Superior General Announces Special Celebrations

Fr. Gregory Gay has announced two major events in the life of the Vincentian Family. 2009 will be the Jubilee Year for the Association of the Miraculous Medal. And 2010 will be the 350th Anniversary of the deaths of Sts. Vincent, Louise and Monsieur Portail.

1. At a recent meeting of the international coordinating team of the Association of the Miraculous Medal, we decided to declare 2009 a Jubilee Year for the AMM which will be celebrating 100 years of Pontifical recognition as an Association. The Jubilee Year will run from 8 July 2008 until 20 November 2009, which is the closing date of our third international meeting which will be held in the rue du Bac, Paris, 16-20 November. The theme of the Jubilee Year will be “100 years of Journeying with Mary…United with Jesus in the Poor by way of the Miraculous Medal.” A more formal declaration of this Jubilee Year will be forthcoming.

2. In 2010 we will celebrate the 350th anniversary of the deaths of both St. Vincent de Paul and St. Louise de Marillac as well as Monsieur Portail. It also marks the 150th anniversary of Justin de Jacobis, our celebrated missionary to Abyssinia. In our most recent meeting of the Vincentian Family Heads in January, I was asked to name a coordinator to set in motion the plans and activities for the celebration of this great event. Today I announce that I have appointed Father Jósef Kapuściak, my Vicar General, as the Executive Coordinator of the celebration. I have also requested Sister Palmarita Guida, D.C. and Father Manuel Ginete, C.M. to be Assistant Executive Coordinators.

Presently we are in the process of forming five commissions made up of members of the different branches of the Vincentian Family. The main focus of our celebrations at the international level will be a deepening of our Vincentian spirituality through some ongoing formation sessions; secondly, celebrating the occasions with our collaborators and the poor; and thirdly, considering adopting a common collaborative project of the Vincentian Family worldwide. The above-mentioned structure for the 350th anniversary can be adapted on the continental or national levels of the Vincentian Family.