Once again, around the feast of Champagnat and as part of the activities of the Champagnat Global Open Network, the meeting of the international Marist school community took place online, this time under the title: “Champagnat and the significance of the construction of our Mother House”.
The day began with a warm welcome from Javier Llamas, executive secretary of Champagnat Global, who recalled the purpose of this annual event and presented the agenda. Br. José Sánchez, director of the Secretariat for Education and Evangelisation (SEE), officially opened the event, highlighting the symbolic and emotional value of L’Hermitage for all Marists around the world: ‘It is a spiritual home of which we are all a part.’ ‘Champagnat could not have imagined that 200 years later we would be celebrating his boldness and daring throughout the world,’ he said.
His words gave way to the greeting from Br. Ernesto Sánchez, Superior General, who offered a moving message recalling the 2nd Champagnat Global Meeting held last March at L’Hermitage. ‘Marcellin had the ability to look beyond, responding to the call of the spirit he felt within him,’ explained Br. Ernesto. He also suggested that ‘each of our communities, fraternities and every Marist centre should build a new Hermitage. As the motto of the next General Chapter reminds us: may it be a “Home for all and a river of life”.’
One of the most significant moments was the live connection with the community of L’Hermitage. Brothers Antonio, Miquel, José Antonio Molina, Eladio, Rafa, Paul and Demóstenes led the prayer together with music dedicated to the celebration of the 200th anniversary of the construction of our Mother House.
The lecture ‘Champagnat and the significance of the construction of our Mother House’ was given by Br. Ben Consigli, General Councillor.
Focusing on the challenges faced by Marcellin when building L’Hermitage, Brother Ben explained that Champagnat’s vision was based on ‘love of God, faith, education and the way Mary loved Jesus.’
“For Marcellin, the house had tremendous significance. It was a place of formation, growth, questioning, but above all, a place where people helped one another. For Champagnat, the construction of the Hermitage was a sign of trust in God and in Mary,‘ he explained. ’For him, it was the answer to rural poverty and ignorance. Marcellin hoped that the Hermitage would be a place to educate the brothers in the Marist spirit and to help those young men who wanted to become brothers to know and love God.”
In addition, Brother Ben listed some of Champagnat’s motivations for building our Mother House: ‘His love for Mary, his humility and hard work, his vision of the Marist Family, and his dedication to the most marginalised people.’
The Hermitage became a river of life and has remained so for 200 years.
Reflecting on our work today, Brother Ben affirmed that L’Hermitage ‘was the nucleus of our Marist mission and today Champagnat Global is a fraternal and global network, it is the same dream carried to all continents.’
‘L’Hermitage is not just a building, it is the heart of our dream that was born out of love for Mary. Champagnat Global continues Marcellin’s dream,’ he concluded, along with a couple of questions he posed to the attendees:
- How does the spirit of L’Hermitage live on in your life and mission?
- How are you called to build ‘new Hermitages’ today?
To conclude the meeting, Brother Niño Pizarro, deputy director of the SEE, offered a few words of farewell, encouraging all participants to continue preparing for the XXIII General Chapter of the Marist Institute, to be held in the Philippines under the theme: ‘Home for all. River of life.’ This theme directly evokes the spirit of L’Hermitage. ‘On Champagnat.org, we have information that helps us feel part of a process that invites us to continue embodying the spirit bequeathed by Champagnat in our own time and in new realities.’
The entire Champagnat Global team would like to thank the nearly 1,200 people who registered for the event and the more than 500 who had the opportunity to participate.
If for any reason you were unable to attend or would like to watch it later, you can find it on YouTube.
9:00 A.M. SESSION
4:00 P.M. SESSION