Life of the Congregation

What would be the natural sign of the bonds, which exist between members of the same religious family? At the time of trial, at the time of need, or simply when you are called to witness that a religious family is not an group of people worrying about their private affairs and personal interests; what would be this sign? We can find the answer in art 224 of our Rule of Life and in the experience lived by the Region of Blessed Miriam of Jesus Crucified.

Small is beautiful: The family of Betharram is not large like the Jesuits or Salesians nor big and powerful like the Franciscans, nor do we have large monasteries like the Benedictines. Our family is small with less then 300 fully professed members. But small is beautiful and we have a right to be here. Fr.Timothy Radcliffe OP once described small Congregations as akin to the plants in a rainforest. There are many small species in a rainforest, each with their own part to play in the ecology of the whole. So it is with a small Congregation: we have our part to play in God’s ecology, and our charism has been three times blessed by the church, God’s rainforest.

The good old days: Before our divisions into Provinces in 1947, all members did their basic training together. So whether you were born in Birmingham, Bordeaux, Bologna or Buenos Aires, you studied philosophy in Nazareth and theology in Bethlehem. You had a common formation and you knew all your contemporaries in different countries. Exchange of personnel between countries was very common back then. So it frequently happened that an Englishman would serve in China, a Frenchman would serve in Argentina, a Spaniard would serve in Thailand, and an Irishman would serve in Palestine. It was a system that worked reasonably well until world politics made it impossible.

The concept of ‘Inter-Provincial Aid’ was launched at the 1969 General Chapter, but except for the designated mission countries like Thailand, Palestine and Ivory Coast it didn’t really grow.

The new age: But since our regrouping into 3 Regions in 2008, the new 2009 Rule of Life and the impetus that the 2011 General Chapter gave to forming international communities, exchange of personnel is again on the agenda. In our own Blessed Miriam Region it has happened quite naturally and has now come to be a necessity. In 2002 when England became a Province and took on responsibility for the emerging Indian Delegation I was aware that communication between the two parts of the Province was somewhat strained and prone to cultural misunderstanding. So in 2006 I spoke with Fr. Xavier about the possibility of a few India students coming to England for a part of their priestly studies. That way a new generation of Indian religious would come to know us in England, and we in turn would come to understand them better.

Wilfred, Vincent and Pascal scj, students at Oscott College
and ordained as deacons in 2010 in Olton

Students at OscottThis became a reality when in 2007 Pascal, Vincent and Wilfred came to Solihull and studied theology at Oscott College for 4 years, before being ordained priests. They gave a youthful impetus to community life in England as well as helping us to understand the mentality of young Indian religious rather better. To this day they continue to convey a deeper understanding of the England vicariate to the vicariate of India.

Sheep stealing? When the Indian communities began 20 years ago we always said that we would not take Indian religious to fill European vacancies just because vocations in Europe are very scarce, as this would be a form of neo-colonialism or even theft. But the situation has changed since then, and we now need to maintain a certain level of community in England in order to continue to support our Indian communities. Without a UK presence there would be no funds to support formation elsewhere. It is for this reason that we have dared to ask Fr.Wilfred to become Vicariate Superior, Fr.Mongkhon and Fr.Vincent to be parish priests. We estimated that we needed three communities to make the Betharram presence in England viable until the day when vocations start arriving again in England.

Feeling the blessing: We were very much blessed in that the three who have come to England from Thailand and India all knew each other during formation, and they all knew Brother Gerard who has been a very important link in this process. They have also been very adaptable and have accepted that they have much to learn and need support.

Registration: To receive Asian religious on long term visas we had to be registered with the UK Borders Agency and fulfil all their demanding requirements. These regulations are designed mainly to impede Islamic terrorists and people with forged work permits, but the process has been tricky and costly and requires complex documentation. If we successfully obtain a long term visa for a priest it costs a minimum of €1,000, and even if we are unsuccessful we still have to pay. This is before the costs of air travel are included. Even a short term visa can cost €200. But the religious we have had both long term and short term (e.g. Fr.Stervin & Fr.Chan) have been a blessing to the vicariate and a credit to themselves and their generosity of spirit.

A generous spirit and a willing heart: A great generosity of spirit has been evident when religious have been asked (either by the Regional Council or the General Council) to serve for specific ministries abroad. And here I think of Fr.Stervin & Fr.Pornchai in Pau, Fr.Chan as novice master in Bangalore, Fr.Kriangsak at the Formators’ course in India, and Fr.Jose Kumar in the Holy Land. And while the Regions were being born both Fr.Tidkham and Bro.Gerard gave generous service working in formation in Bangalore. Historically of course our Bangalore foundation was greatly dependent on the generous service of Fr.Enrico, Fr.Mirande and Bro. Michael. Those who left their home country did so with great generosity, and they braved the questioning of suspicious immigration authorities each time their short term visas were renewed.

Blessings and difficulties: Firstly the difficulties:
Some resistance was felt to multiple international placements in England 10 years ago as it seemed that the financial burden was born entirely by the England vicariate. But this has diminished as the benefits of receiving religious from abroad have become tangible.

Long term visas still require a costly and time consuming process, and the regulations change every year. Those like Fr.Chan who go to India for a long period have to endure much insecurity about their visa status.

Cultural adjustment is an issue for everyone who serves away from their homeland, but only the passage of time can alleviate this.

The placement of religious abroad doesn’t follow any grand scheme but only happens when a particular need arises. So this can leave some young religious wondering? Why was I not chosen to go to England? Why was I not chosen to go to Israel? Why was I not chosen to go to France? It is not easy to see how this should be addressed.

The Blessings:
Our Region has been enlivened by the cross-border sharing and exchange of the last few years. In spite of the 8,000 km distances, the 7hour time difference and the great cost of international travel, our communities have been enriched and made livelier.

We have developed a greater sense of the international Betharramite family and have a heightened awareness that our family foes not belong to this or that ethnic group, but that we all belong to the family of the Heart of Jesus.

Our perspective on the church has been enriched as in each land we see more clearly that ‘normal’ is not defined by what we have experienced from our childhood in Bangalore, Birmingham or Bangkok, but that we belong to a Universal church with people of many different rites and shapes and sizes and colours.

The work of formation, much too large now for an individual vicariate has greatly benefitted from pooled resources, advice and formators.

Conclusion: Although most of the above is covered in one little article (224) in our Rule of Life, it really flows from the whole spirit of our Betharram tradition. We have been people of an international consciousness since way back in the time of Saint Michael, and even though we have never been huge, our vision has always had a strong international dimension, which has influenced our understanding of charism and call. Terra Sancta gave us a love of the scriptures. China gave us a love of the Orient and Argentina confirmed our educational mission. Today we are learning anew about the mystery of our place in the world, and as fast communications and climate change have taught us so much about global inter-connectedness, our small religious family with its strong sense of community across borders has so much to offer to God’s rainforest.

Austin Hughes, scj
Regional Superior