2024 Annual Gathering of the Australian Laity of the Chevalier Family at St Mary’s Towers, Douglas Park, 20-22 September
Theme: One in Heart, in Caring for our Common Home
St Mary’s Towers in spring was once again the beautiful setting for the LCF annual gathering. While two participants attended via zoom, many of the 27 participants, from parishes, schools and other settings in several states and territories, including Sr Ancilla OLSH, arrived at St Mary’s Towers on the evening of Friday 20th, meeting others over a delicious supper, preparation for the weekend ahead.
With the remainder of participants arriving on Saturday morning, our first session was a comprehensive cultural experience, led by Indigenous educator, Wendy Lotter, who acknowledged the traditional owners and elders of the Country on which we had gathered, the Dharawal people, conducted a smoking ceremony and introduced us to the practical uses of ochre and the amazing bush medicine found in the leaves of various trees, such as the banksia, tea tree, eucalypt and bottlebrush.
The remaining sessions over the two days of the gathering were led by members of the LCF National Council, with the chosen theme (above) continuing the theme of the 4th International LCF Conference, held in Cebu in the Philippines in January of this year.
Lee Toll began the formal program with a presentation on The Development of the Lay Chevalier Family. She reminded us of the vision of Jules Chevalier, who wanted his mission to combat the ‘ills of his time’ through the living of a spirituality of the heart carried out, not only by members of the Religious Congregations he founded and inspired (MSC Priests and Brothers, OLSH Sisters and MSC Sisters), but by the laity as well. In fact, by the time of Jules’ death in 1907, his lay Confraternity of Our Lady of
the Sacred Heart had one million followers! Our lay movement has ebbed and flowed over the years, and today is thriving in many countries. We believe that God is at work in our world and that his love is revealed in the heart of Jesus. We promote and live a spirituality which recognises the sacredness of all created things and is deeply concerned for all humanity. We respond with love and compassion wherever we can to promote justice, peace and the integrity of creation in the various contexts in which we find ourselves as lay people. Lee emphasised that for the LCF, “The journey of the heart always leads to a journey to the world.”
Narita Perrotta then led a session which highlighted the activities of The Lay Chevalier Family Throughout the World, in which she showed several videos and images created by some of the different LCF groups from:
- South America (Colombia, Peru and the Dominican Republic)
- Mexico
- Europe (England, Ireland, France, Germany, Belgium, The Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Slovakia)
- Asia (Vietnam, Indonesia, Korea, Japan, India)
- Oceania (Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Wallis and Futuna, Fiji, Australia)
It was interesting and inspiring to have a glimpse into just how much the international LCF is alive and active in implementing Jules Chevalier’s vision for the participation of the laity in living heart spirituality, and to learn that even a small nation such as Wallis and Futuna has 150 LCF members!
These different international groups all have different starting points, with the earliest LCF group having begun in 1950 and the most recent in 2022, and each has its own process of formation, activities and initiatives, depending on the geographical and cultural context. International LCF initiatives include monthly prayer and reflection days; social gatherings for exercise and relaxation; participation in social justice initiatives, such as visits to prisons and orphanages; singing as a group at Sunday Mass; and sponsoring projects that assist the needy. Narita reminded us of our Australian LCF commitment to welcome, include and embrace all people in their diversity (including the LGBTQIA+ community), and to walk alongside those who are marginalised, including the people of our First Nations.
The Saturday morning program ended with a moving and uplifting presentation on Prayer, given by Michael Fallon MSC, who is the Spiritual Companion of the Australian LCF. Michael spoke beautifully about how people were attracted to Jesus’ humanity and compassion, and reminded us that Jesus constantly shows us that we need to see all people as a gift and love them for who they are. Jesus, he said, felt compelled to reach out to others because of the inspiration he found in prayer. He explained that, despite what we may have been taught, God is constant like the sun, not an ‘intervening God’ who steps in when we ask for something in prayer. Jesus learned to pray this way: Father, may your name be held holy…may your will be done. Michael urged us to share this beautiful image of God which Jesus had; to never stop believing that we are loved; and to persevere in our journey to want only what God wants. Michael’s presentation gave rise to some meaningful and personal reflection and sharing among the group.
With time out for a well-earned lunch, Saturday afternoon began with a presentation by Aidan Johnson on Practical Ways to Respond to Laudato Si’, which centred on the three important steps needed: Advocate, Educate, Celebrate. We were urged to recognise that caring for creation is a profound act of love and is for the wellbeing of all; to learn more about how we can respond to the cry of the earth and of the poor; and to find joy in the steps we take and the changes we make to make our way of living more sustainable.
Aidan’s presentation was followed by a workshop, introduced by Kerrie Wehbe, on Sharing Success and Difficulties in Implementing Laudato Si’ Goals, and Links between the Chevalier Charism and Ecological Conversion. In small groups we discussed what ecological conversion meant to us; what steps we are taking in our lives to implement the seven goals of Laudato Si’ (what works for us and what we find hard); and the connections we see between heart spirituality and Pope Francis’ call to see, think and act differently as a foundation to living more sustainably. Groups shared their responses with all participants, and responses were collected to facilitate forward planning for possible future LCF formation activities.
The final presentation on Saturday was a moving homily, delivered by Clare Johnson: The Challenge to Embrace Growth and Transformation. Taking her inspiration from the story of Jesus’ calming of the storm in Mark’s Gospel, Clare reminded us that God is present in our transformation and acts as an agent of growth for us. To live is to grow and evolve, and we do this together as we seek meaning and purpose: although our journeys differ, we are one in our diversity. As LCF we live heart spirituality both individually and together as we strive to be on earth the heart of God, believing that everyone is included in God’s care. Time for personal reflection and prayer followed Clare’s presentation.
On Saturday evening after dinner, we gathered to watch a moving and inspirational documentary called, The Year Earth Changed. This Emmy Award winning 2021 film, directed by Tom Beard and narrated by David Attenborough, tells the amazing story of how the global COVID-19 lockdowns affected the natural world, giving some of our most vulnerable species the space and the opportunity to develop in the ways nature intended – without human interference, which can often be so harmful. The very hopeful message of this amazing film resonated with us all, and was very much in keeping with the theme of our gathering: if we choose, we can change the trajectory of our planet.
Sunday morning was an opportunity for Mass and morning tea with the St Mary’s Towers Parish community. Although a relatively small parish, the presence of so many families and young children was lovely to see, inspiring much hope.
After Mass we gathered again to listen and participate in a pre- recorded presentation given by Alison McKenzie, Secretary of the International Council of the LCF, which was a Report on the Fourth International Gathering of the LCF which, as mentioned earlier, was held in Cebu in January, 2024. Alison spoke of the growth of the LCF after the Second Vatican Council, thanks to the MSC, OLSH and laity who encouraged and supported this movement. She outlined the identifying features of the LCF logo, which include our distinct charism and the importance of inter-relationships. We were asked to consider what it means to be a lay person in the LCF, and participants shared ideas about this: what inspires and challenges us; and what we question and hope for. Alison stressed that, as a third branch of the different groups founded by Jules Chevalier, we serve alongside his Congregations, demonstrating synodality in practice as we celebrate our unity in diversity. The organisation and structure of the LCF exists to promote formation through faith-sharing groups, rather than a top-down approach. Further reflection on some of the points raised by Alison will be undertaken by the National Council to help set a direction for the future: why our group exists, what we are doing, what difference we are making, where the energy and participation are and how we are contributing. Ideas for Continuing our Story were incorporated into Alison’s session via the opportunities for small group sharing she provided during her presentation.
Our time together ended with a Prayer of Commitment. We prayed together for the grace to continue to draw inspiration from the vision and mission of Jules Chevalier and to re-commit to our living of heart spirituality - a Christ-centred, incarnational, socially- concerned and creation-centred spirituality - grounded in a belief in the unconditional love of God and lived out in relationship,
finding sacredness in all things, and striving to be on earth the heart of God. Our commitment and missioning ceremony ended with all present praying the Memorarae to Our Lady of the Sacred Heart together.
If you would like to know more about the Laity of the Chevalier Family in Australia, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit our website: https://chevalierlaity.com.au/ or find us on Facebook.
Kerrie Wehbe (LCF National Councillor)
