.

 

 

ICSS Grant Awards

 

Over $12,000 was awarded to 5 Oblates for various projects promoting the Oblate spirit and charism. The recipients and their projects are as follows: Fr. Dailey to conduct a training workshop for faculty to develop courses for his Salesian Studies On-line program, which was successfully piloted last year -- A project entitled"Francis de Sales on CD-Rom" by Bro. Keller, OSFS, to collect more than 500 illustrations of the saint from all over the world and put them on a CD-Rom -- Fr. Power to computerize the Salesian collection of the De Sales Resource Center to facilitate research on Salesian studies -- Fr. Michael Murray, OSFS, to translate the De Sales Spirituality Center's pamphlet series "Salesian Perspectives" into Spanish -- Fr. Alois Bachinger, OSFS, to translate Fr. Dirk Koster's book on St. Francis de Sales into German. The ICSS congratulates all of these recipients and thanks them for their interest in promoting Salesian spirituality.

 

 

Brazil -South American Region

 

Working two continents apart and communicating only via email and the internet, Bro. James Petrait, OSFS, in the US Virgin Islands, and Fr. Larry van der Raadt, OSFS, in Ecuador, collaborated very successfully in putting up a new website in Spanish, Portuguese and English known as "Que Jesus Vida." Fr. van der Raadt does the translating into the various languages and Bro. Jim provides his formidable web skills to put them on the World Wide Web. The outcome of this collaboration is truly remarkable. In fact, the ICSS has received a very warm endorsement of the site from a priest in Argentina who is working on a master's thesis on St. Francis de Sales. So the site is already working its magic to reach people who speak these languages. Check out the site at: http://oblatosamlat.50megs.com.

 

 

France

 

In addition to responding to inquiries of Salesian scholars from many different parts of the world, Sr. Mary Patricia Burns,VHM, Archivist of the Visitation Monastery, is continuing her very important scholarly work that brings to a wider audience these archival riches. Her latest endeavor is the life of Mother Françoise-Madeleine de Chaugy, first biographer of St. Jane de Chantal. It chronicles the important role she played in the canonization process of St. Francis de Sales and is to be published shortly by l'Académie salésienne. [picture of the book's cover]

There is no containing the boundless energy and enthusiasm of Fr. Jean Gayet, OSFS, in promoting Salesian-Oblate spirituality. He has produced two CD-Roms -- one containing the Edition Milléniare of Father Brisson's Instructions mentioned above as well as documents on Mother Mary de Sales Chappuis (This CD is intended for use by the Oblates and is not for commercial publication) and another one that has various pictures and images of St. Francis de Sales. This CD can be obtained by merely sending your request along with a blank CD to:, R.P. Jean Gayet, OSFS, Lycée St. Michel, 27 Faubourg des Balmettes, F--74007 ANNECY CEDEX, FRANCE.

 

Another indefatigable promoter of Salesian spirituality for many, many years is Fr. Henri L'Honoré, OSFS. With the assistance of the late Fr. André Brix,OSFS, he founded the Journées Salésiennes, which were held annually for 31 years (from 1967-1997) in various French cities. It is now superceded by les Echanges Salésiens, under the leadership of Dr. Hélène Bordes. Even though Fr. L'Honoré's health is failing, he still keeps abreast of publications on St. Francis de Sales and has informed us of the following publication - Les Plus Belles Pages de St. François de Sales, ed. l'abbé Cellier.Collection Itinéraire Spirituel chez Clovis.

 

Two new websites in France dealing with Salesian spirituality are another indication of how viable the appeal of the saint is today. One is under the auspices of the lay Association of the Sons of St. Francis de Sales, the society founded by l'abbé Chaumont. Interestingly, the site is both in French and in English. It can be viewed at: www.ifrance.comsalescentre. The other site under the title "Jésus Marie" has Francis listed among the links to doctors of the Church and contains the Annecy edition of the Introduction to a Devout Life, the Controversies under the Title of "Letter to Protestants" and several of the opuscula. The webmaster is looking for someone to translate the Controversies into modern French. When the webmaster asked my advice on the title of "Letter to the Protestants," I told him that it was preferable to Controversies, but "Meditations on the Church" would be a better title because these writings not only have value for Protestants, but for Catholics as well and non-believers. The site can be visited at: http://jesusmarie.free.fr/

.

 

GERMAN-SPEAKING REGIONS

 

 

AUSTRIAN/SOUTH-GERMAN PROVINCE

 

At Ried im Innkreis, Oberoesterreich, a housing development called "Franz-von Sales-Hof," was opened on September 21, 2001. It is built on the former sports field of the Konvikt St. Josef, a boarding school that was managed by the Oblates up to 1994. The development has 40 apartments. In the inner court of this housing development there is a a mosaic which was created by Bro. Benedict Schmitz, OSFS. He wrote about this work: "The collection of apartments bears a name of a man who creates community in a special manner -- Francis de Sales. The driving and motivating force for everything he did was love. This mosaic in which he carries a book, a book that he greatly loved, the Canticle of Canticles , is intended to express the same idea."

 

 

 

On September 15, 2001 a new organ was consecrated in the chapel of the Salesianum in Eichstaett, Bavaria. It is called " The Francis de Sales Organ." In the German-speaking world, this is only the second organ bearing the name of our patron saint. The first organ is in the parish Maria Schmerzen in Vienna, Austria.

 

Under the theme "Spirit - Experience - Life" participants in the "Salzburger Hochschulwoche 2001" discussed the topic "Spirituality." At services in the church of St. Blasius in the center of Salzburg, Fr. Johannes Haas, OSFS, spoke about the richness of Salesian spirituality. In a lecture, Dr. Michael Schneider, SJ, from Frankfurt, Germany, explicitly mentioned the saint who lived and taught spirituality "in the midst of the world" and "in everyday life." The lecture can be accessed at www.kath.de/Patr.Zentrum/Aktuelles.

 

For Fr. Josef Cascales, a Claretian and leading figure of the Cursillo Movement in Austria, Francis de Sales is an important companion in our journey of the spiritual life. He speaks of this in an interview in the Salesian magazine LICHT (no. 5, September-October 2001). He says: "For my personal relationship to God the following sentence of St. Francis de Sales is of crucial importance: "The closer we are to God, the more human we become."

 

In the August 2001 issue of the magazine Gottes Volk, Bibel und Liturgie im Leben der Gemeinde (God’s people, The Bible and Liturgy in Parish Life), edited by Katholisches Bibelwerk in Germany, Francis de Sales is quoted in connection with the celebration of All Saints Day. A section from one of his sermons is published as a short statement about the meaning of the saints and our admiration of them. This publication has a wide distribution in Germany.

 

The Salesian days of reflection take place annually in the Exerzitienhaus Maria Hilf at Passau, Bavaria. This year Fr. Herbert Winklehner, OSFS, will conduct the retreat from December 7-9, 2001. For further information, contact: Provinzialat der Oblaten des hl. Franz von Sales, Ettingshausengasse 1, A-1190 Wien, Tel. (++49) 01/320 66 97, Email: provinzialat@osfs.at

 

The General Chapter of 2000 encouraged the Oblate provinces and regions to find ways to increase their cooperation with lay people in their apostolates with the view of creating lay associates. In the Austrian/South-German province, an initial meeting with interested women and men took place on September 22, 2001 at the parish Maria Schmerzen in Vienna. For further information, contact: Provinzialat der Oblaten des hl. Franz von Sales, Ettingshausengasse 1, A-1190 Wien, Tel. (++49) 01/320 66 97, EMail: provinzialat@osfs.at

 

 

GERMAN PROVINCE

 

The Province is working feverishly to establish its own website. The plan is to go online by the end of this year at: www.osfs.de. Everybody is eagerly waiting to see the results.

 

From August 12-19, 2001 Fr. Konrad Esser, OSFS, led about 40 people on a pilgrimage known as "In the footsteps of St. Francis de Sales." The group first visited Troyes, the foundation place of the Oblates. Then they went for a four day stay to Annecy, the place where St. Francis lived and worked as bishop. From there they travelled to Thorens, the birth place of the saint, and the Chablais, where he worked as a missionary. At the end of the pilgrimage, they visited Paray-Le-Monial, where St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, a Visitation sister, had her visions of the Sacred Heart.

 

The "Accompanied Salesian Retreats" took place again at the monastery of the Visitation at Zangberg, Bavaria from August 24th to September 2nd. The retreats were under the leadershp of Fr. Konrad Esser, OSFS, and Sr. Lioba Zezulka ,VHM, the superior of Zangberg Visitation Monastery. It was the opinion of all participants that these were good and blessed days in which God's spirit had been active. Next year these retreats will again take place from August 30th to September 8th. Accompanied retreats are also planned for the USA from July 5-14, 2002 under the guidance of Fr. Esser. Additional information is available from: Fr. Konrad Esser, OSFS, Haus Overbach, D-52428 Juelich, Tel: (+49)02461/930-01, fax: (+49)02461/930-499, email: P.Konrad.Esser@t-online.de

 

"With Francis de Sales into the new year" is the topic of "Retreats for Everyday Life." Fr. Esser offers these retreats together with Edith Wendehorst of the Secular Institute of St. Francis de Sales. The retreats will take place at the parish of St. Peter in Baesweiler, diocese Aachen, Germany, from January 5-18, 2002. The group will come together on Friday evening to become acquainted, and for prayer and reflection and in order to receive the texts for the following days. The texts for the daily reflections will be taken from the writings of St. Francis de Sales. For further information, contact: Fr. Konrad Esser OSFS, Haus Overbach, D-52428 Juelich, Tel: (+49)02461/930-01, fax: (+49)02461/930-499, email: P.Konrad.Esser@t-online.de

 

For the grammar school of the Oblates at Overbach, Germany, the feast day of St. Francis de Sales on January 24th was always an inopportune time for the celebration because it came at the end of the semester. For this reason, the school decided to transfer this celebration to August 21st. Teachers, students and the Oblates assure us that this premiere will be a successful one.

 

 

India Region

 

 

Osai, the newsletter of the Oblates at Samarpanaram near Bangalore carries a number of interesting and moving items. One of them especially bears repeating in this newsletter for its freshness and simple charm.

 

WHY I AM AN OBLATE by Chandrasekhar, OSFS

 

 

Dear loving confreres,

 

I am here to share some of my thoughts and feelings about a question: Why I am an Oblate? This question made me reflect about my vocation. First and foremost, God wants me to be an Oblate. That is why I am here. To be an Oblate is not easy without the Spiritual Directory. The Spiritual Directory is the only identity I have as an Oblate. Without it I am nothing. As an Oblate I would like to compare myself with a rose bud on a bush. This bush was planted by Fr. Brisson and the Good Mother in 1875. It has grown up and has given the world many beautiful flowers. The fertilizer, water etc. were the teachings and writings of St. Francis de Sales, Fr. Brisson and Good Mother. Usually rose flower attracts many people. I am called by God to be a bud and bloom in this community with the help of the teachings of our patron and founders and under the guidance of the superiors [gardeners]. I walk in 'the way', which the Good Mother had shown us by living the directory, union with God by interior prayer, prayer in action, and living in the community. I too should also attract many souls by my life as St. Francis de Sales and Fr. Brisson had attracted others by their way of life. I know it is so difficult to bloom among the thorns, which are my imperfections. But with the help and grace of God and with the support of the community members I am here to bloom where I am planted.

 

 

Fr. Jose Kumblolickal msfs, of the South West Indian Province of the Missionaries of St. Francis de Sales, is completing his doctoral studies in Spiritual Theology on the "Union with God According to St. John of the Cross and St. Francis de Sales." For his research, he utilized the Salesian collections at both the De Sales Spiriality Center and De Sales University. The topic of my research is "Union with God according to St. John of the Cross and St. Francis de Sales: A critical and comparative Study." He defended his thesis in November. Fr. Jose completed a master's degree from Salamanca University in Spain. His thesis topic was "Friendship with God in the Spirituality of St. Theresa of Avila." This thesis should be of interest to Salesian scholars because of the great influence the writings of St. Theresa had on St. Francis de Sales. Fr. Jose Kumblolickal's email address is" josekumbloly@hotmail.com.

 

 

 

NETHERLAND PROVINCE

 

In 2002 the 75th anniversary of the Oblates in the Netherlands and in the missions will be celebrated. Among other things, a commemorative volume with a history and pictures will be published for the first time. The Dutch Oblates are planning to invite to this celebration all the people with whom they have had contact in the past 75 years -- former pupils, employees, confreres and, of course, the increasing number of the members of the "Salesian circles," a Dutch lay association in the spirit of St. Francis de Sales.

 

 

VISITATION SISTERS

 

In the monastery of the Visitation at Dietramszell, Bavaria, there will be new Salesian exhibit from December 2001 until May 2002. The topic of this exhibit is: "Jeanne de Chantal and the Paris Foundations." The exhibit is being organized by Fr. Franz Hehberger, OSFS, the head of the Institute for Salesian Studies located there. Before visiting the exhibit, one should call: (++49) 08027/801. Further Information is available at: www.kloster-dietramszell.de.

 

The Visitandines from the Visitation schools in St. Louis, Missouri; Mendota Heights, Minnesota; Wheeling West Virginia and Georgetown, Washington, DC collaborated to publish a beautiful brochure entitled "Sharing Prayerful Moments with St. Jane de Chantal: Wife, Mother, Widow and Foundress of the Visitation Order." This project was undertaken because these Visitation Sisters are engaged in educating young women and believe that St. Jane's rich spiritual legacy can be a great source of inspiration and encouragement for them as they seek their own path to sanctity. The brochure may be obtained by writing to any one of these monasteries.

 

 

 

Salesians of Don Bosco

 

 

Last May, John Paul II met with 73 of the 104 Salesian bishops and exhorted them "to persevere courageously in their witness to Christ and the Gospel." The bishops gathered for the first time to reflect on the implications of Don Bosco's charism for episcopal service. The Holy Father appointed 42 of the Salesian bishops, and in October of 2000, he beatified Bishop Luigi Versiglia, a Salesian. In his meeting, the Pope recalled the example of three Indian Salesians, superiors of a novitiate, who were recently "sacrificed" by a separatist group in the region near Imphal. It is customary for the Holy See to assign new mission territories to the Salesians. They have recently been given the prefectures of Gambela in Ethiopia, and Baku in Azerbaijan as well as the diocese of Cairo, Egypt.

 

 

 

South Africa

 

In a recent issue of the South Africa missions' newsletter, Life, a continuation of a short history of the founding of the Oblate House of Studies at Eersterust, Pretoria by Fr. Jan Mostert, OSFS is featured. The article pays tribute to the key role played in its foundation by the late Fr. John Lawrence Oppel,OSFS, former Regional Superior. The house has a memorial chapel in Fr. Oppel's honor. Fr. Aldino Kiesel's, OSFS, handsome photo of the building also appears in this issue. In another article, Fr. Keisel, reports on the 'Youth Mission" in Keimoes and the "Vocation Workshop" in Pella.

 

 

United States

 

In conjunction with its Renew Program, Monica Hlakias, one of the parishioners of Sacred Heart Parish in Bath, PA gave a dramatic presentation of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque. The following evening parish families consecrated themselves to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. An article on the program was featured in the diocesan paper of Allentown with a picture of Monica Halkias dressed in the Visitandine habit.

 

 

Toledo-Detroit Province

 

Continuing the theme of the transmission of the Salesian tradition, Fr. Joseph Power, OSFS, organized the third annual Salesian Scholars Seminar at the De Sales Resource Center. The scholars and their papers are as follows: Fr. Joseph Boenzi, SDB, "What is Salesian in Don Bosco? Francis de Sales and the Sources of Don Bosco's Pastoral Spirit and Tradition;" Dr. Hélène Bordes, "Saint-Cyr et La Visitation; "Dr. Roberta Brown, "Jean Vanier's L'Arche and Salesian Spirituality; "Fr. Joseph Chorpenning, OSFS, " '[Our] heart breathes through the ear ': Francis de Sales, the Spoken Word, and Print Culture;" Sr. Mary Paula McCarthy, VHM, "Salesian Spirituality in the Midst of Violence: The Visitation in France 1939-1945'" Fr. Alexander Pocetto, OSFS, "Jean-Pierre Camus (1584-1652) As Disseminator of the Salesian Spirit;" Fr. Joseph Power, OSFS, "Francis de Sales and Vatican Council I;" Bro. Daniel Wisniewski, OSFS, "Love in the 'Unidiverse': A Salesian Perspective on Chance;" and Dr. Wendy Wright, "Thérèse of Lisieux, Léonie Aviat and the Salesian Spiritual Tradition." As in the past, the papers were not read by the authors but introduced by one of the other participants to set the stage for discussion.

The Salesian Leadership Camp, conducted annually for the past 15 years at Camp De Sales, is featured in the June 2001 issue of Bondings. It has had almost 400 young men and women from Oblate and Visitation schools and is staffed by Oblate priests, brothers and seminarians, Visitation sisters and interested lay people. The Leadership Camp is a week long experience for high school students who are school leaders or show potential for leadership. The many and varied activities are structured and guided by Salesian spirituality.

 

 

Wilmington-Philadelphia Province

 

Fr. Michael Murray, OSFS, Director of the De Sales Spirituality center, has appointed two new regional directors to act as liaison between the Center and specific regions. Loretta Bedner, of Greensboro, NC, will serve as liaison with the diocese of Charlotte, while Kathleen Hope Brown will serve as liaison with the Archdiocese of Washington and the diocese of Arlington. Along with the other Regional Directors, Loretta and Kathleen will make their respective areas aware of the many services for promoting Salesian spirituality provided by the Center. The ICSS extends to them its congratulations and sincere appreciation.

 

In addition to the many programs and services the Center offers to parishes, schools, parents groups, etc., it "has brought on-line two valuable resources for daily meditation: Every Day with Saint Francis de Sales and Spending A Month With St. Francis de Sales. The former provides a writing from St. Francis de Sales for every day of the calendar year; the latter brings a daily reflection based on the writings of St. Francis de Sales. Together these two pieces allow reflection and meditation in the 'every day' life. It has also added "Ten Days with De Sales" as a personal ten-day retreat with these reflections from Part One of the Introduction to the Devout Life. These services may be accessed at: http://www.oblates.org/center/activities.htm

 

There are a number of interesting plans and developments for the Salesian Center for Faith and Culture at De Sales University. Fr. Thomas Dailey, OSFS, the director, will produce, in collaboration with Saint Mary's Press, a brief and popularized biography of St. Francis de Sales for distribution to persons involved in the work of the Center. Plans for the funding of an endowed chair in Salesian Studies will be developed. Working with the Television & Film program at De Sales University, the director will plan the creation of a TV series on "Salesian Virtues." The Center was awarded, through the efforts of Fr. Dailey, a $75,000 grant, which provides impetus toward achieving the goal of a $3 million endowment. To learn more about the Center and its many activities, visit its site at: www4/desales.edu/SCFS.

 

In a brochure of the Catholic Bishops of Pennsylvania addressed to collegians, Fr. Charles Norman, OSFS, Catholic Campus Minister at Lafayette College, has written a section on "Relationships' reflecting the teachings of St. Francis de Sales.

 

De Sales University has formally dedicated Aviat Hall on November 1st in honor of Léonie Aviat, known as Mother Frances de Sales. This new student residence opened in time for the fall semester and houses almost 100 students.

 

 

Additional New Publications

 

Franz Wehrl, Franz von Sales im Dienst der Kirchendiplomatie. Auswertung seiner einschlägigen Denkschriften und Briefe vom Ende des 16. bis Anfang des 17. Jahrhunderts (Francis de Sales in the service of Church Diplomacy. Evaluation of His Relevant Explanations and Letters from the End of the 16th and the Beginning of the 17th century), Deutsche Hochschulschriften Nr. 1194, Egelsbach 2001.

 

Norbert Purrer, Wegweisung auf den Spuren der Heiligen (Instructions on the traces of the saints), Wels 2001. The Book contains short biographical sketches of saints, among whom, are included Francis de Sales, Margaret Mary Alacoque and Jane de Chantal.

 

BEAUCHESNE, PARIS, Claire Cerasi, Pierre Corneille à l'image et semblance de François de Sales. La générosité, fille de la foi, 2000. The main thrust of this work is that Salesian generosity explains Cornelian grandeur.

 

LAS (LIBRERIA ATENEO SALESIANO), ROMA, Francis Desramaut, Spiritualità salesiana. Cento parole chiave, 2001. Tradotto dal francese (titolo originale: Les cent mots-clefs de la spiritualité salésienne). This is a translation from the original French which is available from Editions Don Bosco in Paris. The book is a simplified dictionary that explains various terms such as charity, joy, social commitment, inculturation, obedience, prayer, humanism, and humility from a Salesian point of view.

 

Elizabeth Stopp, "François de Sales: The Writer and His Reader," in The Art of Reading, ed. Philip Ford and Gillian Jondorf, Cambridge French Colloquia, Cambridge, 1998. This is the last essay she wrote.

 

New releases from the De Sales Resource Center: Marie Baudoin-Crois, Léonie Martin: A Difficult Life. Léonie, one of the older sisters of St. Theresa of Lisieux, became a Visitandine -- Saint Margaret Mary, Apostle of the Sacred Heart -- Louise Perrotta, Live Jesus! Wisdom from Saints Francis de Sales and Jane de Chantal.

 

Joseph Chorpenning, OSFS, "John Paul II's Theology of the Mystery of the Holy Family," Communio (Spring 2001). This article mentions St. Francis de Sales' view of the Holy Family.

 

 

Le Dieu caché : Les peintres du Grand Siècle et la vision de Dieu (The Hidden God: Painters of the Great Century and the Vision of God). This work is the catalog of an exhibition held at the Academia di Francia, Villa Medici, Rome in 2000. It has much on art and 17th-century Francophone spirituality, including de Sales. The book is available from Michael Shamansky, Bookseller. Email: mshamans@artbooks.com.

 

 

Visitation et Visitandines aux XVIIe et XVIIIe siècles. Publications de l'Université de Saint-Étienne, 2001. Among the many articles is one by Sr. Marie Patricia Burns, VHM, entitled, "Jeanne de Chantal et la Tradition." To purchase a copy write to: Publications de l'Université de Saint-Étienne,35 rue de onze novembre -42023 Saint-Étienne Cedex 2, France.

 

The publishing house of du Signe has published a charming life of St. Francis de Sales for children. It is very well written with beautiful illustrations. The book has been published in several languages: French, English, Spanish, Italian, Japanese and Dutch. It can be ordered from: Editions du Sign, B.P. 94, 67038, Strasbourg, France or the De Sales Resource Center.

 

Viscomte du Jeu, Le témoignage de Jeanne de Chantal, reprinted by Pierre Téqui, 82 rue Bonaparte, 75000 Paris, France. Price: 139 FF or 21.19 (euro

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

This newsletter can be accessed by clicking on "Salesian Studies World Wide" of De Sales University's home page at: www.desales.edu or at : wwwdesales.edu/salesian. Suggestions for improving this newsletter and information for future issues may be sent to A. Pocetto via email:alexander.pocetto@desales.edu. Fax:(610)282-2059 or by mail at De Sales University, 2755 Station Ave., Center Valley, PA 18034-9568, USA. The ICSS is very grateful to De Sales University for the technical assistance and other resources the University very generously makes available to continue its work.


RETURN TO THE MAIN INDEX PAGE