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USA Lay Salvatorian Convocation via Zoom

On April 30 and May 1, 2022, the USA lay Salvatorians met on Zoom for our Convocation which is held every three years. At this Convocation, reports were presented by the committees of the Lay Salvatorian National Board (LSNB) and the ICDS. Current ministries gave talks about their ministries, and proposals from the members (submitted beforehand) were discussed and voted on. The Convocation discussed and prioritized directions for the incoming LSNB. The incoming National Director, Bobby Pantuso, and the incoming LSNB were installed for a three-year term, 2022-2025. Mass was celebrated in the Western sector and live streamed for those unable to attend in person.

For the closing prayer, all Lay Salvatorians were commissioned to go forth and teach the goodness and kindness of The Savior.

Annual retreat in Congo 2022

Last weekend, the lay Salvatorians in Congo gathered for a retreat. The theme was an overview of Salvatorian Spirituality, Charism, Identity as Lay Salvatorians, and Salvatorian Mission. For those who are interested, the presentation in French used for this purpose is available in the ICDS-Forum.
Fr. ANDRÉ KONGOLO preached on the theme, “the lay Salvatorian facing his promises”. Deogratias Kitoko, the unit coordinator, wrote, that it was a good and inspiring meeting.

April 22: Earth day 2022

Despite the awareness that we have many seemingly more important problems, we must not ignore this year’s Earth Day. The importance of this day is also repeatedly underlined by Pope Francis, because whoever does not respect and persecute creation, also does not persecute and respect God. Even if the reading of the encyclical “Laudato si’ ” may be difficult for some, it is still important to deal with it, because we only have this one world and must also keep it habitable for future generations.

Reflecting on Earth Day, Cardinal Michael Czerny explains why the Church and Pope Francis care so greatly about the Earth, and laments “menacing failures” which make action to protect the environment “urgent.” See here the full article.

As Salvatorians, we have committed ourselves in the Salvatorian Charter to protect life as such and to work to make life abundant for all creatures. May this day always be a small reminder to us.

 

Easter message – Mensaje de Pascua 2022

The Lord has risen – The Lord is risen indeed …

The women brought the Good News to the disciples and followers of Jesus after they found the empty tomb. Click on the picture below to become guided to our special easter page.

Las mujeres llevaron la Buena Nueva a los discípulos y seguidores de Jesús después de encontrar la tumba vacía. Haga clic en la foto de abajo para ser guiado a nuestra página especial de Pascua.

 

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O Lord,
Risen, alive, and full of grace.
You paid such a price that we may live in freedom today.
We worship your holy name and give thanks for your redeeming grace.

Heavenly Father,
May we drink in your tender love so that we can pour this love out to others.
Come reign in our hearts, minds, and spirits.

Holy Spirit,
We welcome you to blow through our every word, action and thought.
Come transform us on the inside so that each day we become more like our risen Lord.

Amen.

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We want to invite you to read our thoughts after the Gospel of John 20,1-9 (20,1-18). We think they are very actual according to the unfortunately dark situation of our world today.
 
Queremos invitarte a leer nuestras reflexiones tras el Evangelio de Juan 20,1-9 (20,1-18). Creemos que son muy actuales de acuerdo con la situación desgraciadamente oscura de nuestro mundo actual.

Continue Reading

Aid support for Ukraine refugees by Salvatorians in Poland

We all know the heartbreaking images from the war in Ukraine. Most of the refugees or displaced persons went or are still going to Poland. The Lay Salvatorians and the Salvatorian sisters have established some aid support for these people and we have asked Sylwia Tempel a Lay Salvatorian from Poland to share some pieces of information about these aid initiatives with us:

 

On March 24th the Salvatorian Sisters at the provincial house received 8 refugees from Kharkov – parents with 5 children and one older woman. The building has been renovated and refurnished before the crisis, so the Sisters have dedicated it to the residential needs of refugees. Sister Adriana Kieloch SDS has been serving as a translator at the local administration level. Sister Adriana spent 14 years in Ukraine and understands not only the language but also the people. She serves at the municipal social service agency in helping refugees legally register their presence so that they can obtain proper identification as well as rights to employment, insurance benefits, and child support. Sister Adriana explained to me that it takes 30 minutes to register a single refugee. Photographs of the provincial house welcome can be found at the following link: Continue Reading

A new video on YouTube from the GC

Anne Cullender, our General secretary is now talking about the Salvatorian Universality & Mission and how we can interpret or see it today and use it as a creative tool for evangelization. The video is also available with French and German subtitles.

 

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Against each kind of war …

Maybe it’s not the right frame here for that but in light of the escalating current violence in Eastern Europe but also aware of the many small and bigger armed conflicts around our world with devastating effects on people and the environment, I would like to share this music video. It is intended to be thought-provoking and to invite a subsequent short prayer of one’s own choice for peace. War has always been the worst solution to any problem, and it usually leads to others. Actually, we should have learned that by now in our thousands of years of human history …
Let’s put down our weapons and let’s find better solutions in common for the future.

ICDS now on YouTube, too.

The General Committee has established its own ICDS YouTube channel to present videos about Salvatorian topics. At the moment there are some available already, some more will be to find there soon. The videos will be published in different languages and we try to add subtitles in other languages to the videos, too. In case you will not find your language, get into contact with us and we will send you a copy of the original text so you can translate it.

We would like to get some feedback and motivation from you because we are all learners and try to improve ourselves permanently.

 

February 8: International Day of Prayer and Awareness

against Human Trafficking & modern slavery

Meanwhile, the portrait of St. Josephine Bakhita seems to be known in many areas of the world. Her life is an example and may open our eyes to the crime and the victims of human trafficking and modern slavery. Therefore the catholic church celebrates annually February 8th as a day of reminder and awareness. Many Catholics all over the world are encouraged to host or attend prayer services and devotions to create greater awareness about this disgrace of mankind – which is still present and happens frequently hidden in our neighborhood, sometimes closer than we would expect. Through prayer, we not only reflect on the experiences of those that have suffered through this affront to human dignity but also comfort, strengthen, bring respect again and help empower victims of today. Because they need our attention, our awareness, and stand-up against this kind of crime.

This time we may offer a common prayer vigil in several languages as far you have an interest. You will find the prayer material here to download → https://preghieracontrotratta.org/.

For more information, you can also have a look back on our post from last year or get into contact with the International Salvatorian Committee for justice, peace, and integrity of creation.

 

We count on your solidarity and support!

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