Key-Note Address - Laurence Duffy s.m.

Introduction Lay Marists around the World France Africa New Zealand Pacific Ocean Melbourne Netherlands Challenges for today A Healthy Independence Formation for Marist Mission Passing on the Torch Communication Concluding remarks

It is a privilege to have the opportunity to speak with you this morning. It is very pleasing to meet you and the visitors from other countries/continents. We ask the Lord that this may be a time of grace for all of us and that the conference will bear fruit for the Reign of God.

Before beginning the substance of the talk, I'd like to make a few preliminary comments.

I think that what I have to share with you this morning can only be seen as just a more formal expression of what is going on among us these days - sharing our experiences of the Marist spirit and charism in our lives and groups. We have such an amount to offer one another these days that I hope we can communicate in depth with participants from other places. Through my work as assistant general of the Marist Fathers during the past seven years, I have had the wonderful privilege of witnessing much at first hand of what is happening in the Marist world, and it is my delight to tell you some stories that may be of interest and to offer some reflections and questions about the future.

There is so much that could be said, and most of it can be said by you; so in selecting examples, for instance, I have tended to take from places that are not represented here, as you can share better what you are involved in, and mine naturally come largely from connections with the Marist Fathers. This will be a very incomplete picture (Marist Sisters, Marist Missionary Sisters, Marist Brothers have much more to say). In your talks later we can talk about your own special interests.

I also know that in this room there is great variety - some of you have lived deeply the Marist spirit for years. Some perhaps are a bit curious and wondering what all the fuss is about. Perhaps some of you work with Marist religious, and others belong to groups. Approaching the conference in a spirit of faith, we know that the Lord has graces for us all during these days and in the end what counts is the Lord's work and the Spirit in the intimacy of our hearts. So we approach these days from where we are and open our lives to the Lord and the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Gift is the key work for today. There is no doubt that in many quiet and unspectacular ways lay Marists are indeed already a gift for others, the church and humanity today, now, at this time, this morning. You notice I do not begin by using the more abstract expression Marist Laity, but lay Marists - why? Because, as we know, the important point is that what we are concerned with is in the first place not with groups, organisations, meetings, but rather with the work of Mary, with people living a certain kind of life: people wanting to live in the spirit of Mary, with an eye to drawing others into the mercy of God - all kinds of people: some themselves just hanging on to Christ and the Church by a thin thread, some are even people of exceptional holiness - holiness which is hidden in Christ with God. So we talk about people first before we talk about other topics like groups, organisations, formation, planning etc.

In fact there are quite a few lay Marists who live the Marist life with little or no contact with other Marists. There is the interesting story of the young Australian philosophy teacher (mentioned in Like a Bridge) who simply through meeting some Marists priests was led to study for himself the writings of Fr. Colin and to absorb the Marist way of life without belonging to any group. I can think of some in Germany whose only contact is via a little bulletin-booklet published a few times a year (Marianische Apostolat). Perhaps you know some too. There is something very revealing about this: that being a Marist is about doing good in the quiet way of Mary, hidden and unknown as one may be. There are also many wonderful lay people who have caught something of the Marist spirit from working with the religious or priests and who have no affiliation to any Marist group and yet are very Marist. There is, of course, the danger of people using too lightly the name Marist, or using it in the wrong way. For instance, we recall that Marists are not about the propagation of any particular devotion to Mary. The general administration and also the Marist Fathers in the U.S.A. have produced basic guide booklets which state the principles that Marist in the Colinian tradition adhere to.

Of course the more usual way to be for lay Marists is to form apart of a group in some way or other. In this sphere we find, and quite rightly so, great variety. Let me begin by mentioning some things far away from here:

I will begin with a certain justice in the country where the Marist charism first appeared, France. I do this because in some ways what happened in the field of Marist Laity in France has much to teach us and also we may share as well its difficulties, In most places where the Marist Fathers were established over the years since the 1830's Third Order groups sprang up. Also, where there were Marist Sisters there were often Third Order groups. With a new spirit and theology in the 1960's some of these groups adapted themselves to the more modern mentality: they changed their name to Marist Fraternities, became more independent of the priests branch, and began to produce their won bulletin. This led to the lay people creating an organisation for themselves: an association of the Fraternities. While remaining close to the canonical Marists, the leadership was in the hands of the lay people. Around this time, two other groups came into existence in France: Enlarged communities - where the Marist fathers opened their doors to interested laity to share prayer and reflection and Lay associates - laity binding themselves to participation in the mission of the Society of Mary, even to the extent of making a financial contribution to the Province. The St. Mary's Confraternity at the Marist school in Lyons (mainly teachers who wanted to draw their inspiration from the Marist spirit for their teaching) put out a beautiful journal every so often. You see, there was a whole range of types of groups. So in the early 1990s, they joined together under an umbrella association - just to coordinate a little so they could meet. Periodically, in fact there are national general assemblies for a few days to share and reflect on a Theme. In 1993, I was present for one - maybe 100 people - 'The Magnificat' was the theme. There was one this year in May at La Neyliere with about 60 members present. They discussed their plan, which was already in operation: 'Marists-let us dare the future'. All the kinds of groups will work together in three regions of France to share and reflect on the future and will also invite others to join them. It is convinced lay Marists meeting together and inviting other to go forward. I can also note that this association produces its little newsletter Maristes Laics several times a year.

I would like to move now from the heart of a rather secularised Europe to mention one particular situation in Africa - The Marist Fathers were present as a group for only a few short years in Burundi and were never in what was Zaire and is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo - places - as we know - that have experienced terrible violence in recent years. But during the time we were there, a number of groups were begun with young Africans in high schools, and these groups continue and have increased. One group is in the capital of Burundi, Bujumbura. It consists of about 20 students, some of whom live together and share common prayer; but it is most notable for what is often characteristic of youth - the urge to do something, action. The latest report I have of April of this years tells us that the group is still strong despite the great economic hardship faced by all. These youth inspired by the Marist spirit meet together on Sundays - one Sunday for prayer, sharing and reading of the gospel and on another Sunday to visit the sick or refugees, even helping economically out of their poor means, as well as with assistance from Caritas.

One initiative that I think is rather remarkable and has been extraordinarily successful is what is called the 'Marian Mothers' in New Zealand. Here the Marist dimension is quite hidden and in the back ground. The 'Marian Mothers' is about supporting young Catholic mothers in a society, which is not very Catholic and indeed not very religious at all. Women can be pressured to see their role as wives and mothers in a negative light. They can be made to feel ill-at-ease in their role as mothers and to find domestic work held in less esteem than it once was. An enthusiastic and insightful Marist priest, Fr. John Allerdyce, took a new initiative in 1981, creating small groups of mothers to meet once a week to listen to a cassette tape and discuss it. These are parish-based; and by now there are about 100 of such groups. These mothers would not call themselves Marist, but through the cassettes much Marist spirituality is presented, and it is absorbed and lived in this quiet way. I think these groups have been very successful, as they meet a real need, and they stimulate young mothers to share their common difficulties and joys in a Christian atmosphere that has a Marian touch.

I would like now to move to the small islands in the Pacific Ocean - Wallis and Futuna (where St. Peter Chanel was martyred) and New Caledonia, where the Third Order is hugely present - I am speaking of thousands of members. Highly structured and demanding, these groups have very regular meetings, and many of the members pray much. I remember meeting in New Caledonia a man who's Third Order Group meets every day before sunrise for an hours prayer. In New Caledonia, too, in the past few years there has been an unusual growth of newer style fraternities, principally due to the interest of a Marist priest and one layman, Sebastian, who was converted from a rather dissolute life and now, in a most discreet way, is on fire with the gospel and has almost single-handedly brought into being a number of fraternities.

Recently, I spend a morning on the topic of Marist Laity with a group of SMSM sisters doing a renewal in Rome. They told me about a woman in Melbourne called Gloria Carberry, whom I have never met. This is more or less what they said. Very active in her parish, Gloria founded her very active life of prayer and pastoral activity on Marist spirituality. She attends the larger monthly meeting of the Marist Laity in Melbourne but also organises days of reflection on Marist spirituality (she has done this on her own and also in other parishes). She worked a lot with the sick and dying (including HIV/AIDS) and , along with others, tries to do this in a Marist way - especially with homosexual persons: approaching them in a Mary-like way, encouraging those who are Catholic to return to the Church and accept the teachings of the Church. She has organised prayer companions in Australia and overseas through which a person with HIV/AIDS is accompanied by the prayer of a well person whose only knowledge of the person being prayed for is his/her Christian name.

To finish this section: a simple story from the Netherlands which reflects things done on a modest scale. The provincial of the Marist Fathers in Holland gave me the up-to-date information on this. At its origins is a high school prayer group, four members of which who were guided by a Marist Father in some aspects of the Marist way of life. This led to a weekend of reflection by the young people who produced a small document for themselves on the Marist way of life. This was approved by the Marist Brothers and Fathers in Holland. The group increased in size but, of course, the members were growing up and then were separated, going to different places for study and work; but hey kept in touch. There are now about fifteen members and others who move in their circle. When they can, they meet at the Marist Brothers house in Nijmegen for prayer, sharing and a meal together. One group of them is involved with the Marist Brothers working with young people who were in prison and in trouble. The director of the project is a lay Marist. These young people join the combined Marist retreat every two years and also feature in the registry of the Marist in Holland and in the new bulletin of the Marists in Holland.

There is no time to develop so many other wonderful things - the new group I met in Venezuela which welcomes both Marist Sisters and Marist Fathers; the young people I met in Peru; the many groups and activities in England, the great work the Marist Sister, Sr. Berise, has done in Australia; the many Champagnat groups in different countries; the New University groups in Mexico which are growing quite fast - and who study systematically the book Like a Bridge. I met some of them last year, and it was a great joy for me.

I would like now to focus on four challenges that I think you will find relevant. Indeed there are many others, and you may find some others more relevant to your situation. You may disagree with me. Too. You see, it is easy for me to present the, but I don?t have easy solutions. I believe they are matters that need time and energy, principally from the Marist Laity themselves.

The first I will call the challenge of 'healthy independence'. This is the matter of the growing responsibility of lay Marists for themselves. While many lay Marists are such because of their contact or work with members of the religious congregations - Bro X, Sister Y, Fr. Z, - and are happy to continue as they are - and that is fine - there is no doubt that if the Marist charism is to really become more alive in many more lay people, then for some lay Marists, there is the challenge to move with a great independence in their owning of the Marist charism.

One way that this was expressed by the early Marists, and is still important for us, is a picture and image we can hold before our eyes: the tree with the branches: a trunk with a number of branches; and the laity branch in Fr. Colin's eyes, as he said once, is to be a 'branch with branches'. Lay Marists are Marists in their own right - they are gifted with a participation in the work of Mary directly and not as, in some way, appendages to Marist religious or priest's groups; they are not in some way a second-class rank, or indeed dependent on the religious and priests. I quote from a talk given by a former superior general of the Marist sisters in 1999, Sr. Margaret Purcell, 'With regard to the Marist family: for the Marist Laity branch, it is time to become more independent. The Marist Laity branch of the tree must produce its own fruit. The tree is there to support the branch, not to suppress it. Somehow, you must be responsible for your own organisation - work things out the way you see you can do this. Take the initiative! Seize the day! 'Make the whole world Marist'. I believe this a major challenge: that some lay Marist and groups will get enough fire in their system about the Marist way that they will take an increasing responsibility for their own ongoing life and development. Perhaps it will take time, but I think that where the spirit finds openness and generosity such a direction is really possible and perhaps will be enduring. What I have spoken of above regarding France is already very much in this line, and the Lay Councils now established in the U.S. and England are a step in the right direction.

If I were to exercise my imagination. I could dream of a picture like this: In many countries, many lay Marists. All of them in some way aware that they are connected with Mary and her desire to bring people to our Saviour. Among these lay Marists , many are organised into groups of different kinds, but some of the groups are really like a core in some way. The members really understand the project well and are a source of life, inspiration and support for others. At a national level there would be an umbrella association which could assist groups in terms of communication, support and organisation. Such national associations could link with each other, too. Of course, maybe this is too grandiose and not at all in the Lord's plan, but certainly some of the elements involved are really necessary.

The image here: the tree with a lay branch of branches.

If we simplify the matter a lot, we can say there are two defining elements of Marist Laity. One is the reference to the person of Mary - her spirit, her name, her way of being present, and second is also linked to Mary - the evangelising thrust outwards, God's mercy for the world. Lay Marists live like Mary and have a real concern for the salvation of others, to bring them into the ambit of God's love, an order for the world.

One specific challenge that is posed for us here is what we can call spirituality 'formation' in Marist for mission. This is one of the challenges that is pretty much world wide but is of greater significance in areas where the general education level is high. This challenge needs to be taken up more seriously, I believe by Marist lay groups. Certainly the other members of the Marist family can help. There is an extensive literature, there are books, there is the possibility of qualified speakers, retreats, formation days. Again to emphasise: not every lay Marist needs the same in depth formation in Marist spirituality; but certainly Marist Laity as a whole in any country, if it is to be of a lasting and consequential nature, needs some lay people who are well formed in things Marist. There is an enormous and rich heritage that needs to be absorbed and lived widely. Now this challenge needs to taken up at the level of local groups and at wider levels, I think your reflection on this matter at this conference will be of considerable importance.

Perhaps an image that we can use here - an image that we use with care, as it is not biblical but is found in the tradition and was used by Fr. Colin - is Mary as the teacher of the apostles. Mary teaches those who were sent on mission. We need to learn from Mary how to be apostles. Fr. Colin saw the Marist spirit as something delicate that needed sustained meditation to be acquired.

Marist groups in the First World, like the rest of the Church, face the enormous challenge now of how to continue the Marist lay mission. Like many Church groups, many Marist groups find that their average age is going up, that they are not in fact renewing themselves and that the young are not joining them. Today, we have to scrutinise the signs of the times and discern together where we have to go. We can never simply just drift along and simply repeat by rote in some way the things of the past. There can sometimes exist the tendency for Third Order groups and other Marist groups to be somewhat closed in on themselves, to become a kind of association for pious up-building or gatherings for Mass, a short talk and a cup of coffee. This, of course, is not bad. But if we are to really be ready for the deeper significance of being lay Marists then the dimension of mission must be very much at the forefront of our thinking and our way of doing things. We are to go into the world as missionaries. Missionaries are not simply those full-time workers who often go abroad, but the Church as Church is missionary. That is all of us.

If we do not attract new people, then the torch will fall to the ground, perhaps still alight with the fire of the Spirit. I guess there are no simply answers to this, but I believe we need to take stock of ourselves and study how we might reverse this trend. It could be a case that in our life, in my life, routine has set in, that we do not ask others to join, that we fail to undertake some creative activities that make our evangelisation more real and attractive to others. Being in New Orleans the image of jazz came to me - do we need to jazz up our groups, be more flexible?

I guess the greatest challenge here is the youth. Can we reach out to the youth more and invite them to be Marists? Is there something, simple perhaps, which will cause some young people to come to know and love the Marist spirit and way? Can we invite some of them to work along-side us if we do some ministry? Can we invite some to come and pray with us? Can we notice some lay Marists who have a bit of a charism for working with youth and encourage them? Can we reach out in some way to alienated and unchurched youth?

The 'healthy independence' I spoke about above needs, of course, to be complemented by a real communion between the various Marist groups. There is also indeed a fundamental Marist point her: to be Marist is to be very concerned with unity- 'One heart and one mind'. Creation of division is foreign to the Marist Spirit. A due ?independence? is never an excuse for a lack of unity and real intercommunion between Marists, or indeed that lay Marists become divisive in a parish situation.

Here perhaps first of all, it is a question of being in some form of contact with others in the Marist family: lay, religious and priests. The ordinary human contact of those who share the same spirit is of value in itself as an expression of common identity as well as enriching in a variety of ways. There are all sorts of initiatives of this type over the world - from sharing Marist feasts, to mixed retreats, to regional meetings. A question: do we do enough of this?

There is also a very big question of the kind of ongoing communication of information about events, publications, formation courses, news and new developments.. Some of this is done at a national level by bulletins and newsletters (e.g. Australia, Ireland, and France); the in-house newsletter from the Marist Fathers Generalate has a page devoted to Marist Laity. I believe that more and more this needs to be taken up by lay Marists themselves. What about a Marist Laity Website run by lay Marists? Of course, there are big difficulties: finances, languages, working hours required etc. But I guess sometimes we have to think big. Fr. Colin wanted us to do great things for God.

Of course a lot more could be said, and, I hope will be said by you in these days together. At the root of it all is the gospel of Christ who reveals to us the immense love of God for each one, and also the lovely spirit of Mary that has been bestowed on the Church as a gift to let the love and ,mercy of Christ reach many hearts. It is the conviction of Marists that this Marist way - the way of Mary - when lived with joy and in-depth becomes an instrument in the hands of God for renewing his Church. May we, and especially you laity in the Church who are immersed in the world, accept the grace of this spirit so that we may personally become instruments of diving mercy and make the whole world Marist. In this world today - with so many lost and hungry for love, hungry for God without even knowing it - may many find the infinite love of God through your Marist lives and learn to praise his name and honour Mary our model and patron. Amen.

**Sacred Centres, Mandala by Barry Stevens at www.mandalas.co.uk