EDITORIAL
This first issue of LACE in what some like to insist is really the new millennium manifests our usual Janus-like characteristic of looking forward and backward simultaneously. We look forward to the LACE Weekend of May 4-6 in the articles that focus on the spirituality for teachers developed by Saint John Baptist De La Salle. We look backward to the discussions on "Lasallian association" that took place in the November Colloquium as reported in the last issue of LACE. The repercussions of those discussions will continue to rumble on for a considerable time to come. Suffice it to note here that "spirituality" and "association" are both closely related. Each points to and supports the other.
The piece by Gilles Beaudet of Quebec, which first appeared in Lasalliana No. 53, is part of an extended study of Lasallian spirituality. The section we have chosen to reprint here is based on De La Salle's work The Duties of a Christian. It is important for two reasons. Firstly, it stresses that Lasallian spirituality is Christian spirituality. De La Salle himself always talked about the need for both teachers and pupils to strive to live the life of a Christian as proposed in the teachings of the gospel. Secondly it reminds us of the value of the image of a journey as a way of understanding spirituality. Spiritual development is a personal journey, though undertaken in the company of others. Each spiritual journey is its own story, and the importance of story and story-telling for religious and spiritual life was very well stated by Maurice Lynch during the LACE Weekend of last May. We include some reminders of this.
The "personal story" aspect of spirituality is reflected in the contribution by Nicholas Hutchinson. It gives the kind of stimulus to personal reflection that he is well known for producing in his writings. Lasallian spirituality must always bring us back to this point, if it is to be authentic, and if it is to have any effect "in the real world". There is a certain urgency about spirituality, because it is all about "salvation". It is therefore an essential element of life's equipment rather than a luxury item.
Salvation has its physical dimensions, as Nick points out. So do the Scripture Notes in the Resource Section. It is characteristic of Lasallian spirituality to have as its starting point a burning desire to respond to the urgent needs of others. The model is in the story of the Good Samaritan who stopped to take a closer look and was "moved" by what he saw to do something about it. Cathy Clark's story of her experiences in Bangladesh is a good illustration of what we are talking about.
Being "moved" by what we see is also the starting point for the Lasallian concept of "association". In a way, "associating for the mission" is the natural outcome of Lasallian spirituality, its crowning expression. This comes across in the address given by Brother Alvaro, the Superior General, to the mixed gathering of lay Lasallians and Brothers at the November Colloquium. As he says so very well:-
The same emphasis is also embodied in the statements that were produced by the different groups in the workshop session during that assembly. You will find there many valuable points for reflection, but let us pick out the one which says that "Lasallian association" and "Lasallian spirituality" are not the exclusive preserve of the Brothers, nor are they confined to the teachers in "our schools". They speak to a much wider audience. LACE, the Lasallian Association of Christian Educators, is endeavouring in its own way to reflect that reality.