The comments and prayer below are from the first General Chapter in 1976.
We are one body in Christ, not because we chose it but because we were chosen. Christ chose us, He called us, and He is sending us to fulfill His mission: “Who is going to tell about the Father? Who is going to reveal the Good News of salvation?” It is a mission which He is so anxious that it would be fulfilled.
“Since you have known the message of the Good News, you never spared yourself in telling about the Good News.” (Phil. 1:5) this is very real and true about our Community. Jesus is giving us His Holy Spirit, a selfless spirit which cares only for the Kingdom and how that Kingdom can be furthered, and how everyone can arrive to the Kingdom. We do not have to be afraid because He is with us. He will help us to further His goal and His mission.
In this Spirit, please pray with me:
“Lord God, Almighty Father, we give you thanks for the faith you have given to us, that without seeing you, we loved you and believed in you and left everything – father, mother, home, relatives, friends, for your sake and you have led us in the path of your Son…
Lord Jesus, allow us to listen to your Holy Spirit whom you gave us at our Baptism. We have your presence in us…
Holy Spirit, may you lead us as you led jesus: through the desert, through death, to resurrection, to complete unity with the Father.
And we would not be ourselves if we would not call on our Blessed Mother…I implore her, as I do whenever anything major happens in our life, that she would be with us and help us as she helped at Cana – seeing ahead of time what we need and what could cause problems, and through the goodness of her motherly heart, she would step in and provide…We place ourselves and our Chapter into her hands…We ask her blessed Son, our Lord Jesus, that He in his goodness “would make our joy complete.”