Every summer the Assumption Family organizes a series of programs for young people: retreats, pilgrimages, volunteer opportunities, etc. This summer, as in previous years, we are taking advantage of World Youth Day to plan a special program that will not only include WYD but the national pilgrimage to Lourdes as well.

Br. Martin Dulchev, a young Bulgarian Assumptionist who is studying in Lille, France, has been asked to organize international groups who are planning on joining the Assumption Family pilgrimage to Lourdes and participation in World Youth Day in Madrid in August. The following interview will help our readers know more about this program as well as a little about Br. Martin himself.

On Friday evening, January 21, 2011, in the Chapel of the Holy Spirit, on the campus of Assumption College in Worcester, Massachusetts, the third annual service for Church Unity during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity brought together Christians of many churches throughout the Commonwealth in spite of the inclement weather.

In his welcoming remarks, Dr. Francesco Cesareo, president of the College, alluded to Pope Benedict’s remarks during his weekly catechesis this past when he said, “We are celebrating the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, in which all believers in Christ are invited to join in prayer to witness the profound bond that exists among them and to invoke the gift of full communion. Providential is the fact that prayer is placed at the center of the path to build unity: this reminds us, once again, that unity cannot be a simple product of human action; it is above all a gift of God, which entails growth in communion with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

The “Little Flock” of Christians in the Middle East
by Bernard Jouanno, A.A
(Responding to the often expressed desire of numerous bishops in the Middle East, Pope Benedict XVI convoked a special gathering in Rome from October 10-24 with the theme: “The Catholic Church in the Middle East: Communion and Witness.”)

At the intersection of three continents (Africa, Asia, and Europe), at the crossroad of great civilizations, the countries of the Middle East (from Turkey to Iraq, passing through Egypt, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine Jordan, and Iran) are experiencing a particularly painful moment today marked by conflict and war. More than others, these countries are dear to believers. Why? Because, in fact, they are the cradle of the three great monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam; it was here that they were born and developed. It was here that the Word of God was revealed to the People of Israel who welcomed it and passed it on from generation to generation in its books, which make up the Bible. It was also here that the early Church came to birth and grew thanks to the apostles and first Christians.

After we closed the communities of Cáceres in 2003 and Almería in 2005, the members of the Province felt that we were concentrating our forces too much in the Madrid area. Given this reality and the arrival of Congolese brothers to work with us, we thought it advisable to open ourselves to new horizons. After the various communities discussed the matter as well as the Council of the Province, we decided in August 2009 to name a committee of 4 religious together with the provincial to look for a site within another diocese where we had never been before.