fnl guidelines 2015-2016

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A yearhand in hand

Guidelines 2015-2016Faith and Light international

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Summary

Introduction, Ghislain du Chéné 3To the members of the coordinating team, Corinne Chatain 6

September A year hand in hand… 9October ...with religious communities 15November ...with those who are in Heaven 21

December ...to go to the manger 29January ...for Christian unity 36February ...to celebrate all generations together 42March ...standing together 49April ...in suffering as well as in joy 56May ...to respond to our calling 62June ...to be witnesses of Jesus 70July ...to reconcile 78

August ...for one large relationship network 85

Box of treasures1. The calendar of hands 902. Artists’ workshop 923. The little bookshop of Faith and Light 1014. Faith and Light prayer 104

Illustrations: Blanca Mora

Faith and Light international3, rue du Laos 75015 Paris, France T + 33 1 53 69 44 30

[email protected] - www.faithandlight.org

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IntroductionGhislain du Chéné

International coordinator

With last year's guidelines, we took part, in a great

tour around the world during which we got to knowtwelve great missionaries of joy better. Three ofthem, Jerzy Popiełuszko, Marthe Robin and Óscar

Romero have had the particular honour of taking a great stepon their way to becoming saints. We should be delighted tosee that it isn’t necessarily doing great things that can makepeople closer to Jesus, but rather by becoming a friend of thesmallest ones, by being close and by holding their hands.

We are going to continue, throughout this year that is aboutto start, our mission to make known to as many people aspossible that friendship with the smallest is a source ofcommunion and intimacy with Jesus. For this, we are going tolook together at the way Jesus continues to call us and how toprepare ourselves – ourselves and Faith and Light – torespond to him over the next ten years. Our time of sharing in

small groups will be dedicated to this. After each meeting, thecommunity coordinator will contact the vice coordinator whoaccompanies the community (a good opportunity to make/re-make contact?) to share with him/her what has come out ofthis time in small groups and the general atmosphere of themeeting and the sharing. Throughout the year, through closerelationships, through a friendship as solid as the rock uponwhich it is founded, we are going to strengthen the bonds that

unite us.

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I remember having heard, when I was young, a poem (PaulFort) entitled “The round" and whose words were:Then ‘twould be found that one could dance the world around,

should all folk of the world be fain to join their hands and forma chain.

We will therefore walk hand in hand and we will announce thehappiness for tomorrow to all the Earth!

The first month will be more specifically aimed at theidentity and mission and in the other months, the great valuesof Faith and Light will be broken down, one by one.

In September, we make contact by holding hands andasking ourselves: just as the shoots are all linked to oneanother to the vine, what is this life, this energy that passesbetween us and Faith and Light?

In October, hand in hand with the religious community withwhich your community is twinned, we ask ourselves, what is

the place of prayer in Faith and Light?

In November, hand in hand with those who are in heaven,we ask ourselves: In Faith and Light, what loyal friendship

unites us in communion with the saints?

In December, we will go hand in hand to the manger askingourselves: How can Faith and Light help people to marvel

before God made into a small child?

In January, hand in hand, despite our differences, werediscover the beauty of diversity in Faith and Light.

In February, hand in hand, young or old, we will dancetogether in a great family farandole.

In March, hand in hand, rich or poor, we will happilyannounce and share the wealth of Faith and Light.

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In April, hand in hand, sad or joyful, we will recognise ourwounds in order to better heal ourselves.

In May, hand in hand on the road that leads to heaven, wewill let ourselves be accompanied in order to be moreattentive to the calls of God.

In June, hand in hand, we will go and bear witness with thestrength of the Spirit to announce our good and joyfulnews.

In July, we will reach out in order to better forgiveourselves and reconcile ourselves in the grace of theDivine Mercy.

In August, we will have created the necessary bondsbetween us so that we will be united in a great communionand we will be able to then "remain" in the Love of Jesus.So, let’s go, let’s join in, let’s take our courage in both

hands and let’s put our heart and soul into it so that theyear to come will be beautiful and highly instructive!

GdC

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To the members

of the coordinating team Corinne Chatain, General Secretary

Before I give you some practical guidance, I would first liketo extend my heartfelt thanks to the Spanish team whichenthusiastically and efficiently produced these guidelines,based on the monthly meditations written by Ghislain duChéné!

From left to right: Maria Sanchiz, Jesús Pérez Toribio, myself,Ghislain du Chéné, Father Josep Perich Serra, and, on thebottom: Jose Luis Collar, Helena Escribano (coordinator of theTerra et Mare province), Blanca Mora and her son Pepe inHelena's arms.

We are delighted that these new guidelines are now in your

hands. They are only a tool: it is up to you to adapt the content

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to the members of your community, to your culture andtraditions, and to the amount of time that you have available....The most important thing is for us all to experience the various

parts of the meeting on the same topic of our year hand inhand.

Hand in handTo visualise this topic, Jesús Pérez has designed a calendar

in the shape of a clock dial, and each month we will attach tothis the Faith and Light value which we will be deepening andsharing during the meeting (see page 90 for all the

explanations).

To relive the GospelFather Josep has suggested several evangelical mimes.

Each time we can plan a few simple costumes, songs or musicsuitable for each scene, according to the repertoire we haveand what is possible.

A few toolsWe did not want to weigh the guidelines down with too manyappendices. You will also find everything that you need on thewebsite to allow you to fully experience the various parts of themeeting.

Under the heading "Documents to download"1 you will findtools to relive the Gospel better, deepen the poor person'sprayer and organise the washing of the feet.... Father Josep

has suggested one story per month, linked to the Gospel.They have been drawn from very different backgrounds andreflect our different cultures well. These are short, positiveand inspiring passages to be used as you see fit. Finally, youwill find a questionnaire to help you evaluate the year in thecommunity and an evaluation form for the guidelines.

1 www.faithandlight.org/rubriques/haut/downloads

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Under the "Photo Album"1 heading, you will find all theillustrations, which can be downloaded in high resolution:the calendar of hands, the monthly drawing and the

various activities.

Under the " Video"2 heading, you will see how to learn theliturgical dances and the mimed songs.

“Up Sails!”

Yes, throughout the world, from Madagascar to NewZealand, from Norway to Zimbabwe... We will be walking hand

in hand. All too often we have not done enough to informmembers of our community about this internationaldimension. As the poem quoted by Ghislain says: Should all

folk of the world be fain to join their hands and form a chain…

This means that we are moving forward hand in hand in thecommunity, but also hand in hand with the 1,500communities spread throughout the world. In ourcommunities we can choose to read a particular report or

testimony from the other side of the world… Or even better,get everyone to subscribe! Please also send me photos andarticles regularly on the events that you are living so that wecan share them ([email protected]).

Have a great trip around the world!

CC

1 http://www.faithandlight.org/rubriques/haut/album_photo

2 http://www.faithandlight.org/rubriques/haut/video

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September

A yearhand in hand...

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The word of the month

hen it was time to leave at the end of a pilgrimage toLebanon in August 2012, the bishop who had justcelebrated the mass, placed his cross on the head of

the provincial coordinator and each person came and placed

their right hand on the shoulder of the person in front. Thisformed a large chain and everyone was invited to carry the joyand testify to what they had experienced! How could you notthink of the Gospel of the vine? I am the vine, you are thebranches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear muchfruit, because apart from me you can do nothing (Jn 15, 5). Ifwe are ‘connected’ to Jesus Christ who is the Source, His lifeand His joy will pass to us, the branches, and we will bear

much fruit!

At the start of this year, we must renew our dedication to ourcommunity so let us form a large chain for our time of prayerby holding hands, each person holding, with their right hand– palm down – the hand of his right hand neighbour andwelcoming, with their left hand palm up, that of his otherneighbour (the left hand receives and the right one gives).

Let us question ourselves in order to understand what it iswe are receiving and what we are giving. What is the energythat leads us? What does our identity do that makes usunique, makes us want to honour our commitments? What isthe mission to which we have all been called?

The Faith and Light movement undertook this reflection task

a few years ago and all the communities are now invited to doit at the beginning of this year; the booklet You will shine in the

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world like bright stars can help you to prepare your meeting. Itsays in it that our identity is founded on the relationship withpeople with an intellectual disability, a relationship that makesa significant contribution to our societies.

People with an intellectual disability are the preferredwitnesses and they reveal to us the Presence of God in eachone of us in a quite unique way if we know how to have arelationship with them.

Following this first meeting and all that will follow all alongthe year, the coordinating teams will write down a few of thesentences that will have arisen from the exchanges within thecommunity on our identity and our mission and send them tothe provincial team. We will then be ready to set off for a yearof meetings, hand in hand!

Focus on the theme of the month

Each month, we will discover the Identity and Mission ofFaith and Light together through the values that make usunique.

We will first discover that we are all growing throughJesus' hand, like vine shoots growing together on thevine.

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Hand in hand

We are working on the “hand in hand” calendarand we explain what will be happening throughoutthe year (see page 90)1.

Welcome and reunions

A person representing Jesus welcomeseveryone on their arrival, invites them tofollow him and gives them a small cardrepresenting a grape seed (see page

92).On one side is written: Welcome to Faith and Light, and on theother side our first name will be written and our mission in thecommunity.

For sharing

Together I am the Vine and you are the branches,John 15, 1-8

The leader of the sharing time askseach person what they will do to ensurethat this grape seed stays alive for thewhole year, so that this desire to fullyaccomplish His mission in thecommunity does not die out.

A year is a long time. For this seed to stay alive, it needs foodand water. But nobody waters the fruit to feed it! What wewater is the tree. As long as the fruit remains on the tree, itstays alive.A large vine is placed in the centre of our circle (see page 92)and the leader reads John's Gospel. He then explains that, allyear, we will be walking hand in hand. Jesus is the heart of the

1 Download: http://www.faithandlight.org/rubriques/haut/album_photo

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community and the first hand that we must take hold of is His.If we are not united to him, we will not be able to accomplishour mission.

One after the other, we go and stick our grape seeds on thevine.

In small groups (Prepare a feedback for your VPC) Have I known people in Faith and Light who bear fruit?

What fruits could I give to Faith and Light?

What is it that makes me stay at Faith and Light? Whatmakes me unique?

What is the most important thing that Faith and Light canbring to today’s world? And in the next 10 years?

For Prayer

We create a peacefulatmosphere with meditativemusic and we graduallycreate silence in our hearts.

We re-read John’s Gospel.

We create a big circle and take each other’s hands as Ghislaindescribes on page 10. If there are too many of us, we createtwo circles, one within the other one. At the centre, we can seethe vine that Jesus represents and all the grape seeds thatrepresent us. United in this way, we dance to the sound of themusic in silence1. We are rocked by Jesus. As long as he is atthe heart of the community, we will not be short of anything.The chaplain or the person leading the prayer time invites eachperson to give thanks to God and to offer a prayer intention.

As not everybody in the community has the text, the chaplainwill recite this prayer that we will all repeat sentence bysentence.

1 http://www.faithandlight.org/rubriques/haut/video/#Guidelines 2015-2016

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Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory,

my understanding and my entire will.

All I have and call my own.

You have given all to me. To you, Lord, I return it.Everything is yours; do with it what you will.

Give me only your love and your grace.

That is enough for me.

Ignace de Loyola

Prayer of a poor person Jesus, I want to stay united with you.

To celebrate Game: Cheep Cheep

We all get into a circle and close oureyes. The game leader chooses twopeople and quietly whispers in the earof the first one so that the others

cannot hear:You are daddy hen and to the other: You are mummy hen. Allthe others are chicks. The aim of the game is for everyone tofind the mummy and daddy hen.

We all change positions, keeping our eyes closed. We try tocatch a hand and when we have caught one, we ask: Cheep

Cheep? If the person replies Cheep Cheep it is also a littlechick, so we carry on looking. If he does not reply, we have

found our mummy or daddy hen. We stay still holding handsand remain silent. As the game progresses, you hear fewer andfewer Cheep Cheep.

When there is complete silence, the leader asks us to open oureyes. We are all holding hands!

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October

…with

religiouscommunities

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F

aith and Light was born from the desire to help the

person with an intellectual disability and their family to

find their place in the Church and society (Faith and

Light Charter, p. 5). For this, our communities have putdown roots in various Christian traditions and what we receiveis the measure of what we bring them. The parishes in whichwe are integrated welcome us – in the majority of cases – withmuch kindness, but let us not be afraid to ask that thiswelcome be more than a simple acceptance! It is importantfor us to have the prophetic mission of our disabled friendsrecognised: they are the favoured of God: Then he took a little

child and put him/her among them; and taking him/her in hisarms, he said to them: Whoever welcomes one such child in

my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes

not me but the one who sent me. (Mk 9: 36-37)

In order to help us in this great mission, we need lifebloodand what better than a twinning with a religious community?Some people have made the choice to lead a life of prayer and

generally, they are very happy to meet us and carry us in theirprayers: It is good for each community to set up as far aspossible, links with a religious community. The twinning ismade up of giving regular news, entrusting prayer intentionsand visiting (once a year) this community for a time of meetingand friendship (Leader’s Handbook, p. 20).

Every time that we make the experience of spending a bit

of time in such a community, we live a wonderful time offraternity, be it with the Trappist monks in Midelt (Morocco) or

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with the Sisters of Bethlehem in Paparčiai (Lithuania). And it isan opportunity to place the prayer intentions of all ourcommunities in the world!

Not all Christian traditions have such religious com-munities, but the prayers of friends and parents are reallynecessary to all of us and there are a number of "invisiblemonasteries", prayer groups of "sentinel prayers" who can playthis support role.

Let us not hesitate, let us open the doors of our

communities and let us go and meet all of those who reallywant to help make the great value and beauty of our disabledfriends known! Altogether, hand in hand, we will discover thatGod has chosen what is weak and foolish in the world toshame what is strong and wise! (Cf. 1 Co 1: 27)


In Faith and Light, we are discovering the value of thecommunity prayer.

Thanks to twinning, we can reveal to a religiouscommunity the prophetic mission of the person with adisability, and receive from it the grace of prayer in turn.

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Hand in hand

This month, it is a cross that we place in the centreof the drawing as a symbol of the community

prayer we share each month as a fundamentalvalue of Faith and Light (see page 90).


We are all invited to say what good thingsand difficult things have happened to ussince the last meeting.

For sharing

Together

For where two or three are gathered inmy name, I am there among them,Matthew 18: 19-20

We will prepare the room in advance. Animage or icon of Jesus is covered by acloth. Each person chooses an objectthat represents what he likes to do withhis friends (boules, book, DVD, cakes,

soda, CD, shoes, skipping rope or toys...)and places it on or around the cloth.

When all the objects have been chosen, the leader asks: Is this

all that you do with your friends in the community? He thenremoves the cloth and we discover the icon. What we likeabove all is to pray together. When we pray, God is amongst us.We are brothers in Jesus, that is why we recite the Lord’s

Prayer together.

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In small groups (Prepare a feedback for your VPC) Do we pray regularly? With whom? Do we believe our wish will be granted when we pray in a

community for a particular intention? Let us share these experiences of community prayer...

For prayer

We create a peacefulatmosphere with meditativemusic and we gradually

create silence in our hearts.

Artists’ workshop: Hands in prayer

We cut out two hands and stick them one behind the other.On one side is written : Lord, I pray to you for…. And on theother side: Lord, I thank you for… We decorate a box to holdthem (see page 92).

We read Matthew’s Gospel.The community chaplain or the person who leads the prayerinvites everyone to write or draw a personal prayer on thepaper hand. When everyone has finished, the chaplaintakes the box, slips his prayer in it and passes it to his/herneighbour. The neighbour holds it for a few momentsagainst his/her heart, silently uniting him/herself to this

intention. He/she then slips his/her prayer into the box,passes it to his/her neighbour and so on. At the end, thechaplain places the box in the centre of the prayer corner.

Lord, we pray to you for all the Faith and Light communities

around the world. Help them to fulfil their mission, which is

to announce the prophetic vocation of our friends with a

disability in the Church.

Lord, we pray to you for the parish community which iswelcoming us, so that they can discover a new and intimate

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relationship with Jesus through the simplicity of our

meetings.

Lord, we pray to you for the contemplative communities

which are twinned with Faith and Light communitiesthroughout the world. May their prayer help us to remain

faithful to the Faith and Light identity. Amen!

We can bring objects to the prayer corner that represent ourmoments of friendship and we say the Faith and Lightprayer together (see page 104).

Prayer of a poor person Jesus, we want to follow you in community.

To celebrateA present for everyoneWe are seated in a circle. Each personwrites his/her name on the bottom of apiece of paper and passes it to his/her

neighbour on the right, The neighbourthen writes something at the top of thepage that he/she appreciates about theperson whose name is at the bottom ofthe sheet.

Then he folds over the bottom of the sheet where he/she has just written, passes it to his/her neighbour and so on. Thepapers keep circulating. Each person writes what they

appreciate on the sheet without looking at what the othershave written. When the sheet reaches its owner, he/shereceives it as a present given by each member of thecommunity.

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November

…

with thosewho are in Heaven

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Jeanne is on the brink of passing: like a small candle, sheis weakening and her life is almost at an end. She, whowas so strong and energetic during her very long life,

weighs less than thirty kilos, her breathe is short andthose closest to her no longer see in her what was their motherand grandmother. But Charlotte, her granddaughter withDowns Syndrome, is there and both in their weaknessesidentify with each other and hold on to one another! What ishappening between Jeanne and Charlotte at this time? Theyoung girl knows that her gran, whatever her appearance maybe, is still the same person who has tenderly loved her since

birth; Jeanne feels that her granddaughter is the only one whoremembers what she has always been and who will soon be foreternity with those who have gone before her. Charlotte, whosedisability has not weakened the quality of her heart and heraffectionate feelings, has the intuition that their relationship oflove, their alliance of love will not stop the next morning whenJeanne’s worn out heart ceases to beat, that she will remainalive in her heart, that they will be able to carry on laughing like

they have so often.

We have all experienced bereavements like that in ourcommunities: a dad, a mum, a friend or a person with adisability who had gone to the house of the Father, too early,too quickly and we have a heavy heart, thinking of the greatemptiness that they leave in us when they go. Let us not forgetthem and let us take the time to name all those who have

attended our community meetings; let the people with anintellectual disability help us, through their simplicity, to

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remember those who were our companions in joy as well as intears!

Too often, the memories of the dead revive in us the anxietyabout our own death, just as people with a disability remind ustoo often of our own disabilities, those that we hide so well… Solet us remember that our friends with a disability, those whoare already in Heaven with Jesus, are preparing a beautifulplace for us at their side! We will do there great farandoles, thesame as the one we usually do each month; let us not be shyand wholeheartedly accept the hand that is held out to us

today because the friendship that we experience at Faith andLight will bear much fruit.

Friendship deepens when time is spent together. Between

meetings, community members like to meet in small groups or

simply in twos or threes: they talk about their lives, their fears,

their hopes, etc; they pray, give service, relax and share a meal

or other activities that feed friendship: this is the time of

"allegiance", also known as the fourth time. (Charter I, 4)


At Faith and Light, we are discovering the value offaithfulness in plenitude.

We remember all those who have shared their life inFaith and Light with us: we offer our imperfect prayer,

and they in Heaven take perfect care of us.

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Hand in handThis month, we are discovering the value offaithfulness in plenitude, a faithfulness that goes

above and beyond death and physical separation.On the calendar we place the seed that falls toground, dies, germinates and bears plenty of fruit(see page 90).


Upon arrival each person receives a little

bag of wheat or flower seeds.

For sharing

Together: A grain of wheat falls into the

earth, John 12: 24-26

The value of people

We will bring along a photocopy of a

bank note. The leader asks us all howmuch the note is worth.

Then we start to damage the note, we write on it, screw it upand tear off a corner… Between each phase of damageinflicted, the leader asks: And how much is it worth now? Evenin a sorry state, it still has the same value.

It is the same thing in our community, but actually it is better

than that. Because the community, despite everything that ithas endured, still has the same, or even a greater value,although the average age has gone up. Today some membersare much more important than others because they are withGod. There are new communities which have not yet lost anymembers, so they can remember the members of our families.

We can look at old photographs of the community. We will see

that some are still there, whilst others are in Heaven. But theyare all part of our community.

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Ascending to Heaven Although they are no longer physically with us, those who are inHeaven are still there and continue to bear fruit in thecommunity. Father Xavier Llundain (former chaplain for Spain)said: I am sure that I will have no problem getting in to Heaven

because I know many people who are there already. We can mime this scene: a few friends and parents arrive atthe gate of Heaven and form a long queue. People or childrenwith a disability are talking to Jesus (or Peter). What they aresaying is very important. They ask for their friends or theirparents in the queue to get a badge so that they can get theremore quickly (see page 92).

The flavour of the waterThis helps us understand that people, when they die, are nolonger with us physically but the mark of what they have left inthe community is very significant, even if we can no longer seeor hear them.The leader fills a jug of water and gives it to some of the groupto drink from, and asks them what taste it has. Then, he/she

adds a few soup spoonfuls of sugar, gives this to the samepeople to drink and asks them the same question. The sugarhas dissolved in the water and you can no longer see it but youknow that it is there because the taste has changed. It is thesame thing for people in our community or family who havepassed away. We cannot see them but we know that they arestill by our sides.

In small groups (Prepare a feedback for your VPC) Let us remember those who we miss in Faith and Light.

We can tell the new people who these people were andwhat we learnt from them.

Do we believe that they are taking care of us from up inHeaven?

Do we believe that they will help us to enter Heaven more

quickly?

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For prayer

We create a peaceful

atmosphere with meditativemusic and we graduallycreate silence in our hearts.

In our prayer corner, we have placed a photo of the communityand photos of our friends who are in Heaven.

We read John’s Gospel.

We are invited to spontaneously name the members of ourcommunity who are with the Father. The chaplain gives eachperson a lighted candle which we go and place next to thephotos as we say out loud: Thank you (first name) for taking

care of me from up in Heaven.

As not everybody in the community has the text, the chaplain

will recite this prayer that we will all repeat sentence aftersentence.

God of mercy and love,

we commit our brothers to your loving hands.

In this life, you showed them your abundant love

and now they are freed of all suffering.

Grant them happiness and eternal peace.

Their earthly life is over,welcome them in paradise

where there is no more pain, nor tears, nor suffering

but where peace and joy reign with your Son Jesus

and the Holy Spirit for evermore.

Amen!

Prayer of a poor person Jesus, you take care of me.

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To celebrate Game:

Entanglement

The roots tangle themselves around therocks in the soil so that they can keephold of the plant and prevent it beingblown away by the wind. The roots sinkdeep down into the ground to find thewater that they need.

As if we were roots, we grab the hand of a person, providedthat this person is not next to us. Then we go and search for

another hand by passing underneath or over... until we are allcompletely tangled up. Then we try and untangle ourselveswithout letting go of each other’s hands.

Artists’ workshop: Plant the seeds Required equipment: Little pot (or glass or plastic yoghurtpot that we can decorate), soil and a small amount offertiliser.

We fill the pots up with soil and sow three or four seeds thatwe received at the beginning of the meeting in them. Wecover the seeds with another layer of soil. Once back athome, rather than watering them, we spray water on the soilseveral times a day until the seeds have germinated, thenwe water them. Then, all we have to do is wait a few days forthe seeds to grow, and a few months to see the floweropen... with plenty of patience and hope!

The Advent calendarTo prepare our hearts to welcome Jesus we can make anadvent calendar (see page 93). Each day this will suggest areflection, a prayer or a gesture.

The first week will be focused on asking forgiveness. The second will be focused on prayer.

The third will be focused on proclaiming the Good News.

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During the fourth and final week, we will be celebratingthe joy of the Lord's coming.

We will put the Advent calendar in a clearly visible place athome and, each day, we will take a few moments to reflectand pray as we read the daily reflection or do the suggestedactivity1.

After opening that day’s little window, we can colour in thedrawing. Once Jesus is born, we will have a beautiful tree thatwill remind us of how we have prepared our hearts for his

coming.

1 See on the website: http://www.faithandlight.org/rubriques/haut/downloads

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December

…

to goto the manger

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In Provence, in the south of France, there is a great andbeautiful custom: to celebrate Christmas, the Nativity isrepresented by very beautiful mangers with santons, whichare small terracotta figures painted with the colours of

traditional costumes. In these "Provençal" nativities, there is avery important figure, it is even said that if it isn’t there, thenativity is not a true nativity: it is ravi ("Lou ravi" in the

"Provençal" language). His arms are raised in the air and hemarvels with strong demonstrations of joy before the infantJesus: he recognises the frailty of this child who has just beenborn in the precariousness of a stable because he is himselffragile and often made fun of in his village because of hissimple spirit. And it is he, with a very communicative joy, who isgoing to take the hand of all the village people and lead themto Jesus! We have lost our ability to marvel and our world has

lost the joy in an ever more frantic quest for power and wealth.Fortunately, people with a disability have not lost the sense ofall life and they can take us back to the basics: let’s be guidedby them and find, hand in hand with them, our child soul. Marycan help us to marvel, she who gave us such a beautifulprayer:

My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God mySaviour, for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his

servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call meblessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me,and holy is his name (Lk 1: 46-49).

For this Christmas celebration, in the mime we are going toprepare, leave a large space for "Lou ravi", there will be morethan one person wanting to take this role! And we can, witheveryone holding each other’s hand following "Lou ravi", dreamof a world that could be so beautiful if our friends with an

intellectual disability could be welcomed in their rightful placein the world:

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we dream of a world in which the "ravis" of our Faith andLight communities would be our masters of joy!

we dream of a world in which our "ravis", in the villages,

would remind us how much fragility strengthens solidaritywithout ever excluding anybody,

we dream of a world in which our "ravis", in the parishes,remind us (at times by disturbing the beautiful choir songs!)that the smallest are those who it is important to resemblein order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven,

we dream of a world in which our "ravis", in families, cancreate harmonious relationships, they really feel tensions as

soon as they appear.The suffering and tears that a child with a disability causesinto a family must not be denied but if this is the price to pay topermanently remind the world that wonderment, solidarity,helping one another and joy are the main reference valuesthen yes, three times yes, may they be welcome, may they beour guides to efficiently lead our “Copernican revolution”!

Cardinal Rylko, president of the Pontifical Council of the

Laity in Rome, a number of years after getting to know us, wasable to say, "You in l’Arche and in Faith and Light, you have

created a true Copernican revolution, it is no longer you who

have done good things to persons with disabilities, but you say

that it is they who have done good things for you!” (Jean Vanierin the prologue to Marie Hélène Mathieu’s book “Never againalone” p. xxiv)


At Faith and Light, we are discovering the value ofwonder in the face of small things.

Like the shepherds, we welcome the announcement ofJesus' birth. We are full of wonder and go and offer our joy to others.

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Hand in hand

On our calendar, we put a drawing of a new-born toremind ourselves that one of the most beautiful

values of the person with a disability is theircapacity to provide wonder (see page 90).


Each member of the community shares awonderful thing that has happened to themthis year.

For sharing

Relive the Gospel togetherThe birth of Jesus, Luke 2, 1-14

First sceneChristmas music or carol.A Roman soldier appears playing the

trumpet. Then he unfolds a parchment.

Narrator: In those days a decree went out from Emperor

Augustus that all the world should be registered. Mary andJoseph enter. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went

from the town of Nazareth in Galilee in Judea, to the city of

David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the

house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary,to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child.

Mary and Joseph sit down, while some members of the groupcreate a cave above them with their arms and hands.

We all sing, for example: Silent night, holy night or any otherChristmas carol.

Narrator: While they were there, the time came for her to

deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son. Shewrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger,

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because there was no place for them at the inn. Someone putsan image of the baby Jesus in Mary's arms, a doll or a baby. Weresume the song all together.

Second sceneEach person receives an image of the shepherd or the "ravi",which they attach to their clothes. Four or five people are givenan image of an angel (see page 93). We all move to the otherend of the room, except Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus.The shepherds form a semi-circle. One person dressed up asan angel moves to the centre, facing the community, his arms

open wide in front of him.Narrator: There were shepherds living in the fields, keeping

watch over their flock by night. Suddenly an angel of the Lord

stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around

them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them:

Angel: Do not be afraid, for I am bringing you good news of

great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of

David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord. You will find

him wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.Those who are carrying the drawing of the angel rejoin theangel who has just spoken.

Narrator: And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of

the heavenly host, praising God and saying:

The angels: Glory to God in the highest Heaven! On earth

peace among those who he favours!

Narrator: The shepherds said to one another: Let us go now toBethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the

Lord has made known to us.

Third Scene

Each person receives a picture of a sheep (see page 93). Theangels reveal the way and the shepherds follow them until they

surround Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus, who are waiting forthem.<0}

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Each person in turn goes to place the image of the sheep atthe feet of the baby Jesus and kisses him.

Narrator: So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph,

and the child laying in the manger. When they saw this, they

made known what had been told them about this child; and all

who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them.

But Mary treasured all these words and held them in her heart.

The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all

they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

In small groups (Prepare a feedback for your VPC)

Tell the story of when our friends who have a disabilityhave been amazed by little things, when they haveastounded us by their words and gestures. These fioretti

[little gestures] are very important in Faith and Light.Somebody will carefully note down the two or three fioretti which seem the most touching and most tender to us, andwe will hand these to the leader.

For prayer

We create a peacefulatmosphere with meditativemusic and we gradually createsilence in our hearts.

The chaplain or the person leading the prayer time giveseveryone a star (see page 94) and briefly explains the process.

We read Luke’s Gospel.

The chaplain explains that the star of Bethlehem guided thethree wise men to Jesus. But Jesus continues to be born everyday. There are still so many places and so many hearts thatneed the peace and joy that the birth of Jesus brings. Eachperson writes on the star a place or a person whose life could

be changed by the birth of Jesus and places the star next tothe manger.

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Father so kind,

Help us to prepare our hearts

to welcome the baby Jesus with love, joy and hope.

We ask that the baby Jesusis also born in our hearts

so that we can offer to others

the love that you give us each day.

King of Heaven and earth, preserve our lives in peace.

May peace reign in our country and all over the earth.

"God with us" who wanted to be born in a family,

Blessed our homes so that love always reigns there.

Remember families in particularwho are alone or suffering

during these Christmas celebrations.

Let them be consoled to know that they are children

from the big family of God. Amen!

Prayer of a poor person Jesus, you are in my heart.

To celebrate Game: Carols

We get in pairs and choose the title ofa Christmas carol, which we then writedown on two pieces of paper. We putall the papers in a basket. Each personpicks out a piece of paper.

Then we roam around the room singing the carol that we havepicked out, looking for the person who is singing the samecarol as us. The first ones to find each other sing together infront of all the community.

Artists’ workshop : A manger We draw a manger featuring all the characters we can thinkof... We can use modelling clay or cut out the figures (seepage 94).

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January

…

for christianunity

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We are going to continue our journey this month withour friend "Lou ravi" who helped us to marvel at theinfant Jesus in the manger. We need so much awethat he is still going to help us.

Our communities are diverse and varied, they welcomemembers from various Christian denominations and at times,it is hard to understand and appreciate the way in which eachperson prays, praises and celebrates; the liturgies can be very

different from one faith to another and that stops us being incommunion with each other whilst we share so many otherthings!

Ecumenism isn’t something anecdotal in Faith and Light, weare in a movement that IS ecumenical. We are ONE becausethe weak and person with a disability can become a source ofunity in society and in each Church and also between Churchesand nations (Charter I, 5). It is the prophetic mission of people

with intellectual disability, they guide us towards communion:being very sensitive to strife, being unable to cope withinterpersonal tension, they find peace and joy in thecommunion.

Our friend, "lou ravi", is going to come and hold our handand invite us to break down walls and build bridges so we gaina better knowledge of the various Churches in which ourcommunities are anchored:

get to know more about each other in order to betterunderstand and know the points that link us and those thatseparate us,

get to know more about each other by going and meetingeach other: not far from our communities, there arecertainly Christians from other denominations. Let us goand invite them, let them discover Faith and Light, helpthem – why not? – to start a Faith and Light community in

their Church,

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Hand in hand

In January, we celebrate the week of prayer for theunity of Christians. We will study the value of unity

in diversity and the symbol that we will place on ourcalendar is a rowing boat split in two, whose twohalves fit together perfectly. These two parts arenecessary to build the identity of Faith and Light(see page 90).


We embrace everyone who arrives at themeeting.

For sharing

Together, make a single body

We make four groups. The leader ex-

plains that there will be a competition.We have prepared a series of questions

for this in advance on our community

and province. They will be very easy so

that everyone can answer.

Each time that a team answers a ques-tion correctly, they will receive part of afigure (head, arms, torso or legs) to

rebuild the body (see page 94).The person distributing the parts of the figure hands out thesame pieces several times to the same group. And even if theteams answer correctly to the questions, they will not be ableto rebuild the figure. This demonstrates that we need to havedifferent parts to build a single body. The team that managesto build the figure first will receive a warm round of applause....And all the others as well!

1 https://www.oikoumene.org/en/about-us/about-us?set_language=en

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In small groups (Prepare a feedback for your VPC) How do we feel when a member of the community is ill or

has a problem that makes them suffer? What do we feelwhen a member of the community has to go far away, andwe have become separated?

What would the community be missing if the person on myright was no longer there? We can all say this person'sgifts out loud.

For prayer

We create a peaceful atmos-phere with meditative musicand we gradually create si-lence in our hearts.

A large goblet is placed in the prayer corner. The chaplain givesa glass to each person and briefly explains how the prayer willunfold.

We read the text from Paul 1 Cor 12: 12-26.The community leader pours a drop of water in each glass. Westrike up a song on unity and we all go together to pour somewater in the goblet as a sign of unity in diversity. This waterrepresents our life and, through this gesture, we want to putour lives at the service of the community.

Lord, make me a channel of your peace!

Where there is hatred, let me sow love.Where there is injury your pardon Lord.

Where there is discord, let me bring union.

Where there is error, let me bring truth.

Where there’s doubt true faith in you.

Where there is despair, let me bring hope.

Where there are shadows, let me bring light.

Where there is sadness, let me bring joy.

O Master grant that I may not so much seek

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to be consoled as to console,

to be understood as to understand,

to be loved, as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive,it is in forgetting ourselves that we find,

it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,

it is in dying that we are born again to eternal life. Amen!

Saint Francis of Assisi

Prayer of a poor person Jesus, you teach me to love.

To celebrate Game: Does the shepherd know his

own sheep?

Do we know ourselves as well as wethink we do? Taking it in turns, oneplayer goes to the centre of the circle

He/she writes down the name of a person from the community(or known in Faith and Light) on a piece of paper.We ask him/her all sorts of questions to find out who this per-son is. They can only respond with Yes, No or I don’t know. Ifthe person is identified quickly, then it is true that we knowourselves just as well as the shepherd knows his sheep.Or:

Recognising ourselves

A player leaves the room for several minutes. Meanwhile, twopeople hide behind a sheet and only show their hands.Whose hands are they?

Artists’ workshop: The tangram

This is a Chinese game made up of seven pieces which canbe arranged in many different combinations to create shapes(see page 95). All the pieces must be used to reproduce a

shape. The results will be surprising… We are a lot more crea-tive together, in a community, than alone.

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February

…to celebrate,

all generationstogether

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Every year, we celebrate the Presentation of Jesus at theTemple, a day of celebration in all Faith and Lightcommunities across the world. The choice of this datewas not the result of a long discernment: in 1972, a

community in France decided that its annual celebration wouldtake place on this day and this decision spread across theworld like wild fire!

A young couple went to the Temple in Jerusalem to obey theBible commandment: Every firstborn male shall be designated

as holy to the Lord (Lk 2: 23). They carried with them a coupleof turtle-doves for the sacrifice prescribed by the law of theLord, a sign that Joseph and Mary were not a rich family. Andthere, they had some astonishing meetings, in particular withtwo "elders" who were awaiting their arrival: Simeon whose

prophecy resonates sadly in the heart of the mums in ourcommunities: and a sword will pierce your own soul too (Lk 2:35). Anne, according to her at that moment she came, and

began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who

were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem (Lk 2: 38).This meeting of five people from three different generations

is a beautiful image of our communities: when they gathertogether, families bringing together all ages, it a sign of vitality

and perennialism! When there are in a community or in acrowd of people of all ages, babies, young people adults andgrandparents, you can say: here is a great and beautiful family

which is meant to last!

For this feast of Light, let us take the time to get wellprepared, may it be joyful and full of songs and dances! Andthe prophesy of Simeon will illuminate the Light and the Hope

of the Resurrection. Then shall the young women rejoice in the

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dance, and the young men and the old shall be merry. I will

turn their mourning into joy, I will comfort them, and give them

gladness for sorrow (Jer 31: 13). And God will wipe away all

tears from our eyes, our joy will be infectious! (cf. Acts 21: 4and 7: 17). We will be able to go, like Anne, and hold handswith other people, those who are waiting to hear our GoodNews! There is no age limit on being a missionary of joy: at 84years old, anything is possible!

Hand in hand

This month, we will be working on the value of the joy of living in the big Faith and Light family. All thecommunities in the world celebrate the Feast ofLight. So the drawing is a candle (see page 90).

Thanks to the light, we can reveal ourselves and discover

others, as people who are precious and worthy of being loved,and this brings us an immense joy.

Welcome and reunion

Upon arrival, each person is given a cardof a smiling face (see page 95).

Focus on the theme of the month At Faith and Light, we are discovering the joy of being in

a family.

In community, parents offer their child, as the Holy Familydid at the Temple. Through the community’s welcome,they receive a new light, full of joy.

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Simeon: Master, now you are dismissing your servant in

peace, according to your word. For my eyes have seen your

salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all

peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.

We strike up a song on light. Simeon returns the child to Mary.Joseph puts the cage down at the foot of the altar, a fewpeople light their candle from the big candle and pass on thelight to the assembly. We turn off the electric lights and, as westand holding our candles high, we continue to sing. Then weswitch the lights back on and blow out the candles.

Narrator: And the child’s father and mother were amazed at

what was being said about him. Then Simeon blessed them

and said to his mother Mary:

Simeon: This child is destined for the falling and the rising of

many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed and a

sword will pierce your own soul too. so that the inner thoughts

of many will be revealed.

Joseph, Mary and Jesus headed to the back of the church totake off their costumes and re-join the assembly.

Narrator: They returned to Galilee, to their own town of

Nazareth. The child grew and became strong, filled with

wisdom; and the favour of God was upon him.


What are my concerns and my main difficulties? How can

Faith and Light help me to accept them and to live thembetter? Can parents explain how Faith and Light led them to see

their child in a new light? Let us remind ourselves of the moments of joy that we

have experienced in our community: feasts, celebrations,holiday camps, pilgrimages... And let us give thecommunity leader ideas for new projects.

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For prayer

We create a peaceful

atmosphere with meditativemusic and we graduallycreate silence in our hearts.

In our prayer corner, we place an image of the holy familysurrounded by candles to be used during the mime.


The leader invites each person to offer the Lord a painful

moment from his life in front of the icon. One at a time, weeach approach the icon, kneel down and, hand on heart, offerup our suffering. Then we hold out our arms in a sign of anoffering. At the end, the chaplain or the prayer leader invitesthe community members to close their eyes to put themselvesin the presence of God by saying:

You are loved by God. Imagine Mary, she tells Jesus all that

you have confided to her (moment of silence).

Imagine that both of them come up to you, kiss you and tell you that they love you. Look around you at all these people

who they have put by your sides to remind you of their love and

to fill you with joy (silence). Open your eyes and look all around you. Do you see all these

people who are looking at you and smiling? It is the love that

the Lord has wanted to give you to fill your life.

Each person will receive the light and with it consolation and

joy. The chaplain lights all the candles, calls up a member fromeach family and accompanies them as they bring the light backto their nearest and dearest.

Song: If you think that Jesus loves youIf you think that Jesus loves you, clap your hands (repeat)If you think that Jesus loves you,if you think that Jesus loves you,

1 Listen to the melody: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tWmdTJ_I3fo

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March

…standing together

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With 1500 communities on five continents, it could be

said that the variety of circumstances is veryimportant! The communities in France, Rwanda,Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Zimbabwe, Poland, Italy,

Lithuania, Canada, Egypt etc. are all very different.

And yet we all have the same blueprint for our meetings, weuse the same Guidelines, our identity is the same and all thatis implemented in the variety of cultures, religious faiths and

languages.

In December 1997, while visiting an African community, aEuropean coordinator was about to leave at the end of themorning when the national coordinator took his arm and toldhim in private that, unusually, they had planned a lunch tothank him for visiting them. Usually, there wasn’t a meal due tothe poverty of the community members. It was therefore

impossible and most impolite to go! There are also some othercommunities where a lot of time is spent around the table aftera good aperitif.

The life of a Faith and Light community must be the sameeverywhere, the disparities in local economic circumstancesshould be limited; it is vital that we do all that we can to ensurethat everyone experiences the community meetings in the

same way, the strongest supporting the weakest, like a family.The first solidarity is that of the community where thedisparities are greatest, then there is the province (someprovinces include countries with quite varied developingeconomies), and finally that of the international level.

There is always much joy in the secretariat when theyreceive cards full of signatures thanking those who have

allowed an important event to happen for a country or province(meeting, formation, retreat, pilgrimage, summer camp…)!

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During Lent, it is time to think about the Announcing andSharing 1 day if it hasn’t already happened, it is time to thinkabout our community being part of a large family in which we

should be taking care of each other! We share financialconcerns, as well as the joy and pain, joy for the beautifulevents and pain for the sad events (wars, natural disasters),especially when they affect friends of our communities.

The Charter reminds us: In each province, in each country,

we bear the burdens, suffering and joys of each other.

Solidarity is expressed through financial support for the life of

Faith and Light as well as through the sharing of specificdonations and the wisdom of experience, friendship and the

loyalty in prayer. Members of the same family, at the heart of

the communities is the desire to live in unity and love (CharterIII, 4).

He has so arranged the body that there may be nodissension within the body, but the members may have the

same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffertogether with it; if one member is honoured, all rejoice togetherwith it. Now you are the body of Christ and individuallymembers of it (1 Co 12: 24-26).


In Faith and Light, we are discovering the value ofsharing.

In our communities, we share our property and our gifts.Jesus transforms them and multiplies them.

1 See on the website: www.faithandlight.org/rubriques/haut/downloads

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Hand in hand

On our calendar, we put the drawing of the breadand the fish, which reminds us of the value of

sharing what we are and what we have (see page90).


Upon arrival, each person receives amedallion with five loaves and two fish onit. We all wear it around our necks during

the meeting (see page 95).

For sharing Relive the Gospel together

The multiplication of the bread

Mark 6: 34-44

We will ask five people from the

community to bring a roll with them.Two others will bring the drawing of afish.

In the background a drawing of a rowing boat will providedecoration for the scene (see page 96).

Jesus, accompanied by several disciples, finds himself in frontof the assembly, his hand outstretched towards them as if

speaking to them.

Narrator: As he went ashore, he saw a great crowd, and he

had compassion for them, because they were like sheep

without a shepherd, and he began to teach them many things.

When it grew late, his disciples came to him and said:

One disciple: This is a deserted place, and the hour is very

late. Send them away so that they may go into the surrounding

country and villages and buy something for themselves to eat.

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Jesus: You give them something to eat.

One disciple: Are we to go and buy two hundred denarii

worth of bread, and give it to them to eat?

Jesus: How many loaves have you?

One disciple (addressing the crowd): Who has brought some

bread? The people who have brought loaves and fish give themto the disciple who puts them in a basket and presents it toJesus.

One disciple: We have five loaves and two fish.

Narrator: Jesus ordered them to get all the people to sit down

in groups on the green grass. Taking the five loaves and the

two fish, he looked up to Heaven, and blessed and broke the

loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people.

There were groups of hundreds and of fifties. And he divided

the two fish among them. And all ate and were filled, and they

filled up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and the fish.

Those who had eaten the loaves numbered five thousand men.

We strike up a song of thanksgiving.

Each disciple, with the bread broken, forms a group of six orseven people and gathers them in a corner of the room forsharing in small groups.

In small groups (Prepare a feedback for your VPC) Is it difficult for me to share what I have? Do I do this

easily? What do I feel when I am sharing with myneighbour?

How could I help Faith and Light communities in countrieswhich have few resources and which are experiencing waror persecution? We are looking for ideas to respond tomaterial needs, but also to spiritual ones.

Who amongst my close friends and family needs help (inthe parish, neighbourhood or in our own community)?

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For prayer

We create a peacefulatmosphere with meditative

music and we graduallycreate silence in our hearts.

We wear the medallion representing the loaves and the fisharound our necks.The leader explains that the loaves are the gifts and qualitiesthat Jesus has given us at our birth. The fish are all thematerial things that we are fortunate to have.

We read Mark’s Gospel. After reading the Gospel, the chaplain or the person leadingthe prayer time invites everyone to close their eyes and toimagine that we are meeting Jesus that very afternoon whilethe miracle of the multiplication of the loaves is taking place.The chaplain describes the scene.

Imagine that we are with Jesus on the edge of the lake andlistening to him say:

Look around you at all these people in the world

who are needy.

(Time of silence, quiet music)

Listen to Jesus tell our hearts:

You give them something to eat. (Time of silence, quiet music)


What will you do with your loaves and your fish?

(Time of silence, quiet music)


Do not be afraid, I am with you. (Time of silence, quiet music)

After this time of meditation, the leader invites each of usindividually to say how we could share our loaves (our gifts)

and our fish (our property).We end this prayer time with a Lord’s Prayer with gestures.

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Prayer of a poor person

Jesus, teach me to share.

To celebrate Game:

The loaves and the fishes

We get into two teams: The "loaves"team and the "fish" team. The leadergives the "loaves" team around fifteencards representing fish and the "fish"team around fifteen cards representingloaves (see page 95).

The game unfolds in two parts. The "loaves" leave the room.During this time the "fish" conceal their cards more or lessanywhere (under a chair, on the wall, stuck to someone'sback...). The "loaves" come back and have four minutes to findas many cards as they can. Then it is the turn of the "fish"team….

Artists’ workshop: The paper chains

We make paper chains of loaves and fish to show how theymiraculously multiply. By unfolding the paper chain, you seea long line of loaves and fish appear, each one connected toanother one (see page 96).

1 See Video: www.faithandlight.org/rubriques/haut/video

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April

…

in sufferingas well as in joy

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With the various Christian traditions, it may happenthat some of us will be in the joy of Easter time andwill be able to shout out: Alleluia, He is risen! likethis year in April whilst others will still be in Lent until

1st May! What about the unity amongst us?

We know that Faith and Light was born during Holy Week

and that the 12 000 pilgrims there in Lourdes experiencedtogether this passing from suffering to joy, this passing fromdeath to life. We are no longer afraid of the tears of thosesuffering because we know that they are going to end up joyful, a paschal joy. We experience the resurrection of Christat each Eucharist liturgy, we also experience it at eachcommunity meeting. We love that our ways of the cross do notstop at the fourteenth station, but include a few extra stations

which show that it did not all stop with the placing into thetomb, as in the small booklet by Jean Vanier who proposesthree additional meditations: "Mary awaiting the resurrection","The appearance to Mary Magdalene" and "Theophany of therisen Christ to the Emmaus disciples"1.

The same thing sometimes happens in our communitieswhen some are happy and others are sad: we are not all at the

same point in our journey following Jesus, but we are alltravelling in the same direction, we are helping each other togo forward, the strong helping the weak and vice versa. Duringone pilgrimage, when we all had to walk outside with a litcandle, a lot of them went out; as there was always a lit candlesomewhere, we were all able to get to our goal with our light!In this same pilgrimage, several people who came to

1 http://fidelite.be/livre-Chemin-de-Croix-756.html (in French)

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accompany a person in a wheelchair could say: I came toaccompany them but actually it is they who are accompanyingme!

During this meeting in this uncertain month, when we arepreparing to become witnesses of the risen Christ, whilstothers have already experienced the joy of the Risen Christ, wemust take care of each other, we are helping to transform our

hearts of stone into hearts of flesh. Whether we are happy orsad, we always have at our side a friend ready to hold our handand help us along the road of Life. This is the essence of our

commitment to our Faith and Light community. Despite the suffering and through it, the community becomes a place of

peace and joy (Charter II, 2 p.11).


In Faith and Light, we are discovering the value of healinghearts.

In the community, we recognise our wounds, we allowourselves to be healed too that we can heal in our turn

and can share our joy.

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Hand in hand

We stick a sad face and a happy face on ourcalendar, which symbolise the change that takes

place within us in Faith and Light when our heart ishealed by our friends (see page 90).


We will have produced two large faces,one happy and one sad (see page 96).Each of them is welcomed by a memberof the community and both will pose for aphoto in front of the drawing.

The person who is welcomed will stand on a stool so that onthe photo, he or she is taller than the person welcoming them.Wait…. Smile!

For sharing

Relive the Gospel together

Jesus washes the feet of his disciplesJohn 13: 1-15

We can relive this scene during aliturgical celebration, during Holy Week,a retreat or during a special meeting….

Twelve people sit down in a semi-circle facing the assembly. Ona side table, there is a loaf of bread and a goblet of wine. Jesus

is seated at table. On the ground, there is a bowl, a towel and apitcher.

Narrator: Now before the festival of the Passover, Jesus knew

that his hour had come to depart from this world and go to the

Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved

them to the end.

Jesus stands up, places the bowl in front of one of the twelve,

takes the pitcher and the towel, and kneels at his feet.

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Narrator: And during supper, Jesus, knowing that the Father

had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from

God and was going to God, got up from the table, took off his

outer robe, and tied a towel around himself. Then he pouredwater into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to

wipe them with the towel that was tied around him.

He came to Simon Peter, who said to him:

Peter: You will never wash my feet!

He gestures no.

Jesus: Unless I wash you, you have no share with me.

Peter: Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!Jesus washes Peter's feet and goes back to sit on his centralseat.

Narrator: After he had washed their feet, had put on his robe,

and returned to the table. He then said to them:

Jesus: Do you know what I have done to you? You call me

Teacher and Lord and you are right, for that is what I am. So if

I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also

ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have set you anexample, that you also should do as I have done to you.

We strike up "Ubi caritas" or any other meditative refrain.

The chaplain or the leader will explain how we will live thiswashing of the feet celebration1.

Washing of the feet celebration

The disciples spread out in the room and groups of five to eightpeople form around them. We sit down in a circle. The disciplefrom one group puts the drawing of the washing of the feetaround each person's neck (see page 96). In the middle ofeach group there is a jug of water, a bowl and a towel. Webegin by washing the feet of our neighbour on the right. Then

1 The washing of the feet: www.faithandlight.org/rubriques/haut/downloads

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we place hands on his head in a sign of recognition andblessing. The washing of the feet ceremony takes place insilence or with background music to encourage interiority.

In small groups (Prepare a feedback for your VPC) What did I feel during this celebration? Do I know how to recognise my wounds and my

weaknesses? Do I allow myself to be helped by others? Who can help me to heal my wounds at Faith and Light?

Can I say when it was that the littlest one cured me? How can I put myself at the service of others in the

community? What does the community expect from me?

To celebrate Game: Facial expressions

We will have made images of facesshowing different emotions (see page96). We make a pile of them. The firstperson comes and draws out an imagewithout showing it to the others.

He or she must demonstrate the emotion shown using signlanguage. The person who guesses the correct emotion drawsthe next card.

Artists’ workshop: Mister Potato

We make a face with moveable parts (eyes, eyebrows andmouth) and we move them around to change Mister Potato’s

expression (see page 97).

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May

…to respond

to our calling

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At the end of the day in February 1818, young Antoine,12 years old, saw the arrival of a carriage with a youngpriest walking beside it. This young priest had just beenappointed parish priest for Ars and was just taking up

his post. After a day of walking, he must have been very tiredbecause he had started off very early in the morning.

Seeing the young boy, the priest asked him the way.Antoine pointed him in the direction of the village. Well, my

friend, Jean-Marie Vianney said to him, bending over, you have showed me the road to Ars, I will show you the road to Heaven.He should have added (cf. Mt 25: 23): Well done, you have

been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of

many things; enter into the joy of your master.

Jean-Marie Vianney almost didn’t become a priest! Having alot of difficulties in learning Latin, he had been deemed tooweak and sent back to his parish priest. But the latter knew

how to persuade the vicar generals that the piety of the youngJean-Marie was large enough to make up for his lack ofknowledge and he was ordained as a priest.

In each of our communities, we are always dependant oneach other, as well as the people with an intellectual disabilityand the community coordinator, the coordinating teammembers and the chaplain! We should never be afraid to askfor help, like this person with a disability who came to ask for

help from a friend by saying: Just by myself, I am not able.Chaplains today no longer need us to show them the way,

there is GPS which does that very well but there are alwayspriests to show us the way to Heaven! GPS can perhaps be abeautiful metaphor of the call God makes to us; with an alwayseven voice, it shows us the road to follow and when we straytoo far, it tells us without ever getting angry: if able, turnaround. It means: convert.

Our communities are places where – let’s be certain of it – this desire to go and meet Jesus can be matured. There are so

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many testimonies from chaplains saying how much theirvocation is linked to contact with the smallest and thevulnerable. And what has happened carries on… Jesus

continues to call, some of us have born witness to that quiterecently! It is vital that we pay attention to these beautifulthings which happen close to us, it is vital to encourage eachperson to discern the calls that God makes to us, for bothsmall or big things, it is vital that no-one is afraid ofcommitment, even the most radical commitment if that is whatJesus is calling us to. God is supremely faithful in his promises(Charles Péguy) and will always be at our side to accompany us

on the road that we are following to hear again what God toldus on the day of our baptism: This is my Son, the Beloved, with

whom I am well pleased (Mt 3: 17).

We have an amazing opportunity to be able to clearly hearthe calls of God, to be able to benefit from the help of friendsin our community; so, all together, hand in hand, let us showeach other the road to Heaven!


At Faith and Light, we are discovering the value ofaccompaniment.

In community, we offer our time and our presence. Likethe Emmaus disciples, the road to heaven is revealed tous.

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Hand in hand

This month, the heart on fire that we have for ourcalendar reminds us of the value of

accompaniment that we give and receive in thecommunity. This accompaniment is necessary todeepen our commitment and so that we can allremain faithful to our calling (see page 90).


Upon arrival, each person receives a little

ribbon that we swap with anothermember of the community. By doing thiswe are committing ourselves to pray forthis person throughout the month.

For sharing

Relive the Gospel together The Emmaus pilgrims, Luke 24: 13-35

An alternative setup could be to have ashadow theatre (people standingbehind a thin white cloth and aspotlight)

The scene could include a narrator and three people doing themime. There could also be two narrators: one for the disciples

and one for Jesus.

First sceneTwo people move forward slowly, leaning on a stick. They arewearing dark glasses. They seem dejected. Behind them,someone is following and catches them up. He has a red heartdrawn on one of the palms of his hands.

Narrator: Now on that Easter day two of them were going to a

village called Emmaus, about seven miles

from Jerusalem.They were talking with each other about all these things that

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had happened. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus

himself came near and went with them. But their eyes were

kept from recognising him. Jesus said to them:

Jesus: What are you discussing with each other while you walkalong? They stood still, looking sad. One of the two disciples tookJesus’ hand.

One disciple: Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does

not know the things that have taken place there in these

days? The things about Jesus of Nazareth: who was a prophet

mighty in deed and word before God and all the people. Our

chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned

to death and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the

one to redeem Israel! Yes, and besides all this it is now the

third day since these things took place. Moreover, some

women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb

early this morning, and when they did not find his body there,

they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a

vision: of angels who said that he was alive. Some of those

who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the

women had said; but they did not see him. Jesus puts his hand on the man’s shoulder.

Jesus: Oh, how foolish you are! How slow of heart to believe all

that the prophets have declared! Was it not necessary that the

Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his

glory?

Narrator: Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, heinterpreted to them the things about himself in all the

scriptures.

Second scene

Narrator: As they came near the village to which they were

going, he walked ahead as if he were going on. But they urged

him strongly, saying:

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The disciples: Stay with us, because it is almost evening and

the day is now nearly over.

A table with a tablecloth and three chairs have been placed in

a corner of the room. On the table there is a loaf of bread.Jesus and the disciples go to sit down. And Jesus repeats thegestures of the last scene.

Narrator: When he was at the table with them, he took bread,

blessed and broke it, and gave it to them. Then their eyes were

opened, and they recognised him.

The two disciples take off their dark glasses as Jesus goesaway.They said to each other:

One disciple: Were not our hearts burning within us while he

was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the

scriptures to us?

Narrator: That same hour they got up and returned to

Jerusalem. They found the eleven and their companions

gathered together. Then they told what had happened on the

road, and how he had been made known to them in thebreaking of the bread.

The two disciples give everyone a copy of the picture of theresurrected Jesus, which you can attach to your clothes (seepage 97). We finish by making a big circle and by singing anddancing in the joy of Jesus' resurrection.


Do we feel that Jesus is accompanying us every day?Where can I discover Jesus’ face?

When did I struggle to feel that Jesus was alongside me,as he was for the Emmaus pilgrims?

Do I feel accompanied by my community, or do I feel a bitlonely?

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For prayer


We can live this prayer time in front of an image of Jesus.


The chaplain or the person leading the prayer time invitescommunity members to sit down comfortably. He suggests thatwe think about what we would like to say to Jesus, not withwords, but through a gesture, with our bodies. If we want toask for something, we can kneel and hold hands. If we want toask for forgiveness, we can lower our heads and hold a hand toour heart. If we want to praise God, we raise our arms, or if wewant to give thanks for knowing that he is there beside us....

When everyone has decided what they want to say to Jesusand the gesture to use to express it, the chaplain invites us to

make this gesture and to remain in this position for a littlewhile, at least five minutes. And during this time, in a very lowvoice or in our heads, we repeat this month's poor person'sprayer to Jesus. Jesus, stay with me.

We end with this prayer:

Because sometimes we do not hear you.

Everyone: Jesus, stay with us!

Because sometimes we are frightened.


Because sometimes we do not see the needs of our brothers,

when we are not accompanying them.

Everyone

Jesus, stay with us!

Because sometimes we do not walk towards you,

that we go where you are not.


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Because at your side we are better.


Because at your side we are joyful!


Prayer of a poor person Jesus, stay with me!

To celebrate

Artists’ workshop Decorate a walking stick

For every long walk, we need somethingto support us: a walking stick. Why notdecorate our own so that we can use itwhen we go for walks?

We will find branches in the forest or in gardens and so that itdoes not look like just any old walking stick, we can paint it,write words or the name of a person who supports us on it andattach ribbons or strands of wool... (See page 97)

Game:

Use your imagination

We get in a circle. One member of the community is asked togo into the middle and, using the walking stick that we havedecorated, he has to mime a job or a sport… For example,you can use the stick as if it were a horse, a golf club or asword… The one who guesses correctly goes to the middleand it is then his turn to mime.

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…

to be witnessesof Jesus

June

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Very often, in provincial assemblies, the new, freshlyelected coordinators are blessed by those present. All

place their hands above the one who has beenappointed, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to becomecoordinator or vice coordinator; generally, this gesture isaccompanied by a prayer and a song. This is a beautiful wayfor those who have taken part in the election to ask that theperson elected be blessed, that they be sent on their missionand that they always be illuminated by the Holy Spirit!

The duty that is going to be undertaken by the one who has just received this show of confidence will no doubt not be easyevery day but when God calls, He is always ready to come toour aid. The blessing received from those who took part in thisdiscernment and election should always remain etched in thememory of the new leaders. In the missions that thecoordinators receive, there is the need to encourage eachperson to bear witness to the attitude of Jesus with regard to

those with an intellectual disability, to fully recognise them aschildren of God, capable of a spiritual life and a true holiness.When we all have this attitude, we will have the strength with a"humble boldness" to recognise the value of each person andto experience the spirituality of Faith and Light on a daily basiswith our neighbours, our friends and our work colleagues. Andwe will all be equipped to make Faith and Light shine, to bereal missionaries of the joy that we experience in our

communities and to join those who are awaiting our JoyousNews!

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May the Holy Spirit always be with us; may He always remindus that it is important to know our roots, what drove ourfounders when they started Faith and Light; may He help us

not to copy our founders but to always return to the source oftheir inspiration!

So we are in a position to respond positively to the call ofPeter; Peter, who was transformed by meeting the risen Christ,Peter who was transformed by the teaching of Mary at theCenacle, Peter who was transformed by the Holy Spirit: But you

are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s

own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty actsof him who called you out of darkness into his marvellous

light (1 P 2: 9).

Let’s go! Those who are still in darkness – families isolatedand withdrawn because of the disability of their child – havethe right to know, like us, the wonderful light of a Faith andLight community.


At Faith and Light, we are discovering the value oftestimony.

In our communities, we all receive and transmit the gifts

of the Spirit.

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Hand in hand

This month, the picture of the dove that we will beplacing on our calendar will remind us of the

importance of receiving the Holy Spirit. It is thespirit of God which pushes us to go beyond ourcommunity.

It pushes us to be witnesses, in Church and in society, of thebeauty of the person with a disability (see page 90).


Members of the coordinating team getinto two rows facing each other and raisetheir arms in the air to create a corridor.Each person who arrives must passthrough this corridor and the team blowson them as they pass.

For sharing

Relive the Gospel togetherPentecost, Act 2: 1-13

Twelve apostles, with a crown on theirheads (see page 97) are seated in acircle, holding their hands palms up ontheir knees in a sign of supplication.They each have their cheeks painted indifferent colours. This symbolises the

variety of their gifts. All the others havetheir forehead painted with the samecolours.

Narrator: When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all

together in one place.

The organiser invites those who are on the right to make an "S"sound and those on the left a "U" sound to imitate the wind.

The twelve attach a tongue of fire on their crown and start tohave an animated discussion.

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Narrator: And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like

the rush of a violent wind: and it filled the entire house where

they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among

them, and a tongue rested on each of them. They were allfilled with the Holy Spirit: They started to speak in different

tongues, and each person expressed himself or herself

according to the gift of the Spirit.

Several participants, from the two sides where the twelve areseated, put their hands behind their ears so that they can hearbetter and be surprised by what the apostles say.

Narrator: Now there were devout Jews from every nation under

heaven living in Jerusalem. And at this sound the crowd

gathered and was bewildered. They were bewildered, because

each one heard them speaking in the native language of each.

A religious Jew: Are not all these who are speaking Galileans?

And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native

language?

Narrator: All were amazed and perplexed. But others sneered

and said: They are filled with new wine!

The twelve apostles come to embrace those who have thesame colour as them on their forehead or make a sign ofcommunion to signify that each of us is a treasure that isdifferent from all the others. And we embrace each other toshow how the gifts in our community are riches andcomplement each another.We get into a circle and, holding one another’s hands or usinggestures, we recite the Lord’s Prayer. We end with a song tothe Holy Spirit.

In small groups (Prepare a feedback for your VPC) What happened during the mime? Why did all these

people understand one another? The Holy Spirit gives us the strength to go beyond

ourselves so we can go and announce the Good News. At

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Faith and Light, what is the good news that we mustannounce?

From within our community, what can we do to tell others

who we are? Share our ideas on the way in which we canannounce Faith and Light around us.

For prayer


The chaplain or the leader of the prayer time explains what wewill be doing so that everything happens in complete silence.<0}

In our prayer corner, we place seven bowls each containingdifferent types of seeds (or chickpeas, lentils or rice if easier).In front of each bowl, we place one of the gifts of the HolySpirit: wisdom, intelligence, advice, strength, science, piety or

fear of God. We also put down a small pot containing soil.

The chaplain solemnly proclaims:

The Lord will send us his Holy Spirit.

Let us not be afraid, open our hearts.

He will spread all his love on us.

He will transform our life and give us the strength to love.

Let us not lose hope, he will save us.He will transform all our sorrows.

He will welcome us like children.

Open our hearts to freedom.

He will fortify us, erase any fatigue.

If we pray to him to receive his peace, he will praise us,

he will talk to us. He will fill us with new joy.

With the gift of fraternity.

Open our hearts to freedom. Amen!

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Then, the chaplain explains simply and briefly each gift of theHoly Spirit, symbolised by the seeds. He asks each person tocome closer and to choose one of the gifts by taking a seed.

The chaplain says to each person: Go (first name) and share your gifts. Then the person goes and plants the seed in thelittle pot of earth, thereby signifying that he will go out and bearfruit.

The chaplain will read this prayer sentence by sentence thatwe will repeat all together.

Come Holy Spirit, love, light and strength of God,

open our hearts to love.Remove us from any sadness.

May joy and peace fill our homes.

Stay present amongst us,

in our meals, in our meetings,

in our work and in our sleep.

Give us the light to live in truth and in plenty.

Teach us to invoke the name of the Lord

and increase our faith in Jesus Christ. Amen!

Prayer of a poor personYou are there, Holy Spirit!

To celebrate

Game:

The different tongues

There are Faith and Light communitiespretty much everywhere around theworld. Like us, they use their ownlanguage to communicate.

In each of these countries, words with particular letters ofsymbols are used to write "Faith and Light". Behind these verydifferent words, we are all sharing the same reality. On the

cards, we have copied the words "Faith" and "Light" in various

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languages from countries where there are Faith and Lightcommunities (see page 98).

We sit in a circle and we arrange the cards in the centre. Eachperson tries to re-write the name of Faith and Light by choosingtwo cards. When they have done it correctly, we can then talkabout the countries that speak this language, where they areand the difficulties that they face… We end by replenishing allof the cards.

Artists’ workshop

Your hands are doves of peaceWe make doves using our hand as a template, or perhaps bymaking origami (see page 98 and 99).

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July

…to reconcile

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Word of the month

The month of July – in the northern hemisphere – is theend of the school year and the start of the holidays,summer camps etc. However, this year, for youngpeople from all over the world, it will be the great WYD

event in Cracow! What Pope Francis has called the great,intercontinental youth pilgrimage will make a stopover inPoland under the patronage of the great Polish saints: Saint

John Paul II, Saint Faustine Kowalska, Saint Edith Stein, SaintMaximilien Kolbe and the Blessed Jerzy Popiełuszko. Thetheme will be around the fifth beatitude: Blessed are the

merciful, for they will receive mercy (Mt 5: 7).

The closeness of the Sanctuary of the Divine Mercy inŁagiewniki will allow the young people to deepen the

spirituality of Saint Faustine to whom Jesus entrusted his

desire that the whole world knows my mercy (Diary 687).

The happiness that Jesus promises to the merciful, theyoung people will come and give it back to us in ourcommunities. This will be easy if the young people from ourcommunity go to Cracow; if not, do not hesitate to ask thosewho did go to come and talk to us about it. Each communitycan ask its diocese for help with this process.

In expectation of this return, it is important for us to also beprepared to welcome Divine Mercy into each one of ourcommunities. There are always, more or less well concealed,tensions, hostilities, injuries, resentments and hard feelingsetc. Our friends with an intellectual disability can be very goodmediators of reconciliation because they only like peace,serenity, happiness and joy between us. It is they who aregoing to hold out a hand to others and form a large friendshipchain! In a society centred on profitability and power, if those

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with an intellectual disability are not efficient, they are

however prophetic in the area of the heart and kindness and

tenderness and in what is the essence of a human being

(Charter II, 2).

And we will be ready to welcome the young people, on theirreturn from Cracow, transformed in the way Pope Franciswants: If you are really open to the deepest aspirations of your

hearts, you will realise that you possess an unquenchable

thirst for happiness, and this will allow you to expose and

reject the "low cost" offers and approaches all around you.

When we look only for success, pleasure and possessions, andwe turn these into idols, we may well have moments of

exhilaration, an illusory sense of satisfaction, but ultimately we

become enslaved, never satisfied, always looking for more. It

is a tragic thing to see a young person who 'has everything',

but is weary and weak .

And they will certainly feel like staying for a while because

they will have recognised in us the spirit of what theyexperienced during the WYD!


At Faith and Light, we are discovering the value ofreconciliation

In our community, we can offer our mercy and ourforgiveness.

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Hand in hand

This month, we will attach a heart to our calendar.This heart has a scar to remind us of God’s mercy

towards us and our reconciliation with him (seepage 90).


Upon arrival, each person is welcomedwith a gesture of peace from all

community members.

For sharing

Relive the Gospel togetherThe Prodigal son, Luke 15: 11-32

First sceneThe person representing Jesus will bethe narrator. He will wear an image ofJesus' face around his neck (see page99). At the other end from where Jesusis standing, the tallest member of thecommunity will represent the father.

He looks at his children (one is older than the other) theyoungest holds out his hands to him.

Narrator: There was a man who had two sons.

The younger son: Father, give me the share of the property

that will belong to me. The father takes coins from a bag andshares them out between them. The younger son flees with hismoney.

Narrator: So he divided his property between them. A few days

later the younger son gathered all he had and travelled to a

distant country, and there he squandered his property in

dissolute living.

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We can put on some disco music as the father and his olderson withdraw.

Second scene

The younger son enters, dressed like a beggar, showing hisempty pockets; he goes begging to members of the communityand then sits down. People wearing pig masks walk aroundhim (see page 99).

Narrator: When he had spent everything, a severe famine took

place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. So

he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that

country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. No one gave him anything. People wearing masks sit down aroundhim.

Narrator: But when he came to himself he said: How many of

my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but

here I am dying of hunger! I will get up and go to my father,

and I will say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and

before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat

me like one of your hired hands.

Third SceneThe younger son lights a candle and gets up. His fatherappears open-armed at the end of the room. The sonapproaches his father very slowly, stops, blows out the candleand kneels in front of him, his head inclined towards theground.

Narrator: He got up and goes towards the father. But while hewas still far off, his father saw him and was filled with

compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed

him.

The father ran and put his arms around his son.

The younger son: Father, I have sinned against heaven and

before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Westrike up a joyful song.

Narrator: The father said to his slaves:

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The father: Quickly, bring out a robe - the best one - and put it

on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. And

get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; for

this son of mine was dead and is alive again. He was lost andis found.

Narrator: And they began to celebrate.

We then hear joyful music and the father throws confetti in theair and sweets to all the community!

In small groups (Prepare a feedback for your VPC) What did the father feel when his son left? Did he do the

right thing letting him leave? What did the son feel whenhe returned? And his father?

What is most difficult for me, asking forgiveness or givingforgiveness? What do we feel when we are overcome bydifficulties?

Can I share a time when I had to ask for forgiveness? Orwhen I had to forgive because someone had hurt me?

For prayer

We create a peacefulatmosphere with meditativemusic and we graduallycreate silence in our hearts.We read Luke’s Gospel.

The chaplain or the person leading the prayer time invites all ofus in the community to examine our consciences to identifywhat is alienating us the most from God and for which we wantto ask forgiveness. If necessary, we can help the people with adisability.After this reflection and this discernment, the communitygathers together at the end of the room, as far as possiblefrom the prayer corner where Jesus' image is. We pray with aliturgical dance1.

1 See video: www.faithandlight.org/rubriques/haut/video

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We move slowly in a procession towards the prayer corner,singing as we go. Every three or four steps, we stop, bow ourheads (or kneel) for a few seconds, with our hand on our

hearts. At this pace, we slowly advance towards Jesus.

In places where there is no space for a procession, we canwalk around an image of Jesus.Then we take some time to spontaneously ask for forgiveness.

Lord Jesus, teach us to be generous. To serve you as you

deserve. To give without counting. To fight without the risk of

injuries. To work without seeking rest. To exert ourselves

without expecting any other reward than knowing that we aredoing your holy Will.

(Prayer of the Scouts attributed to St Ignatius of Loyola)

Prayer of a poor person: Jesus have mercy on me.

To celebrate Game: Wolves and lambs

We get into a circle. Two people areblindfolded in the middle. The leaderchooses one by whispering in his ear:You are the wolf and to the other: You

are the lamb. The lamb must run away because the wolf wants to catch him.They cannot leave the circle. As their eyes are blindfolded,those in the circle can give the lambs instructions to helpthem: Watch out, he’s behind you, No, on your left.. This gamecan be repeated several times with different wolves and lambs.For the final round, we can introduce a farcical element bychoosing two lambs who both go and hide like crazy, which willmake everyone laugh a lot! Then we can repeat the joke bychoosing two wolves!

Artists’ workshop: badges Fizzy drink caps become badges (see page 100). We canwrite a message of forgiveness on them.

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August

…

for one largerelationship network

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Y

ou will certainly remember having seen this clip at thecinema where one person, very proud of his beautiful jumper, catches the end of the wool on something andsees, with great despair, his beautiful item of clothing

unravel completely!

By holding one another’s hands this year, we have created aplain stitch and a purl stich to create a large weave offriendships! We have realised that we are part of a largeinternational family, that each one of us and the relationshipsthat we retain during the meetings (as well as through the waythey have transformed our daily life) determine the life and the

growth of our movement. We have built the body of Christ tothe ends of the earth: The gifts he gave were that some would

be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors

and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for

building up the body of Christ (Ep 4: 11-12).

We have contributed to building the body of Christ, we theparents (apostles), we the persons with an intellectual

disability (the prophets), we the friends (evangelists), we thechaplains (pastors and teachers), and we are clothed in theLord Jesus Christ (cf. Rm 13: 14) with a truly colourful Fair Isleknit. The presence of Jesus within our communities, thecement of unity, will prevent there being a thread of wool tounravel! It is the guarantee that this beautiful garment willnever accidently unravel!

Let us work tirelessly to build on this spirit of communionbetween us. Jean Vanier tells us that the role of the leader is to

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facilitate the communion: If the leader is servant of

communion, then he or she must be a person of communion,

seeking communion with the Father and communion with

people. Then the leader will create space for communion inthe community (Sharing our responsibility, p. 8). However, it isup to each one of us to be, to become a person of communion.May all the communities throughout the world experience thisspirit of communion, for their part, as well as between them toachieve this unity that Jesus desires!


At Faith and Light, we are discovering the value ofcommunion.

In our communities, we reveal who we are, with ourgifts and our weaknesses. We always receive morethan we give.

Hand in hand

For this final meeting of the year, during which wewill be talking about communion, our drawing willbe of the community (see page 90).


Upon arrival, we embrace each other,

thereby embracing the whole world.

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For sharing

Together: Community links A member of the coordinating team holds

a ball of yarn in his/her hands. As he/sheholds this ball of yarn in his/her hands,he/she mentions the moments over thecourse of this year's meetings that havemade him/her grow.

When he/she has finished, he/she keeps the end of the woolin his/her hand and throws the ball to someone else. In turn,this person tells the others about the moments that made him/

her grow, keeping hold of the end and throwing the ball. And soon, until everyone has been able to say something. All thesethreads create a wonderful spider's web that links us all toeach other. The leader explains that each individual has grownover the year. This growth has happened in communion witheach other, it is why we are linked to each other in this way.The communion has made us grow and growing together helpsus to stay united.

In small groups (Prepare a feedback for your VPC) We can remind ourselves of the times when we have felt

more united, in genuine communion with one another(joyful or difficult times).

What are the links that unite us made of? (of time,friendship, commitment, admiration or solidarity…. ?)

Are there people in other communities to whom I amattached? I can say who these people are and why theyare important for me.

What have I received from the community? How has Faithand Light been able to change my life?

For prayer

We create a peaceful atmospherewith meditative music and we

gradually create silence in ourhearts.

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We read the Gospel of Matthew 28, 16-20.

We can learn this dance of praise and thanksgiving to end theyear1.

Thanksgiving prayer for the year:

Jesus, we would like to give thanks to you for our community.

Thank you for the friends who you have given us.

Thank you for the people who we have known.

Thank you for the prayer, the games and the meals

that we have shared.

Thank you for everything

that we have received from the communityand thank you for everything that you have given us

and that we have been able to give.

Thank you for loving us so. Amen!

Prayer of a poor person Jesus, thank you for the gift of communion.

To celebrateWe can play easy games with the ball ofyarn from the sharing time: connectingourselves by passing the wool under thesleeve of one arm to the other one.Walking on the threads of wool spread onthe ground.

Muddle up the threads by going from one piece of furniture toanother and passing them above and below. Stretch out athread and stoop to pass underneath without touching it,lowering the thread a little each time we manage it....

Artists’ workshop

We can make a telephone by using two plastic cups and athread of wool. Or we can decorate hearts and stars with thewool that we have used (see page 100).

1 See video: www.faithandlight.org/rubriques/haut/video

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Box of treasures

We remind you that all illustrations are available in high resolution on the site:www.faithandlight.org/rubriques/haut/album_photo

1. The calendar of hands

Throughout the year, we will be decorating a calendar inthe shape of a clock, using the suggested symbols (available

for download on the Faith and Light website under theheading www.faithandlight.org/rubriques/haut/downloads).

Each month, during the meeting, we will place theappropriate symbol at the centre of the calendar, in the spacereserved between the hands of the two characters. The nextmonth, we will stick it outside in the circle of the month itrelates to, and so on.The central drawing represents two people approaching one

another and between whom a deep relationship is developingbased on the exchange of their gifts but... Can we be surewho is "giving" and who is "receiving"?

Month by month, we will bediscovering a value unique

to Faith and Light that weneed to share with others.We will welcome this valueand will savour the impor-tance of being able to offerit to others. At the end ofthis year, our calendar willbe finished and we will

have deepened and sharedthese twelve values.

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September October November December

January March AprilFebruary

May June July August

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2. Artists' workshop

The vine and the grape seeds

Hands in prayer

Print hands on small cards

and paste them onebehind the other.

VIP pass

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The Advent calendarMaterials: Two sheets A3 cardboard , glue, ruler, cutter. Print the two sheets. Cut the windows on three sides. Carefully, paste the sheet with the windows on the

drawings.

Christmas crib figures

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The star of Bethlehem

A cut-out crèche

Print the figures on thick paper. Cutout and fold over the central edgetowards the front and the sideedges towards the back.

A figure to be put back together

Print the variousparts of the figureseveral times oncard.

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Tangram puzzlesPrint as many copies of the seven pieces oncoloured card as needed (or paint them) andcut them all out.Here are a few designs: house, boat, animal,flower, character...

A smiley face

A cage and two turtle doves

Tea light holderMaterial: Little glass pots or any other recycled pots, paint,

paint brushes and tea lights.

Five loaves and two fishPrint. Make a little hole in the top of the card and pass apiece of string through it.

And for the game we will copy thesedrawings:

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A rowing boat for sceneryThis very simple templatecan be copied on an old

sheet or a roll of papertablecloth.

Paper chainsFold a piece of paper in a concertina.Draw a fish and cut out the outline withoutcutting the folded edge. Unfold. A row of

little fish appear, connected to each other.Do the same thing with a drawing of a loaf.

Faces

Draw these faces on a paper tableclothor on a piece of cloth.

Washing of the feet

Copy the image for everyone.Make a little hole and slip a pieceof string through it.

Facial expressions Print the sheet and cut outthe various cards.

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Mister PotatoCut a circle out of card for the head. Print ordraw the various facial features. Make ahole in each of the pieces and stick them tothe head using split pins, without tighteningthem so that they can move. Finally, stick onthe cheeks.

Jesus resurrected

Copy the image for everyone.Make a little hole and slip apiece of string through it.

Decorated walking sticks

The crown and the tongues of fire

Cut out the crown using thick paper that is5cm high. Adjust to fit the head and fix itwith a staple. Print twelve tongues of fire andfix them to the crowns with double-sidedadhesive ribbon.

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Or you could try origami:

Use a square piece of paper.

1. Fold in two to mark the fold and unfold.2. Do the same in the opposite direction.3. Refold along the dotted line.4. Do the same on the other side.5. Open and fold in the direction of the

arrow.6. Refold along the dotted line. Do the

same on the opposite side.

7.

Fold to create a fold and repeat.8. Refold along the dotted line.9. Draw the eye. That’s it!

Jesus’ face Print. Make a little hole at the top of theimage and pass a piece of string

through it.

Pig masksMaterials: Pink card or painted pink card, glue, scissors,cork, paint or pink or red felt-tip.

1. Copy the template.2. Hollow out the space for the eyes.

3. Cut out three slices of cork. Paint oneof them in pink and two in red.4. Stick the pink slice in the centre of the

mask under the eyes and stick thesnout on this slice.

5. Stick two red slices on the snout.6. Cut two strips of paper and staple them

on each side of the mask.

7. Adjust to fit the head and staple it.

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Cap badges Equipment: Fizzy drink bottle caps, can ringpulls, safety pins, hammer and paint.

1. Place a ring pull inside the cap.2. Using the hammer, fold back the scalloped

edges of the cap inside so it can hold thering pull.

3. Slip in a safety pin.4. Decorate.

A telephone Materials: Plastic or paper cups,a thread of wool.

1. Make a small hole in thebottom of the cups.

2. Pass through the thread andtie a knot inside.

For the telephone to work, the thread needs to be pulledtaut so that the waves can travel from one end to another,but do not pull it too much to ensure that the threadremains in place.

Hearts and starsMake templates of hearts and stars, cut them out andcover with wool by winding it around the shape.

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The little bookshop of Faith and Light

Never again alone, The adventure of Faith and Light 18€ Marie-Hélène Mathieuhttp://bookstore.westbowpress.com/Products/SKU-000923382/Never-Again-Alone.aspx

For community building Charter and Constitution Free

Annual Guidelines 2€

Leader's handbook 3€ Our first guidelines 5,50€

Identity and mission of Faith and Light 2,50€

Sharing our responsibility 3€ General rules of financial management Free

A few easy recipes to raise funds 1€

For deepening our life together Day for a renewal in the community Free

Spirituality of Faith and Light 3€

Letters to my brothers and sisters, Fr Joseph Larsen 2€

The Mysteries of Faith and Light, Ghislain du Chéné 0,50€

How to prepare and live a retreat 3€

Retreats in Faith and Light 3€

Ecumenism in Faith and Light 3€

Fioretti, Fr Joseph Larsen 2€

Getting to know us better

Messages of the Churches to Faith and Light 3€ Leaflets Free

Faith and Light posters 0,08€

"Up Sails!", the Faith and Light international letter

(Free via internet)Print subscription, participation fees: 20€

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Notes

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Notes

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Faith and Light prayer

Jesus, you came into our world

to reveal the Father to us, your Father and our Father.

You came to teach us to love one another.

Give us the Holy Spirit, according to your promise,

so that he will make us instruments of peace and unity,

in this world of war and division.

Jesus you have called us to follow you

in a community of Faith and Light.

We want to say "yes" to you.

We want to live in a covenant of love

in this big family you have given us,

where we can share our sufferings and difficulties,

our joys and our hope.

Teach us to accept our wounds, our weakness

so that your power may be revealed.

Teach us to find you in all our brothers and sisters

especially in those who are the weakest.

Teach us to follow you in the ways of the Gospel.

Jesus come and live in us and in our communities