Dear friends,
Blessings from La Neyliere!
As you know, Fr Kevin Medilo SM and I are on the Colinian Renewal Period in France. The course has now been going for more than two months. Spring has already started and, not long from now, La Neyliere will be surrounded by budding green trees.
Part of the program is the celebration of special days of the participants. I celebrated my 40th birthday on 9th March. We had Mass together and a simple meal in the evening.
On 11th March, we had our pilgrimage to the city of Lyon. We visited St. John the Baptist Cathedral, where Fr. Jean Claude Colin was confirmed in 1803.
The highlight of the trip was our visit to the Basilica of Our Lady of Fourviere. We prayed and celebrated Mass at the Chapel of the Virgin Mary, where the first Marists pledged their commitment to found the Society of Mary. We felt truly grateful, blessed and inspired to belong to the family of Mary.
We recently had a ‘clay making’ session. This activity was designed to help us to know our selves better, and to develop right attitudes towards God and others. We also recently had input on prayer and contemplation, given to us by Fr. Larry Duffy SM (former District Superior of the Philippines and current Vicar-General of the Society of Mary) and Ms. Deirdre McDermott. This input was inspired by the life and spiritual writings of the mystic saints John of the Cross and Teresa of Avila.
It’s not all lectures and prayer in our renewal.
On the last weekend of March, four of us went to Spain for a short vacation. It was a beautiful experience to visit and pray in the Basilica of the Sagrada Familia, Barcelona’s most famous church.
We hope that you continue to accompany us with your prayers on our journey here. Thank you.
I hope you all have a meaningful celebration of Holy Week. Happy Easter!
Fr Chris Ganzon SM
Society of Mary 