At the Marist Brothers General Chapter of 1993, we committed ourselves to 'the development of an apostolic spirituality whereby we Marists encounter God, not only in prayer, but also, in apostolic action' (Marist Apostolic Spirituality Section V)
Central to this development is finding means to integrate all the aspects of our lives as Marists. Within the Christian tradition, the Review of the Day has played this role for many. Some of the essential elements of this Review are:
+ it begins with our lived experience
+ it asks us to look below the surface activity of our lives to see where God is calling us to grow
+ it invites us to view our lives as places where God is active, and. to trust and be grateful for God's lovingpresence with us.
+ it asks us to try to name the ways or places where God is calling us to grow, right at this time, and to choose to allow the Spirit to take us into those places.
Today, most people are aware of the Review of the Day because of the Ignatian form they have encountered. While some Marists have found this expression very helpful, it is possible to re-express the Review from the perspective of Marial Spirituality.
Some may ask, 'Why would you bother doing that?'
As was mentioned in the earliest pages, in recent years we have been recovering our understanding of the important role of charism in the life of those who live Religious Life. At first we were enriched by the sense of charism as gift of God to the Church. This gave us a new vitality in our times because, while the Church since Vatican II has rightly been a Church where the laity are taking their rightful place, it reminded us that we too have a special gift to offer.
In more recent times we have been learning of how important charism is for those who belong to the Institute. Not only is charism gift for the Church, but also it is gift for those who belong to the group who express the charism. Charism helps us to know our identity, even in the darkest of times. Charism gives us a ground point from which to translate (inculturate) old meanings and values into new life expressions. Charism is one of the streams of living water through which the Holy Spirit nurtures us with vitality and authenticity.
For many groups there is often a defining moment or image that becomes a symbol of how the charism is active in the present time. At our General Chapter in 1993 Champagnat's interaction with the Montagne boy was such a defining image. For many Marists the Annunciation of Mary seems to be such a moment with regard to the charism .
The process, 'in the way of Mary', takes up the Review of the Day from the point of view of this moment. We believe that if Marists commit themselves to appreciating their days from this perspective of Mary's Annunciation, they will find special graces and support for their journey. These graces flow directly as gift from God through the Marist charism for those who follow Jesus 'in the way of Mary'.
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