We are no longer accepting new registrations for MAC 2017 in Guatemala!  

An MAC update and a reflective passage:

• MAC 2017 - Over 100 people have now signed up for MAC 2017.  I am waiting to hear back from the Guatemala Conference Committee (GCC) to see if we now need to stop the registration process.  If you would like to come but haven't yet registered, please do so this week.  I should hear back from the GCC shortly.
• [From Richard Rohr's Daily Meditation for today] The Universal Christ, described by the Apostle Paul, is not a problem-solving Christ, not a denominational or cultural Christ, not a Christ domesticated by the churches, but the One who names in his life and person what matters, what lasts, and finally what is. He holds it all together in significance, reveals the redemptive pattern that we call the life and death of things, and holds the meaning and value of our lives outside of ourselves (see Colossians 1, Ephesians 1, John 1). 
  Ilia Delio said something to complement Rohr's meditation: "Our task is not to solve problems, but to model love."

Right now there is one Maryknoll Affiliate Virtual Chapter. ^* The members of that Chapter held there second “meeting” last Wednesday. As there is no geographic location for the chapter, as yet it remains nameless.

The decision to move forward with a virtual chapter surfaced over a year ago in a Board meeting with the realization that many who had been inquiring about becoming Affiliates lived too far from an existing chapter to join. Additionally, several Affiliates who moved away from their original chapter and hoped to join another, also found themselves geographically distant from any current chapter.

So, the first virtual chapter was born. There are 5 members who “gather” via conference call. There is some thought to also including a video connection like Zoon, Skype, etc. in the future. Those members are from Colorado, Minnesota, upstate NY, Connecticut and, aren’t we lucky, Sr. Ellen McDonald MM, co-founder of the Affiliate movement. For now, they have decided to meet quarterly. Minus seeing each other’s faces or sharing potluck delights, the first two virtual sessions appear to mirror the spirit and shared solidarity of local chapters. Very encouraging.

 If you reading this have moved away from your previous chapter, or know someone who might be interested in joining a virtual chapter, contact Bob Short: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

^* There is also a pilot Contemplative Virtual Chapter in its initial stages of development.

The 5th Consensus Action Statement (CAS) from the most recent Affiliate Board meeting poses the questions:

1) Where do we want Maryknoll Affiliates to be in 5 years?  2) What are 1-3 actions steps to get us there? While Board chair Dave Schaffner presented these two questions to Board members, they are critical question extended to all of us as Affiliates.  Given the geographic expanse, life experience and 1000's of years of commitment to mission among us, how might each of us (you) respond to these questions.  Any insights (broad or particularly focused) in this regard would be very welcome.

If you would like to respond, please email Bob Short at: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Thank you much.

In the first two sentences of her book, Becoming Wise - An Inquiry into the Mystery and Art of Living, Krista Tippett, the host of the public radio program, On Being, writes: "I'm a person who listens for a living.  I listen for wisdom, and beauty, and for voices not shouting to be heard."

On Sunday, June 11th I had the chance to meet with 16 members of the San Diego Chapter, who gathered in the rectory of Saint Mary Magdalen Parish in the Mission Hill section of that city. Hugh Menton, Regional Coordinator for the California Region, drove all the way from Long Beach to also be at the meeting.  Hugh's wife Jean wasn't able to make it that Sunday. 

Like many if not all Affiliate Chapters, there was a felt sense of welcome, of engaging reflection, of meaningful conversation, of humor, of kindness and of being at home.  There were no 'voices shouting to be heard' - where there is genuine community, no one had to shout.  During this moment in history when many feel our country's deepest values are in free fall, we were all very grateful for this time and space when 'people of the pillars' (Spirituality, Community, Global Vision & Action) could come together. Besides that, the members spoke of really good brownies at the pot luck gathering to follow... speaking here of only legitimate culinary ingredients.

It struck me once again while in San Diego that Maryknollers are people on the margins trying very hard and with a great deal of integrity to speak a word of life, of Life.