A parish for riverboatmen

The barge-chapel 'Je sers' ('I serve'), located on the River Seine in the northeast Paris suburb of Conflans-Sainte Honorine, is one of two river parishes in France. It has been served by the Assumptionists since 1988, when Fr. Arthur Hervet was named pastor. Religious ceremonies for boatmen are celebrated here as well as all the activities of a parish: baptisms, marriages, funerals, catechism classes for the children of residents of the barge community and children in the immediate surroundings. The pastor receives his credentials from the bishop and, together with his assistant, participates in all the activities of the local area and the deanery.

In 1900, when the Assumptionists were expelled from France by an anticlerical French regime, together with most other religious orders, almost half of the congregation moved to Turkey.  At that time there were 200 Assumptionists in Turkey (including students) and 150 Oblate Sisters of the Assumption. The Assumptionists were responsible for 17 places of worship (both Latin and Eastern rite, and mixed parishes).They oversaw 14 elementary schools and high schools (1200 students) and were in charge of two seminaries. In almost all of these places there were Oblates as well who themselves ran 12 elementary schools and high schools (1350 students), 10 dispensaries and 2 hospitals.

The social service organization « Accompagner » was born on March 19, 2001 at the heart of the Belgian capital. It was an initiative of the general chapter of the Assumptionists held in 1999 and was meant to be a "prophetic gesture" for the new millennium, a project that was energetically and enthusiastically oriented to the neediest in society and addressing a particularly modern problem. What was the origin of "Accompagner"? The experience of certain Assumptionists who worked at our church, La Madeleine, in the heart of Brussels, led them to observe that many poor people whom they directed to various social service agencies returned without having their issues resolved, usually because they didn't and often simply weren't able to meet all the filing directives. Thus there arose the idea to create a center, made up of volunteers directed by several salaried professionals who would not only direct but accompany people in difficulty to various social agencies to help them comply with all the necessary directives.

At a recent celebration, Fr. Robert Fortin, A.A. was honored by the Northeastern Lieutenancy of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem of which he has been a member since August 28, 2002. The occasion was to recognize and to thank him for the work he did in Jerusalem.

After a Mass in the Chapel of the Holy Spirit at Assumption College, the award ceremony took place during a reception for the Knights and Ladies of the Worcester area at the Tatnuck Country Club in Worcester. In the presence of H. E. Robert McManus, Bishop of Worcester, and of more than 50 guests, including several Priest-Knights of the diocese, the award was presented by H. E. John J. Monahan, Lieutenant of the Northeastern Lieutenancy.

I first met Evariste Misigaro two years ago. Though he told me that he was from Burundi, I immediately noticed how he was fluent in Swahili, a language not spoken widely in Burundi. So I asked him where he learned Swahili. And boom! Everything came out: a painful story of a life of which more than half has been spent on the move.

I know I am lagging behind Fr. Dennis' account but·I have so much to say.

Tuesday was a traveling day for us. After breakfast with the seminarian community, we had enough time to clean our room and we left at 10:30 AM. We rented a car so that we could stop along the way to see some of my friends who now serve as pastor or assistant and to visit some of my family’s friends who have been with my family in all the many difficult moments of life. When we said good bye, the director of studies told Dennis that it was a mistake when Dennis let me plan the trip. It only takes 3-4 hours to drive from Da lat to Phuong Lam; but if Dennis was coming with me, we would need a day…because I had to make so many stops…. I did not tell Dennis too much about this, but I thought that he would give me enough space in which I could be myself in this context and that he wouldn’t mind having another new adventure.

The Assumption Language Center started along side the delegation’s Martin Yen Residence Program for Asian seminarians, religious and priests in July 2009 by providing English language training to the Martin Yen residents. Since then, the center has extended its services to other religious, seminarians and priests of other religious congregations and communities due to a perceived need to provide contextualized language training for this specific clientele.

On June the 1, 2010, the Assumptionists opened a Christian Youth Hostel in the heart of Paris. The idea is to create a point of contact between young people and Christ, the Gospel and faith. Offering all the necessary amenities at a vbery reasonable price, the Hostel, called "Adveniat", aims at presenting to its guests a face of faith which is contemporary and at ease with modern society: yes, one can place Christ at the center of one's life and be at ease in the modern world!

A man with outstanding faith and a sense of mission

Victorin Galabert was born in Montbazin (Hérault) November 6, 1830. Little is known about his early years, which Fr. Victorin tried to downplay in later life. He studied medicine at the University of Montpelier and received his doctorate in 1854. His dissertation was entitled A Historical Essay on Smallpox. After meeting Fr. d’Alzon, he received the religious habit on June 29, 1855, in Nîmes. The following year he went to Rome where he studied theology and canon law. He made his final profession in Rome at the altar of the Confession of St. Peter on June 30, 1856. After obtaining his doctorate in canon law, he was ordained a priest o June 7, 1857, and wrote articles for the publications of Fr. Chaillot, a reputed canonist.