Life of the Congregation

At the end of his second canonical visitation of the “Saint Mary of Jesus Crucified” Region, Fr Gaspar describes the life and the dreams of this vast and multifaceted Region.

The emerging picture is very colorful, with many lights and some shades. This makes us understand that there is still long way to go and enthusiasm and responsibility are needed. Fr Gaspar is narrating an ancient history (England), a recent one (Thailand) and a very recent one (India).

Thanks to this Region the Congregation can face the future with confidence. It is the youngest Region and has seen its numbers increase. It is the Region which has had the greatest number of ordinations in the last ten years. It is the Region which shows the presence of the missionary spirit by the exchange of religious within the Region itself and at the exterior too: 2 Indian religious in England, 1 Indian religious in the Holy Land, 1 Thai religious in France, 1 Indian and 1 Thai religious in Vietnam.

The English Vicariate has a much reduced number of religious: 6 religious-priests and 6 religious-brothers to which can be added two Indian religious Fr Wilfred and Fr Vincent as well as Fr Alessandro Locatelli from the Italian Vicariate. The two communities (3 residences) forming the Vicariate are in the Archdiocese of Birmingham. The two communities have a rhythm of prayer and community meetings which enable them to live fraternity fully. Each of the communities provides a pastoral accompaniment for a parish: Olton, Great Barr, and Droitwich. There are two other parishes accompanied by Fr Innamorati and Fr Anton. A few of the religious-brothers have found their mission as chaplains in Catholic schools. It is obvious that they would love to organise activities for the promotion of vocations but problems have arisen to prevent this. In their simple lifestyle they are faithful to the Betharramite image which is easily an attraction for the young. They cultivate their identity on the occasion of spirituality meetings which they organise during the annual retreat of the Vicariate, and on three or four other occasions at Nympsfield where all participate.

The “Companions of Betharram” are groups of laity wishing to live according to the charism of the Congregation; they are in communion with the religious by collaborating in different aspects of their mission. Every year a retired couple from education go as volunteers to teach English to our young candidates in Chiang Mai.

The Thai Vicariate has changed in appearance in the last ten years. The oldest French missionaries have retired from the mission. Several have returned home; two Italian missionaries carry on with some activities, two others have slowed up but prefer to stay. The young Betharramite religious have, little by little, taken over the running of the different mission posts vacated by the most senior brethren. Our presence most worthy of notice is in the diocese of Chiang Mai where our mission started a little more than 60 years ago, when our missionaries committed themselves with great enthusiasm to the evangelisation and organisation of the diocese thanks to the great number of conversions that had taken place. Today we are present in six mission posts: Ban Betharram, Maepon, Chomthong, Huay Tong, Huay Bong, and Ban Pong. For the past ten years we are present in the diocese of Nakhon Sawan in the missionary post at Maetawar, with the mountain people, the Karens. The major part of the evangelisation has been done there by closely accompanying the people as Pope Francis asks. The Daughters of the Cross collaborate with us also. In the Diocese of Bangkok we are in charge of the formation of the young in philosophy and theology and of the junior seminarians at Sampran. In the Vicariate of Thailand great care has been taken for the promotion of vocations. They speak about vocations to the children early on and in different places: at the catechism centre at Maepon, at the hostel at Phayao for the college students, at Ban Betharram and at Sampran for the three years at the lycee, two years stage in the different mission posts when they are attached to the missionary house at Chiang Mai, finally Ban Garicoits at Sampran for the four years of philosophy. Finally they are sent to Bangalore for the two years of novitiate before returning to Ban Garicoits for the four years of theology. Every effort is made for vocational pastoral and formation but such efforts are often scattered with the result that a lot of energy is wasted and it is impossible to do real formation so called. In all these posts the religious works on his own, demanding great efforts from every one and making it difficult to accompany the young candidates adequately. It’s a work- style which goes against what was said in a council of the Congregation, namely “the formators must not be alone”

It must be added that in all those houses, the formators and the young candidates cover, by their work, part of the cost of their formation. We see that to be a good thing so as to cultivate the spirit which is ours in Thailand and consequently formation is closest to the reality of the world. The great treasure of the Thai Vicariate is its poverty which helps the religious to be closest to the people, sharing with them what they need to live. They are short of nothing because countless benefactors take part in the mission of the religious as well as in the formation. The religious accompany the people by helping them with their agricultural work as well as facing the problems which any family can meet. They are greatly loved. Their lifestyle is what the Pope has been calling for. They are prophets who by their way of life reject the lifestyle of a section of the clergy who are more like Civil Servants. The Thai Church appreciates the style of Betharram. This style which is prophetic is difficult to maintain today. It is under attack by the worldliness of western culture which is creeping in, even by some of our religious who, accepting common opinion, think that they need money to be more successful. But only two or three individuals are concerned.

In the Indian Vicariate the ordination of new and numerous brothers led us “to go out of” the formation houses in Bangalore and Mangalore so as to organise new mission posts and to react to the challenges of the mission in the local church. In 2014 the construction of the Formation House in Mangalore was finished thanks to the financial help of the laity, of friends of Betharram and thanks also to the gift of the land and part of the house by the Sisters of the Apostolic Carmel. Promotion of vocations is satisfactory as is the formation given; consequently each year we have new candidates. Besides the formation communities we have our religious working in the two parishes of Adigondanahally, and others in charge of a parish at Tiptur (diocese of Bangalore). In the north-east of India, in the state of Assam, a community is in charge of a mission at Hojai where they look after a large college, a hostel for young people from further inland and who can do their studies at the college. The community also accompanies small base Christian Communities scattered inland. The mission of the Vicariate has also a social dimension. The two Formation communities in Bangalore and Mangalore look after a hostel where they take in and care for the street children who have no families, to help them grow up in a more serene atmosphere. To achieve this they rely on numerous benefactors who help them financially or with goods (for example food, clothing etc.). A few months before her death, a French lady bequeathed them an important sum of money for this purpose.

The problem with the new missionary communities in India is that they don’t profit by the tradition of the fraternity and missionary spirit so much part of Betharram. Everything is new. I even had to insist on the importance for us of the community, but it is something which they take on board with difficulty thus running the risk of pastoral activism a bit individualist. Some religious in the Vicariate would like to set up important works like other congregations in India. Together with Father Austin, the Regional Superior, we say that the communities should be as near as possible to the people, that they should be noted for their simple lifestyle and not by important works which by their display of wealth and power, turn people away and are often the opposite to the witness of the Gospel. We think that by being close to the people with simplicity responds better to the Pope’s wishes, and to what a Sister told us when we held the Council of Congregation in India in 2007.

Since it is the youngest Region we had to entrust the government and formation to young religious, which puts us in contact with a number of fragile points and creates some problems for us.

England is the most senior Vicariate and weakest in the number of religious but it helps India both financially and spiritually. It collaborates by transmitting faithfully the charism during retreats and days of reflexion in the other Vicariates. The novitiate which is in India for this Vicariate and for Thailand contributes greatly to mutual understanding and integration of the religious in the two Vicariates and at Regional level. However this integration is still a trifle fragile because the three Vicariates are very different from the point of view of culture and language, therefore communication is not easy because of these cultural and linguistic differences.

To maintain the unity of the Region it is necessary to intensify the exchange of religious within the three Vicariates and to organise meetings at every level: Regional chapter, meetings of formators, meetings of superiors etc. The Region is full of life and a great missionary richness. It is our duty to take good care of it but also to trust the Lord of the Harvest who allowed the Gospel and the charism of Betharram to be sown in such places. It is He who will best know how to take care of it and will make it increase for the greater glory of God and the salvation of souls.

Gaspar Fernández Pérez, scj
Superior General