“Celebrating the anniversary of our dear Association, I want to remind you also that you are called to BE ALL THAT YOU CAN BE, there where God sows you … Your presence and your commitment in VMY, your love of Mary and your passionate living of love for the least, are the best gift you can make to those around you.  They are your way of saying to men and women today that Saint Vincent and Saint Louise, whose 350^th anniversary we begin to celebrate this September 27^th, continue alive today in each one of us.”

PDF version of their attractive and news filled VMY_InternationalBulletinJune09.

The full text of the letter from Yasmine Cajuste VMY International President quoted above  follows.

Dear Vincentian Marian Youth Members:

Receive a warm and fraternal greeting on this special day, July 18, another year marking the first apparition of the Virgin Mary to Saint Catherine.  Happy Anniversary of the Vincentian Marian Youth!

Beginning this letter, I cannot take out of my mind some news which has affected us in the last few months and which is very present in our prayers. Though it is not possible to mention all the events, I would like to highlight the earthquake in L’Aquila (Italy), the A flu pandemic which began in Mexico, those fatal aerial accidents in Brazil and the Comoro Islands, the silent war of hunger and the violence which continues in so many countries around the world, the economic crisis which seems to announce even more difficult moments for the impoverished. One could add to this list the difficulties and trials which each one of our families experiences, our personal and missionary concerns.

In this context we could make our own the words of the prophet: “If I go out to the field, look! Those slain by the sword; if I enter the city, look! Those consumed by hunger.  Even the prophet and the priest forage in a land they know not…. One waits for peace to no avail; for a time of healing but terror comes instead (Jer 14:18-19).

I think that these same words may be applied to the historical context in which the apparitions of Mary in 1830.  For that reason each one needs to listen again in one’s heart the words which the Virgin directs to each member of the Vincentian Family since the 19th Century: “Have confidence, do not be disheartened, I will be with you …. The globe you see represents the entire world … and each person in particular”. Yes, in the midst of some heartbreaking times, the Virgin Mary wants to remind you today of her motherly concern, the Love which gave of himself so that you might have life in abundance, the faith in the World which she predicted in the Magnificat, built upon the values of the Gospel.

So I invite you to live the difficult moments with a trusting heart, to persevere in prayer and to continue working for a more just and fraternal World.  Remember that “youth in particular is a time of hope because it looks toward the future with diverse expectations. When one is young, one feeds on ideals, dreams and projects.  Youth is the time in which decisive options mature for the rest of life.” (Message of Pope Benedict XVI for the WYD of 2009). Each difficulty, each obstacle, the failures, your own weaknesses and those of others are blessings and opportunities for growth and for being a witness to the presence of Jesus in our midst, source of happiness and peace.

Celebrating the anniversary of our dear Association, I want to remind you also that you are called to BE ALL THAT YOU CAB BE, there where God sows you … Your presence and your commitment in VMY, your love of Mary and your passionate living of love for the least, are the best gift you can make to those around you.  They are your way of saying to men and women today that Saint Vincent and Saint Louise, whose 350^th anniversary we begin to celebrate this September 27^th, continue alive today in each one of us.

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope and in the power of the Holy Spirit” (Rom 15:13)

Yasmine Cajuste

VMY International President