The students have arrived! 17 of them!
I think I have all the names down by now. They are a good group. Nice students. We have covered Fiction, Non-Fiction, and have begun reading "House on Mango Street."
I actually found "House on Mango Street" to be an interesting story. It deals a lot with the role of women and the issues of inner-city living. The main character, Esperanza, which means hope in Spanish, is on a path to discover her world and role in it. All in 119 pages.
The length of our discovery story is probably much more than 119 pages and it probably does not lead to the eternal discovery of God, in this world at least. It is simply inching closer to God's magnificence. It is discoverying the goodness of the world and bringing it to others. It is discovering the Gospel call in our lives and then discovering some more.
I finally finished reading, The Work is Yours: The Life of Saint John Baptist de La Salle. You could say it is De La Salle's discovery story.
De La Salle's story included (quoting from the book): "the emphasis on the presence and the Providence of God; the importance given to obedience and self-abnegation in union with the mystery of the incarnate Word; the reliance—unusual for its time—on the guidance of the Holy Spirit; the centrality of the gospel message and its maxims; sensitivity to the divine voice to be discerned in the crying needs of the poor; the call to an apostolic mission and Christian ministry on behalf of young persons 'far from salvation'" (221).
Br. Luke Salm states "The spirit of faith is the core Lasallian spirituality. It is the spirit of radical faith in the Providence of God that leads Brothers 'not to look upon anything but with the eyes of faith, not to do anything but in view of God, and to attribute all to God.' This God is the one, true, real, and Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, prostate before whose 'infinite and adorable majesty' the Brothers 'consecrate themselves entirely to procure the glory of God as far as they are able and as God will require of them.' De La Salle urges the Brothers to nourish this spirit of faith by sensitivity to the presence of God, recalled frequently during the day; by fidelity to the practice of meditation; by self-discipline; and by serious doctrinal study and spiritual reading, especially in the Sacred Scriptures" (212).
I was deeply inspired by this. As I wrote earlier, in our church today, how will we be prophetic? De La Salle's radical faith is exemplifying of our need to be modern day prophets--we must proclaim the truth. For me, it means how will I be a prophetic Brother? How will I allow God to work within me in radical fashion? It must begin with a reliance and openness to the spirit. If we are to rely on and be open to the spirit, then we must begin, as De La Salle states, by nourishing our spirit of faith.
Br. Luke Salm ends his book by quoting the final article of the Brothers' Rule:
The Brothers bear witness to their love for Saint John Baptist de La Salle as their Founder. They imitate him in his abandonment to God, his loyalty to the Church, his creative apostolic spirit, and his definitive commitment to the evangelization of young people.
The life of an Institute is a continual challenge to be creative while remaining faithful to its origins. It can sometimes call for difficult commitments, as John Baptist de La Salle discovered at various points in his life. Today, as in the past, he challenges the Brothers, not only as the one who established the Institute but as the Founder who continues to inspire and sustain it.
Filled with the spirit which he left them as their legacy, the Brothers grow in the living tradition of the Institute. In communion with those who have gone before them, they continue to respond with ardent zeal to the appeals of the Lord, the Church, and the world, in order to procure the glory of God.
For me, a call for radical faith, radical commitment, and radical hope through Christ our Lord. Amen.
