Today's Marists 2022 Volume 7, Issue 2

Today’s 

2022 | Volume 7 | Issue 2 

Marists 

Society of Mary in the U.S.

Today’s 

Marists 

2022 | Volume 7 | Issue 2 

Publisher 

Editor 

Editorial Assistants 

Archivist 

Editorial Board 

Joseph Hindelang, SM, Provincial 

Ted Keating, SM 

Elizabeth Ann Flens Avila 

Communications Coordinator 

Philip Gage, SM 

Randy Hoover, SM 

Susan Plews, SSND 

Susan Illis 

Ted Keating, SM, Editor 

Michael Coveny 

Thomas Ellerman, SM 

Mike Kelly 

Joseph Hindelang, SM 

Randy Hoover, SM 

Bishop Joel Konzen, SM 

Bev McDonald 

Elizabeth Piper 

Jack Ridout 

Nik Rodewald 

Bill Rowland, SM 

Linda Sevcik, SM 

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In this issue... 

3 from the Provincial 

by Joseph Hindelang, SM 

4 Synodality: A Message of Hope and Love Based 

on Dialogue — A Marist Perspective 

by Ted Keating, SM 

6 Whose Voices Will Be Heard? 

by Gabriella Wilke 

Society of Mary of the USA 

8 Teaching Justly: A Marist Education Within the 

Synodal Spirit 

by Michael Coveny 

10 Social Justice, Baptism and the Reign of God 

by Bill Rowland, SM 

11 Compromise, Reconciliation, Forgiveness 

by Jack Ridout 

12 Family Faith Formation 

by Elizabeth Piper 

14 Towards a Synodal School 

by Nik Rodewald 

16 Stewards of Sustainability 

by Mike Kelly 

17 Sustainable Living: A Call to Action 

by Kelly Mandy 

18 The Journey to Unity-in-Diversity 

by Tom Ellerman, SM 

19 Meeting with First-Time Retreatants Leads to 

Transformation for Many 

by Linda Sevcik, SM 

20 Marist Lives: Rev. Joseph Buckley, SM 

by Susan J. Illis 

21 News Briefs 

22 Obituaries 

23 Donor Thoughts: Why I Support the Marists 

by Bob Fitzgerald 

Cover Credit 

The cover of this issue displays the official logo of the synodal process that was 

designed by Isabelle de Senilhes. The explanation of the logo can be found at: 

https://bit.ly/3Trm6ez. 

Issue Dedication 

This issue of Today’s Marists is dedicated to Fr. Brian Cummings, SM, a member 

of the New Zealand Province, who passed away on August 19, 2022. Fr. Brian has 

been part of the Today’s Marists editorial team since 2017. Read more on page 22. 

2 Today’s Marists Magazine

from the Provincial 

Rev. Joseph Hindelang, SM 

Listening With an Open Heart 

As a young Hebrew man Solomon became King of Israel. 

Solomon was aware that he had been blessed by God and that as 

a faithful Jew, not to mention the King, he had to remain close 

to God if he was going to lead God’s chosen people. God invited 

Solomon in a dream to ask for anything. Rather than wealth or 

a long life, Solomon asked God for an understanding heart. God 

replied that if Solomon continued to listen to God’s word and all 

God’s commandments that Solomon would have great wisdom 

and much more besides. (1 Kings 3: 5-14) 

We too can pray for an understanding heart. Wisdom, or 

goodness, do not magically infiltrate a part of our lives, but 

come from a listening heart. Listening is essential in any true 

conversation or dialogue because it connects us with the other. 

Unless each person is listening respectfully in sincere dialogue 

or even in spirited debates, the interaction will simply be wasted 

time. In this issue of Today’s Marists you will find several articles 

that focus on listening. 

Learning to listen is important for all other learning and 

development. When children are growing up in families, it is 

often challenging for parents to get them to listen. Listening 

is necessary for children to interact with people and feel safe 

and “at home,” not to mention that a more enjoyable family 

life follows mutual respect as found in listening. Parents know 

that it is important for them to listen to their children, as well. 

Especially as children gain more knowledge and understanding, 

it is good for them to know that when they speak, they are 

listened to and respected. 

In friendships, the social skills that we learn at home become the 

way that we interact with peers. Conversations imply that people 

speak and listen to each other. If one person always dominates 

conversations or does not listen to others, they wind up pushing 

others away, thus guaranteeing lost friendships. Respectful 

listening, therefore, is important for everyone in healthy 

relationships. It is one of the ways that ideas and opinions are 

formed and shared, not only in speaking but also in listening. All 

of us want to be listened to, to feel that what we say has value. 

Growing into a mature adult, among other things, involves 

being able to communicate well to be able to speak and to listen 

respectfully. Both are really active skills, even though we might 

consider listening a merely passive activity. When people speak 

and listen to each other in class, or at work, in committees, or 

meetings, the conversations are far richer and can lead to better 

results. 

As Christians we believe that prayer is conversation with God. 

Whether we are praying formally with others or praying from 

our heart alone, we are called to believe in what we say and to 

say it thoughtfully. Perhaps not so strangely, we are also called 

to listen in prayer. Listening does not mean that we expect to 

hear God’s voice audibly, but experience does demonstrate that 

a feeling of peace or joy may develop in our hearts and in our 

lives, and this is clearly a response. Feeling God’s love or merciful 

presence in our lives does not happen quickly or all at once, which 

is why we are reminded to take time to be quiet and pray often. 

Part of prayer for many people, or an enjoyable aspect of life, 

even for non-believers, is another form of listening, listening to 

nature. Whether walking outdoors on a beautiful day, enjoying 

a sunrise or a snowfall, sitting on a deserted beach, or standing 

still in a forest, many people feel at peace or more relaxed. This 

is what is meant by listening to nature. We are a part of the 

universe, God’s creation. That is why ecology involves not only 

caring for the world around us but also loving the universe 

which is “our common home,” as Pope Francis reminds us in 

Laudato Si’. 

Listening is key to the concept of “synodality” that you will read 

about in several articles in this Today’s Marists issue. Synodality 

seems to be a new word that we are hearing in our Church, but 

it is an ancient concept in the Church and in Religious Life. The 

Church and individual believers are aware that discerning God’s 

will involves hearts that listen. This is the basis for participating 

in Church meetings, which is precisely what acting in a synodal 

way means. It means that we are called to listen to each other, 

to God, to what is happening in our own lives, and even to the 

world around us. It is a process that involves taking time to listen 

actively and respectfully in order to come to a better idea of 

where God is leading us as a Church and in the world. 

I hope you enjoy the articles in this issue of Today’s Marists. 

My prayer is that we, like King Solomon, will develop listening 

hearts, the source of wisdom and understanding. 

Volume 7 | Issue 2 3

Synodality: 

A Message of Hope and Love Based on 

Dialogue — A Marist Perspective 


The US Bishops have now published the 

results of the many months of parishes, 

dioceses, religious congregations and 

other Church gatherings that have 

devoted themselves to conversation 

and dialogue in what Pope Francis calls 

“synodality.” (These results can be found 

at: www.usccb.org.) The word Synod, 

from the Greek, synodos, means “the way 

together” and comes from the earliest 

centuries of the Church. Gradually 

it became the word for important 

gatherings of Bishops meeting to find the 

“way together” as Church. 

“Synodality” is a newer word used by 

Pope Francis in trying to call forth a 

“way together” of being Church - a 

style of dialogue involving consultation 

throughout the Church from the parish 

level all the way to the top echelons of 

the Church. It would become a normal 

practice for us as Church as we make our 

way through history as the People of God. 

The results of these present gatherings 

and reflections on the current needs of 

the Church will be the basis of a formal 

Synod of the whole Church in Rome in 

2023. There will also be instances of 

dialogue in the geographic regions of the 

Church across languages and cultures. 

For these Synodal gatherings, the Church 

has already placed before us some 

timeless wisdom. Pope Francis said in a 

document on non-violence for the World 

Day of Peace Message of 2017: 

I wish peace to every man, woman 

and child, and I pray that the image 

and likeness of God in each person will 

enable us to acknowledge one another 

as sacred gifts endowed with immense 

dignity. Especially in situations of 

conflict, let us respect this, our “deepest 

dignity”, and make active nonviolence 

our way of life. 

When Pope Francis speaks of non-violence 

here, it is clear that he wants to emphasize 

that it is a way of living a Gospel life and 

not just a stance in the face of war or other 

situations of physical violence. It is most 

often and firstly a way of speaking. In 

speaking about the Holocaust that he had 

lived through in Germany, Rabbi Abraham 

Heschel, a revered prophetic voice of the 

1960’s and a friend of Pope Saint Paul VI, 

said that it did not begin with the force 

of weapons and massive arrests, but in 

words. The cycle of violence began in 

how Germans spoke about one another, 

especially in language used about the Jews. 

We see in our own contemporary world 

that how we speak about one another 

socially can lead to deadly consequences. 

Francis’ words are central to living a life 

of “true encounter” with one another as 

human beings created in the “image and 

likeness of God.” 

In 1965, just after Vatican II, Pope Saint 

Paul the VI convened the first Synod of 

the modern Catholic Church that had 

been called for by Vatican II. The year 

before the planned Synod, he issued an 

Encyclical of the whole Church called 

Ecclesiam Suam (“His Church”, speaking 

of Christ). It set out the continuing 

emphasis of Pope Saint Paul VI on the 

necessity and deep understanding 

of dialogue for these moments as the 

Church comes together in conversation 

over its renewal and present situation. 

There was already a great deal of conflict 

over the recent Council and how it was 

to be interpreted. Much of the Encyclical 

was about “dialogue” as a form of 

conversation that should characterize 

the way that Christian conversation 

should unfold, no matter how and where 

it is being engaged - from the witness 

of daily life all the way up to the great 

Councils and Synods of the Church. 

Pope Saint Paul VI coined the phrase 

that “dialogue is the new word for love”. 

Conversation that is not characterized 

by love cannot truly generate truth no 

matter the importance of the matter 

being discussed. It draws us back to the 

concern of Pope Francis that the speech 

of Christians must witness to the nonviolence 

of love. Personal attack, cruel 

derogatory uses of language, weaponizing 

concepts and speech and other forms 

of subtle violence in speech meant 

to demean, cannot generate truth no 

matter how astute and well-reasoned the 

argument. We see how relevant these 

concerns are in some forms of current 

political talk in our own country as well 

as recalling the cautions of Rabbi Heschel. 

Chapter 3 of the brilliant Letter of St. 


James in the New Testament creates a 

strong self-examination on the dangers of 

the “human tongue” - for him, the most 

dangerous organ of the human person. 

Jean-Claude Colin, SM in so many of his 

talks, writings and quotes said that our 

spiritual life must be one of a growing 

“emptying of self” so that others with 

whom we engage will find nothing 

that would stand in the way of their 

experience of God or the Gospel. This is 

the pastoral component of his spirituality. 

When we live out that spirituality, we 

find ourselves more open to the richness 

of the world beyond the narrow views 

of our own prejudices, hang ups, needs 

for control and reputation. A “disarmed 

heart” that lives out this spirituality will 

already be on the way to non-violence 

in speech and the spirit of dialogue in 

relationships and social life. As Pope 

Saint Paul VI said, this disarmed heart 

in the spirit of true dialogue will be best 

prepared for synodality, and collectively, 

our gatherings will be places of peace and 

discernment however difficult the issues. 

If we truly succeed in becoming a Church 

in synodality, we will need these skills 

and commitments. 

There are some basic practical principles 

of dialogue based on widespread 

experience that can help us examine our 

approach to dialogue: 

• The essential purpose of dialogue is 

to learn, which entails change and 

flexibility. We learn from one an 

another in the process more than 

confront. 

• Dialogue must be a two-sided project 

with openness, honesty, sincerity and 

mutual trust on both sides to work. 

• Each party must not bring 

preconceptions to the dialogue as to 

where any points of disagreement lie. 

The process should be to frame the 

disagreement together. 

• Dialogue can take place only between 

equals which means that they learn 

from each other rather than talk down 

to each other. 

• To understand one another, parties in 

dialogue should have a humble sense 

of criticism about themselves and their 

beliefs and must try to understand the 

other with empathy. 

As Pope Francis says, dialogue works 

as an alternative to violence or subtle 

violence in the context of relationships 

in family or community. It is from there 

that we can bring the gifts of dialogue 

to the conflictive world around us with 

a sense of security and the boldness 

of an enduring and loving search for 

the grounds of dialogue with all we 

encounter. Dialogue will more likely bring 

everyone in our synodal gatherings to the 

“truth born of love” as well as a “Church 

rooted in love.” A Church commitment 

to dialogue can also best assure that 

Francis’ desire for a Church of synodality 

can truly endure. 

Today’s Marists “Teaser” About the National Results of the Synodality 

Gatherings Across the United States 


Introduction and Scope 

700,000 participants at 30,000 opportunities 

engaging in the process. The gatherings 

produced 22,000 reports brought together in 

the one final US report for the 2023 Churchwide 

Synod in Rome. 

Major Themes 

Enduring Wounds 

• The sexual abuse crisis in the Church and 

its impact on trust between the laity and 

the bishops. 

• The impact of the Covid pandemic has led 

to the “fraying of our communities” and 

“accelerating trends toward isolation and 

loneliness of many youths and elderly in 

particular.” 

• The “deep divisions in the Church” leading 

to "pain and anxiety” including in Liturgy 

and Eucharist. Wide agreement on the 

need for support between clergy and laity. 

• The perceived lack of unity among the 

Bishops in the US. 

• Polarization over various wounds at 

perceived marginalization of many 

different groups in the Church. There is a 

deep hunger for healing, communion, a 

sense of belonging and being united. 

Enhancing Communion and Participation 

• The Synodal process needs to continue 

and face a common longing for the 

experience of Church in the United States 

following a path of discernment, reflection 

and dialogue. 

• The Eucharist is central to this including 

warmer hospitality, healing services 

and more invigorating preaching by 

clergy. More formation processes for the 

sacraments are needed for parents and 

children. There is a continuing joy in the 

symbols used in the liturgy. 

• There is an extended section on the 

multiple challenges of making us a more 

“welcoming Church” including youth, 

dealing with a perception of overemphasis 

on rules “as a means of wielding power 

or acting as gatekeeper.” “Do we overprioritize 

doctrine over people, rules 

and regulations over lived reality? There 

is a desire to have a Church for the 

wounded and broken, not an institution 

for the perfect.” Accompanying the 

LGBTQ+ persons, divorced and separated 

and showing true appreciation for the 

contributions of women, barriers to 

accessibility, diverse cultures/languages, 

racism and youth is needed in addressing 

these challenges. 

Ongoing Formation for Mission 

• Critical need for good adult formation 

and a seminary formation that shows 

sensitivity to human needs, pastoral needs 

and cultural differences. More emphasis 

on family formation. There was a keen 

concern for more formation on the Social 

Mission of the Church and social justice for 

outreach beyond the parish. 

• There is a lengthy reflection on concern 

about Communication and Coresponsibility 

of clergy and laity in the 

Church, a continuing challenge since 

Vatican II. 

The document closes with a lengthy reflection 

on the role of discernment in a Synodal 

Church — searching in faith for the Spirit’s call 

to renewal and change in the Church, more 

than merely sharing opinions. Hopefully, this 

teaser will encourage you to read the full 

document yourself at www.usccb.org/synod. 


Whose Voices Will Be Heard? 

A dispatch from the listening 

phase of the synod 

by Gabriella Wilke 

It’s the Sunday after St. Patrick’s Day, and I’m on the wooded 

campus of Saint John’s University in Collegeville, Minnesota, 

to learn how to listen. The all-male Saint John’s has a partner 

school six miles away, the women’s College of Saint Benedict. 

I’d been up here a few weeks before to walk around St. 

Benedict’s “brother cam-pus” with a girlfriend. We both had 

some loose ties to the place but still felt like outsiders visiting 

as we walked around on our own, lamenting the structural 

inequalities and other issues that can make it hard to see 

ourselves remaining part of the Church. 

But today is different. I’ve come to Saint John’s for a reason. The 

call came from the Central Minnesota Catholic: “Pope Francis 

Wants YOU! To be a Listener for the Synod.” When I arrive, a 

student at the front desk invites me to walk through the center 

door of St. John’s Great Hall, a hulking old Romanesque church 

that, like a tomb, seals out the cold air and muffles my winter 

boots. I proceed along the grand and empty corridor, thinking 

to myself that in this building’s former life, I’d be walking 

straight through to the tabernacle. 

In the oversized meeting room I find a dozen or so others who 

have also responded to the call. Soda and cookies have been set 

out on a side table - something to keep us energized through 

the long afternoon to come. Deb, a hospital chaplain dressed 

in purple tie-dye, invites me to join her table. Already there is 

a soft-spoken man in a coat and cap named Herman, who I’d 

later learn is a staff writer for a local farming paper. 

Also among us is theologian and ecclesiologist Kristin Colberg, 

a member of the U.S. synod commission. She was in Rome in 

October 2021 when the synod opened, and she contextualizes 

our gathering by emphasizing that this is a radical process 

of listening together. She tells us that Pope Francis wants 

everyone involved in a Church of motion and emotion. That the 

synod is about closeness, and bringing us onto the same path. 

In her telling, Pope Francis says: Think of the ecclesiology of 

Vatican II. How do we hold ourselves accountable for living 

out Vatican II? What do we need in the Church to be the most 

authentic version of ourselves? 


When we do introductions and talk about why we’re here, 

I’m the first to answer. But I make the mistake of speaking 

politically. “I think I can reach some on the margins,” I say. I’m 

thinking of the people in my life who’ve become disaffected 

with the Church - those who’ve been made to feel less-than 

because they are women, divorced, gay, other. Someone else 

seems to respond in kind, mentioning Bishop Barron and 

Eucharistic coherence. To be a better listener, I write down 

these reminders: 

• Do not trap people into this process 

• Maintain neutrality 

• Learn how to focus a conversation 

• Ask: Did I get this right? 

Colberg, as a teacher of Church history, also imparts this 

lesson: each council is both a beginning and an ending, raising 

new questions that are to be answered and lived out in the 

Church. Here’s how we’re living out the synod: each of us 

signed up to be one-to-one listeners, but first we’ll practice in 

small groups. We’re invited to practice with people we don’t 

know, and yet Jim, a deacon and the only face familiar to me, 

joins my table from the other side of the room. Herman and 

Deb join in too, as does Vince - the one who mentioned Barron. 

We go around in a circle, listening to the person to our right, 

speaking to the person on our left. It’s a human effort. I fumble 

with my notes as I try to take in what Herman is saying. And 

even though I can see Jim’s earnest effort at listening as I speak 

to him, I still don’t quite feel heard. 

During a break, Jim and Vince bond over the message they 

grew up in the Church with: pray, pay, obey. For so long, 

church has only been a matter of obligation. I think about this 

relationship to obligation. Some of the people closest to me feel 

caged by it, or belittled by its demands. Obligation is a difficult 

thing to embrace. Jim turns to me and asks me to weigh in on 

women priests. It’s not an issue I want to weigh in on, but I tell 

him that when it comes to decision-making, it matters who’s at 

the table. 

Soon, Herman begins to open up. He tells me he was 

approaching the age at which he could become an altar server 

when the Second Vatican Council started. The council delayed 

his training. His teacher, Sr. Benedict, told him there was no 

way the Mass would be said in English when it had been in 

Latin since the time of Jesus on the cross. The bishops are all 

talk, she told him. But then, of course, he lived through what 

followed, the transition from Latin-only to Latin and English 

and finally to English alone. I think about that liminal period 

of Mass in dual languages. Is that where transformation 

happens? 

We pair off in different corners of the room to practice a 

one-to-one conversation. I choose a seat by a window, and 

look up to see Deb has followed me there. We begin with 

the first prompt: Share a dream, vision, or hope you have for 

the Church. I offer an image. In the parish I grew up in, the 

Christmas Eve Mass is a bright spectacle. There are banners 

and trumpets and a young couple dressed as the Holy Family; 

three kings process down the aisle atop camels (in fact, dads 

elaborately costumed as camels). It’s the only day of the year 

the church is so crowded. I missed it this year, but received 

pictures from two close friends who were there, sitting with 

their families in the same sections they sit in every Christmas 

Eve. What brings them there now is a sense of family obligation 

- to use that word. But I wish, someday, we could all bring 

ourselves, our whole selves, there. To be at ease in this Church 

as women, divorced, gay, other. 

When we reconvene after the one-to-ones, people begin to 

raise some of their concerns about the synod. What happens 

after the listening phase? Whose voices will make it into the 

report? What, if anything, will change? One woman expresses 

what I wanted to share at the beginning, my unspoken 

thought: There’s a very good chance the Church will mess this up. 

And yet. We still believe in the possibility of this moment. The 

possibility that this can lead to something transformative. 

After the training, I wander around the campus for a bit. It’s 

quiet, and hardly anyone is around. A student is giving his 

parents a tour, talking to them in Spanish. Two men from my 

session walk through the monastic gardens, despite a sign 

reading “Private, do not enter.” I go down to Lake Sagatagan, 

frozen over and covered in snow, and take in the view. It’s open 

and empty, white on gray. 

Just up and across the road is the cemetery my grand-parents 

will rest in. My grandfather is a university alum – a Johnny - 

and my grandmother worked for many years in the St. Ben’s 

business office. My grandma was emphatic about this gravesite 

view, how beautiful it is out here, how nice to be on a lake. For 

now, we can laugh about it: “Mom, you won’t care about the 

view when you’re dead,” says my mother. But looking over the 

frozen lake in that dead season of March, I can see what my 

grandmother did for us. It’s a gift for us visiting outsiders. It 

tells me and my siblings and all the rest of my family who don’t 

belong to this place, a place so special to my grandparents, that 

we are in fact part of it. That this connection, like the synod 

itself, can be lived out in unexpected ways. After all, we have a 

view. 

Article reprinted with permission (Source: Commonweal Magazine, vol. 149, no. 7, 

p. 78-79). Gabriella Wilke is the marketing and audience development director at 

Commonweal Magazine. 


Teaching Justly: 

A Marist Education Within the 

Synodal Spirit 

by Michael Coveny, Marist Way Director, Marist School, Atlanta, Georgia 

Marist education shares values of 

the Synodality movement in the 

Catholic Church, even though many 

may not be aware of it. There is a 

deep connection between the recent 

Synodal process and the goals and 

standards of a Marist education. 

This linkage is evident in the recent 

publication by the Society of Mary 

U.S. Province, The Standards and 

Expectations of a Marist Education 

(https://bit.ly/3ymSwOE). 

This article will show how the Marists 

in the United States have again 

anticipated the signs of the times 

in one of their ministries – that is, 

signs of dialogue and listening. The 

Synodal movement of the Catholic 

Church is founded on “active listening 

and dialogue,” and this movement 

connects to the elements that form 

the new Standards and Expectations 

guide defining a Marist education. 

Synodal Process and 

Marist Education 

Pope Francis has invited the entire Church 

to reflect on a “synodality” theme that will 

be decisive for the Church’s mission. He has 

shared that such a synodal journey follows 

the Church’s renewal proposed by the 

Second Vatican Council and described it 

as both “a gift and a task.” 

Many Catholics are unclear about this 

synodality movement, but continued 

efforts to expand the synodal reach are 

ongoing. The ongoing Synodal process is 

striving to enhance lay understanding to 

be People of God and journey together, 

gather in assembly and take an active 

part in the evangelizing mission of the 

Church. 

How is this Synodal process 

connected to a Marist Education? 

Those who have worked in Marist 

Education already bear witness to the Marist 

Spirit’s influence on their work. The work of a Marist educator is 

imbued with a spirit of humility, discipline, love of God and love of neighbor. 

These Marist values coupled with synodal values of “active listening and dialogue” 

will be central to preserving and renewing Marist education. 

A Marist Document: The Standards and Expectations 

of a Marist Education 

In a synodal spirit, (over a decade ago, even before the Church’s synodal movement 

was called into being), the Marists assembled an effort to ensure that the schools 

they owned or sponsored would continue under the Marist charism. 

Soon after the U.S. Province of the Society of Mary began in 2009, a committee 

was formed to plan for the future of Marist educational ministry. The committee 

was charged to look at current schools of the Marist Fathers and Brothers and any 

“The ongoing Synodal process is striving to enhance lay understanding 

to be People of God and journey together, gather in assembly and take 

an active part in the evangelizing mission of the Church.” 


of all Marist Schools – that they will 

provide a “Global Dimension.” 

The Church seeks through the Synodal 

movement to build an improved, “global” 

Church – so do the Marist Standards 

and Expectations of a Marist Education. 

According to the Standards document, 

a Marist School insures that “students 

understand and promote human rights 

of all people, the consequences of 

interdependence, the safeguarding of 

human life, the promotion of a seamless 

garment in their understanding of life 

issues, the protection of the environment 

and the obligation to foster the good of 

all even if it means sacrificing wealth or 

comfort.” (Standards and Expectations of 

a Marist Education, Standard 6, #215) 

Marist School bike drive for kids in need in the community for the non-profit organization, Free Bikes 4 Kidz Atlanta 

future schools that would like to form a 

partnership with the Society of Mary. 

In 2020, the Marists produced a guide 

for Marist education, the Standards and 

Expectations of a Marist Education. This 

document will impact existing Marist 

relationships at schools in Atlanta, 

Georgia (Marist School); Duluth, Georgia 

(Notre Dame Academy); Pontiac, 

Michigan (Notre Dame Preparatory and 

Marist Academy); and San Francisco, 

California (Notre Dame de Victories). 

This committee had a “synodal” vision 

without saying so. The vision for the 

Marist committee’s work was to preserve 

and renew the vision of the Society of 

Mary Founder, Fr. Jean-Claude Colin, for 

Marist education and to advance that 

unique mission into the future. 

The Marist committee on Education 

provided a framework for education 

that would serve several purposes, 

specifically; to help to preserve and 

deepen the fundamental characteristics 

of Marist schools; to establish guidelines 

that would govern what is expected from 

those involved with Marist communities 

of learning and faith; and to create a 

common language and set of actions that 

could be used to measure adherence to 

the larger mission of the Society of Mary. 

(Standards and Expectations of a Marist 

Education: U.S. Province Schools and 

Sponsored schools) 

Within the Standards and Expectations 

of a Marist Education document, there 

are several passages that connect to the 

Synodal movement. 

Two Key Standards from 

the Marist Text 

There are two standards that track the 

current Synod’s emphasis on active 

listening, dialogue and a path toward 

oneness. 

Standard 5 in the Standards and 


describes an aspiration for all Marist 

Schools – that they will “Teach and Act 

Justly.” 

The Synodal movement is driven to 

build a stronger, “just” Church. Likewise, 

the Standards document states that a 

Marist School “clearly reflects a sense 

of justice and maintains a respect for 

the legitimate rights of others in its 

dealings with student, employees, 

parents, and its local neighborhood. 

The entire community not only teaches 

justice but also acts justly.” (Standards 

and Expectations of a Marist Education, 

Standard 5, application 1) 

Both the Synodal movement in the 

Church and the standards of a Marist 

education are striving for the same goal. 

They seek to build a just community that 

does not rest on its laurels and shares 

Christ-centered respect in “dealings” 

(listening!) with others. 

Standard 6 in the Standards and 


document describes another aspiration 

The Standards go on to say that “students 

should recognize the suffering and 

pain which poverty, racism, sexism, 

and religious intolerance have caused 

in the world at large and in their 

own communities.” (Standards and 

Expectations of a Marist Education, 

Standard 6, #216) 

This is a significant mission for Marist 

Schools, and this corresponds with the 

same mission permeating the Synodal 

movement. 

The Church is looking to restore gaps 

in its mission or restore those who may 

be forgotten within it, as are the Marist 

Standards with Marist schools. The 

Standards raise awareness of potential, 

forgotten people that can develop within 

the mission of a Marist education. These 

standards call for an emphasis – and 

empathy – for others who should be 

served in the years to come. 

Conclusion 

The Standards and Expectations of a 

Marist Education reflect “synodal” 

values. 

These Standards, designed to preserve 

a Marist Education in the United States, 

track many of the concerns that the 

Church has raised within communities 

throughout the world. 

In their recent document, the Marists 

continue to impart their understanding 

of education for all lay persons involved 

in their school communities - not only to 

advance a Marist education, but also to 

allow that such an education will richly 

engage the mission of the Church. 


Social Justice, Baptism and 

the Reign of God 

by Bill Rowland, SM, President, Marist School, Atlanta, Georgia 

I want to address the topic of social justice by situating it within 

the context of baptism. In baptism, Christ has chosen us to be 

united to him and given us the vocation to conform our lives to 

his. We are to think, judge, feel and act like him in all things, with 

the goal being, to say with St. Paul, “It is no longer I who live in 

me but Christ.” That is what Christian holiness looks like, which 

is the fundamental vocation of the baptized. The fundamental 

mission of the baptized and the laity, in particular, is to advance 

the Reign of God. Both involve proclaiming Jesus Christ is Lord, 

not me, my plans, my country or my political party. 

Christian holiness, however, is not focused solely on our 

salvation but also on the salvation of the world. The two go 

hand in hand. The essence of the divine life is love, in which we 

participate by being grafted onto Christ in Baptism. Love is not 

something we possess and keep to ourselves. The very nature of 

love is to be given away and reveals itself in our actions, which 

certainly includes acting justly. 

Justice is one of the key attributes of the Reign of God, also called 

the Kingdom of Heaven or Kingdom of God. For our purposes, 

I will use the term Reign of God because the word kingdom 

connotes a geographical place. The word reign transcends any 

particular place and refers to a process that unfolds in time, 

though its fulfillment will be at the end of time. It is a concept 

found throughout the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament). The 

phrase occurs 122 times in the New Testament, 99 times in 

the synoptic Gospels and 90 times out of the mouth of Jesus. 

(Catholic Answers, https://bit.ly/3yD9Y1t) Jesus is the Reign or 

Baptism at Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church, Brookhaven, Georgia 

the Kingdom of God. “But if I am casting out demons by the 

Spirit of God, then the Kingdom of God has come upon you.” 

(Mt. 12:28) 

What exactly is the Reign of God? The Hebrew Scriptures 

emphasized that there are four dimensions of this Kingdom: It 

is divine, established and ruled by God, everlasting because it 

has no end, universal because although it begins with Israel, it 

must extend to include all the nations of the earth and spiritual 

meaning it is more than an earthly Kingdom. It is a heavenly 

Kingdom. (Beginning Catholic, https://bit.ly/3TcySwY) 

A convenient way of understanding the Reign of God is found in 

how the Risen Lord greeted his disciples when he appeared to 

them in the Upper Room. Rather than berating them for their 

failures, he greeted them with the word “Shalom.” That word 

expresses what God desires for all humanity: justice, peace, love, 

compassion, wholeness, health, freedom, the fullness of life 

for all and the integrity of creation. That is God’s vision for the 

flourishing of humanity. While there will always be the reality 

of human progress, the Reign of God is different. It comes from 

without, from another realm, a heavenly one but also grows 

from within. It will be advanced with human beings acting in 

partnership with Christ, which is another way of saying through 

the grace of God. At the same time, the Reign of God will be 

established in fullness when Christ returns in glory. 

As we grow in holiness, we will look outward and love the 

world as God does. “God so loved the world that he sent his one 

and only Son.” (John 3:16) God continues to love the world by 

sending his Son but now through the baptized (Church). In 

baptism, Christ begins the process of conforming ourselves to 

him, who will propel us to love others, even our enemies, and 

to conform the values of this world to those of the Reign of God. 

The divine life of love will not allow us to remain indifferent to 

the injustice that reveals itself through the actions or inaction of 

others. Instead, it sends us into the world with a mission to feed 

the hungry, give drink to the thirsty and be in solidarity with the 

weakest and most vulnerable, adding our voice to their cry for 

justice. 

Within this context, Jesus’ miracles can be understood as the 

Reign of God breaking into our earthly realm. However, we 

often overlook how there was a social dimension to his miracles. 

In Jesus’ time, anything that diminished a person, such as 

poverty or illness, also reduced their social status, leaving them 

marginalized and vulnerable. Whenever he cured the sick, 

Jesus not only relieved their physical suffering but also erased 

their shame and restored their place in society. It is not a great 

leap from restoring the dignity of those suffering from illness 

or trapped in sin to do the same for those whose dignity is lost 

through injustice, racism, sexism, sexual abuse, homophobia, 

migration, etc. 


That is the mission given to the laity 

in baptism by the Risen Christ. It is to 

sanctify the world by having it reflect 

the values and priorities of the Reign of 

God. Their efforts to advance the Reign of 

God are the spiritual sacrifices by which 

the laity exercises the priesthood of the 

faithful. We pray for the success of this 

mission every time we say in the Our 

Father, “Thy will be done on earth as it is 

in heaven.” 

A Marist education wants to prepare 

students to partner with people from 

all walks of life to advance a new world 

characterized by justice, peace, love, 

compassion, freedom, wholeness, safety, 

the fullness of life for all and the integrity 

of creation. That is also why a Marist 

school is committed to teaching students 

(laity) about social justice and their 

responsibility to work towards furthering 

the Reign of God here on earth. 

To that end, a Marist education 

encourages our students to cultivate 

empathy (compassion), without which 

the Reign of God will be hindered and 

slowed in making its advance, resulting 

in countless people needlessly suffering. 

We want our students to embrace this 

mission to advance the Reign of God 

(social justice) entrusted to them by 

Christ in baptism. 

Jean-Claude Colin, SM, founder of the 

Society of Mary, insisted that Marist 

educators form their students into strong 

and faithful disciples of Christ. In addition, 

they must encourage and instruct their 

students on how to know and exercise 

their responsibilities and rights as honest 

and upright citizens, useful to society. 

Teaching them about the Reign of God, 

commonly referred to as social justice, 

is teaching them to be upright citizens, 

useful to society. 

Youth have a sensitivity to matters of 

justice. They are drawn to help those 

victims of injustice and confront the 

“ways of the world” that make such 

suffering normative. They also want their 

voice to be heard. A Marist education 

hears in their pleas for a more just and 

compassionate world the voice of the 

Risen Lord who announces to this 

age and every age, “This is the time of 

fulfillment. The Reign (Kingdom) of God 

is at hand. Repent, and believe in the 

Gospel.” (Mark 1:15) 

Compromise, 

Reconciliation, 

Forgiveness 

by Jack Ridout, Today’s Marists Editorial Board Member 

We all have opinions and are convinced that we have the 

corner on the truth. And for many years, people have ended 

up in various camps of thinking, some to the left and others 

to the right, and vilify anyone who does not agree with them. 

When discussion leads to a dead end and compromise may 

have resolved the issue, it now becomes a dirty word, a 

weakness, a giving up of one’s principles and a loss of those 

opinions. 

What about those in the middle? They have at times been 

referred to as “silent” and even been in the majority. The 

“silent” ones and others may have become complacent and 

have let the more vocal ones voice their concerns. All of this 

hangs over our heads when we discuss our heartfelt ideas, 

but it can also lead us to closing our minds to others and to 

what they think is the truth. 

So where does this leave us? How can we move forward in 

this polarized world, church and society? We picket them, 

shout at them, make up stories to hurt and in general ignore 

them as individuals loved by God. 

We need to step back and let some valuable “downtime” 

take hold in our hearts. This past summer Fr. Ron Rolheiser, 

OMI led a retreat for the U.S. Province of the Marist Fathers 

and Brothers. Fr. Ron provided many useful insights on 

how we can move forward in this current polarized society and church. He looks to our 

“present moment” as a search for “nurturing” solutions in our present world of lessening 

dependence on God. 

He points us to the word “sabbath” or a period of rest, and as found in Genesis, Chapter 2 

Verse 3, “So, God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from 

all the work he had done.” For Jews and Christians this was a day set aside for the Lord. So 

why do we need sabbath time? Fr. Rolheiser explains that “Sabbath invites us to step back 

to see” what is good and is a “mandate to rest: We must have compassion for everyone, 

including ourselves” and lists “reconciliation time” as one quality of sabbath. 

Reconciliation is different from compromise. Compromise as defined can indicate a giving 

up on some ideas while getting agreement on others. Whereas, reconciliation can lead to 

harmony between opposite sides of an issue. Fr. Rolheiser further reiterates that as a result 

of this harmony we are: “to be neither liberal or conservative but rather men and women of 

true compassion.” 

This can be quite the challenge for us. Can we tone down the rhetoric? Can we find a way 

to reconcile ourselves to others, to find that harmony? Might we go one step further on 

this journey called life and live what Jesus’ death means? Can forgiveness take hold in our 

hearts? During our own sabbath time, can we let the prayer Jesus taught us provide the 

rest we need to be those men and women of true compassion? – “… and forgive us our 

trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” 


Family Faith Formation: 

Journey at Our Lady of the 

Assumption Catholic Church 

by Elizabeth Piper, Director of Faith Formation, Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic Church, Brookhaven, Georgia 

Change, oh how this word conjures up emotions. Change for 

good or bad. Change that is forced or chosen. Change that comes 

with growing and learning. Change that comes with time. These 

changes can be scary but also helps us grow. What is scary to 

a Director of Faith Formation is the statement “this is how it 

has always been done.” There is no growth when things are 

done the same way over and over. We are at a stalemate, like a 

sailboat without wind, we are just bobbing along. Covid offered 

opportunities to create change in our lives and evaluate what 

will remain post-Covid. 

Families have struggled during these Covid years, adjusting to 

global pandemic and the new normal. Working from home for 

parents became a way of life. Children were also at home with 

virtual classes. These changes produced a new way of living and 

working as a family. Parents took on roles of educators along 

with their work. These changes came with different challenges 

within the family and new directions. By facing these challenges 

together, the family has had the opportunity for great growth. 

Parents became even stronger models for their children by their 

presence. Faith has grown in the family through modeling of 

formation, mission and community by the parents. 

In Our Hearts Were Burning Within Us (OHWBWU), a pastoral 

plan published by the United States Conference of Catholic 

Bishops in 1999, adults and family are called to formation, 

mission and community. 

Every disciple of the Lord Jesus shares in this mission. To do 

their part, adult Catholics must be mature in faith and well 

equipped to share the Gospel, promoting it in every family 

circle, in every church gathering, in every place of work, and in 

every public forum. They must be women and men of prayer 

whose faith is alive and vital, grounded in a deep commitment 

to the person and message of Jesus. (OHWBWU, #2) 

The Archdiocese of Atlanta Office of Evangelization & 

Discipleship developed a hybrid program called Families 

Forming Disciples (FFD) (https://bit.ly/3Cuvkz5). 

Families Forming Disciples is a hybrid, family-focused, 

thematic-activity approach to family faith formation where 

groups of families meet with catechists (in-person or virtually) 

to encounter the Lord together and to encourage each other to 

live as the Domestic Church in and through their home and 

family life. 

FFD is designed to give parents the tools they need to bring 

the faith into their homes and teach their children through 

Formation, Mission and Community. During the first week of 

each month the FFD lesson is presented in a large group format 

to families that come together for formation. During such a 

gathering the families learn together about their faith though 

crafts, sharing and presentations. They take this information 

home with them to put into action. The second week of each 

month offers activities for families to do together to reinforce 

the formation. The range of activities include watching videos as 

a family, making Mary full of grace ice cream floats or creating 

a prayer corner in the home. All these bring the faith into the 

home through family discussions. After doing the family activity, 

the third week of the lesson focuses on building community 

through small groups. Each family has a mentor family which 

coordinates the week 3 gathering. These small groups of families 

meet in homes, parks or restaurants to reflect on what each 

family did as part of their mission. This is also a time for families 

to get to know each other while the children play together, all of 

which builds community. The cycle of formation, mission and 

community building continues from month to month during the 

school year. 


Each year FFD bases the lessons, offered in both English 

and Spanish, on a theme. The first year it is building the 

domestic church; the second year is sacred history and the 

building of the covenant relationship with God; and the third 

year is the life of Christ through the lens of living the mysteries 

of the rosary. These yearly themes allow the family to have the 

tools they need to catechize their children in their home. All 

of the presentations can be done in person or virtually to best 

meet a family’s needs. By offering choices of language, times 

and methods of when and how to receive the information, we 

are meeting the families where they are in their life and busy 

schedules. The parish offers flexibility within the structure of the 

program to provide the best experience for the family. 

FFD has been a big change for Our Lady of the Assumption 

(OLA) parish which prior to Covid, only offered a Parish School 

of Religion (PSR) program during the school year for one hour 

on Sunday mornings. In the PSR program, parents dropped off 

their child who went to a classroom with two catechists. Both 

English and Spanish speakers were in the same class. Each 

grade level used books to provide a scope and sequence for the 

program though the catechists could choose whether or not to 

use these books. PSR was a first come first served program with 

a registration limit. Once a class filled, the registration for that 

group closed. This program also required a big commitment 

from volunteers since two catechists were always needed for 

each class. The pros of PSR for parents were the ability to drop off 

their child and pick them up an hour later. Parent involvement 

was limited to being a volunteer catechist. Most of the objections 

to changing to the FFD program is parents wanting to drop off 

their child and have the classroom experience. The change from 

a school model to a youth ministry model needs time for the 

participants, both parents and children, to adjust. 

The benefits of the FFD program are starting to be seen in 

other offerings at OLA. Some of these benefits include there 

not being a cap on the number of participants in the program, 

lessons are offered in the language of the family and OLA is 

seeing an increase in participants in other Bible and book 

studies for adults. The middle school Edge with Purpose and 

high school Life Teen programs are both seeing increases in 

enrollment. Through the FFD youth ministry program model 

each lesson focus is developed first through formation and then 

participants take what is learned in formation and complete a 

mission or action. The families then come together as a small 

group to talk about their experiences through this process. This 

model is creating a community of faith and lifelong learners. 

Although these changes to faith formation at OLA came about 

p.12 Left: Family 

prayer center created in 

the home – a place where 

family members can gather 

for prayer and are reminded of 

their faith 

p.12 Right: Child praying at his home 

prayer table 

p.13 Left: Monthly FFD gathering where 

parents receive the information that they will 

focus on in the lessons the rest of the month 

p.13 Right: The third week of each FFD lesson provides 

an opportunity for families to gather as a small group. 

The families pray together, build relationships and play. 

because of the global pandemic, they are continuing to meet 

the greater needs by giving parents, the primary catechist of the 

faith, the tools to pass the faith on to their children. In the Great 

Commandment, Deuteronomy 6: 4-7, Moses tells us: 

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD; and you shall 

love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all 

your soul, and with all your might. And these words which I 

command you this day shall be upon your heart; and you shall 

teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them 

when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, 

and when you lie down, and when you rise. 

“Teach your children” is what God calls us to do. Through FFD, 

OLA and the family have the tools to meet their needs. Over time 

this program change will enrich the whole parish. The global 

pandemic gave us an opportunity to make changes and evaluate 

how we are meeting the needs of the family. The FFD program 

meets God’s call to teach our children in the home. 

The program Families Forming Disciples can be found at 

https://bit.ly/3Cuvkz5. 


Towards a Synodal School: 

Social-Emotional Learning and 

the Synodal Process 

by Nik Rodewald, Theology Teacher and Campus Minister, Marist School, Atlanta, Georgia 

Towards the end of the Second Vatican Council, the Council 

Fathers proclaimed, “The joys and the hopes, the griefs and 

the anxieties of the [people] of this age, especially those who 

are poor or in any way afflicted, these are the joys and hopes, 

the griefs and anxieties of the followers of Christ. Indeed, 

nothing genuinely human fails to raise an echo in their hearts.” 

(Gaudium et Spes 1) Building upon a deeper understanding 

of human dignity, the post-conciliar Church has consistently 

sought to better accompany all of God’s children. 

In October 2021, Pope Francis launched the Church’s latest 

effort in this mission of pilgrimage: a two-year, worldwide 

consultation leading to the 2023 Synod on Synodality, in 

which the Church will discern how the Holy Spirit wills her to 

accompany the People of God here and now. In considering 

the Holy Father’s hopes for the Synod, I believe that schools 

may help to form students in a synodal way by more deeply 

engraining the principles of Social-Emotional Learning into 

school practice. 

Themes of the Synod 

In opening the Synod on October 10, 2021, Pope Francis spoke 

of the Synod as, “a process of spiritual discernment … that 

unfolds in adoration, in prayer and in dialogue with the Word of 

God.” Rooted in the life of prayer, Pope Francis challenges us to 

Art teacher L.K. Sleat works with students on a collaborative art project based on 

the exquisite corpse method 

encounter, listen and discern – “three verbs that characterize the 

Synod.” He then interprets these three verbs in the context of 

the story of an interaction between Jesus and a rich man (cf. Mk 

10:17-22). 

The story begins when a rich man kneels before Jesus and 

asks, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 

(Mk 10:17) Jesus, Pope Francis remarks, “did not hurry along, 

or keep looking at his watch to get the meeting over. He was 

always at the service of the person he was with … encountering 

faces, meeting eyes, sharing each individual’s history.” This 

way of being present to others is what the Holy Father calls 

the art of encounter. After first encountering the Risen Lord 

through prayer, we are then called to “openness, courage, and a 

willingness to let ourselves be challenged by the presence and 

the stories of others.” In doing so, we allow ourselves to discover 

new paths that God opens through the gift of encounter. 

Pope Francis reflects that when responding to the rich 

man, Jesus does not, “give a non-committal reply or offer a 

prepackaged solution.” Instead, Jesus “is not afraid to listen to 

him with his heart and not just with his ears.” By listening in the 

manner of Jesus, we allow “people [to] feel that they are being 

heard, not judged … free to recount their own experiences and 

their spiritual journey.” In the Gospel passage, Jesus listens by 

reminding the man of the commandments, which in turn allows 

him to share his own religious journey. As disciples of the Lord, 

Pope Francis challenges us to reflect on how well-practiced we 

are at listening, particularly with the heart. 

Finally, Jesus helps the rich man to discern. By engaging the 

rich man in dialogue, Jesus helps him to discover that, despite 

impressive obedience to God’s commandments, the man’s heart 

lies in earthly treasures. He is challenged to “empty himself, 

selling whatever takes up space in his heart, in order to make 

room for God.” We, too, are called to engage others in dialogue 

with the goal of mutual discernment, that both may leave 

enriched, nourished with bread for the shared journey ahead. 

Social-Emotional Learning 

In the world of education, the phrase “Social-Emotional 

Learning” (SEL) is frequently used, but rarely understood. SEL 

is defined as, “the process through which all young people and 

adults acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes 

to develop healthy identities, manage emotions and achieve 

personal and collective goals, feel and show empathy for others, 

establish and maintain supportive relationships, and make 

responsible and caring decisions.” I believe that there are deep 

connections between the principles of SEL and the synodal 

process. 


The Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional 

Learning (CASEL) identifies five fundamental areas 

of competence for development through SEL: selfawareness, 

self-management, social awareness, 

relationship skills and responsible decision 

making. Each of these five themes has a 

fundamental relationship with the three verbs 

(Encounter-Listen-Discern) that Pope Francis 

sees at the heart of the synodal process. 

By fostering self-awareness in students, SEL 

equips students for dialogue: without an 

awareness of our own emotions, thoughts, 

values and biases, we are unable to 

genuinely encounter the other. Repressed 

emotions may, for example, cause us to 

project anger at others, while implicit biases 

may render impossible a genuine listening 

“with the heart” to which our Lord calls us. 

Both make true encounter impossible. By 

equipping students with tools and practices 

for self-management, those who work with 

youth can empower students to bring their best 

and fullest selves to the table of dialogue with 

others. 

By enabling social awareness, especially through 

the cultivation of empathy by listening to other 

perspectives; understanding and expressing gratitude; 

and showing concern for the feelings of others, we learn to 

“listen with the heart.” This gives others the space to express 

themselves and share their stories freely. Furthermore, by 

learning about others, we come to understand our own vocation 

and gain the perspective necessary to find the place where, as 

the late theologian Frederick Buechner would say, “your deep 

gladness meets the world’s deep need.” 

Relationship skills - developed through servant leadership, 

cultural competency, collaboration, service and advocacy – 

empower students to engage in responsible decision-making 

that seeks the common good of all people. Responsible decisionmaking 

is the fruit of good discernment: it considers the 

ramifications of a decision on all parties, is done in view of the 

Kingdom of God and comes from a place of well-informed good 

will. By developing these areas of competency proposed by SEL, 

we journey with young people, equipping them to carry on the 

work of transforming the Church and world. 

Practical Applications 

What follow are a few practices that I have recently observed 

or begun to implement in my own ministry; I hope that these 

practices provide concrete avenues of forming young people 

according to the synodal way: 

• Restorative Practices: Ted Wachtel of the International 

Institute for Restorative Practices suggests that circle processes 

often used in restorative justice work might be expanded to 

classrooms, morning meetings and even within families. 

When teachers or parents are willing to use rituals and talking 

pieces in the context of a circle process, they support SEL by 

helping kids to listen and giving space for the free expression 

of emotion that is a precondition for human flourishing. 

• Happiness-Fit Discernment: In her book The How of 

Happiness, Sonja Lyubomirsky provides a tool for helping us 

determine which types of activities ‘fit’ us most naturally. 

By teaching students to distinguish between what we do 

because we want to do it and what we do out of shame or guilt, 

we teach them to discover their own place of deep gladness, 

which in turn sheds light on how they are called to serve the 

Kingdom of God in the world. 

• Student Choice: By designing assignments that give 

students a level of choice in both content and method of the 

assignment, students engage in dialogue with their instructor, 

helping them to make responsible decisions that put them in a 

position of stewardship over their own learning. 

• Restorative Discipline: By crafting discipline practices that 

encourage students to focus on the harm that an action 

causes a person or relationship – rather than simply an 

appropriate ‘punishment,’ students are encouraged to 

cultivate empathy, to listen to the other, and to work together 

to find appropriate means of restitution and restoration. 

In the final analysis, the impact of the Synod of Synodality will 

not lie in what practices may change within the Church; rather, 

the deepest impact will be how the Church transforms into one 

of encounter, listening and discernment. This framework, then, 

must be at the heart of our journey with young people, and can 

be supported by continuing to allow the principles of SEL to take 

heart within our schools. 


Stewards of Sustainability 

by Mike Kelly, Director of Marketing, Notre Dame Preparatory and Marist Academy, Pontiac, Michigan 

Notre Dame Prep’s Sustainability Project is 

in capable hands as students - as Christian 

people and upright citizens - endeavor to 

“take care of the earth and all inhabitants.” 

According to the United States 

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 

sustainability is based on a simple 

principle: Everything that we need for our 

survival and well-being depends, either 

directly or indirectly, on our natural 

environment. To pursue sustainability 

is to create and maintain the conditions 

under which humans and nature can 

exist in productive harmony to support 

present and future generations. 

The Notre Dame Prep (NDP) 

sustainability initiative, called “The 

Sustainability Project,” teaches students 

how the school’s mission ties into that 

same environmental stewardship as it 

also increases student involvement in 

developing biodiversity on the campus. 

Small but Important Part 

Tommy Fletcher, a senior at NDP, was vice 

president of the NDP Bee Club during 

his junior year. While acknowledging the 

important role bees play in the overall 

health of this planet, he knows there is 

much more involved with environmental 

sustainability. 

“I realize that the bees are just a small 

part of the whole, but once I became a 

part of the bee project here at NDP, I could 

more clearly see the bigger environmental 

Notre Dame Prep’s bee colony, or apiary, 

established in May 2019, is maintained by 

the school’s student-run Bee Club 

picture and the large role sustainability 

plays in keeping our planet healthy,” he 

said. 

The EPA says that the National 

Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 

1969 committed the United States to 

sustainability, declaring it a national 

policy “to create and maintain conditions 

under which humans and nature can 

exist in productive harmony, that permit 

fulfilling the social, economic and other 

requirements of present and future 

generations.” 

In the years since NEPA was enacted, 

the public’s interest in sustainability has 

broadened. According to the National 

Research Council, there are many 

additional drivers for sustainability. 

In the areas where the U.S. has seen 

considerable progress in sustainability, a 

common driver for sustainability efforts 

is the concern from citizens and other 

stakeholders. 

In addition, sustainability practitioners 

are becoming more ambitious in their 

sustainability efforts and are working 

together to share best practices to ensure 

the greatest environmental, economic 

and social impact. 

According to Sue McGinnis, who teaches 

science in the NDP upper school and 

manages the Melissa Kozyra Greenhouse 

and Botany Learning Lab along with 

overseeing the apiary, the second 

encyclical of Pope Francis, Laudato Si’, 

is the perfect springboard for discussing 

with NDP students that, in Francis’s 

words, “the natural world is no longer 

‘optional,’ but is an integral part of the 

Church teaching on social justice.” 

Thriving Bees 

McGinnis said that she stresses the part of 

the school’s mission that relates to being 

an “upright citizen” of the world which 

must include leaving the environment in 

good shape for future generations. 

“As a citizen of any society, it is 

incumbent upon us to take care of each 

other, our wildlife and our environment,” 

she added. “Planting trees, native plants 

and vegetables, allows us to support 

the needy in our community and help 

protect our portion of the environment. 

As students go forward in their lives, they 

will hopefully take this understanding 

with them and continue to practice these 

principles.” 

For Fletcher, he and the rest of the Bee 

Club’s “sustainability practitioners” are 

using their time in the school’s apiary in a 

couple of important ways. 

“We maintain and harvest the multiple 

hives on campus,” he said. “Our mission 

is to keep the bees healthy so they can 

produce the delicious honey we sell 

to help fund our activity, but we also 

promote the importance of a sustainable 

environment so the bees can thrive.” 

McGinnis said the goal for her and her 

fellow science educators at NDP remains 

to always teach students how the school’s 

mission is directly related to protecting 

the environment. 

She points to the three main tenets of the 

school’s mission and how they can be 

tied directly to the environment and its 

sustainability: 

NDPMA Sustainability Project Goals 

• Be stewards of God’s creation as 

Christian people 

• Take care of the earth and all 

inhabitants as upright citizens 

• Provide opportunities for students 

to put their learning into action as 

academic scholars 

Fletcher adds that he hopes his academic 

work and interest in NDP sustainability 

and the Bee Club will translate into more 

such work at the college level and beyond. 

“I will begin applying to schools this fall 

and hope to join or begin a bee club at 

the university I choose,” he said. “I am 

interested in the chemistry and math 

fields, but thanks to my experience at 

Notre Dame Prep, I could also see myself 

finding a way to include environmental 

engineering into the mix.” 


West Nancy Creek cleanup 

SUSTAINABLE LIVING: 

A Call to Action 

by Kelly Mandy, Director of Global and Humane Studies, Marist School, Atlanta, Georgia 

Pope Francis calls us to action in his 

encyclical, Laudato Si’. He rightly 

proclaims that our earth, akin to a mother 

or a sister, is crying out because we 

humans have been irresponsible in our 

care for her. We do not uplift her or honor 

her even though she gives us the very 

means to be alive. Instead, we attempt to 

own her which has only led to plundering, 

mistreating and using her for own selfish 

wants. The question becomes how do we 

do better? How do we change our own 

behavior and teach others so that future 

generations will benefit from the gifts of 

this earth? 

At the center of Marist School is our 

Mother Mary. Our community works 

everyday to embody the spirit of Mary 

and tries to do her work in this world. We 

know that Mary would want us to live in 

a way that honors earth as a mother, just 

as we honor her. To do this, the Marist 

School community strives to act and live 

in ways that better the environment in the 

hopes that future students will enjoy the 

abundance of the natural beauty we have 

on this campus and in this world. 

We are lucky to have schoolgrounds full 

of ecological diversity that include forests, 

wetlands and even a creek that meanders 

through the back of our campus. Students 

encounter West Nancy Creek daily. Some 

may walk over it as they travel to campus 

from their car while others may run along 

the cross-country trail which winds along 

the bank. Teachers often include the creek 

in their lessons and take students there to 

learn about ecology, water quality or even 

to just find a meditative spot to pray. 

These interactions with the creek have 

also allowed students to learn how 

our actions have harmed it. They have 

learned that the continued addition of 

impermeable surfaces has increased the 

amount of stormwater runoff which has 

then led to severe erosion. Students have 

seen how the strong current has stripped 

away the bank of the creek so that trees 

have lost the very ground beneath them 

and fallen to their demise. They have 

watched heavy rains cause the water to 

rise over the edge and wash out whatever 

was in its path. In addition, they have 

seen all the plastic bags and debris that 

get caught in the tangle of branches when 

the creek floods but then remain in those 

branches once the water recedes. So, what 

have these students been able to do to 

combat these challenges? 

The students have stepped up. Students 

in the environmental science course 

have developed projects year after 

year that work to collectively improve 

the health of the creek as well as the 

environmental health of the campus. 

They have created rain gardens and roof 

gardens that consume more rainwater 

thus lessening the runoff that reaches 

the creek. They have worked along the 

banks to remove invasive species that 

do nothing to stabilize the ground with 

their shallow root systems. One group 

of students hosted a “privet pull” and 

invited members of the community to 

gather on a Sunday afternoon to work 

together to remove as much as they could 

of the invasive species, Chinese privet. 

They then planted native plants with 

deep roots that would better hold the 

ground in place. While these students 

could only work to improve small sections 

of the creek banks, their hope was that 

future environmental science students 

would pick up their work and continue 

their efforts in improving the creek’s 

environment and the legacy would grow. 

The Marist School Environment club has 

also put the health of the creek as a focal 

point of the club. Each year the club hosts 

two creek clean-ups. The entire student 

body is invited to spend a few hours 

picking up trash in and around the creek. 

Over the years students have pulled out 

thousands of pounds of trash including 

tires, rugs, shopping carts and more 

plastic bottles and tennis balls than can 

be counted. 

In looking beyond the creek, Marist 

School has many sustainability programs 

in place to better serve the environment. 

We are lucky enough to have recycling 

and composting programs here. With 

composting bins located throughout 

the cafeteria and outdoor eating spaces, 

anyone on campus can prevent their 

food and paper waste from going into 

the landfill and turn it into organic soil 

instead. The opportunity to recycle not 

only the usual items such as aluminum 

cans, paper, numbered plastic, carboard, 

etc., but also many specialty items such 

as plastic film, foil pouches, batteries, 

used markers, shoes and even wine corks 

is available on campus, thus diverting 

even more material from a landfill. The 

opportunity to act in sustainable ways is 

prevalent throughout the Marist School 

campus. 

As members of the Marist School 

community, we all have a role to play 

in discerning and living out God’s call 

for His people. In a synodal Church, 

participation is based on the fact that all 

the faithful are qualified and are called to 

serve one another through the gifts they 

have each received from the Holy Spirit. 

The whole community, in the free and 

rich diversity of its members, is called 

together to pray, listen, analyze, dialogue, 

discern and offer advice on making 

pastoral decisions which correspond 

as closely as possible to God’s will. We 

can never be centered on ourselves. 

Our mission is to witness the love of 

God in the midst of the whole human 

family. This Synodal ‘process’ has a deep 

missionary dimension to it. It is intended 

to enable the Church to better witness 

to the Gospel, especially with those who 

live on the spiritual, social, economic, 

political, geographical and existential 

peripheries of our world. We are called to 

turn our attention to those that need our 

help the most. Mother earth needs us now 

more than she ever has before. We must 

heed her cries and act. 


The Journey to Unity-in-Diversity 


The word synod comes from two Greek 

words – SYN and HODOS – meaning 

literally “a journey together.” Two images 

come to mind – people on a journey 

together or people traveling from various 

places to come together in one place. 

The history of the Church is filled with 

accounts of many such journeys and 

meetings. The journeys and meetings 

are a kind of metaphor of what happens 

intellectually, spiritually, psychologically 

and socially. While their diversity 

remains a fact, the participants have 

journeyed interiorly and now experience 

a new unity of mind and heart. 

The history of consecrated life in the 

Church somewhat parallels the history 

of the Church. At first religious lived 

in communities that hardly had any 

contact with other communities of 

consecrated persons. They had diverse 

rules, customs and structures to meet 

their local situations. They had their own 

decision-making processes. Eventually, 

but slowly, they gained knowledge of 

each other and began to exchange ideas 

and rules with each other. Church and 

civil authorities were anxious to gain 

greater control over these communities 

and so certain rules, customs and 

Council of the Society of Mary 2022 in Rome, Italy – This meeting happens in a synodal spirit of common 

discernment on the past and present developments in the Society, and the imagination of its future with sights 

set clearly on the 2025 General Chapter 

practices began to be imposed on 

these local communities. In the West 

the rules of St. Augustine, St. Benedict, 

St. Frances and St. Dominic began to 

dominate. While in the East that Rule of 

St. Basil was greatly influential. There 

was, however, no overall administrative 

structure that ordered these 

communities. Decisions were made on 

the individual community level, not by a 

general or regional administration. 

We read in the 6th century rule of 

St. Benedict: “As often as anything 

important is to be done in the 

monastery, the abbot shall call the 

whole community together, and himself 

explain what the business is: and hearing 

the advice of the brothers, let him ponder 

it and follow what he judges the wiser 

course. The reason why we have said all 

should be called for counsel is that the 

Lord often reveals what is better to the 

younger …” “If less important business 

of the monastery is to be transacted, he 

shall take counsel with the seniors only”. 

(Rule of St. Benedict, 3) 

As time went on and the world changed, 

so did the Church and the organization 

of consecrated life. In her power and 

administrative structures, the Church 

has imitated secular government. 

There has been a tendency to centralize 

authority and power. By the end of the 

Middle Ages, what we today call religious 

orders became recognizable. They too 

resemble governments and empires. 

The Cause of Venerable Jean-Claude Colin, SM 


Throughout his life Father Colin’s chief concern was to do the will of the Blessed 

Virgin Mary. He was constantly looking for manifestations of that will and listened 

for it in the words of others. He watched and listened. 

Please report any extraordinary favors granted by prayer to him to: 

Marist Provincial Office | 815 Varnum Street, NE | Washington, D.C. 20017 

The Marists were born in the 19th 

century, an age of empires and armies. 

In Jean-Claude Colin’s Constitutions of 

1872 he compares the Marists to an army 

– “Just as in a military organization, over 

and above the lower officer, each on their 

own level, preside over and are in charge 

of particular matters, there is a higher 

officer responsible for general affairs and 

whose role is to see that they are well 

administered and correctly conducted 

according the overall objectives, so too in 

this least Society, which is like an army 

arrayed against the enemies of salvation 

under the leadership and protection of 

the Mother of God ….” (C 296) 

continues on page 19 


Meeting with First-Time Retreatants 

Leads to Transformation for Many 

by Linda Sevcik, SM, Executive Director, Manresa Jesuit Retreat House, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan 

During the past year, I have met in a 

group with retreatants who came to a 

Conference Retreat at Manresa Jesuit 

Retreat House for the first time. These 

casual Saturday morning meetings 

lasted around 15 minutes, and gave 

retreatants the opportunity to share why 

they came, how things were going so far 

on the retreat and other comments and 

questions. The groups, representing a 

wide range in ages, varied in size from 3 

to 15 people. 

The number of first-time retreatants 

coming here has been growing post- 

Covid, and other retreat houses are noting 

a similar trend. Certainly we welcome the 

trend, and it seems worthwhile to try to 

understand it more deeply. 

I always left these Saturday meetings 

inspired and touched by the goodness of 

these new retreatants. What was evident 

was their search for God. Many, in their 

experience of the pandemic, realized 

they wished for more in their relationship 

with God, and felt the retreat would be 

a good help. Many of the retreatants 

came to Manresa based on someone’s 

recommendation, some came after 

seeing an ad in a parish bulletin, and 

others found Manresa when searching 

the internet. A surprising number even 

came from other states. I recall a group 

of women who called me to deeper 

conversion by their admiration of the 

simplicity of the bedrooms here, which 

they felt called them to truer values in 

their own lives. One woman stated: “I 

realize that some things I put so much 

time into don’t matter at all.” 

As the year went on, I noticed a pattern 

among some of these new retreatants 

of wanting a less crowded schedule that 

allows for more time in personal prayer 

reflection. Generally that desire was 

present among the younger retreatants, 

especially the men. Based on this, we 

have incorporated some changes to our 

weekend retreat schedule making it less 

crowded and offering some activities as 

optional. 

I also realized, as the year progressed, 

the value of the new retreatants meeting 

one another, seeing that others were 

searching as they were. I can honestly 

say the sharing at the meetings also 

strengthened my own faith and reminded 

me of why Manresa and other retreat 

houses exist. I saw that people are still 

searching for God. 

Chapel at Manresa Jesuit Retreat House 

These conversations are also 

tremendously enriched by the fact that 

some of our retreatants are Catholic and 

some are ministers in other Christian 

denominations. I did not consciously 

begin these Saturday meetings as an 

exercise in synodality, however, I see 

they connect well with some of the 

characteristics of synodality: speaking 

as companions on the journey together, 

both listening and speaking out and 

dialoguing together. 

continued from page 18 

It is clear from the Constitutions of 

Father Colin, that ultimate authority 

and power remain in the hands of the 

Superior General. At the time of these 

Constitutions the Marists were largely 

European. Even though Father Colin 

foresaw that the Society would become 

international and intercontinental, he 

did not deal with that development. 

The “Superior General” would become 

the “Superior Emperor” and the Society 

of Mary would change from the army 

of Mary to an empire of which she was 

Queen. 

Father Colin treats the office of Superior 

General quite extensively. In the 1872 

Constitutions Number 306 we read “For 

better government in the Lord, it seems 

important that the superior general 

have all the authority over the Society 

necessary to build it up. However in that 

this authority be exercised with greater 

modesty, in keeping with the spirit of the 

Society, the superior … shall be pleased 

humbly to ask advice in everything … 

in so far as this can be done without 

detriment to his authority or to the 

Society.” In Number 307 we read, “In 

all matters of major importance he is 

obliged to hear the assistants in council 

….” 

The Marist have traveled a long journey 

and have changed much since 1872. In 

2022, in the spirit of the Church and of 

the times, much time, energy, creativity 

and resources have been spent by the 

Marists to achieve unity in their extreme 

diversity. Although the authority 

structures remain much the same as 

Father Colin’s, they are exercised much 

differently. Community decision making 

is the order of the day. Marists are no 

longer an army or an empire, but a 

worldwide family that struggles, as do 

all families. They look to the House of 

Nazareth as their true home and strive to 

live in a spirit of synodality. 


MARIST LIVES 

REV. JOSEPH BUCKLEY, SM 

Defender of Religious Liberty 

by Susan J. Illis, Archivist, Archives of the Society of Mary, US Province 

At Joseph Buckley’s funeral Mass, Rev. 

Vincent O’Connell, SM, told a story: When 

Joseph was in grade school, the teacher 

asked all the boys in his class to raise 

their hands if they wanted to be a priest. 

Joseph Buckley did not. The sister asked, 

“Joseph, didn’t you tell me you wanted to 

be a priest?” “No,” said young Joseph, “I 

told you I wanted to be a bishop.” 

While Rev. Joseph Buckley, SM, never 

realized his boyhood dream of becoming 

a bishop, his life and career nonetheless 

had enormous influence on many other 

priests and Catholics. 

Born on September 3, 1905 in St. Paul, 

Minnesota, Joseph Buckley was raised 

in Wheeling, West Virginia by greataunts 

following the death of his mother 

in 1910. He worshipped at the Marist 

church, St. Michael’s, where Rev. August 

Bellwald, SM, encouraged his interest 

in religious life. Joseph’s father, James, 

was initially resistant to his 14-year-old 

son’s determination to attend Marist 

Seminary in Washington, DC, in part due 

to concerns that their already infrequent 

visits would become even less regular. 

However, the elder Buckley acquiesced 

and soon received glowing reports of 

his son’s academic achievements and 

leadership skills. Joseph Buckley professed 

as a Marist on September 12, 1925 and was 

ordained in Rome on April 4, 1931. While 

in Rome, he earned his S.T.D. (Doctorate 

in Spiritual Theology) at the University 

of St. Thomas Aquinas. His residence in 

Europe also afforded him the opportunity 

to travel and improve his Italian, French 

and German language skills, which would 

prove beneficial in his future. 

While he taught at Marist College 

(Washington, DC) and Notre Dame 

Seminary (New Orleans, Louisiana) for 

much of his career, Fr. Buckley’s legacy is 

defined by two periods of his life: his time 

as military chaplain during World War 

II and his participation in Vatican II as 

superior general. 

Buckley cut short his six-month term 

of spiritual renewal when the United 

States entered World War II, choosing 

to volunteer as a chaplain in the Army. 

Commissioned a first lieutenant, he 

served in New Cumberland, Pennsylvania 

and Camp Howze, Texas before becoming 

chaplain of the 865th Engineer Aviation 

Battalion. This service took him to the 

same region where Marists had missioned 

for over a century - New Guinea and the 

Philippines. 

When he arrived in the combat zone of 

Finschhafen, New Guinea, he discovered 

there were no facilities available for 

either religious services or recreation, so 

he secured native materials and built a 

chapel. He continued building chapels 

to serve his battalion in their different 

locations. After the war, a serviceman 

joked, “You’d think he renamed us into 

the 865th Engineer Chapel Construction 

Battalion. We’ve built them all over 

the Pacific.” In Hollandia, Dutch New 

Guinea, Buckley, as the sole chaplain, 

provided religious services for both 

the army and the navy. And when they 

were stationed at the Lahug Airport in 

Philippines, in addition to providing 

religious services, he converted a small 

house into a recreation center that was 

crucial to maintaining morale among the 

infantrymen. 

Chaplain Buckley conducting mass at Prince of Peace Chapel, Mindanao, 

Philippine Islands. 

Very Rev. Joseph Buckley, SM, with Pope John XXIII 


Another chapel on Mindanao was under 

construction as the war ended. Dedicated 

on September 3, 1945 - the day after V-J 

Day and coincidentally Buckley’s 40th 

birthday - the Prince of Peace Chapel 

bore the inscription: “His name shall be 

called…God…the Prince of Peace. His 

empire shall be multiplied and there 

shall be no end of peace.” Fr. Buckley was 

awarded a Bronze Star for “exceptionally 

meritorious services in the performance 

of duties pertaining to religion, morale, 

and recreation beyond the requirements 

of ordinary duty.” 

Upon his return to the United States, Fr. 

Buckley taught at Notre Dame Seminary 

(New Orleans, Louisiana) and was the 

founding pastor of St. Pius X in Bedford, 

Ohio, where he also helped establish 

St. Peter Chanel High School. In 1959, 

he was appointed provincial of the 

Washington Province of the Society of 

Mary. As provincial, he attended the 

1961 General Chapter, which elected 

him Superior General, a position he held 

for eight years. In early 1959, Pope John 

XXIII had announced his intention to 

call an Ecumenical Council to bring the 

Church up to date. Two weeks before the 

Second Vatican Council was set to open 

in October 1962, Pope John called to the 

Council the superior generals of religious 

congregations with more than 1000 

priest members. Thus, Buckley became a 

full voting and speaking member of the 

Council. 

Fr. Buckley later recalled that of the 

sixteen Constitutions, Decrees and 

Declarations issued by the Council, 

the most significant to him was the 

Declaration on Religious Liberty. Buckley 

led a group of American bishops and 

others in defending the declaration that 

individuals have the freedom to follow 

their own religious convictions. Buckley 

later said, “In speaking out for freedom 

of conscience, Vatican II recognized the 

dignity of the individual man; also his 

responsibility and accountability.” 

After completing his term as superior 

general in 1969, Fr. Buckley returned to 

the United States to serve a second term 

as provincial of the Washington Province. 

He returned to Notre Dame Seminary 

in 1971, where he lived the last decade of 

his life. Rev. Joseph Buckley, SM, died on 

September 11, 1981 after suffering a series 

of strokes. 

News Briefs 

Sustainability Work at Marist 

College in Washington, DC 

Since April 2019 Ted Keating, 

SM and Randy Hoover, SM, have 

been working with Casey Trees, a 

nonprofit founded in 2002 with the 

mission to enhance and protect the 

tree canopy of the nation’s capital. 

According to the director of Casey 

Trees, Robert Shaut, “we plant 

trees for the good of the land, for 

the good of the city, for the good 

of the ecological impact and for 

the good of the environment.” 

As Paul Downey, a volunteer with 

the Laudato Trees Team connected to Casey Trees, said “Reading and studying 

Laudato Si’ helps us in understanding that everything is interconnected … the Pope 

is telling us every way he possibly can that we need to change course, we have to 

act and the fate of so many people around the world absolutely depends on it. The 

poor suffer the most because of environmental devastation. If we are followers of 

Jesus, how can we not respond to this? It is so compelling and so obvious.” 

A total of 27 new trees were planted on the property of Marist College on 

September 28, 2022. 

Fr. O’Connor Departs Marist 

Ministry at US/Mexico Border 

Michael Seifert recently wrote an article, “This is What an Angel Looks Like” about 

Fr. Tony O’Connor’s, SM (a native of New Zealand) ministry as pastor of San Felipe 

de Jesus in Brownsville, Texas. At the end of August Fr. O’Connor returned to New 

Zealand. He will be missed deeply, but leaves behind him a host of angels who will 

carry on the good work. Read the full article at: https://bit.ly/3fnMCq5 


Memorial 

OBITUARIES 

Father Gerard A. Demers, SM 

1931-2022 

Father Gerard “Gerry” Demers, SM, entered 

eternal life on August 13, 2022. He was born 

on April 13, 1931 in Lawrence, Massachusetts 

to Joseph and Lucienne (Bazin) Demers. After 

attending Saint Anne's Parish School, he entered 

Maryvale Seminary in Bedford, Massachusetts in 

1946 and professed first vows on Staten Island, New York on September 

8, 1953. He then continued his study for the priesthood in Framingham, 

Massachusetts and Marist College in Washington, D.C. Fr. Gerry was 

perpetually professed as a Marist on September 8, 1956 and ordained in 

Washington on February 7, 1959. 

He taught at Marist Preparatory Seminary in Bedford, Massachusetts 

and also at Notre Dame High School in Harper Woods, Michigan where 

he later served as Rector. Fr. Gerry ministered in several parishes in 

the Boston area, serving as pastor at Saint Bruno's Church in Van 

Buren, Maine; Saint John the Baptist Church in Brunswick, Maine; Saint 

Joseph's Church in Haverhill, Massachusetts, Sacred Heart Church in 

Lawrence, Massachusetts and Our Lady of Victories Church in Boston, 

Massachusetts. He was Provincial from 1985 to 1991 and served as 

Director of the Lourdes Center in Boston from 2001 to 2005. He was in 

residence there from 2015 to 2018, when he moved into a nursing care 

facility in Boston. 

Fr. Gerry is survived by his sister-in-law Joyce Demers, 13 nieces and 

nephews, many grandnieces and grandnephews and his Marist confreres. 

Memorial donations may be made to the Society of Mary (Marists) 

online at: societyofmaryusa.org. 

Father Brian Cummings, SM 

Marists mourn the passing of former NZ 

provincial, Fr. Brian Cummings, SM, who is wellknown 

and respected in Australia and the Asia- 

Pacific region through his part in MAP (Marist 

Asia-Pacific) engagements and in the United 

States Province where he gave two excellent 

retreats to the Marists. 

Following his term leading the NZ Marist province, Fr. Brian was 

engaged in spiritual direction and supervision, directing retreats, 

providing film critiques and commentaries as well as working as an 

advisor/facilitator with Church groups throughout New Zealand. 

After an illness of several months, Fr. Brian, aged 68 and a Marist 

priest for 43 years, died peacefully on August 19, 2022 at the Mary 

Potter Hospice, Wellington, New Zealand. Fr. Brian’s funeral Mass was 

celebrated at St. Mary of the Angels Church in Wellington with about 

450 people in attendance. Fr. Tim Duckworth, SM, New Zealand 

Provincial, presided and a number of diocesan clergy were present as 

was Coadjutor Archbishop Paul Martin, SM. 

Since 2017 Fr. Brian has been part of the editorial team in the USA 

Province for the Today’s Marists publication. His columns were very 

popular among our readers. He used current films to engage deep 

reflection on Marist and Gospel values. Fr. Brian described it as a 

form of Ignatian contemplation. Many Marists have said that his 

column was the first place they looked when they would pick up one 

of the issues. He was a very talented and deeply spiritual man taken 

too early, but he is now in peace. 

Donald S. Gagne, SM 

1932-2021 

Father Donald Gagne, SM entered eternal life on 

October 23, 2021. He was born on April 17, 1932 

in Brunswick, Maine to Marianne (Thibeault) and 

Arthur Gagne. 

He graduated from St. John’s Parochial School 

and then went on to the Marist Preparatory 

Seminary in Bedford, Massachusetts. Father Gagne continued his studies 

in Framingham, Massachusetts; Quebec, Canada; and Washington, DC. 

He was ordained on February 7, 1959 at the Basilica of the National Shrine 

of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, DC. 

Father Gagne’s pastoral assignments included St. Bruno’s in Van Buren, 

Maine; St. Anne’s in Lawrence, Massachusetts; Our Lady of Pity in 

Cambridge, Massachusetts; and St. John’s Church in Brunswick, Maine. He 

was appointed Director of the Lourdes Center in Boston, Massachusetts. 

After 12 years as Director of the Lourdes Center his assignments included 

Our Lady of Victories Parish in Boston; Our Lady of Pity in Cambridge; 

St. Theresa’s Parish in Methuen; and St. Joseph’s Parish in Haverhill. 

Following his assignments in Massachusetts, he ministered at Our Lady 

of Perpetual Help. His last assignment was as a Chaplain at St. Mary’s 

Hospital and Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston, Maine. 



Brother Robert Sokolowski, SM 

1941-2022 

Brother Robert Sokolowski, SM, entered eternal 

life on May 19, 2022. He was born on May 20, 

1941 to Edward “Sokey” and Matilda “Tillie” 

Sokolowski. In 1960 Brother Robert entered the 

Society of Mary (Marists) in Washington, DC. He 

was a novice in Watch Hill, Rhode Island from 

1962-1963. 

In 1963 Brother Robert was appointed to the General House in Rome, 

Italy. While in Rome, he witnessed the Second Vatican Council and 

worked with other brothers in attending to 12 bishops until the close of 

the Council. Brother Robert also carried out many duties at the Marist’s 

General House in Rome including maintaining the extensive gardens and 

landscaping. 

Brother Robert returned to the U.S. in 1968 and spent several years 

at Marist College in Washington, DC. While in DC he shared his talent 

for decorating at the White House as a banquet floral arranger. This 

included preparing the floral arrangements during Queen Elizabeth’s 

goodwill tour of the U.S. at the time of the Bicentennial. In 1984 he was 

transferred to St. Francis Xavier in Brunswick, Georgia where he served 

as Pastoral Assistant. Brother Robert was subsequently transferred 

to the Catholic Cathedral in Cleveland, OH and then to St. Matthews 

Cathedral in Washington, DC. In 1989, Brother Robert was transferred 

to the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Savannah, Georgia where he 

remained until his retirement in 2010. While at the Cathedral he served as 

Master of Ceremonies and Pastoral Assistant. Brother Robert was noted 

for his floral decoration designs in the Cathedral throughout the year, 

particularly at Christmastime. His work became icons of the Christmas 

tradition in Savannah and drew thousands of visitors each year. 




Will your legacy be the 

momentum that continues 

our Marist ministries? 

DONOR THOUGHTS 

Why I Support the Marists 

by Bob Fitzgerald 

When I was asked to submit an article to Today’s Marists to share why my wife and 

I support the Marists, it seemed like a slam dunk. After 39 years of being at Marist 

School in various capacities, seeing seven children and several grandchildren 

graduate, attending numerous and varied extra curriculum activities, participating 

in Capital Campaigns and serving on the Marist School Board of Trustees and 

various committees, I thought those experiences would let words flow in order to 

share some thoughts about “Why Marist?” 

The academic excellence at Marist School that promotes a joy and passion for 

learning, the breadth of "extra" experiences that are available to students, the 

bond between the Marists, students, faculty and staff and how they support 

each other are able to be seen and appreciated in the college acceptance 

rate, the schools they attend and the success they achieve at college. This speaks 

to the excellence of a Marist education. While these outstanding and desirable 

attributes are available at other institutions, they only partially capture the Marist 

experience. So, I ask "Why Marist?" 

For over 120 years there has been a unique gift at Marist School that is not separate 

from but is an intricate part of the observable qualities and achievements of 

the school. This gift thrives at Marist through the Society of Mary's traditions 

and charism that engages life in the Spirit of Mary. Freedom to live beyond 

only acquired knowledge is invited and encouraged. It invites more than just a 

commitment to strive, to learn and to grow in knowledge. Marist traditions create 

an environment in which faith informs reason in order to make decisions in life 

events. Mary took all of her experiences, often difficult and hard to comprehend 

fully, into her heart to "ponder." She sought to live with faith and in mystery, and let 

her faith be a contemplative dynamic as she fully engaged her unique life events. 

Marist School prepares students, faculty, staff, parents and yes, grandparents, to 

grow in knowledge and wisdom and to live in the same freedom and spirit as Mary. 

The Marist mission is to educate its students and it does that in an exceptional way. 

It goes beyond today's demanding needs to acquire only extensive knowledge. It 

challenges students to become ethical leaders and to choose mindfully how to use 

their gifts for purposes beyond themselves. Choosing Mary's way of preceding 

will not always be honored in our world and its various cultures, but neither were 

Mary's ways or Christ's. Still, we are invited to imitate them. 

The Marist experience cannot be fully quantified or measured in a definitive way 

without including the life experiences of Mary and how she lived them. It can only 

be fully experienced when we also engage our hearts in our life events as Mary 

engaged hers. Our local communities need Marist educated students. The world 

needs Marist students. Our children and we need Marist. A Marist education is a 

great investment with effects that ripple far beyond Marist School's campus. That is 

why we support the Marists. 

Like many people, you may want to 

leave a legacy. Be the cause of something 

great. A bequest through the Marist 

Development Office is an easy way to 

create a lasting memory of things you care 

most deeply about. 

Our ministries are rooted in mercy and a 

deep sense of compassion, inspired by the 

way of Mary. 

Planned gifts, in particular, allow you to 

fulfill personal, financial and philanthropic 

goals while establishing a legacy of 

support that will echo in Marist ministries 

in the locally and globally. Our ministries 

include parishes, schools, community 

projects, foreign missions, care for 

our senior Marists and recruiting and 

educating new Marists. 

To learn more about Planned Giving 

with the Marists contact: 

Marist Development Office 

617-451-3237 

development@maristsociety.org 


Society of Mary in the U.S. 

815 Varnum St, NE 

Washington, DC 20017 

Non Profit 

U.S.Postage 

PAID 

Merrifield, VA 

Permit # 5659 

“We Marists seek to 

bring compassion 

and mercy to the 

Church and world in 

the footsteps of Mary 

who brought Jesus 

Himself into our world. 

We breathe her spirit 

in lives devoted to 

prayer and ministry, 

witnessing to those 

values daily 

in community.” 

To speak with a member 

of the Vocational Team, 

call toll-free 866.298.3715 

societyofmaryusa.org Q @smpublicationsusa E SocietyOfMary.Marists.USA

Today's Marists 2022 Volume 7, Issue 2

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