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Communications n° 82
2007-06-01
Index:
- The Extraordinary General Definitory and The General Chapter
- The Aggregation of two International Religious Institutes
- The Fifth International Congress of Kinshasa
- Fra Immaculato Joseph of Jesus, Aldo Brienza (1923-1989)
- The 50th anniversary of the death of an exceptional missionary
The Extraordinary General Definitory and The General Chapter
In its ordinary session of May, the Definitory of the Order established that the second Extraordinary Definitory of the sexennium (the first one having taken place in Chile in October 2005) will take place from September 10th – 18th of 2008 at Moramanga (Madagascar). In this city (some 100 Kms from the capital Tananarive) is located the second spirituality center of the Madagascar Commissariat. The starting date for the next General Chapter has also been set for 2009 April 19 in our "Domus Carmeli" of Fatima (Portugal). The details of this program will be communicated at a later time.
The Aggregation of two International Religious Institutes
In its 127th session of May 4, the General Definitory proceeded to the aggregation of the Institute of the "Aliadas Carmelitas Descalzas de la Santísima Trinidad". The mother house of the Congregation is in Aguascalientes, Mexico. It originated on July 16, 1986 and it received diocesan approval on May 4, 2001. The charism of the institute consists of turning a particular attention to orphans that have health problems, to elderly poor men, to the sick with contagious illnesses that lack assistance, to elderly priests, and the ill. The "Allied" show themselves to be messengers of Trinitarian love through adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and of teaching catechesis in schools. The Institute has 307 members distributed in 23 houses, 14 aspirants, 21 applicants and 49 novices. The "Allied Discalced Carmelites of the Most Holy Trinity", are present in Mexico, Chile, Argentina, Spain, Italy and the Vatican City. The founder and actual General Superior is Mother Marta Maria Ramirez Mora. The co--founder and actual General Superior of the masculine branch is Fr. José Anthonio Zabalza Gulina.
And also, the General Definitory aggregated to the Order the Missionary Sisters of St. Therese of the Infant Jesus in its 130 session held on May 6th . The Institute has its center at Umayanallur, Quilon-Kerala, India. It had its beginning July 23, 1953 and received its approval by law as a diocesan Institute January 27 th 1959. The members cultivate a particular devotion to St. Therese of the Infant Jesus, to our Lady of Carmel and St. Joseph. The goal of the new Carmelite religious family consists of embodying the presence of Christ among the people, above all among the poor men and people who have no faith, bringing them the Good News through the Word and the apostolate. The Institute is composed of 144 professed religious distributed in 21 houses.
The Fifth International Congress of Kinshasa
The Carmelites of the Democratic Republic of Congo organized the Fifth International Congress of Spirituality in Kinshasa, from May 6–10, 2007, at the Teresian Center of Kinshasa on the theme: "Carmel confronted with the big challenges of spirituality in Africa". His Excellency the Apostolic Nuncio, Mons. Giovanni Di Aniello, His Excellency, Mons. Daniel Nladu, Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of Kinshasa, His Excellency, Mons. Domenico Bulamatari, Auxiliary Bishop of Kinshasa, the Rev. Father Roger Wawa, President of the Association of Major Superiors (ASUMA), Roger Ngungampimpa, General Delegate of the Discalced Carmelites in the RDC, men and women religious, reverend abbots and numerous students, and seminarians enlivened this important gathering with their presence.
The 32 lecturers, mostly university professors, came from various countries. They came from the Cameroun, from Kenya, from Italy, from the United States of America, from Kinshasa and from other Provinces of the RD of Congo.
The general theme of the congress was expressed in three major sections: 1) The challenges of African society, 2) the spirituality in the Bible and in cultures, 3) Carmel in Africa as an ongoing revitalizing patrimony.
This congress wanted to address the attendants: " . . . today Carmel is no longer a domain for its members and for its own, situated on the margins of the world and its history. It is in the world, without being of the world. In this context, the spiritual life is interpreted by the development of the world and by the challenges that it poses to the human family. Carmel cannot remain indifferent to these challenges." On the contrary Carmel is called to respond.
On this point, the Fifth International Congress can be considered a success by the quality of those intervening and their interventions. The understanding achieved here was not merely an intellectual exercise. It was a function of reviewing the past and recent history to draw on the resources of renewal perceived as Carmel’s response to the challenges posed to its spirituality. The local church, through the voice of its pastors, has expressed joy for the Carmelite presence and the care to see this spirituality influence the pastoral action and the life of the faithful. The Acts of the Congress will be published as soon as possible.
Fra Immaculato Joseph of Jesus Aldo Brienza (1923–1989)
On May 11, 2007, which is the anniversary of the solemn profession of Fra Immaculato in the Teresian Carmel, the Diocesan Process of his Beatification was officially closed. There was a Mass and solemn ceremony in the Cathedral of Campobasso, in the Italian Province of Molise, presided by Archbishop Armando Dini. The Archbishop emeritus, numerous members of the Diocesan clergy, and a representative group of ten Discalced Carmelites from the Casa Generalizia and the Provinces of Rome and Naples, were witnesses of this official act which is another step forward in the process of the beatification of one who was chronically ill and bedridden for more than fifty years and who lived profoundly our Teresian-Sanjuanistic spirituality.
The Diocese of Campobasso-Bojano, where there are not many religious, “hopes to have a saint,” declared the Archbishop in his homily, “after more than a thousand years of its history.” His words were spoken with moving devotion that touched all those present. Among those present were three of Fra Immaculato’s sisters and a brother, various nieces and nephews and a good number of those who testified in the diocesan canonical process. Fra Immaculato was an exceptional soul who was directed from the curia by Fathers John Baptist (Pozzi) of Our Lady of Mercy, (1902-1946), Charles Newell (1923-) Ernest (Adami) of St. John of the Cross (1911-1992), Isidore (Dante) of St. Elijah (1927-1978), Valentine (Macca) of St. Mary (1924-1988), and Vincent (Belli) of St. Pualinus, (1885-1959), and in whose archival collections in the General Archives much correspondence was obtained. Father Valentine affirmed: “We will see Fra Immaculato raised very soon on our altars.” And St. Padre Pio of Pietralcina said to his Capuchin brothers way back in 1953: “In Campobasso you have a saint in flesh and bones: it is Fra Immaculato who lives in the plaza by the train station.” He received permission to take his solemn vows into the Order by pontifical rescript while being bed ridden in great suffering and pain. Fra Immaculato is God’s new surprise for the Teresian Carmel.
The 50th Anniversary of the death of an exceptional missionary
Fr. Zaccaria Salterian of S. Teresa, Son of the Province of Navarra was born November 4 th 1887 in the Basque country of Abadiano, Spain and died May 23 rd 1957 at 3:30 am in India. As a young priest, he went to the seminary of Puthenpalli-Alwaye, India, in 1912. For 45 consecutive years, India was his adopted country. He succeeded in putting together instruction with a vast printing ministry in order to educate, form and prepare the future priests in view of the evangelization of their own country in areas that were the least Christian. He had made his own the motto of Leo XIII: "India, your children will bring you salvation". He thoroughly studied the thought and the writings of the Hindu tradition. From 1931 he wrote various books, the last of which was in the 1956 (one year before he died): "Outlines of Hinduism". The Episcopal Conference of India has since required that the work be a text book in seminaries. In life they called him "the sinners' shelter" for his great charity toward all paupers.
On March 16, Fr. General wrote a message for the commemorative celebrations that are being preparing in India. Fr. Luis Arostegui wrote that Fr. Zaccaria "was a man whose holiness imbued his whole personality and expressed itself through his reputation with a totally special quality, that makes him agreeable and inspiring". Fr. General also remembers his merits as a pioneer in his studies of Hinduism, as an investigator of religions, and comparative philosophies. His religious ecumenism was already apparent in 1931. Fr. General also noted his love for peace and justice, that brought him to deal with social matters, his enthusiasm and his optimism.
Between the years of 1977 and 1981 the proceedings were dispatched for the process of his Beatification. Now the Fr. General, together with the Indian episcopate, desires to accelerate the canonical cause of "this excellent son of St. Teresa, of those children who in their life and mental style have expanded the horizons of Carmel and the Church." In this sense he wrote a letter to the Prefect of the Congregation for the cause of the saints, asking that, as far as possible, he accelerate the examination of the trial because in India "I have experienced more than once the profound appreciation and veneration of the bishops and priests who were influenced by him."
A recent book in Italian describes Fr. Zaccaria of S. Teresa in this way: "By his study, wether it be Christianity or Hinduism, he can be considered as a concrete example of a cultivator of comparative mysticism." (AA.VV., “La Mistica, parola per parola. 500 voci dalla A alla Z”. Ed. Ancora, Roma 2007, p. 375).