SECOND UPDATE FROM THE WORLD MEETING

I don’t normally blog over the weekend but we are receiving daily reports from Vivien who is attending the World OCDS meeting in Avila so I am making an exception this weekend.  Viven writes:

‘The OCDS meeting in Avila is a first of a kind, with nothing on a comparable scale having taken place before. According to the organizers it is supposed to be not so much a “World Congress” as a “Global Encounter”.  This was certainly evident as 900 delegates from 90 countries, many of them wielding national flags, gathered into a single vast and airy conference hall on the first morning. Even troubled countries such as Iraq, Israel, Lebanon and Ukraine managed to field delegations.  The atmosphere is exuberant, and joyful beyond expectation. The vibe is somewhere between the United Nations and the FIFA World Cup, although as somebody pointed out: we are all on the same team! Something far deeper than either sporting prowess or national identity is here… As Fr Ramiro Cásale, OCD General Delegate of the Order for the OCDS put it during his welcoming remarks, “These are moments, above all, for communion”. It was fitting then that the theme of fraternal communion and community life emerged so prominently throughout the first day.  Notably, the Italian OCDS represented by Linda Levy, insisted that Carmelite community should be a communion of souls that are mutually supportive, journeying together towards sanctity. This is so central she said, that an important part of discerning a Secular Carmelite vocation must be whether a person is able to integrate into the community. Not everyone has the aptitude for community life.  The address from our Father General, Fr Miguel Marquez Calle OCD, expressed his vision for a higher order communion between the three branches of the one Order. “We need a new way of relating to each other,” he said, “One that is not characterized either by paternalism or infantilism.” He expressed his confidence that most challenges can be addressed through good communication. That means heart to heart communication, that is sincere and confident, as well as mutually receptive. But the most important aspect of communication, he reflected, is the ability to listen to each other profoundly. Listening is the touchstone of maturity and humility.’

Intercessions

RIP Fr Jon Bielowski, Jacqui, Sister Maisie

Cancer: Brian Davis, Bernard (and wife Angela caring for him), Catherine, Alex (43 with five children), Theresa K, Elena

Sophie – newborn having heart surgery; Sianna, young child in the post-operative phase; James, recovering from heart surgery

Ivy – sick child

Brian (recovering from Pneumonia)

Kevin (heart attack)

William Gove (in recovery)

Illness:  Katy Keeling

Siena, Elara – sick children

David OCDS – housebound

Grace – troubling ailments, job difficulties, family (deceased mother and health of father)

Mark – brain infection

Michael, Kira – vulnerable youngsters

Defence of the unborn and the elderly

We are asked to pray for the Diocese of Chiang Mai and Northern Thailand, as the Northern Mission celebrates its centenary. The process of selecting a new bishop continues.