CLC
COMMUNIQUÉ
2010/2 – February
The Communication of the South African Region
Western Cape – Eastern Cape – Gauteng
A family that prays together stays together
God our Lord we pray for the grace to become aware of your desires for us,
We pray that CLC may grow into an apostolic Community
and we ask that you help us, the CLCommunity,
to find our particular apostolic charism here in South Africa.
Dear Community of South Africa
Fr David Smolira, Superior of the Society of Jesus in South Africa, has appointed Fr Anthony Egan SJ as Ecclesiastical Assistant to Gauteng. Fr Shaun Carls SJ will remain EA to the Eastern Cape although he has moved, with the seminary, to Cape Town, and Fr Graham continues as our National EA. We feel most blessed to have an EA in each region and thank Fr David for his thoughtfulness and consideration for CLC. We welcome Fr Anthony and look forward to his participation in, and input to, our Community.
NOTICE OF AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION
In view of the response to National Exco’s Invitation to members to consider the proposed change to the Constitution it was resolved at The National Assembly at La Verna in July 2009 that:
Clause 2.3.3 (f) of The Constitution of CLC SA is amended and now reads:
“The term of office for a Nat. ExCo. member shall be 5 (five) years. No more than 2 consecutive terms may be served by an individual member in any portfolio. After serving such a term a member may be elected to the Nat. ExCo. for a further term but in a different portfolio. When a member has served 3 terms such member is not eligible to serve on the Nat.ExCo. in any portfolio for a space of 5 years”.
This change is in line with the change to the world Constitution approved at the World Assembly in Fatima in August 2008. A reprint of the Constitution will be issued in due course.
Projects 144 for World CLC Day 25th March 2010
The latest edition of Projects came to us in December last year. It has been very thoughtfully created by the World Exco and encourages us to use it in our prayer and become more closely identified with the love and mission of Jesus in the World specifically for the CLC World Day of Prayer. In it the question we are asked to consider is:
….are the poor to be part of our communities or are they to be the primary beneficiaries of our apostolic action? Is the ‘option for the poor’ a question about belonging to CLC or about the mission of CLC? Both concerns overlap: who we want to be (identity) is intimately related to what we want to do (mission). Our actions define us, we are what we do.
To celebrate World CLC Day there are three Scripture passages to help us in our contemplation of the attitude of Jesus to the poor.
Lk 7,36-50, Mk 10, 46-52 and Lk 19, 1-10
World CLC Day will be celebrated in:
Gauteng : on 27th March 10h00-16h00.
W Cape: on Saturday 27th March at Springfield Convent at the monthly Day of Prayer Mass at 15h30.
E Cape: Thursday 25th March and at the Regional Exco meeting on 27th March.
CLCers in dispersion:
Let’s remember to pray for those who are not able to be with other CLCers, recognizing that although we are apart, in spirit we are together.
Some news from the National Exco Meeting
The National Exco met on 22-24th January 2010. Mandy and Michael Jones kindly accommodated Kaye, Jane and Veronica, Fr Graham stayed with his brothers in Belgravia and Bruce lives close by. The CLCers in Gauteng provided the most delicious meals which they brought to the house each day! Although there was a lot of work to do, the comfortable surroundings and commitment of each member of the Exco to serve CLC made the weekend fruitful and life-giving.
We want to share with everyone in CLC some of this work.
Botswana
There are a number of requirements that have to be met before the World CLC will accept any new national community as a full member. Our involvement in CLC Botswana is aimed to aid their affiliation. Veronica Miller has been working in Botswana towards this end for many years. When Fr Alberto Brito SJ visited them in July 2009, he was of the opinion that Botswana was ready for full membership. Graham Pugin, Veronica Miller, Sabe Makgothi and Jane Hulley will attend the Botswana National Assembly from 28-30 May 2010.
We have received R11 039 in funding from CLC Germany for the work in Botswana.
Formation
Mandy Jones, Bruce Verity and Anne Dormehl are working on the following documents.
Commitment. Guidelines for temporary and permanent commitment. At the moment in South Africa, 22 people have made temporary commitment and 7 permanent.
Resource Pack: At the National Assembly the need for a Resource Pack was identified. This will have a brief history of CLC in SA as well as, amongst other things, information on Ignatian Prayer and a Glossary of Terms
A programme focusing on Becoming an Apostolic Body which will follow on after the Community has spent some time reflecting on Projects 144. Watch this space for praying together as a National Community.
Leadership Course
Jane and Sabie wrote about their experiences on the Leadership Course in Nairobi in November 2009 in the December edition of Communique.
Shortened versions of the Leadership Course will be held in the different regions.
5-6th June in Gauteng. Jane and Sabe will facilitate a course. Details will be available soon. Everyone who is interested is invited to attend. Even if you do not consider yourself a leader there is a lot to learn from this course for all interpersonal relationships.
Group Guide Training
Graham Pugin will give a group guides training in each of the regions. Possible dates are:
Gauteng: November
E Cape: not yet decided
W Cape: 30th October
Finances
In reviewing the finances of the last 6 months, Exco is grateful and recognizes all the generous and regular payments of subscriptions. As we share the responsibility for the funding of our community we will be able to do all that we are being called to as an apostolic body.
There was a good response in the whole of CLC to the decision taken at La Verna to have a national fundraising event and a significant amount was raised coming close to the R10,000 mark.
Website
Hopefully all of you who can have visited the wonderful website designed by John Stiekema. The address is http://www.clc-sa.za.org
John is managing the site and Jane Hulley is the liaison officer so please send any information that you think should be posted, to Jane Hulley at: tamarin@mweb.co.za
The next National Assembly will be in the Eastern Cape in 2011 towards the end of the year.
Due to the rising costs of air travel, Exco meets only twice a year. Our next meeting will be after the excitement and the costs of the Soccer World Cup have died down! In between times and since July 2009, we meet every month on Skype. This has gone a long way to keeping the momentum going and we all feel that the frequent contact is very valuable.
As you can see there has been a lot to do. Please will you help our growth as a community by sharing the way you are experiencing God’s touch in your life and in those around you. We need to hear each other’s “stories”. In the words of one of our members, “CLC is primarily about relationships - finding and deepening one's personal relationship with Jesus and one another in community and living this so that we can love others who are lost and searching.”
A REMINDER we are at the end of the financial year and therefore ask the treasurer’s of the regions to please let their regional Exco approve their end of year Statements, and then forward to National Exco.
Lenten Reflection
As we journey through Lent and approach the Passion and Death of our Lord Jesus Christ, Mandy offers for your reflection, the poem The Dream of the Rood. (The Rood is the Cross). This is an old English poem and is the story of Christ’s death from the point of view of the Cross. It is a long poem and, if it appeals to you, print it out, read and ponder it slowly over a number of days.
The Dream of the Rood
Translation by Professor Michael Alexander (University of St. Andrews, Scotland) and published in The Earliest English Poems (Penguin Classics 1967, 1977) Copyright to the Translator.