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Atlanta Lay Summit
La Salette statue in Narthex of St. Ann Church, Marietta, GAThree parishes in the Archdiocese of Atlanta, GA., staffed by the Missionaries of La Salette – St. Ann in Marietta, St. Thomas the Apostle in Smyrna and St. Oliver Plunkett in Snellville – collaborated to host the first La Salette Lay Ministry Summit from Wednesday evening through Saturday, July 20-23, 2011. It involved nearly 2,000 people: Staff Members, Lay Associates, Pastoral Assistants, Volunteers and?Parishioners who minister alongside the Missionaries of La Salette across North America. 
Fr. Thomas Reilly, M.S., Pastor of St. Ann Parish, Marietta, GA., welcomes everyoneThe La Salette Missionaries have ministered in North America since 1892 and have shrines and parishes across the country. They came to the Archdiocese of Atlanta in the summer of 1969 and have served in several parishes. Their community charism of reconciliation was a recurring topic during the Lay Ministry Summit.
Fr. Jim Kuczynski, M.S., thanks Jack Jezreel for his keynote presentationEach parish’s day was unique. St. Ann in Marietta began Wednesday evening with Fr. Bachand’s keynote and a reception. Thursday they concluded with a Concert led by Ed Bolduc and Graham Kuhn. Nearly 1,000 people attended. 
Fr. Jim Henault, M.S., thanks everyone at the closing MassFr. Bachand was very enthusiastic in his praise of this first La Salette Lay Summit: “Our praying together in every venue, the concert, the dance presentation, and the Mass with Bishop Zarama allowed us to grow in our awareness of our connection to God and to one another. Such variety! Such richness! Let us all give thanks to God for this graced opportunity and rejoice that God continues to use us to promote the message and work of reconciliation.”Of those who participated, one mentioned: “This was great! This didn’t feel like any other convention I’ve been to. I am amazed that La Salette is so present and active in so many places.” Another added: “I’m from California. It’s so nice to get to know other people who benefit, as we do, from the ministry of the La Salette Missionaries.”
You can see our image gallery here!
BISHOP LUIS RAFAEL ZARAMA, AUXILIARY BISHOP OF ATLANTA, GREETS A CHILD AND HIS PARENTS AFTER MASS
La Salettes and Laity:
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Fr. Joseph Bachand, M.S., Provincial Superior, Province of Mary, Mother of the Americas |
Being God's People
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| Bill and Elaine Hale wrote this article in 1982. |
With the coming of our La Salette Lay Ministry Summit in Atlanta, GA, on July 20-23, 2011 (for more information, click here), I thought we could revisit an article by Bill and Elaine Hale, written almost thirty years ago for our publication, Our Lady’s Missionary. Although their young family of seven has now grown into several families with lots of grandchildren, their sharing remains a wonderful testament to how God blesses each of us with the gift of faith and how God wants us to share it within the family of the Church.
Bill’s Journey
I am a man who has come to realize that God is not a distant concept, nor does heaven start when I die. I grew up in a traditional Catholic family. In many ways I always had a passive involvement in the Church and at worship. I did not actively participate and thought, quite frankly, that it made no difference whether I prayed, sang in Church, became involved in activities or donated money — the Church was unaffected. Furthermore, in my opinion, my life was so insignificant that surely God had little time for me. After all, he was light years away in heaven and I was light years away from meeting him.
The New Laity
The New Laity – A Sign of our Times
The emergence of the layperson has been and continues to be one of the most important and the most visible characteristics of the post-Vatican II Church. The phrase “the emerging layman” has been with us since the early sixties — even the sexist language (layman) smacks of that period. The notion is intimately connected with that of church: the Church is essentially composed of lay people.
Laity and the Church
Lay men and lay women now share in the liturgy of the word from the sanctuary. They distribute the bread of the Eucharist, they serve on
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Fr. Ron Beauchemin, M.S., Superior of the Attleboro House, congratulates laity for giving their commitment for another year as La Salette Associates |
parish councils and on archdiocesan and diocesan committees and they teach in our seminaries. This is not token improvement. This is not a paper-clip change; this is ongoing reconciliation. We remember when the priest called his people “the populo.” This may sound strange today but, at the time it was said, such a remark was symptomatic. It took for granted a clear separation between Church and laity, or between clergy and laity. The communion rail was more than a symbolic table. It was a fence.
The assimilation of the laity into the life of the Church will take years to run its course. This is probably just as well. The slow pace and the gradualness will solidify change, deepen it, and ward off tokenism. But reconciliation is very present, and we are all aware of the process nature of reconciliation. Wherever we have spoken of the laity above, we have understood both men and women. Women, religious sisters are speaking at conferences, teaching in seminaries, preaching and directing retreats and spiritual exercises. All of this was inconceivable fifty years ago.
Community and Connections (Part 3)
Recently Sr. Catherine Schwemer, a member of the Community of the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ spoke to a group of La Salette Associates at the National Shrine in Attleboro. MA. She is the Executive Director of NACAR (North American Conference of Associates and Religious) which includes some 200 Associate congregations. This is the third part of her sharing on La Salettes and Associates.
Every family has its structure – necessary for accomplishing simple and sometimes more complex goals. So also with Religious Life and those called to be Associates. We will give a general description of the structures of Religious Institutes and Associates as well as their relationships within their our communities and between Vowed Religious and Associates.
La Salette Culture and Language (part two)
Recently Sr. Catherine Schwemer, a member of the Community of the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ spoke to a group of La Salette Associates at the National Shrine in Attleboro. MA. She is the Executive Director of NACAR (North American Conference of Associates and Religious) which includes some 200 Associate congregations. This is the second part of her sharing on La Salettes and Associates.
NACAR recently did a study of Associate-Religious Relationships. A very large group participated in this study – 45,000 Associates from the United States and 20,000 Associates from Canada. Here are some attitudinal lessons from this survey:
La Salette Missionaries and Associates – Their Call from God
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Workshop Day on Associates with Sr. Katherine Schwermer (bottom row, left) |
Recently Sr. Catherine Schwemer, a member of the Community of the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ spoke to a group of La Salette Associates at the National Shrine in Attleboro. MA. She is the Executive Director of NACAR (North American Conference of Associates and Religious) which includes 200 Associate congregations. It serves Associates and Vowed members as they proclaim their call from God to live the Spirit, charism and mission of their particular Religious Congregation. Its Vision Statement is as follows:
True to our founding charisms, we, the members of NACAR, strive to broaden and deepen our understanding of the Associate-Religious relationship by:
Read more La Salette Missionaries and Associates – Their Call from God
La Salette Associates: Who Are We?
La Salette Associates: Who Are We?
A. Who We Are:
We, as members of the La Salette Associate Program (of the La Salette Province of Mary, Mother of the Americas), are people who associate ourselves closely with the La Salette Missionaries - their life and mission. We include diverse groups of men and women throughout North America and our program is similar to other La Salette Associate Programs around the world (Europe, Africa, North and South America and in the Philippines).
What the New Testament Says About the Laity
What the New Testament Says About the Laity by Rev. Dr. Thomas Leclerc, M.S.
(PDF file)
We are led through what the New Testament says - and doesn't say -about the laity. Rev. Dr. Thomas Leclerc, M.S., who completed his doctoral Scripture studies at Harvard, gives us a rather startling "reality check" concerning this topic.