DEAR BROTHERS,
May the peace of Christ conquer your hearts!
November, a time to remember and reflect and I hope this leads us to be more blessed and contemplative. Let us first remember our beloved saints who have been canonized by the Church, especially our very own St. Francis Caracciolo. Let us remember our patron St. Joseph and also all those virtuous souls, including our own brothers in consecrated life who lived a holy life while here on earth, and who are now in heaven. May they always intercede for us as we journey together in this life. Let us especially pray for all the members of our religious family who have died and are in need of our prayers. May they have a new life in Christ. As our constitution #81 says that charity and fraternal communion extends to grateful remembrance of our deceased confreres. Every month, in every house, there must be a Mass to celebrate the suffrage and the remembrance of their lives.
Let us also commemorate all our deceased family members and loved ones who held a special place in our lives. May they also have a special place in heaven with our Lord. I suggest an hour of adoration, including the recitation of a meditative rosary and giving alms to the poor be offered for all the souls in purgatory. Let us ask the souls in purgatory to intercede for us in our daily spiritual needs.
This month is not just a month of remembering but also a new beginning. Pope Francis, along with the other bishops recently launched the Synod at the Basilica of St. Peter. Synodality is about journeying together. This happens when we listen to one another to hear what God is saying to all of us. How can we achieve synodality? Through communion, participation, and mission. These are the three points to help us reflect on the process of discernment for the direction of the Church in the present and coming generation. The second Vatican Council calls for this implementation. The Church is united in its belief that we cannot live in the mentality of indifference or relativity. Every man is created by God and every man deserves His love and attention. We are not in communion with each other, but we are all in communion with God.
The Church is united and relevant in our today’s life. We cannot live in the mentality of indifference or relativity. We need to objectify that man is created by God and subject to His love and attention. We are not only in communion with each other but above all in communion with God. Clericalism caused the Church to suffer and the real problem and evil of our time was not addressed. Therefore, the real mission that the Holy Spirit drives us all to accomplish was put by the wayside. The Holy Father added that the prime mover of this synod is the Holy Spirit.
Pope Francis urged us to be united by participating in this effort and to endeavor not to remain just a mere spectator but to be involved in the process. In this way, that all in the Church may be able to discern from the ground level to the highest order to make all things possible. The mission of the Church to evangelize is linked to the life of the people that God has given to us. Therefore, I say the new discovery of the mission is not in a distant place. We are to discover and awaken in us the presence of Christ who is living in each of our hearts.
The process on how this is to be done will soon be presented to you through your local superiors. I ask and request your full participation in this important activity. I intend that the entire Order will participate in the life of the Church at all levels of our ministry. Father John Paul has been assigned as the chairperson and will be responsible to collect responses from you. Not only will this process assist our Church, but it will also aid the renewal of our Order on various levels. I request that this material be in the hands of Fr. John Paul no later than December 8th, 2021. The summary of the responses by each delegation will be put together by the delegate and his team. Each delegation team will then be asked to put together a three-page summary report. Once we receive the materials from each delegation, Fr. John Paul will put it together and summarize the collected materials. It will then be submitted to the Holy See as part of our participation. The final summary will also be available to you once we finish the work.
I bless you my brothers. I greet all those who are celebrating the anniversaries of their solemn profession and priestly ordination this month. I will also remember our birthday celebrants during the month of November, and I will pray for you during the holy Mass. Many thanks to your parents who gave you to us and to God who called you to serve in this humble and loving family of the Adorno Fathers.
Include me in your prayers for the many other activities occurring in November. During this month, I will be flying to France to meet a friend of mine who is a Bishop. At his kind invitation, I will also explore the possibility of establishing our religious family in his diocese. From November 28 to December 7, the formation team composed of Fr. Shino, the chairman, Fr. Gilbert, Fr. Jun, and Fr. Jason will compile and finalize the updating of the formation manual of our Order. Finally, Fr. Pierpaolo, our General Treasurer will be flying in November to Africa. He will visit our missions in Kenya and Tanzania to see the status of ongoing and upcoming projects. Let us pray for his safe trip.
Let us glorify the Lord for the greater Glory of the Risen Christ!
Fr. Ted