News of the Institute and Lasallian Family

Rome, January 25, 2003
Superior General in Costa Rica: On December 31, 2002 Br. Alvaro Rodríguez, Superior General, was able to attend a first profession and habit taking in Costa Rica. Making their first profession were Manuel Funes (Nicaragua) and Maxime Serge (Haiti), and receiving the habit were seven young men of the Antilles, Central America and Peru. The habit taking was an example of the intercultural experience that these young men will experience in a community which includes members from Cuba, Costa Rica, Haiti, Peru, Guatemala and Nicaragua. Those in attendance expressed their good luck at being able to have the Superior General present for the occasion and to listen to his motivating words that he presented during the ceremony. Congratulations to these young Brothers.
(Br. Otto Armas)

Castletown Cemetery Day: It has become a custom in Ireland over the last twenty years or so to hold what is termed a Cemetery Day in each parish. Each parish determines a day on which they remember their dead and on that day the parishioners attend a Mass in their local cemetery, taking up their positions besides the graves of their dear departed relations. It has proved to be very popular and it is well attended by both young and old. The congregation is mainly from the local parish but many travel long distances to be in attendance. An offshoot of the occasion has been that people, who perhaps have not met for some time, get a chance to meet and exchange news, views and whatever.

About ten years ago the Brothers in Ireland started inviting the relatives of our dead Brothers to join us in Castletown to remember our dead confreres and to meet with the Brothers themselves and, in the words of Br. Stephen Deignan, Visitor 'we are more than delighted with the extraordinary response we have had.' This year alone we had an attendance of over 700 relatives and friends for Cemetery Day in Castletown.

The Remembrance Day began with Mass in the local Parish Church concelebrated by our local priests and relations of departed Brothers. On behalf of the Brothers, Br. Stephen welcomed all the people present, especially those who had travelled long distances, and recalled the great contributions made by so many Brothers both in Ireland and on the missions. In the course of his address he made reference to the great contributions to education of so many dead Brothers: "This is an occasion of remembering all of them with pride and gratitude, of praying for them and to them, and of recalling the wonderful contribution they have made."

After the Mass the congregation processed to the adjacent Brothers' Cemetery. As you can see from some of the accompanying pictures we did not lack a drop of rain, as the heavens fairly opened! But this did not deter us from finishing the ceremony. With the aid of umbrellas and other rain gear the ceremony was completed.

Refreshments were then served in a marquee, specially erected for the occasion. Many old acquaintances were renewed and many shared experiences were recalled over a cup of tea. It was truly a Lasallian occasion and a memorable one for all those involved.
(Br. Canice Cantwell)

Brother Victorino Arnaud: The closing ceremony of the Archdiocesan Process for the Beatification and Canonization of the servant of God, Brother Victorino Arnaud took place on Wednesday, January 8 in the Cathedral of San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The ceremony was presided over by the Archbishop of San Juan Roberto González Nieves. Members of the court, Delegate Judge Rev. Alberto Villaverde SJ, Justice Promoter Vicente Fernández Mariño, the Notary Sergio San Pedro, and the Representative of the Archdiocese Rev. Father Fernando Felices were present. For the Institute of the Brothers the General Postulator Brother Rodolfo Meoli, the Vice-Postulator Brother Wilfredo Uterra, the President of the Delegation Brother Pedro Fernández, Brothers of the schools, former students of Cuba, professors, students and their families, and people of the city were also present at the ceremony.

Brother Victorino of French origin had to leave France because of the persecuting laws of Combes of 1904. For a short period of time, he stayed in Canada, but later with other Brothers traveled to Cuba to begin new works there. In Cuba he worked excellently for more than 50 years. He worked there until 1961 when he was exiled from what he considered his second homeland. He went to Miami, Dominican Republic, and later to Puerto Rico where he died in 1966. He is buried in Bayamón, Puerto Rico.

The beatification and canonization process that his students and the Brothers had insistently asked for began on September 8, 1999. This process will now be continued in Rome by the Congregation of the Causes of the Saints.
(Joshua Leon)


Web Notes: We have begun a project of including an overview of each District in the institutions section of our site. The Districts that we have completed thus far are Bogotá, New Orleans-Santa Fe, North Mexico and San Francisco. We will let you know when other Districts complete their overviews.

We have also updated the work of Br. Joseph Hiep in the clip art section. The pictures now have more definition and some additional works have been added. Also, a translation of The Twelve Virtues of a Good Teacher, by Brother Agathon, fifth Superior General, and The Conduct of Schools have been added to the publications section.
(Br. Donald Johanson)

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