Intro

Dear Brothers,

A few months ago, I shared the contents of this Circular with Provincials and their Councils. I was hoping to develop these ideas further before offering them to you. Now, however, even though I feel that this version isn't as complete as I would like it to be, I offer it to you, shortcom-ings and all. I'm sure that when it's published, the end result will be better than what's written here.
As this is quite a complex topic, I think it is important that we take a closer look at it in or-der to more clearly understand its place in our lives as consecrated religious. It seems to me that this is an area that cuts across our personal and communal lives, and it can have important ramifications for the vitality of our charism, and of course, the refounding of the Institute. By not being suffi-ciently clear and in command of this subject, and not keeping our cool when discussing it, we have experienced a good deal of confusion and bewilderment in this area. Sometimes we have shown a certain amount of belligerence in our approach to the topic. And then again, to tell the truth, up to this point we haven't accomplished much in concrete terms.
It seems to me that the beginning of Advent is a fitting time to provide you with a few thoughts and concerns, some quite troubling, about the way we look upon our material goods. Be-sides, we are coming to the end of the Jubilee Year, a special time that makes us take note, encour-aging us to change, convert, and purify our lives. This is a time for us to energize our LIFE with creative fidelity. And so I invite you to not only be firmly grounded in the present, but to travel into the future. We can't survive on nostalgic memories nor become bogged down in the world of today. We need to visit the future repeatedly. That is a trip that I wish we could take quite often, personally and communally. You and I need to "dream." Before all else, we should do so out of fidelity to the calls of God. Also, so that we can spread our contagious enthusiasm to others, implanting in them the charismatic way of doing things that Marcellin so desired for the Little Brothers of Mary when he founded us.

My reasons for writing this letter

1.       For quite some time now, I have been concerned about how I might draw more attention to Gospel criteria relating to the use of material goods and the way that they are administered. There are many aspects to be considered, among them: the origin of our resources, and what they are des-tined for; the reserves we store up and the funds we create for contingency planning and hypotheti-cal emergencies; the part played by Brothers serving as Treasurers; our administrative structures (the transparency of monetary operations, and the distinction between community resources and those devoted to the maintenance of our facilities); our vocation to share in solidarity; the estab-lishment of a "cap" on savings to allow leeway for times of uncertainty and reliance on Divine Providence…
In all of this, different situations throughout the Institute have considerable influence on both our procedures for handling money and material goods and our way of trying to keep a proper balance between our means and the quality of our witness to the Gospel.
At first, I thought I would give some reflections on "capitalization," as recommended by the 1985 General Chapter. Brother Charles Howard paid particular attention to this subject. As I was thinking things over, I began to feel that it might be better to consider this matter from a wider per-spective. New situations are arising, having a bearing on important aspects of the way we use mate-rial goods. Also, of course, on the decisions that are made at both the local and provincial level. Besides, I have the impression that because not much has been said about this topic for quite a few years, some Provinces are experiencing growing confusion in this area.

2.       Some Brothers feel very strongly that it doesn't make sense to campaign for a revivified charism and the processes for refounding without careful discernment and decision-making about using material goods in accordance with Gospel norms. It really is clear that the use and admini-stration of our goods does have a significant effect on our Marist life. The vow of poverty is not just the concern of Brothers individually - it has a very definite collective and institutional dimension to it. Yet it is not easy for us to separate the notion of poverty in the economy from our own. In our mission of bringing the Gospel to young people - by preference, the poor - the administration of material goods is closely linked to a life of evangelical poverty. And it is both individuals and in-stitutions that live and witness to poverty, because both draw from the same resources.
Personally I am convinced that our "dreams of refounding" will remain at the level of wish-ful thinking unless we come to grips with Gospel options in regard to our collective and personal poverty. The management of our economic affairs, the volume of goods that we are acquiring, and the future of our patrimony and funds are factors that will have a great deal to say about our re-founding and the revitalizing of our Marist charism. The study of how we are using our material resources in accordance with Gospel values is a crucial one going to the heart of our identity as Brothers today.
Poverty and prophecy go hand in hand. Our credibility is at stake, and for that reason our Congregation - on a personal and community level - needs to once again discover its sparkle and originality, freeing itself of dross and recovering its simple lifestyle and mobility for going to places where Christ is dying on the Cross. You are the salt of the earth. But what if the salt loses its taste? How can you restore its flavor? …Your light must shine before men and women so that they may see goodness in your acts and give praise to your heavenly Father. (Matthew, 5: 13 and 16)
Collective and institutional poverty is at the very heart of these reflections that I am going to share with you. I will hardly refer to personal poverty, for it is not my intention here to invite every Brother to a poorer and more austere way of life. Unless the Institute as such - Provinces, Districts, and Communities - adopt evangelical attitudes about being poor, about simplicity and moderation to the point of self-sacrifice, I think it will be difficult to engage individual Brothers on this issue.
I accept the fact that we need to be converted as individuals, but some personal attempts at conversion will turn out to be extremely difficult if at the same time we do not modify collective ways of doing things in our Congregation. Dealing with the issue of "poverty" is a must. I know Brothers who lead very plain and simple lives, but I don't know how they manage to do so living in places where wealthy conditions and creature comforts abound.