Calendar

October 1900

01 Oct - 01 Oct

Cf. Unpublished Letters, archives of Amiens.

Let us rejoice with all our heart in Jesus, that he has been pleased to draw us to himself and that he still supports us in his love for him…

October 1, 1900

01 Oct - 01 Oct

Charles Besnard : Life of Grignon de Montfort

While M. des Places devoted himself entirely to the cares demanded by his nascent community and exhausted himself by austere mortifications, he suffered an attack of pleurisy that was accompanied…

October 1, 1900

02 Oct - 02 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, I, 10, 1830.

My dear sickness is a great treasure for me, so do you worry yourselves about me? My body, my soul, my whole being are for God. And if I knew…

October 2, 1900

02 Oct - 02 Oct

Charles Besnard: Life of Grignon de Montfort

As soon as it was known in Paris that he was seriously ill, a great number of persons distinguished by their piety and their rank came to see him: the…

October 2, 1900

03 Oct - 03 Oct

Cf. Spiritual, Letters, II, 216, 1839.

Your conduct at this time is not to worry about all these fears and sorrows. Suffer them for the love of your adorable Master but with peace, gentleness and love.

October 3, 1900

03 Oct - 03 Oct

Br. Philippus Lafferty becomes the first U.S.-born Spiritan to sail for Africa. Stationed in Sierra Leone, he dies four years later.

October 3, 1900

03 Oct - 03 Oct

Libermann: Notice on the Congregation of the Holy Spirit and the Immaculate...

In 1776, the Congregation of the Holy Spirit was asked to guarantee 20 missionaries and a Prefect Apostolic in French Guiana. At the revolution of 1792, the Congregation suffered the…

August 15, 1850

04 Oct - 04 Oct

D. Moisés A. de Pinho, Pensamentos, Junho de 1936, Cir. 55

Diz S. Paulo: “Não contristeis o Espirito Santo de Deus que habita em vós”. Isto resume admiravelmente a verdadeira devoção ao Espírito Santo por parte sobretudo duma alma que se…

October 4, 1900

04 Oct - 04 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, II, 230, 1839.

Until now, you have been in the habit of working by yourself, and considering your work as something. That is why seeing your weakness, you get discouraged. But once abandoned…

October 4, 1900

04 Oct - 04 Oct

John Paul II: Ecclesia in Africa, nº95

The Synod Fathers affirmed that 'today more than ever there is a need to form future priests in the true cultural values of their country, in a sense of honesty,…

September 14, 1995

05 Oct - 05 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, II, 219, 1839.

You do not have to be gentle, but allow Jesus, living in you, to live there with his spirit of gentleness and sweetness.

October 5, 1900

05 Oct - 05 Oct

Daniel Brottier in "France Illustrée", 19 January, 1924

Thérèse is not a new friend: she has always been our friend (since the foundation by Abbé Roussel). We want her to be our friend for ever and make our…

January 19, 1924

06 Oct - 06 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, II, 136, 1838.

Abandon yourself into the hands of Our Lord, so that he may possess you unreservedly. You will have a perfect peace for your soul only after you have abandoned yourself…

October 6, 1900

06 Oct - 06 Oct

There is a growing interest in our history within the Congregation. Undoubtedly, it is the development of mission and the orientations of Vatican II that have led us to look…

07 Oct - 07 Oct

Cf. Notes and Documents, IV, 252, 1843.

Abandon yourself entirely to the divine good pleasure of Our Lord Jesus, to be employed to work, or to be sacrificed for his great glory. You must remain in love…

October 7, 1900

07 Oct - 07 Oct

Joseph Shanahan, 01.01.1942: Before the Golden Bowl is broken, p.41

How well I know that very special sense of nothingness in the presence of what looms up as an impossible, insuperable, unutterable weakness... when hope seems to vanish and with…

January 1, 1942

08 Oct - 08 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, II, 230, 1839.

Never be discouraged by your weaknesses. As soon as you think you have made a mistake, gently enter into yourself. Present yourself before Our Lord in a gentle interior humiliation…

October 8, 1900

08 Oct - 08 Oct

Libermann to the community of Gorée, 18.08.1845. NDVII, p.274-275

Now for some news where you may not agree with me. We have accepted a huge mission in New Holland (Australia) to people who are not black but bronze. I…

August 18, 1845

09 Oct - 09 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, II, 112, 1838.

Have no heart, have no soul, body, life, and existence but for Jesus and in Jesus. When will He live fully in your soul? I believe that he fills you…

October 9, 1900

09 Oct - 09 Oct

John Paul II: Ecclesia in Africa, nº119

One of the most bitter fruits of wars and economic hardships is the sad phenomenon of refugees and displaced persons. The ideal solution is the re-establishment of a just peace,…

September 14, 1995

10 Oct - 10 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, III, 602, 1848.

When one is in the sensitive path, one relies on the creator. Later, when the sensitivity disappears, when one has only pure faith, one becomes human. Pure faith supposes that…

October 10, 1900

10 Oct - 10 Oct

Mgr. Le Roy, December 1913. B.G. XXVII, p. 378

It is because of this great need (the number of Catholic immigrants coming to Canada) that we finally opened the Collège St. Alexandre last year. There are 120 students, aged…

December 1, 1913

11 Oct - 11 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, I, 380, 1837.

This peace, this gentleness must exist, not only in your innermost self, which is the main thing, but also in all your words and in all your actions, keeping you…

October 11, 1900

11 Oct - 11 Oct

Marcel Lefebvre, Superior General: Letter to the Congregation, 11.10.1962

May the Holy Spirit living in us make us ever more aware of our allegiance to the Church, which is still totally submissive to the breath and fire of Pentecost,…

October 11, 1962

12 Oct - 12 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, II, 172, 1839.

The direct effect of the cross is to convince us more and more of the nothingness of things here below. It produces inner life and a true love of God…

October 12, 1900

12 Oct - 12 Oct

Libermann: Petit Traité, E.S. p.271

The practice of the interior life is characterised by the gentle and loving presence of God. The depths of our soul are always looking towards God in a loving, simple…

October 12, 1900

13 Oct - 13 Oct

Spiritual Writings, 227.

This period is critical, it is perhaps the most dangerous period for souls and all their life depend on it. It is in this place that great number of souls…

October 13, 1900

13 Oct - 13 Oct

Libermann: Règle Provisoire, nos 4,5,7. NDII, p.235-236

Our Lord sends the missionaries of the Holy Heart of Mary to the poorest people; in fact, they can only undertake missions amongst the most neglected and abandoned. They will…

October 13, 1900

14 Oct - 14 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, III, 465, 1845.

The love that you have for Jesus must not consist in a manifestation of sentiment. The love of our God is an interior attachment of our soul, the attachment through…

October 14, 1900

14 Oct - 14 Oct

Libermann: Règle Provisoire: nos. 8-10. NDII, p.235-236

"Their life must be a life of faith, united to Jesus; they will look to him as the source, the principal and the soul of all things. While be-ing aware…

October 14, 1900

15 Oct - 15 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters s, III, III, 462, 1845.

In prayer, we must not aim at doing much reflection or producing much affections. Just look at Our Lord as something belonging to him. Be contented with looking at him…

October 15, 1900

15 Oct - 15 Oct

Paris, 24.01.1851. Letter 1092

Extract from a letter of Mère Javouhey to her sister and first assistant, Sister Rosalie. She refers to the Archbishop of Paris who was acting in a somewhat heavy-handed manner…

January 24, 1851

16 Oct - 16 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters s, III, 377, 1844.

When one is in the sensitive path, one relies on the creator. Later, when the sensitivity disappears, when one has only pure faith, one becomes human. Pure faith supposes that…

October 16, 1900

16 Oct - 16 Oct

Libermann to Douay, 31.12.1841. NDIII, p.88-89

When the Holy Spirit works in us, our soul is on fire and it is as though it is carried and united to God without any worries, without feeling anxious,…

December 31, 1941

17 Oct - 17 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, II, 176, 1839.

You must continue your way in serenity, fully abandoning yourself to your adorable guide, always following him in peace, assurance, gentleness and moderation.

October 17, 1900

18 Oct - 18 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, II, 176, 1839.

Your mind peacefully turned to Jesus, place yourself simply in the interior position of your soul vis-a-vis God, that is to say in its normal and natural state of prayer…

October 18, 1900

19 Oct - 19 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, II, 176, 1839.

You see what your behaviour must be like: life of privation without any form of enjoyment or satisfaction, life of devotion and sacrifice of yourself entirely, of spirit reserve life…

October 19, 1900

20 Oct - 20 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, II, 219, 1839.

Uphold yourself in a firm, stable and persevering desire to love and serve God with all your soul.

October 20, 1900

21 Oct - 21 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, II, II, 112, 1838.

Do not be satisfied with the desire to be always busy with Our Lord Jesus, but add to this an even greater and more vivid desire to possess him, and…

October 21, 1900

22 Oct - 22 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, III, 377, 1844.

Your soul was seeking for a support, it does not want to live in God alone by faith. Now, God wants to oblige you to abandon your soul to him…

October 22, 1900

23 Oct - 23 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, III, 377, 1844.

The sensibility is completed. You must live in the privation of faith, of pure charity interior, without feeling, with full trust in Jesus and Mary.

October 23, 1900

24 Oct - 24 Oct

Cf. Notes and Documents, XI, 48, 1849.

The yardstick of the activity of zeal is the facility for us to keep being in recollection and in union with our Lord Jesus Christ in the midst of occupations.…

October 24, 1900

25 Oct - 25 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, III, 377, 1844, III, 377, 1844.

The divine Goodness from henceforth, wants you to act by pure faith and in a more intellectual way. Be supple in the hand of God. Allow God to perfect you…

October 25, 1900

26 Oct - 26 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, III, 462, 1845.

Your prayer must consist of a simple, humble, peaceful and trustful repose before Our Lord: that is all.

October 26, 1900

26 Oct - 26 Oct

Libermann: Commentary on St. John, 1:38

In recounting the story of the vocation of Andrew and John, the evangelist shows the way that Our Lord follows to call people to himself and to his perfect divine…

October 26, 1900

27 Oct - 27 Oct

Cf. Spiritual, II, 112, 1838.

Do not have any more activity, sentiment, desire, affection, will or vision, but let Jesus animate you in all the interior and exterior operations of your soul. Then He will…

October 27, 1900

27 Oct - 27 Oct

Libermann to M. Lemercier. NDIV, p.248

As a general rule, the voice of God comes to us within. When our superiors speak to us externally (which is unavoidable) it corresponds perfectly to this interior voice and…

October 27, 1900

28 Oct - 28 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, 377, 1844.

It is costly, it’s painful. It seems that our whole life is like a ghost, that the soul is empty, that we no longer have a spiritual life. We are…

October 28, 1900

28 Oct - 28 Oct

Memoire of Tisserant, affirmed by Libermann, 1845. NDI, p.659-665

On October 28th, François Libermann was confirmed in his desire (for a missionary vocation) by a clear vision, as he told me himself. That day, which he would always regard…

October 28, 1845

29 Oct - 29 Oct

Cf. Notes and Documents, X, 539-40, 1849.

This charity between brothers of the same community must be cordial. It is not enough to have it in one’s mouth or even in the actions, it must start from…

October 29, 1900

29 Oct - 29 Oct

Joseph Lécuyer, Superior General: Convocation to the 2nd session of the Chapter,...

The dominant tendency (of the first session of the Chapter) was to give priority to life over law: in the light of the concrete reality of our missionary life, some…

January 11, 1969

30 Oct - 30 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, II, 112, 1838.

Pay close attention to this word, to possess his soul in peace. It is a term used by our divine Master. Rest in Jesus, put out yourself before him like…

October 30, 1900

30 Oct - 30 Oct

John Kilcrann: Spiritan Justice and Peace Newsletter, March 2001

We have, indeed, a very significant number of confreres making Justice and Peace commitments. Perhaps one of our failings in the past has been that we did not recognise this…

31 Oct - 31 Oct

Cf. Spiritual Letters, I, 50, 1833.

The graces we receive from this path of renunciation are immense. They give us a prodigious facility to carry out the most difficult things. They put us above all creatures,…

October 31, 1900

31 Oct - 31 Oct

Bruno Diatta, a Spiritan novice. Quoted from "Spiritains en Afrique de l'Ouest",...

How is it possible to announce the Good News to people who are imprisoned in deplorable conditions, who are sick and half-starved? Most people would find this a bit irrational.…

February 1, 2001