Shaping the Future (Future shaping us) – A Montfortian Synthesis (MONTFORTIAN TERCENTENARY: Honouring the Past, Treasuring the Present, Shaping the Future) Introduction: My concern in this paper is to speak about Montfortians shaping the future and not so much to speak about the shape of the future; while thinking about shaping the future, we cannot neglect to talk about the shape of the future as the future is shaping us already. What is the type of future Montfortians will have? Do they have future at all? I am not a futurist or a soothsayer or neither an astrologer. But during this time of tercentenary we are asked to look at how others are shaping their future and learn from them. If not at least we can read the past history and see what lessons history is teaching us. We can even go a step further and see how the future is shaping us and draw lessons from them. The 18th c French situation configured the DW, SMM and FSG. And it was the needs and longings of that time (option) that configured the life of our three congregations. All the three of them were born at the threshold of some type of inhumanity in France of that time. Therefore, our Montfortian origins and priorities were not with those who excluded others, but with the excluded. It can be said that the history of this option merges well with the history of the consecrated life. For many people nowadays, consecrated life is a museum piece. Some who like us, look upon us with compassion and perhaps with a bit of admiration (in some cases) when they see us happy. Many good Christians think that we have no future. The challenge for some religious is to survive, for others it is to live happily with what this life offers and for the rest it matters no thing. My focus here is not to identify what is common between (us) and propose ways to work on them. This can happen at another level. But we can ask during this Tercentenary moment this question: Can we say that these are the core belief and fundamental value system or apostolic goals of our Montfortian family? We need to see if the members of these three congregations are at odds regarding their most fundamental beliefs. But one thing is clear: the three will agree that the current scenario of Consecrated life is in transition and a vibrant future is uncertain and shaping it is the responsibility of only those in Leadership! A student about to conduct a science experiment once asked his professor, “What’s supposed to happen in this experiment?” expecting, as students do, a predetermined answer. The wise professor replied, “What’s supposed to happen is what happens.” My presentation will sound something like this and it is like a good account of the future to me. This paper will have three parts: Part one will identify some criteria to formulate the nature of the future; part two will enumerate a few challenges of the future and the future of these challenges; and part three will try to move beyond the challenges to help us focus our energies for ‘shaping the future’ . 1
Part-I. SOME CRITERIA TO FORMULATE THE NATURE OF THE FUTURE In this part I shall identify the criteria to formulate to speak about shaping the future. In other words, we shall try to situate the context in which we are thinking of shaping our future or future shaping us. 1. The Efforts and Struggles: In the last few decades, congregations have reflected on various proposals and themes: consecrated life and renewal of life, the Emmaus journey, the preferential option for the poor, the horizon and the process of arriving at a mystical and prophetic life, economy at the service of the mission, new foundations in the periphery, processes of revitalization and reinvigorating the charismatic identity, the commitment for a just and fraternal society, passion for God and for Humanity, greater sensibility in regard to fraternity in life and in the apostolic activity, prayerful reading of the Word, the lay collaboration, restructuring and refoundation, nearness to the young…. We have the impr ession of having wanted to change everything, and notwithstanding, we changed very little. All over the world the Consecrated life, particularly in the Western nations is going through a difficult moment of transition: present structures no longer provide the answers like the past; and new structures must be born and emerge from a new spirit. So they need a new mould. But where to find this mould is the question. The responses to today’s needs are weak and fragile. The Conference of Religious of Brazil says , “Consecrated life today is suffering from an undeniable ‘evangelical anemia’ both personal and institutional…” 1 I would like to pose another question here in this context. Have we suffered from a feeling of invincibility? José M. Arnaiz in his well- researched article says, “we are not as needed as we have believed ourselves to be, and maybe as we still believe. Neither our founders nor our spiritualities and missions have thought of us and projected us as unavoidable or essential, and yet, some of us tend to think in these terms. This explains the reason for a certain arrogance, corrupt use of power, contempt for or marginalization of the laity, the convenience of returning to the past, and even the repentance and displeasure for having changed so many things and renounced others during the turbulent years from 1960 to 1980” 2 . The famous Tamil poet Thiruvalluvar says: “This world possesses the greatness that one who yesterday was is not today” 3 . I do not deny the fact that our birth and presence in this world has importance but what is necessary is to be more useful than important. 4 The efforts and struggles of the past prove the energy of CL in the world. 2.The Radically Changing Context of today: 1 Carlos Palacio, SJ in Magazine of the Conference of Religious of Brazil, in Convergencia, September 2011. 2 José M. Arnaiz, The Great Challenges of Consecrated Life Today in Capitalo generale FSP, 15 Sep, 2013, p.3 3 Thirukkural. No.336 4 Churchill’s wise irony is: The problem of our times is that men do not want to be useful, but important. 2
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