Ongoing Formation

Premises:

This is part of the Plan We, the Congregation: In Service to the Mission (1997-2003): "put together a semester of ongoing formation at Rome once a year in various languages" (Plan. n 21).

The existence of such a course, however, does not fully satisfy the responsibility of the Congregation nor of individual religious for their own ongoing formation because this is "a lifelong educational process from which no one is exempt" (Plan n 19).

The ongoing formation course now being offered by the Congregation is just one more aid for those religious who are looking for a special time to experience God and the Dehonian charism in practice during the course of their life, who are looking for a deeper personal renewal because they want to live their religious vocation more fully, who want to revitalize their apostolic work and an updating in the advances of theological wisdom.

Overall Objective:

The overall objective is to offer religious a time (kairos) and a process to establish a new relationships with himself, with God, with the world, and with others.

Specific Objectives:

to recommit oneself more radically to the following of Christ, poor, chaste, and obedient, among men and to give clearer witness to Him;
to be deepened in the experience of personal values, prayer, and spiritual orientation;
to take to onself the values of dehonian spirituality with greater dedication (oblation, union, communion, reparation, eucharist, mission....);
to accept the opportunity for a theological, biblical and pastoral deepening (communication), so as to have a more solid base for a dynamic and crative pastoral activity;
to learn an attitude of communion and internationality according to the desires of the XXth General Chapter (cf. Plan n 20).

Topics Proposed:

1st Stage: the religious in his real situation (life and context)
objective: know himself and his surroundings to improve fraternal relations in view of building community;
means: personal psychology. Self-knowledge, personal integration; orientation and spiritual discernment; social teaching of the Church; social ethics;
2nd Stage: the religious and the charism of the congregation
objective: know the charism of the congregation better, for a deeper belonging
means: theology of consecrated life and dehonian consecrated life;
3rd Stage: the religious and the theological dimension
objective: deepend congregational life and prepare oneself for the mission in light of an modern theological knowledge;
means: study of Christology, ecclesiology, mission, and communication.

Psychological Helps:

a. integration dynamics which assist a knowledge and openness in view of better fraternal relations;
b. spiritual orientation: spiritual counseling every 15 days to help to renew this personal practice and to live out an attitude of discernment;
c. community prayer starting from the Word of God which stimulates personal prayer; life sharing, celebrations, liturgy;
d. monthly retreat (1 day) and spiritual retreat at the conclusions (5 days);
e. group work; life, interests, animation, liturgical team;
f. courses (in the AM): seminars, round tables (PM); days for intense study;
g. times for fraternity; guided visits to Rome and elsewhere; pilgrimages;
h. frequent evaluations;

Number of Participants:

not more than 20 SCJs for each session
Calendar of Ongoing Formation Programs at Rome: (these will last about 80 days in the following languages for the periods listed):

1 course: September to December, 1999 (Italian)

2 course: March to June, 2000 (English)

3 course: September to December 2000 (Portughese)

4 course: September to December 2001 (French)

5 course: September to December 2002 (Spanish)

Remarks:

1. one must be wholly given over to the program of ongoing formation;
2. participation in the events and the planned activities of the ongoing formation program are obligatory;
3. participants should be prepared to convey uptodate information about the social, political, cultural, and religious situations in their country as well as information about the province or region;
4. each is ask to bring along certain toosl (song books, objects which are hallmarks of the country, folklore...) for those times of fraternity and mutual sharing.