ELECTION OF PROVINCIALS AND COUNCILS
cf.
http://www.ocd.pcn.net/capitoli05.htm
****
A LETTER FROM OUR GENERAL TO POPE BENEDICT XVI
Fr General sent the following letter on behalf of the whole
Order, congratulating the newly elected Pope on Fr. Luis=
return from Japan and India: (the original in
Italian)
Rome, 28th April 2005
Most blessed Father,
All the Friars and Enclosed Nuns of the Teresian Carmel wish
to express to your Holiness their most whole hearted
congratulations on your being elected to the Papacy, their
fidelity to Your Teaching Office and a promise to accompany
you with their daily prayers and sacrifices. We make
our own your pastoral concerns
AThere
is the desert of poverty, the desert of hunger and thirst,
the desert of abandonment, of loneliness, of destroyed love.
There is the desert of God=s
darkness, the emptiness of souls no longer aware of their
dignity or the goal of human life@.
The Carmelite Saints lived lives dedicated to the Church
which they loved, and have left us an example to follow, and
so this love remains a priority in the heart and apostolate
of every one of us, in order that our charism may bring
riches and life to all.
On the day that you were elected I was in India on a
pastoral visitation of our communities, I saw for myself the
joy on everyones face and the fervour with which they
listened to Your words.
On behalf of the Order spread throughout the world it is my
privilege to express toYour Holiness our most fervent
prayer, that Christ, the Redeemer of the world, will
enlighten, strengthen and console you in Your Petrine
service to the universal Church.
I am you most devoted servant in the Lord
Fr
Luis Arostegui OCD, Superior General
His Holiness
Pope Benedict XVI
Vatican City
FR. JESUS CASTELLANO OCD
Represents Religious Men and Women Before the New Pope
In an act of obedience to the Pope, in the course of the
celebration of his Petrine ministry, Fr. Jesus Castellano
Cervera OCD was chosen, as one of twelve
representatives of the People of God, to fulfill this
gesture on behalf of the Religious. These were the
words he spoke to the Pope:
AHoly
Father, at this moment I want to offer you, on behalf of all
those in consecrated life, our affection, obedience and
collaboration for the good of the Church. I do this also on
behalf of my Carmelite family, with all my Brothers and on
behalf of all my Discalced Carmelite Sisters spread
throughout the world@.
ASSOCIATION OF NORTH-EAST INDIA
From the 5th to the 22nd April 2005
twenty-five Carmelite Nuns assembled in Bandel, North-East
India. This is also a place of pilgrimage, dedicated to our
Blessed Mother "Our Lady Of Bandel". Hundreds of pilgrims
come daily to this hallowed spot to pray, ask for favours
and thank Mary for graces received.
Our Sisters had an18 day course attended by 25 participants
from 6 camels. Rev. Fr. Xavier Jayaraj ocd, Definitor
General kindly made himself available. He said the inaugural
Mass and during the three first days gave inspiring talks on
the Holy Eucharist laying special stress on the devotion to
this great mystery from the part of our Holy Parents and the
other Carmelite saints, particularly Bl.Candida of the Holy
Eucharist. Rev. Fr. Cyriac Neerakkal ocd, the Religious
Assistant of the Association delved into the treasures of
the "Interior Castle" in a systematic way. The other two
resource persons who gave inputs on community building were
MS Pearl Drego and Fr. James Chacko sdb. One complemented
the other and helped the participants with the expertise of
their tools on how to handle the wear and tear of community
life.
CARMELITE BOOKS IN AFRICA
Following the OCD Congress on Formation in Francophone
Africa held in Nkolbisson (Yaounde) in September 2004, came
the idea to publish Carmelite material with the Daughters of
St. Paul in Abidjan. Promoted by the centre of the Order,
the project is in the hands of a commission made up of
confreres from all over Francophobe Africa. The aim is to
offer to our communities and to anyone who might be
interested books on Carmelite spirituality printed here and
at an affordable price for Africa. The first book entitled
Introduction au livre des Demeures, (Introduction to
the Interior Castle) is already available. The second,
on the Eucharist, is with the printers.
CARMEL IN LATVIA
Damaso Zuazua, ocd
My missionary journeys have taken me this time to the edge
of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are
the legacy of the old Livonia, a land that Pope
Innocent III, in the XII century, called
AMary=s
land@.
The people have not forgotten the cold-war, when, on the 13th
October 1944, these three countries were forcibly annexed to
the Soviet Union. The people sensed a great relief
when the winds of Mickail Gorbachov=s
Aperestroika@
and
Aglasnost@
blew over their land. They came out into the streets,
courageously asking for independence and freedom.
These three Baltic countries have a keen sense of their own
identity, of their culture and land.
I went to Latvia as part of my role as Missionary Secretary.
It is squeezed between its two republican neighbours. With
its 64,598 square kilometres it is just smaller than
Ireland. There is enough surface area for its
2,360,000 inhabitants. Like the other Baltic
republics, Latvia is open to the sea, with a 494 kilometre
coastline, with rivers and lakes, and plains that are never
any higher than 300 metres. It has managed to maintain
unchanged its frontiers since the constitution of the
Republic on th 18th November 1918. Dark
periods of its recent history include the Nazi invasion, due
to the agreement on the 23rd August 1939 between
Molotov and Ribbentrop (representing Stalin and Hitler) and
then the subsequent Russian annexation.
During the Soviet period (1944-1991) a nuclear missile base
was created in the Zematija national park. For 40
years it remained a secret, hidden beneath the earth.
But in 1978 it was mysteriously dismantled. The
Latvians discovered only then what danger they had run in
their own country during those cold war years.
On the 21st August 1991 the country regained its
freedom. The first parliamentary elections took place
in 1993. A year later the last Russian contingent left
the country. With the rebirth of freedom the
ADrang
nach Europa@
(The Drive towards Europe) began in earnest. On the 1st
May 2004 Latvia was admitted into the European Union. The
country was understandably euphoric, as it had made a great
and admirable effort at reconstruction. But it is
aware of the big challenges its still has to face due to the
problems created by such a rapid economic change.
The first apostle to Latvia was the German, Saint Meinard, a
Canon of St John Lateran. He built the first wooden Church
in Ikskil, in 1184. Pope Clement II nominated him as
the first Bishop. Nine centuries later, during his
apostolic visit on the 8th September 1993, John
Paul II restored the liturgy of Saint Meinard (+ 1196),
patron of Latvia.
Riga, the pearl of the Baltic
It is the most impressive of the Baltic capitals, an
attractive coastal city, divided by a river, with lots of
flat surrounding land that easily accommodates its one
million inhabitants. A German Bishop, Albert, from Bremen,
successor of Meinard, established the Diocese in 1201.
Riga is full of streets and wide avenues. The bridges keep
the city united, the river Daugav, being more than 500
metres wide. The old city is quaint. The church of St. Peter
dominates the place with its high round tower. In a country
with vast forests much of the construction is in wood.
I was surprised to see the presence of a style of
architecture know as
AJugendstyl@,
as I believed it was exclusive to Vienna. One can also see
the simple accommodation built during the Soviet period.
Thanks to the celebration of the VIII centenary of the city,
in 2001, a great effort was made at restoration. I
admired the soldiers on guard-duty at the countries main
monuments, solemn and very still even in the cold.
However, I was assured that they were dispensed from such
service when the temperature fell below 20 degrees Celsius.
In a street next to the river there is a monument to the
giant who helped people cross the river Daugav. Here
we have the origin of the legend of Saint Christopher.
With his height and broad shoulders he helped people cross
the wide river, long before there was a bridge. One night
the giant heard the cries of a child in distress coming from
the other bank. Christopher picked the child up and
placing him on his shoulders they crossed the river to
safety. We know the legend and even more the medals
dedicated to St. Christopher, that show Christopher carrying
on his shoulders the Infant Jesus - the Greek word
ACristophoro@
literally means
AChrist
bearer@.
The mysterious Infant disappeared, but in the place where he
lived they minted gold coins, with which Bishop Albert
founded the city of Riga. From this popular belief was born
the devotion to their patron Saint,
ALeilais
Kristaps@or
the Great Christopher.
Regarding the artistic life of the city, Richard Wagner
lived here as
AKapelmeiser@
from 1837-1839. He composed the opera
ARienzi@
in Riga, as well as the carol
AO
Tannenbaum@.
In 1843 he presented
ADer
fliegende Hollander@in
the national theatre in Riga for the first time.
The metropolitan seminary, converted into a major institute
for theology and catechesis, is a huge brick building with
an adjacent park. Next door is the neo-gothic parish
church dedicated to St. Francis. It is a fine
building, and some what surprisingly was constructed during
the Soviet period; this is because they decided in Moscow
that all the Catholic seminarians through out the Soviet
Union would study only in one place, Riga.
The seminary was my base during the days that I stayed in
the capital. I could not have found a more suitable
place to discover better the situation of the Church.
I lived with the 36 seminarians and their professors. The
fact that I did not know the language was not a barrier as
they were able to understand me when I spoke in German, or
French or Latin...We communicated. In my homilies and
our five meetings I spoke to them about the Church, its
mission, about Carmel, and prayer. There was a
felt need to be more open to the wider Church. They
were aware that the Church of Latvia had now reached a time,
thanks to new found freedom, to give without reserve.
The Church in Riga has begun the material and moral
reconstruction after five decades of neglect and confinement
due to the communist regime. In the last 14 years of freedom
it has built more than 30 places of worship. A young and
enthusiastic clergy promises much for the future.
A Carmelite view
I came to Latvia eager to know the present situation above
all for the Carmelites. I did not have time to find out if
any of the 13 priories which made up the previous Province
of Saint Casimir in Latvia, since its foundation in 1734,
still exist today.
In the past there have been a few vocations to Carmel and
those have been sent outside the country to: Belgium,
Germany and Poland. There has been success in
vocational work and today there are two Latvian priests Ande
Marie Jerumanis and Andris Kravalis as well as other
youngsters. But the time has come for Carmel to be
planted in Latvia. 28 kms from Riga, along a motorway
lined by pine and fir trees, is to be found town of Ikskile.
It is famous as the place where the first Christian
community was established in Latvia by Saint Meinard.
Here, very close to the river Daugav, is the place where the
new Carmelite convent is soon to be built. On the 16th
July Cardinal Janis Pujats will bless the first stone of the
building, with rooms for 18 Sisters plus accommodation for
anyone wanting to visit or spend time on retreat. Work
has already begun on the land to drain it and prepare the
foundations. 200 trees have been planted. The building
work should take two years, as, during the coldest part of
the winter, the work has to be interrupted.
Much credit is due to Sister Elisha of Jesus OCD and her
community in Essen, Germany. She has been the architect of
the new project, and has persevered in making a preliminary
study of the land and obtained the relevant authorizations.
Carmel has aroused great interest in the Lutheran community,
who invited the Carmelite Nuns to build the first Roman
Catholic Church in the place. The arrival of native
vocations makes us optimistic for the future. For the time
being the Carmelite Order will be the only contemplative
presence in the country. It will be a new presence of the
Order, and open to Carmelite Sisters from any country that
would like to be associated with this missionary
undertaking.
The archdiocese of Riga has in mind two possible locations
for a small international community of our Friars, who will
begin to live a Carmelite life here in the coming months.
One of the places is the Catholic School of Riga. The
local Church is looking forward to the beginning of the
Carmelite apostolate. The present
AEdith
Stein Christian Institute for Dialogue and Religion@
could hand over its functions to the Carmelites.
Thanks to it=s
Director, Inga Reinvalde, who is also President of the
Carmelite Secular Order in Riga, the Institute already has a
Carmelite presence. Present at the conference I gave,
entitled
AEdith
Stein in the school of St. Teresa@,
was the Professor, Heidi Tuorila Kahanpee, president of the
OCDS in Helsinki (Finland), who gave a lecture entitled,
AThe
pedagogy of prayer according to St. Teresa@.
During the time I spent in Riga I received an invitation
from the Mgr. Lapelis, the young Dominican Bishop of Liepaya,
for the Carmelites to accept the running of a centre of
spirituality. The building is already available and could
easily be adapted to this apostolate. There is no such
centre in his diocese at this time.
With the help of Germany a group of the Secular Order was
formed about ten years ago. The number of members is now
over 20. I received the first promises of two of them.
There is another group being formed outside Riga. The heart
of the OCDS in Latvia is Professor Inga Reinvalde, who has
spent an academic year in the International Carmelite
Institute in Avila, Spain.
A young Latvian woman has recently defended her brilliant
doctoral thesis on St. Teresa at the Teresianum in Rome, and
is now preparing to translate all the writings of St. Teresa
into Latvian. Another is preparing her doctorate on
St. John of the Cross in Spain. There are also to be
seen the beginnings of the
ACarmelite
Ecumenical Movement@
(MEC). The Patroness of the Missions, St. Therese, is
very popular in this country thanks in great part to the
saintly Bishop Sloskan (+ 1981), who suffered greatly under
both the Nazis and the Communists. He translated
AThe
Story of A Soul@
and made every effort to encourage devotion.
The Congregation of the Carmelite Sisters of the Child
Jesus, founded in Poland by Fr. Anselm of St. Andrew Corsini,
in 1921, has recently made two foundations in Latvia.
And even though they have not been in the country long they
already have 15 native vocations. Chief supporters of this
Carmelite growth for the service of the Church in Latvia are
two Priests, both members of
ANotre
Dame de Vie@
a Carmelite Secular Institute.
The flower of Carmel in Latvia has begun to grow. We
can expect an imminent blooming for both the Nuns and
Friars. This surely merits all the help that the General
Secretary of the Carmelite Missions can give.
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