After he had viewed the banner of Mary at St. Mary of the Angels, Wellington, on 15 August 2001, feast day of Mary’s Assumption, a Marist Brother made the above comment.

An initial reaction was one of surprise. However, the comment has layers of wonderful meaning. It means that by the time the Banner of Mary was ready to cross Cook Strait, the art work from the St. Mary’s and places it had visited in the North Island was so attractive and interesting that it held a value in itself.

We think Mary would be delighted! To us, it means that she who delights in showing us Jesus rather than herself is eager to point to and applaud the Church communities, the body of Christ, throughout NZ

Congratulations to all who arranged and made the beautiful patches for the Banner. Echoing Mary, let’s praise God!

Nov. 14 St Mary’s, Nth Oamaru

Nov. 18 St Mary’s, Palmerston.

Nov. 21 St Mary, Star of the Sea,

Port Chalmers.

Nov. 25 St Mary’s, Mornington.

Dec. 2 St Mary’s, Kaikorai.

Dec. 5 St Mary’s, Omakau,

Dec. 9 St Mary’s, Stirling, .

Dec. 12 St Mary’s, Riversdale.

Dec. 16 St Mary’s Waikaia.

Dec. 19 St Mary’s, Riverton

Dec. 23 St Mary’s, Wyndham

Dec. 30 St Mary’s, Invercargill.

Jan 6 2002 St Mary, Star of the Sea, Bluff

Third Order Members from Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne at the retreat day, October 9th 2006. Photographed in the sanctuary of St Thomas More Church, Napier. Thank you all for such a wonderfully prayerful day.

The Gregorian University in Rome has invited Fr. Tim Costello sm to lecture for a period of five years beginning this semester. While in Rome he will reside with the Marist Community at Via Cernaia. Congratulations, Tim. The Universal Church will be blessed by your expertise and academic ability.

Rod Milne sm is spending three months with L’Arche in the Philippines.

Kevin Conroy smwrites from the Cook Islands that he has spent several weeks on Atiu as part of his programme of cultural immersion.

Fr. George Duggan was awarded the medal Pro Pontifice et Eccleia for services to the Church. The award was presented by Mgr John Carde and took place on August 6 at St. Mary’s Convent Chapel. Later in August, Marists gathered to celebrate the 65th anniversary of Fr. George’s Ordination to Priesthood. The Sisters of Compassion, Silverstream, hosted this. Congratulations! Ad Multos Annos

On August 5 six Marists in Africa were professed . Fr. Paul Walsh has been the director of Novices there but will go to the English speaking province of Cameroon and accompany some aspirants to Marist Life. English speaking novitiate commenced in Boston on August 6 with Fr David Kennerley once again the novice master, accompanied by Fr. Phil Parent of the Boston Province. There are four novices, one from France.

Fr. Pat Devlin reports on the new International Mission of three Marists in South Dakota. Most of their outreach is to Native Americans on a Reservation. Pat’s address is P.O. Box 487,Dupree SD 57623 USA.

Damian Dempsey sm is to be ordained to the Priesthood in Auckland on December 15.

We welcome Daniel Bowmar of Whangarei as an aspirant.

Father Craig Larkin sm, New Zealand provincial of the Society of Mary, was elected in Rome at the recent General Chapter to be an administrator of the Society and Vicar General. We wish him well. Sad at losing him from our own shores, we know the Society world wide will be better off under his inspirational leadership.

Craig brings to the task a wealth of knowledge and interpretation of the Marist Charism. We will always be indebted to his book, “A Certain Way” – an exploration of Marist Spirituality, published in 1995.

An election for a new Provincial will take place before Christmas and a new council in the New Year.

John Goulter sm : “If anyone needed proof that the spirit of a man lives on after his death, he only needed to be at the funeral of Johnny Goulter at St. Mary of the Angels. And if anyone wanted to know something about the Christian and Catholic view of “good grief”, Johnny’s funeral would have told him everything. Whether is was Rod Milne’s extraordinary tribute to Johhny which simply plugged into everyones memory of him, or whether it was the deep prayer that at times took over the people in the Church, this was a funeral one would have loved the world to be at.” R.I.P.

Part of Fr. Craig Larkin’s tribute.

Peter Wall sm Peter was a person of great tenacity and determination. He always sought to do what was right and just to all. His letters reveal a person of great personal humility and obedience but coupled with a sharp and perceptive intellect. Must of the best part of his life was spent in a project for Brothers of Samoa Tonga and Fiji. Blessed with great practical skills, he will be greatly missed.” Oceania newsletter

Michael Cross sm His sudden death in Fiji caught us by surprise. Michael was from Clive and spent 16 years in the NZ Province before transferring to Oceania. His meticulous desire for accuracy made him ;respected bursar and teacher of accountancy. In him there was no guile so when he spoke or acted he did so with sincerity. A prayerful man, who because of it was an excellent homilist. He was also a person who loved community life and was an excellent host. He loved youth, and though no linguist, spoke to all and was loved by them. May his gentle soul rest in the peace he deserves. (Brian Wilson)

Since our last Laylines, we have heard of the following people associated with Marist Laity who have died. We commend them to your prayers as they are in ours. Eileen Hendren of Christchurch MTO; Catherine Glass also of ChCh MTO and Kathleen Byrne of Taradale; Margaret Hailes of Nelson MTO and Gerard Redding, brother to two Nelson MTO members: Veronica and Gabriel Redding. Also from the Nelson area, Dick Martin,, father of Marist Chris Martin. In Wellington, it is still hard to get used to the fact that Margaret Donoghue, Marist Lay Women extraordinaire, friend of so many in the city, died in mid-June.

Robert Sainsbury, William Wilder, Mike Shearman, and Anne Kinane, associated with us, have also gone to God. RIP

Marist Laity in the USA are planing a pilgrimage to the Marist places of Origin in France/Rome and invite others to be part of it. The dates are 2-21 of April and it leaves from Washington DC. The cost is US$2,500.

Any Kiwis interested, do let let us know and I can put you in contact with the organisers in Washington. Three NZers are already showing interest and at least one of them is signed up. It is possible to meet the pilgrims in Paris on the 3rd of April and be with them until the 20th and remain in Europe, or join them in Washington, either returning there or stay in Europe. But the opportunity is around!

(I am not going! JCsm)

Our Marist Laity Booklet is now translated into Tongan, Maori and the Samoan text is well underway. Soon, the three texts will be sent to Rome for publication. I would love to think they could be completed by the time of the burial of Bishop Pompallier at Motuti on April 28th

From their own experience the first Marists believed that once a person had “tasted God” everything else would fall into place. This “tasting God” in prayer is to be an inner experience even in the busiest moments of a Marist’s life. Through that experience, we develop a willingness to put all our trust in God alone. In our many activities and concerns, we trust more in God that in ourselves. This gives us purity of heart.

Whatever the Marist’s situation in life, he or she will be a prayerful person. This does not mean saying long prayers or spending hours on one’s knees – it rather means living in the presence of God, having deep faith in the love of God and interceding for the world. A Marist is concerned particularly with those who are lost and seem to be far from God and seeks to point them to Christ in the gentle way of Mary. There are a thousand ways of praying and caring for people – what is essential for the Marist is to be prayerful and apostolic like Mary.

Marist Laity – A Basic Guide p.8 No. 5