Vincentians

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1-26-2023 A Letter From Our Servant Leaders

1-26-2023 A Letter From Our Servant Leaders https://ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Servant-leader-1-4.jpg 900 900 SVDP USA SVDP USA //ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/svdp-usa-ssvp-int.png January 25, 2023 January 26, 2023

My Dear Vincentian Friends:

Thank you for the trust and faith you placed in me by electing me your next National Council President. I am humbled and honored (and honestly, maybe just a little bit scared) by this great honor. I know that I have big shoes to fill following my good friend, Ralph Middlecamp, as well as all the National Presidents that have served the National Council since its founding in 1845. I pledge to you that I will do my best to serve you and our Society to the best of my ability.

I ran for President because I wanted to help strengthen, grow, and prepare the Society for the future so that all who seek a journey of faith and service can find fulfillment in our Vincentian Family. I need your help to accomplish that. As I begin the transition into my new role, I would like to hear from you. What do you think are the most important and pressing issues we face as we move forward? What are the things we should be doing that we are not, doing differently than we are doing now, or not doing at all? What would help you in your growth in holiness and faith?

In over 25 years of service to the Society at all levels I have met many people. But I haven’t met everyone, and I don’t know everyone’s talents, skills, and desires. So, I’d also like to know how you’d like to help. Let me know if you’d be interested in becoming involved in the Society in a broader or larger role. We need people to serve on committees and task forces, to help with formation and spirituality, to support new efforts in technology and communications, and we need to identity new and emerging leaders to take us into the future.

Blessed Frederic told us: “Charity must never look to the past, but always to the future, because the number of its past works is still very small and the present and future miseries that it must alleviate are infinite.” We are that future; YOU are that future. So, to put it simply, we need YOU. Become engaged and get involved. This is your Society, and it will be what you help make it. Together we can grow and improve, and continue to be that ‘Network of Charity’ that Frederic Ozanam dreamed of.

Please drop me a note to jberry@svdpusa.org and let me know your thoughts.

I look forward to working with you all and visiting with you over the next six years. I hope to be ‘out and about’ as much as possible so I can hear from you and see the incredible work that I know is being done across the country.

Peace and God bless,

John

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Contemplation — To Boldly Go

Contemplation — To Boldly Go https://ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Contemplation-blog-1-10.jpg 1080 1080 SVDP USA SVDP USA //ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/svdp-usa-ssvp-int.png January 23, 2023 January 23, 2023

The bold, five-year mission of the starship Enterprise was “to seek out new life and new civilizations” on “strange new worlds.” Vincentians, though constrained to our same old world, and not limited to a mere five years, are similarly called “to seek out and find those in need and the forgotten” in our mission of charity. [Rule, Part I, 1.5]

Our hands are full, it may seem, just answering the calls for help that arrive unannounced; our treasuries may strain to meet the needs presented to us. So why would we go around trying to find more? After all, don’t our neighbors find us, just as we receive donations, through God’s providence? Of course! But recall that trust in Providence is not a mandate to be merely passive. As Blessed Frédéric once wrote, “Providence does not need us for the execution of its merciful designs, but we, we need it and it promises us its assistance only on the condition of our efforts.” [Letter 135, to Bailly, 1836]

What greater or more important effort could we offer but to seek out those in need – especially the forgotten? After all, as both Moses and Jesus remind us, the land will never lack for needy persons and the poor will always be with us. The most needy may be forgotten by their neighbors and by society, but they are not forgotten by God, their Creator. It is exactly that message, that hope, that we are called to share on our home visits.

It is our respect for the dignity of every person that should motivate us to seek them, to find them, and to share God’s love in the form of bread, in the form of help, and most importantly in the form of our presence and love. We can never let the fear of a depleted treasury stop us from seeking out those most in need, because we know that “giving love, talents and time is more important than giving money.” [Rule, Part I, 3.14]

God does provide. He provides generously and lovingly. It is the will of God that our neighbors in need call us, and the will of God that enables us to help them. But as St. Louise reminds us, we must “never take the attitude of merely getting the task done.” [SWLM, A.85] We are not the Society of Bill Payments, we are the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, following the example of our Patron, as he in turn imitated Christ.

We are called to see the face of Christ. He is out there; not on a strange new world, but perhaps on a park bench, perhaps in a darkened apartment, perhaps in a hospital or prison. The world may have forgotten Him, but we hear His cry, and seek Him, unafraid.

Contemplate

Where can I go to find Christ, and how can I serve Him best?

A Week in Prayers January 16 – January 20

A Week in Prayers January 16 – January 20 https://ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/My-project-1-9.png 1080 1080 SVDP USA SVDP USA //ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/svdp-usa-ssvp-int.png January 20, 2023 January 20, 2023

Monday, January 16

My Lord and my God
My light and my hope
My rest and my strength
I give You my heart
I give You my life
I give You this day
Amen

Tuesday, January 17

Lord Jesus, strength of my arms,
I will share the neighbor’s burden
In Your name and for Your sake,
With no motive but God’s love,
With my gifts from You alone,
Filled with hope that I can share.
Amen

Wednesday, January 18

Lord, I lift my heart to you.
Who I am today is for You,
What I do today is for You,
When my day begins it’s for You,
Where I go today is for You,
Why I live today is for You.
Amen

Thursday, January 19

Lord, I bring my needs to you.
Protect me from harm,
Bless my efforts and my work,
Help me to be better,
In big things and small things,
For nothing is too small
For Your blessing
Or my prayer.
Amen

Friday, January 20

Lord, in serving the neighbor
I seek to serve You
With faith that reflects
Your abiding faithfulness,
In hope that is shared
With all who are hopeless,
For love of the neighbor,
In Your love alone.
Amen

Daily Prayers are written by Tim Williams, National Vincentian Formation Director.

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SVdP News Roundup January 14 – January 20

SVdP News Roundup January 14 – January 20 https://ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/My-project-1-12.jpg 1080 1080 SVDP USA SVDP USA //ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/svdp-usa-ssvp-int.png January 19, 2023 January 19, 2023

With 100,000 Vincentians across the United States and nearly 800,000 around the world, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul provides person-to-person service to those who are needy and suffering. Read some of their stories here:

INTERNATIONAL

NATIONAL

BALTIMORE, MD: St. Vincent de Paul Baltimore helps families during MLK day of service
MADISON, WI: St. Vincent de Paul helps Ghana man and his family
PASCO, WA: Nonprofit Spotlight: St. Vincent de Paul
PHOENIX, AZ: Valley chefs feed homeless at St. Vincent de Paul
PHOENIX, AZ: AZ Big 100: 25 women business leaders to watch in 2023
OWENSBORO, KY: Kentucky Mission Offers Home In A Box For Tornado Victims-Here’s How To Apply
WASHINGTON, DC: Catholic Social Ministry Gathering Calls on Catholic Leaders to Heal a World Broken by Conflict, Division, and Inequality

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Poverty Awareness Month — Homelessness

Poverty Awareness Month — Homelessness https://ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/povertyusa-logo-pam.jpg 940 788 SVDP USA SVDP USA //ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/svdp-usa-ssvp-int.png January 19, 2023 December 6, 2024

Written by: Sandy Figueroa
St. Boniface Conference in Elmont, NY
African American Task Force Representative — Northeast Region

When we hear the word homelessness, what does our mind’s eye see? People living in the streets in urban cities or sleeping in malls in the suburbs and rural areas. We see people who may have been successful and fell into the downward spiral of addictions. Rarely do we even think that the homeless are employed, but their salary cannot pay the rent for an apartment or even a trailer in a trailer park.

When I take the subway, I carry change to give to those who are begging in the streets. Yet, I know that’s not doing one thing to help our brothers and sisters secure decent housing. And, I know that after a while, many people stop trying and become resigned to living in the streets and are grateful for the handouts of those who have.

My Vincentian eyes tell me that I can and must do something. I can advocate, which I do by sending e-mails to my government representatives. I can join larger organizations and work on homelessness and demand affordable housing. And above all else, I must and can pray.

Yet, what if one of my sons or my mother was homeless, what would I do? Vincent challenges us by stating that if we saw someone in need, would we just stand by with our arms folded and do nothing.

Poverty awareness week/month reminds us as Vincentians, we must pray, advocate, and act for those whose income does not stretch for food and shelter. We must demand and remind our representatives that many of us working may only be one pay check away from homelessness and hunger.

We see the face of Christ of those in most need. Would we stand by and let Christ or our son or our mother live in the streets, the malls, or the subways? By this will all people know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another.

Reflection
Excerpt from: Encyclical Letter – Fratelli Tutti of the Holy Father Francis on Fraternity and Social Friendships

The parable then asks us to take a closer look at the passers-by. The nervous indifference that makes them pass to the other side of the road – whether innocently or not, whether the result of disdain or mere distraction – makes the priest and the Levite a sad reflection of the growing gulf between ourselves and the world around us. There are many ways to pass by at a safe distance: we can retreat inwards, ignore others, or be indifferent to their plight. Or simply look elsewhere, as in some countries, or certain sectors of them, where contempt is shown for the poor and their culture, and one looks the other way, as if a development plan imported from without could edge them out. This is how some justify their indifference: the poor, whose pleas for help might touch their hearts, simply do not exist. The poor are beyond the scope of their interest.

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1-19-2023 A Letter From Our Servant Leaders

1-19-2023 A Letter From Our Servant Leaders https://ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Servant-leader-1-4.jpg 900 900 SVDP USA SVDP USA //ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/svdp-usa-ssvp-int.png January 18, 2023 January 18, 2023

Dear Vincentian Friends,

September 30th is a long way away. That is when my six-year term as National Council President ends and someone else steps into the office. Last Friday we learned who that will be. The National Council Election Committee counted the 107 ballots submitted by your Council representatives and informed the Board of Directors that on October 1st, John Berry will become the 14th President of the National Council of the United States.

The election process began last summer with the nomination of four highly qualified candidates. In September at our National Assembly, the field was narrowed to Brian Burgess and John Berry. For the past several months, all members of the Society had the opportunity to cast a ballot for the candidate of their choice. Just as our founders did when they chose Jules Gossin to succeed Emmanuel Bailly, we prayed during those months that the Holy Spirit would direct our discernment. We trust that God’s providence has supplied the leadership we need for the future of our Society in the United States.

An eight-month transition period may seem long, but there’s much to accomplish during this time. In the months to come, I will be working with our current Board to continue the work we have been doing for the past five years, while John will have time to evaluate the organization’s needs and recruit new officers and board and committee members. It is important for him to have this time to put together a new team of servant leaders that is diverse, talented, and representative of the members of our Councils and Conferences across the country.

In 1844, after the Society’s first President, Emmanuel Bailly, resigned, Frederic Ozanam described the qualities he thought the next President should have. Frederic wrote: “He must have the habit of devotion, the spirit of true fraternity, the experience of good works; he must join the zeal which founds with the prudence which preserves; he must be able to maintain the Society in the paths of simplicity and prudent liberty along which God has led it.”

I have known John Berry for many years, and I am confident that you will find him to be that servant leader Frederic Ozanam described. Please join me in asking the Holy Spirit to guide John as he prepares to take office.

Serviens in spe,
Ralph Middlecamp
National Council President

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Contemplation: The Heart of the Matter

Contemplation: The Heart of the Matter https://ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/01-16-23-contemplation-1.png 1080 1080 SVDP USA SVDP USA //ssvpusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/svdp-usa-ssvp-int.png January 13, 2023 January 13, 2023

There are times when the demands of serving the neighbor can weigh heavily on us, sometimes because there are so many calls to answer, and sometimes because our efforts often seem to be in vain; the poor remain poor, the struggling continue to struggle. We are called to serve in hope, but how do we raise our own spirits? How do we return to what Bl. Frédéric called “the rays of charity which at the beginning came sometimes to illuminate and warm our souls”? [Letter 90, to Curnier, 1835]

Our own physical rest and health, of course, is not only for our own benefit. As St. Vincent once explained to St. Louise in telling her to get some rest, “Increase your strength; you need it, or, in any case, the public does.” [CCD I:392] And as our Rule reminds us, “Vincentians are available for work in the Conferences only after fulfilling the family and professional duties.” [Rule, Part I, 2.6]

Resting our bodies is often enough to restore our energy, but not necessarily our zeal when we feel weighed down by the feeling that our work is not accomplishing enough; when the neighbor continues to struggle, no matter how much we help. It is at these times that it becomes most important to reflect deeply upon the nature of our works, and the purpose of our Society.

We are not the Society of Rental Assistance or Food Pantries. We serve in hope not only of offering some material relief, we serve in the hope of eternal life in Christ, and we visit the neighbor to share that hope through our friendship, our prayer, and our love.

In the history and traditions of the Society, and of the whole Vincentian Family, our visits have been not only to the poor in their homes, but to hospitals and prisons. As Chaplain of the Galleys, St. Vincent de Paul brought prayer, and hope, and the love of God to thousands of prisoners without freeing a single one. For the rest of his life, he could hardly speak about the galley prisoners without weeping.

The emotional burden we carry with us from sharing our neighbor’s suffering is part of our expression of love, and we can take great solace in knowing that we truly lighten their burdens by sharing them. And just as we share the neighbor’s burden, we pray that the neighbor may share our hope. We visit to show them that God has not forgotten them; that they too may share in the hope of everlasting life.

Knowing this hope in our own hearts, serving in His name and for His sake, may our hearts not be burned out, but on fire, and our souls “in a continuous state of joy and happiness”. [SWLM, A.14b]