It was with great jubilation that the Assumption Family of brothers, relatives and guests of Fr. Oliver, A.A. celebrated his 100^th birthday on Saturday, March 12^th, 2016. A Mass of Thanksgiving was celebrated at the Chapel of the Holy Spirit on the campus of Assumption College, with Rev. Jose Miguel Allon, A.A., Provincial as presider and Rev. Peter Precourt, A.A., Territorial Superior as homilist. Fr. Peter ended his homily by reading a letter of birthday greetings and gratitude from Fr. Benoit Griere, A.A. Superior General, who recognized Fr. Oliver’s many years as a faithful Assumptionist and his tireless zeal in serving God’s people near and far.

Before the final blessing, Fr. Oliver offered a few remarks wherein he focused on gratitude to God for His many blessings, asked forgiveness for having offended God and others in any way, thanked God for the opportunity of being His servant and being touched by so many people throughout his many assignments and lastly, expressed his gratitude for the fraternity of living among and being supported by his Assumptionist brothers .

During my spring break I got the opportunity to travel to Trenton New Jersey with other Assumption students to volunteer at a variety of service sites. We met many new faces and immersed ourselves in a way of life which is different than what we were used to. It was great to make even the slightest difference in a community that is less fortunate than ours, and to put a smile on the faces of individuals who are going through tough times!

Fr. Ron Sibugan A.A.
Campus Minister, Assumption College

From March 7 to 10, 2016, representatives of the only two Assumptionist university-level institutions in the world met in Nairobi for a work session intended to assist the newer of the two institutions, ISEAB. The main theme was the articulation and fine-tuning of a strategic development plan. Assumption College, with over 100 years of experience and several such plans under its belt, offered to help its junior partner in this process. Assumption College allowed two of its expert administrators, Profs. Bart Morrison and Eric Drouat, to lead the Nairobi session to assure ISEAB’s own smooth development.

The delegation from ISEAB elaborated a set of ‘in-put’, which the group analyzed and which will eventually lead to ‘out-put’, namely a text that will serve as the guiding document for ISEAB over the next ten years or so. The time spent analyzing its experience allowed the ISEAB contingent to rediscover its strengths and weaknesses and to identify the external threats and opportunities that exist. Along the way, Assumption College was identified by ISEAB as an opportunity that will allow it to overcome its weaknesses but also to navigate certain threats by establishing a partnership, some of the terms of which were discussed during the session.

February 11, 2016

In the early hours of the morning the first Mass on this feast of Our Lady of Lourdes was celebrated by the shrine's rector, Fr. Aldo Gajardo Álvarez, who recalled the message of Lourdes, highlighting the figure of Mary as mother and of Bernardette as her messenger.

During the morning, defying a scorching sun, thousands of pilgrims came streaming to the shrine from every corner of Santiago and from other cities as well. One pilgrim from Parral, Mecedes, commented, “I have been coming to the feast of Lourdes since I was a child and now I am almost 70 years old. I follow the same schedule--- I get up early, stay all day and go home only late at night". She was happy with this year's event, adding "I inherited this tradition from my mother and I have tried to transmit it to my children. This year I had to come by myslelf because all my children are at work and couldn't get away. One of my daughters who comes with me every year will be going to the evening Mass near her home. At least we'll be united in prayer at that moment”.

This is just one of the many testimonies of faith that one encounters year after year on this feast of Our Lady of Lourdes.

College Professors Bart Morrison and Eric Drouart, both of the business department, recently held a strategic-planning meeting with members of the Institut Supérieur Emmanuel d'Alzon de Butembo, or ISEAB, community in Nairobi, Kenya.

ISEAB is located in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and, like Assumption, it is an Assumptionist institution of higher education.

Currently Fr. Dinh is serving as director of the Assumptionist shrine of St. Anne in Sturbridge, Massachusetts (USA). A native of Vietnam, Fr. Dinh was ordained in 2011. Fr. Marc Leroy is currently the pastor of the National Basilica of Sacred Heart of Koekelberg in Brussels (Belgium), designated a Year of Mercy basilica.

The “Missionaries of Mercy” are priests from various parts of the world, recommended by their own bishops and religious superiors, who are to be “living signs of the Father’s readiness to welcome those in search of his pardon” (Misericordiae vultus).

At the invitation of local bishops, the missionaries will be sent to dioceses around the world to preach, lead spiritual retreats, and hear confessions. The missionaries number a little over 1000, with some 100 priests being assigned to the United States.

They received from the Holy Father the authority to pardon “even those sins reserved to the Holy See” (Bull of Indiction, n. 18). These sins include: violation or profanation of the Holy Eucharist; absolution of an accomplice in a sin against the sixth commandment; unauthorized ordination of a bishop, which penalty is incurred by both the ordaining bishop and by the bishop who is ordained; direct violation by a confessor of the seal of confession; and physical violence on the Roman Pontiff.

College to Bestow Honorary Doctorates Upon Drs. Carolyn Woo, James O’Connell,
Fred Bayon ’65 and Michael Tsotsis ’71 During May 7 Ceremony

WORCESTER, MA (March 3, 2016)— When Assumption College’s class of 2016 gathers for Commencement in May, they will hear from an individual who is a true example of living one’s faith through service to others. Dr. Carolyn Woo, CEO of Catholic Relief Services (CRS), one of the world’s largest providers of humanitarian assistance, will deliver the address at the College’s 99th Commencement exercises on Saturday, May 7 at the DCU Center. Dr. Woo, Dr. James O’Connell, president of Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program and Assumption alumni, Dr. Fred Bayon ’65, Board Chair Emeritus, and Michael Tsotsis ’71, Trustee Emeritus, will receive honorary degrees during the ceremony recognizing their dedicated work to community service and living the Assumption College mission.

“Through her impassioned work as the leader of a Catholic global relief agency, Dr. Woo is a true example of how to live out the Gospel and the tenets of Catholic Social Teaching by caring for the less fortunate or those affected by natural disaster,” said Assumption College President Francesco C. Cesareo, Ph.D. “Dr. Woo’s leadership parallels the mission and message of the College and reflects what we instill in our students during their four years at Assumption regarding service grounded in our Catholic identity. Reminding students of their responsibility to contribute toward the common good is indeed an effective and fitting message to impart upon our graduates as they prepare to use their gifts and knowledge in service to others.”

 Assumption College Magazine - Fall 2015

January 25, 2016  Pinhal, Brazil

On Sunday, January 24, under sunny skies, the South American novitiate opened in Pinhal, Brazil, situated in a wing of the large retreat house/spiritual center run by the Assumptionists in this town some 3 hours from the metropolis of São Paulo.

Fresh from two years of studies in spirituality at the Gregorianum in Rome, the new novice-master, Fr. João Gomes, and his assistant, Br. Gwenaël Petton, recently arrived from the novitiate in Juvisy, France, opened the doors of the novitiate to this year's class of three novices, Brothers Luciano and Jefferson from Brazil and Jonathan from Chile. This new initiative marks a milestone in the collaboration of the two Assumptionist provinces in South America, the Province of Brazil and the Andean Province (Argentina, Chile, Colombia, and Ecuador). A common house of theology, which will include Assumptionists from around the world undertaking their studies in Spanish, will open this February in Buenos Aires, Argentina.