Today was another workday for the commissions. It will be a few days before issues surface in each of the commissions and we will pass on to you as much information as possible about their proceedings.

For the evening of May 11, the members of the Community of St. Egidio invited all of the capitulants, consultants, and staff to join them in Trastevere.

Brother John Johnston told the members of the Chapter that Brothers Charles Henry, José Pablo, and he had all maintained close ties with the Community of St. Egidio. "The Casa Generalizia serves regularly for days of recollection for government school youngsters, provides storage space for materials used in the service of the poor, and on occasion has hosted gatherings of handicapped children and adults. The central government and a number of districts have provided financial assistance. One district made a sizeable donation for the establishment of the soup kitchen ... Other districts helped to defray non-reimbursable expenses that the Community incurred during the successful Mozambique peace negotiations. Various Brothers of the Generalate and Cilists (those who have attended CIL) have done volunteer work with St. Egidio."

What is the Community of St. Egidio?

The Community of St. Egidio was founded in Rome in 1968 by a group of young people. It has become a Lay Catholic Association recognized by the Holy See. It has formal recognition as a non-profit organization (NGO). The Community does not identify itself with political parties and insists on a faith-inspired approach to situations and problems. There are approximately 20,000 members in some 25 countries.

The spirituality of the Community is grounded solidly in the Word of God. Members gather every night for evening prayer in several Churches and celebrate the Eucharist together on Saturday night. The community has become the voice of the poor, the handicapped, the gypsy, and the sick. They run school programs for the poor and the marginalized. They foster ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue and promote peace initiatives in different parts of the world. They take active stands for the elimination of the death penalty.

Members of the Chapter boarded buses at the Generalate at 17:00 (5 pm ). In the picture at the left you can see Br. Pascual Muñoz Cantos of Valencia practicing "shared mission." Little Elena is probably the youngest participant ever to attend Chapter events. She is beautiful, delightful, and gives a whole new meaning to "voice but no vote." She is the daughter of Sra. Maricruz Miquel Aguilella, our Partner consultant from ARLEP (Region of Spain and Portugal).

When the group arrived at Santa Egidio, they were shown to an assembly room where a video was presented that gave the history as well as the works and structure of Santa Egidio which is based on faith, service and community. Following the video, Claudio, their host for the evening, divided the members into language groups for a tour of the works in the local Trastevere area (a soup kitchen, school where Italian is taught to immigrants, lodgings for homeless immigrants, and a hospice for the terminally ill).

Following the tour, they attended evening prayer in Santa Maria in Trastevere. Bishop Jaime Pedro Gonçalves, of Moscambique, gave a talk during the prayer in which he thanked the Brothers for their work in Moscambique. After evening prayer, the Santa Edidio community hosted the members of the Chapter to an evening meal.

It was quite impressive to see the dedication of the Santa Edigio Communiy in direct service to the poor. In his memo to the members of the Chapter, Br. John Johnston said, "I think that you will find the evening informative and inspirational. It might also suggest new ways that Lasallians of all ages can serve the poor." The evening was certainly informative and inspirational for many of the members of the Chapter.