Called to Be Brothers
Being Brothers Today
A Continuing Formation Program for the United State-Toronto Region
We are in the realm of what is essential: the urgencies of the world, the situation of the Institute, the change of paradigms we embrace, the needs of the young, and the emerging Lasallian educational mission which are all opening up. Given the fact of aging in certain sectors, with the decrease number of Brothers vocations or the perseverance of young Brothers in others, we cannot allow ourselves to spend time with the non-essential, nor can waste time in dealing with what is of secondary importance. (Remarks of Bro. Alvaro to the delegates to the 44th General Chapter)
Why this program...why now?
For a number of years, particularly through the 1970’s, 1980’s and1990’s the Region offered ongoing formation workshops and short programs for the Brothers. Some examples of these programs included prayer workshops, mid-years workshops, and “55-Alive”. These programs had met a need the Brothers had at the time but interest in them began to wane by the end of the 1990’s. Attempts to offer them again in the middle years of this decade confirmed they had run their course. However, realizing that continuous formation “extends throughout the entire lifetime and to every aspect of the life of the Brother” (Rule 101a), a new regional format seems desirable. Further, the sense of urgency identified by Brother Alvaro compels us to be as creative as we can in offering programs to the Brothers.
What the Program Invites Us to Do
“Henri Nouwen believed that if people lived the spiritual life radically, it would affect everything they touched. Not only would it have an impact on personal growth and relationships, it would also influence economics, politics, and social structures” (in Eternal Seasons: A Liturgical Journey with Henri Nouwen, Michael Ford, Editor, Sorin Books, Notre Dame, IN, 2004). The commitment to develop one’s spiritual life unleashes the creativity necessary to meet the needs of the Church and the world. It was with this in mind that the General Chapter delegates wished to emphasize the spiritual and communal dimensions of our life, in the hope of “unleashing processes of spiritual renewal at all levels of the Institute” (Acts of the 44th General Chapter, 3.6, p 16). Interiority leads to creativity. The delegates to the 39th General Chapter in 1966 and the 41st General Chapter in 1986 recognized that De La Salle’s spiritual depth, faith, and trust in Divine Providence was the source of his creativity in establishing the Institute. We are invited in our own time to be the spiritual men God has called us to be so as to remain creative in meeting the needs of those entrusted to our care. This program hopes to help us articulate a better sense of our role today; our role in the Lasallian mission as witnesses to fraternal life; as service to that mission; and as contributors to a spirit of communion with our partners. In so doing, it is inviting us as Brothers to remain aware of the transformative processes in our lives and to remain open to God successive calls in our lives.
