Mission Now

(A paper presented to the Irish Provincial Chapter of the Marist Fathers on the 31st March 2005, by Michael Drennan sj)

Introduction

 Life in the Lord is about mission; he who was sent into the world, sends us (John 2021). Mission is at the core of who we are and what we are about. We are sent as messengers of good news as Jesus was. Mission has had many facets in the Church over the centuries and even in our own time, though we have tended to think of it primarily as going overseas to a Third World country and people, to help and to evangelize. That is one expression of mission, but it has another meaning — that of being like Jesus, who a pilgrim in life. That is more basic and it can speak to us at any stage of life. It is having the attitude and mind of Christ; it is about relationship with him, about being and befriending. It speaks of freedom and openness.

When we stop to think of it, we were all inspired by growing numbers with gifted people joining us, with the expansion of existing projects, and new ventures opening up; life and growth were evident from the abundant energy and talent available. It was an exciting time and little did we think it would come to a halt. We were building bigger and better barns for the harvest (Luke 12: 13-2 1), without thinking that the situation would change. It was easy to appear visionary in the midst of increase and with opening ‘new missions.’ Our limitations are more apparent but we can yearn for a continuation of our ‘glorious past.’ This is a new era with its’ own invitation.

A Changed Situation

 The Pope’s visit in 1979 was a triumphant event, but the seeds of change were there

for those who were able to see them, for example:

• Vocations were declining for ten years before that.

• Vatican II had highlighted to role of the priesthood, with clear impact on the brotherhood.

• Its teaching on the mission of all the baptised in GS opened up new horizons; lay people were to be given their rightful place in the Church it is not that we empower them, but more so that we allow to live out their baptismal calling.

• The dignity of each person was given more prominence.

• We joined the Common Market in the early 70’s and this led in due course to an increase of wealth and many more options for our youth. Economic success in a consumerist society has led to a lessening influence on religious values.

• The size of families began to reduce.

• More recently we have had the scandals of emotional and sexual abuse.

• Bishops and religious are less influential in society at large, and to some they are not credible.

In a short time we were faced with a radically altered situation which forced us to adjust our ministry and our attitudes. We have to show we are credible — it is not given to us, automatically. As opposed to sending more young members overseas, we have become accustomed to welcoming home the older ones, often in poor health.

But the mission the Lord continues through all of this. It is bigger than us, who can get burnt out and isolated the process.

Decline in numbers, in energy level, with an increasing age-profile has brought its own challenge to us as Religious. The achievements and productivity of the past are less evident, bringing its own pain. This is especially so where results were over­valued; often the level of self-worth seemed to be linked with them. For those caught in that, it is difficult to slow down, to let go, to risk choosing differently. There has been an increasing workload for the younger and the more active. Letting go may not come easily, as there may be pressure from within and from others to carry on the good work.

For all, there can be a reluctance to allow the glory of the past to fade. There can be a perception that we should be able to recapture it if we do more and pray harder. There can be resistance to allow the old fade and let the new emerge; to let the seed die so that it will bear more fruit (John 12: 24). This can go on individually, or in a group. We have to try to hold on, as if it goes, we will be failures and we will have nothing; our security can be threatened. In that light could we say the Lord’s life was a success, or that his mission was such? His greatest work was done in weakness and seeming failure on the cross. It was the ultimate surrender. That was the heart of his mission. We are at a humbling time, but one of liberation. This can become a new Easter, if it is seen and approached in a faith-filled way..

Invitation to Reflect

 I did my retreat in Glendalough in January a few years ago. There were very few around, so there was time and space to wander and pray around the monastic site. I was struck by a few things:

• A that way of life flourished for more than a thousand years had more or less faded a way, but it was replaced by something else; the wondrous ways and plans of God continued.

• Very few names of the monks remain, apart from Sts Kevin and Lorcan O’Toole; all the tombstones are to people who came much later. Such monuments had little meaning for the monks as their burial place was of little importance — it was merely a place where they were put while awaiting the Resurrection. They had a clear focus. I wondered if I had.

If we think in the light of their lives or our new situation, we could ask - what do we want to leave after us? We do not have children (or, at least I think so), but we can have other monuments to our names; towers of Babel have their appeal (note the many people who like to have their names on buildings or on new roads that have been built). What do we want to be remembered for? This challenges us as to who we are and what we have committed our lives to. Our memories are not written in stone — they are part of a story written by the Lord we serve in the Society. The Lord who is the heart of that mission gives us an invitation but also a freedom to let go and move on. There is a rich legacy and many footprints to guide and help others.

Accepting change

 It has been a time of change for all. For each person there is an invitation. We are all individuals, as well as being members of a larger Society. Each of us is invited to pause and ponder. Remnants and memories of the past remain, and they contain the good and the less than that. Sacred tradition has its riches; it can sustain one group but imprison another. Younger members can feel burdened by what was there and do not want to invest their lives in its continuance. They see different needs with other opportunities to serve, which are consistent with the Marist charism. Working in partnership with an educated laity offers much to the continuation of what has been and still is worthwhile. Overwork, meeting the many demands that come, can take their toll; life can lose some of its prayerfullreflective quality.

This presentation centres more on the ‘older’ and the ‘younger’ though it recognises there is a group in-between, who have their own experience of what is happening. That has to be acknowledged. They may share elements of the other two groups. How does one define ‘younger’ any more? Its definition seems to keep rising chronologically as we go on. There is an adjustment required for this group, whether they are the last ones in a traditional apostolate, or the first ones in a new venture or approach.

For the older members there is the challenge of letting go of what they have invested their lives in; this can be quite challenging.

• For some the transition comes easier and more calmly; they accept the decline of the years and are able to do so without any great struggle.

• There are a few who ‘retire early’ accepting the pattern of people in secular life.

• There are others who seem unable to retire, or to let go; they have to be active. They may feel they have to be working, as anything less than that is failure.

• There are those who still want to have a big influence on the direction the province takes and who are reluctant to allow it to take a new course, to let go and let others get on with what is to be done. This can be present in ministry, style of life, or type of communal prayer that is permitted, etc. Levels of control can remain, even if ministry is lessened or even let go.

Old age needs a freedom to accept what has been, to live what is, and to enjoy the future and what is brings.

Old age or retirement years are not meant be ‘catch-up time’ for the deficiencies of the past. Having more time to pray does not mean that it comes more easily. Sleep, lack of concentration, dryness, may be more pervasive and that can be the main prayer offered to the Lord; it is a prayer of being, or presence and of surrender, rather than one of doing. Results can be less evident, but that does not mean that one is worse than ever, as some seem to think. Expectations can have undue significance, as if success was possible after all. The desire for success can take on new guises and make demands, when the invitation is to let go, to trust, to offer the little one can. That is all the Lord asks — recall the multiplication of loaves and fish; ‘all we have is five loaves and two fishes’ (Matthew 14: 17), but that is all that the Lord needed and there was enough for everyone, with a lot left over. We are asked to offer the little we have and not worry about what we do not have; the Lord will do the rest.

Leadership

 Each person is called to leadership. Those elected or appointed have an authority given them, but all of us have responsibility within the Society. Each one is called to leadership in different ways, to take responsibility for the direction of the Society. Stop-gap measures are not necessarily life-giving. There has to be the space to be visionary in facing the future, while trusting the Lord of the harvest to provide what is needed. He is the guarantor of the future.

The role of Province leaders is significant, especially in time of rapid change. Their role may be like that of the Good Samaritan in a story that includes the active, those who walk by or do their own thing, the non-involved and the wounded; their ministry reaches out to all. That does not mean that the Provincial is a full-time inn-keeper. In fostering the mission in the light of the charism and caring for the members, he needs the support and encouragement of the members. He has to have the freedom to lead and guide in the transition. It calls for a reflective and prayerful approach that gives the Lord space to act. He ensures a continuity with the past, but he also a prophetic role in openness to the needs of now. For all leaders it is a challenging time. It is a new chapter in the story to have many people in the aged category and few joining. There is no crowd of youthful, energetic members, coming after them to take up the mission and carry it forward.

There is another factor that is challenging now and that is availability for leaderships, be it at local or Provincial level.

• People can declare that they are not available for various reasons. There is a danger of individualism becoming too prominent, which is different from individuality.

• The professional could take precedence over the personal call.

• The common mission could lose out to individual interest. Then working together does not get sufficient place in the mission of the Society.

Retaining a balance between the conflicting elements is not easy. While the institution and structures are relevant, they are means to an end, which is collaboration in the mission.

Subtle and not so subtle pressure can be put on leaders to continue what has been, or there can be a demand for radical change. With many living longer and able to work for many years beyond retirement age, there are new challenges. That can be a blessing in one way, but a restriction in another, as it could hinder planning and vision. All are affected by what is happening, including those in leadership:

• Younger members can over-invest in work and relationships outside the community, so there is less engagement with the others.

• Older members can hold on to outdated traditions or patterns that are long past their sell-by-date; they can be unwilling to let sacred cows be slaughtered.

• Leaders can find it difficult to fmd a way in the midst of all this, yet feel bound by the Constitutions and the Acts of Chapter to do something.

There is a call to each one in this new situation to listen to and respond to the Lord in it.

The Mission Now

 The mission now, despite decline and change, is meant to be meaningful and life-giving. Results can imprison us, as we set up a particular criterion of evaluation. All of us are invited to let go of the achievement that is driven, of the success that is debilitating, as if we have to be doing more and more. True, we may feel better and more worthwhile when the results were out there to see. That may be gift in one way, but it could be a form of slavery, too. Each time has its own temptations that come in particular guises for each one. When we stop to reflect, we realise that we are brought back to trust God and allow ourselves to be guided through the desert of now, but that desert has its beauty if we can see it.

Expectations can influence all, be they from within oneself or from outside. Unmet expectations, unrealised goals and unfulfilled dreams can lead to an unhealthy guilt. This is different from and more subtle than guilt for wrongdoing and can be more difficult to deal with. This is a time for trust in a new way. The Lord did not expect perfection! Helplessness can be the best prayer, leading to an acknowledgement of the need of God. Offering life with the limits of now is liberating; it is true surrender. The Lord who has begun the good work will see it through to completion (Phil 1: 6). God provides what we need; it is God’s mission we share — it does not all depend on us, whether we are old or young. There was a time when this was easier to define ‘old’ chronologically. Now with better health and many living longer it is less easy to categorise. It is reasonable to allow members to do some work while they can and enjoy it, but it may be different from what they did for most of their lives. The mission of the Society is central, and particular ministries are to fit within that. Now there is a greater variety of works that can be done. However, with time there will be some slowing down, letting go, accepting declining energy or concentration. This transition does not come automatically. It needs understanding, support and sometimes encouragement to embrace the decline. Accepting dependence on God and others is significant in it. Much comes down to the ease any person has with the task in hand. Retirement is a time to be enjoyed; it is not meant to be burdensome; there is recognition of what has gone before and gratitude for it. The incompleteness of life is gift, not failure; it is an opening to the Lord whose short life was not spectacularly successful by worldly criteria. It is meant to Easter and, not Passion time, though there will be aspects of the latter, always in our lives.

The younger members also need a freedom in this challenging time. There is much to be done, with many opportunities available. This requires discernment if good choices are to be made. The many demands can lead to a new form of enslavement, to options that are more immediately satisfying rather than deeper and long-term. The communal dimension of the call could suffer, Burn-out is a more real possibility as there are fewer structures to put limits in place

Concluding Comment

 For all of us, it is a time of reflection and of choice. It calls all of us to a contemplative attitude. That allows a gentle hold on life, as we realise it does not all depend on us. It is seeing what the Lord is doing and allowing the Lord space to work; it means taking the Lord more seriously and ourselves less so. The past has its richness, with many years of service given, often without counting the cost — that was inspiring. [I recall giving a retreat to a group of aged, retired sisters, and was humbled to realise there was more than one thousand years of service done by them. They had carried it out in more difficult times, without many of the amenities and comforts that have come in more recent times.] The ministry now, with its limits, is not a waste of time; there are results, and may not be as evident, but they are no less real. The mission, now as in the past, requires passion and love, as these were at the heart of Christ’s mission.

• Older members are helped to accept old age, decline, and to let go of the incomplete, the less than desirable, the imperfections of life. The new has to be allowed to emerge, having some continuity with the past, but not totally directed by it.

• Younger members are not to be unduly burdened by the past and its legacy; they are helped to value it, but to see a broader horizon with new needs, so that they can discern in the Lord the better road to take.

• Leaders are to offer support and direction, but are not to be overburdened by unrealistic demands. This time requires generosity, tolerance and support of each other, but with the freedom to challenge in a way that brings freedom in the Lord and for the Lord’s mission. It is our time for service; we are not to bemoan that, lamenting the good old days that were not very good. What is happening now is no less authentic than that of the past. It is there that we are to give witness and be messengers of hope. This continues to be the mission for all. Decline may challenge more deeply than growth; age and ill-health can be more difficult to deal with than youth and energy. If the changes bring us back to trust in the Lord of the harvest, then we will be richer and freer as a result. The fact that others continue the work, or have found new ways to serve, is a source ofjoy. That we were able to do so much for so long evokes gratitude. Being able to let go brings true liberation. God’s work will continue; it does not all depend on us. God will take care of the future.

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION

1. Where am I most liable to get caught now? What is my temptation?

2. What do I find difficult to let go, or embrace?

3. What is the biggest challenge facing us as a Society?

4. What will help us in continuing to discern the way forward?

5. How can I best help the Province plan the way forward given my particular age and condition?

Michael Drennan sj