Dear confreres,
Greetings from Salespuram.
My month in Austria has passed by and I am now back in business. I enjoyed of course the time at home, had the chance to see my parents, to spend some time with them. I had a similar chance to see confreres and friends. After one month though, I was happy to return back home. My stomach has been filled too well and I am working on it now. Small details of life!
My first thought this morning joins Father John Dolan, whose mother passed away last week. John had known about the sickness of his mother for quite a while and faced the upcoming difficulties with courage. Thanks be to God he could go home to be there when she passed away. I kindly request your prayers for his mother, for the family of John as well as for John himself. He needs them. John we are with you. I also want to request your prayers for Novice Thomas’ mother who has cancer. When we pray for our benefactors your families come always to my mind, since they gave us the most precious gift for our congregation: YOU!
Coming back to India I found a Salespuram which keeps developing fast. Though the brothers went partly home again because they had chickenpox, life is going on smoothly. I would always want things to work faster, and then I still think we can make it until the end of May. The kitchen is getting ready, which means the burners, ovens and Tchebaty-cookers are here. What else would we need? The plastering of Cottage 5 is finished and the floor is now being done. Cottage 4 needs still some plastering in the front area. In the main building the chapel windows with grills have arrived and look good. Now we are still awaiting the grills for the community hall as well as for the dining hall. The phone system has been ordered and the final earth movement should be done soon. I still have some troubles with our suppliers of tiles and sanitary items, but I don’t get upset so easily any more. I learn. Anyway this means that we can start as scheduled next year’s program.
In this regard I would like to announce following personnel solution for the coming year, which has already found its approval by the Superior General and his Council. We are able to write a little bit of history again this year, since I am happy to announce that Fr. Baiju has accepted to minister for the coming academic year the community of Salespuram as Superior. When I came back from South Africa I had these news for him in my bags. It is a great moment for Oblate India, and I am very grateful to Fr. Baiju to generously have accepted this ministry. I am sure he can count on your prayers and support as well as on mine. As Superior he will be in charge of the Salespuram community and the Candidates. He will find help in Fr. Josef who is assigned there as treasurer. As General Mission Coordinator Fr. Josef will only be available six months in India, the other six months he will be working in his other function. I am absolutely delighted that he comes back to India, for a while at least, at the begin of August. Both Fathers will be helped by the regents in order to be able to run next year’s program.
These appointments make it obvious that there will also be some slight changes in Samarpanaram. Fr. Smuda will remain the Superior. Fr. John Dolan remains Novicemaster. Fr. Smuda will also be in charge of the theologians. I will return to Samarpanaram as treasurer of the community as well as I will be in charge of the philosophers. I continue to be grateful for the good work Fr. Smuda and Fr. Dolan are doing and I am looking forward to live and work together with all of you there, though I will miss Salespuram.
Concerning the Candidates you all should know following things for the coming year:
- Starting with this year Postulancy will be of two years if someone joins after PDC. Only if the knowledge of English seems adequate enough for entering the Novitiate, one year will be sufficient.
- Our Brothers who are now “First Years” in the Minor Seminaries will start their +1 and +2 studies in Salespuram. As second language they will all have to study Hindi. Only our brothers from Tamil Nadu will study their +1 and +2 in Bangalore and live with us in Samarpanaram (Their second language will be Tamil). I am working on finding a school for them.
- There will be 3 badges this year in Salespuram:
- The new candidates joining after 10th.
- The above mentioned “First Years”, who are going to start their +1 studies at Ben Hill College.
- The new candidates joining after PDC together with our brothers finishing their +2 studies in other Minor Seminaries.
I thank you for your effort in promoting vocations. Please continue to do so as well as to pray for vocations in the whole Congregation, not only here in India.
The inauguration of our new building with dedication of the new chapel in Salespuram will take place on October 12th 2002.
Finally, let me bring to your attention an almond. St. Francis de Sales mentioned such an almond in Part 3 / Chapter 23 of his Introduction. For this Lenten season I join St. Francis de Sales. I do sincerely wish to inscribe on your heart, before everything else, this holy and sacred maxim: LIVE JESUS! As the heart is the source of actions, they are such as the heart is. This is the place where I can really work on, which I have some influence. I like the idea that St. Francis wants to write it into his Philotheas’ heart. We can do this also to each other. Inscribe in each others’ hearts: LIVE JESUS. The Lenten season could be a temptation to work on exterior things. We shall work on them, I have no doubt about it, but the main place of work remains our heart. If you want: my heart is always a construction site. The more I get in order there, the more I imprint on it our LIVE JESUS, the more it will show on how we relate with God, with each other in community and with ourselves. I forgot to tell you. We have to dig deeper our well in Salespuram since there is a lack of water. May be we/I can do this also in our/my inner construction site. Digging deeper to get more of the Living Water already present deep within me.
Let’s keep digging! That sounds like fun!
I wish to mention again in my letter the confreres who are far from us though very close: Fr. John Sankarathil, Fr. Tony Ceresko, Fr. Josef Koeltringer, Br. Bruzily. Dear confreres, Samarpanaram and Salespuram want to remain for you an anchor, a harbor, where you know you are always welcome, you are always present, you are always at home. Any time!
All preparing for exams are in my prayers: 1st years, 2nd years, 3rd years in the Minor Seminaries, Novices taking Entrance Exam, Philosophers and Theologians, Fr. Shaju and Fr. Baiju, but above all today Fr. John Dolan who will preside over the funeral of his mother. Seems to be the most difficult exam. God bless you!
Your Brother in St. Francis de Sales
Fr. Sebastian Leitner osfs