This month our little office launches our new website, a new email system, a new logo and a new name! That’s a lot of new things!

Underneath, nothing changes too much – if you feel connected as a Marist Lay person, or a Marian Mother, Marist Laity, or a friend of the Marists, then you of course are still welcome to use those names to describe your connection to the Marist family. Or maybe you don’t use a name at all – that’s ok too!

To reflect on the 2026 Marist Laity Oceania Conference at the Pacific Regional Seminary in Suva, Fiji, is to look back on a journey that was deeply affirming, eye-opening and transformative. Accompanied by my friend and colleague Seamus, I travelled to Suva representing Young Marists and Marist Laity Aotearoa.

When we were chatting in the office about what the focus of our reflection could be this month and having noticed the “Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows” -  the idea of sorrow, grief and growth kept coming up. We all have experience of sorrow ourselves, or maybe even know someone in the midst of a sorrowful season right now.

In 1816, a group of young French seminarians had a dream. For several years they had contemplated beginning a special group  - a Society that had Mary’s name. Just as Jesus had a special group ( ‘Jesuits’ )– they wondered if it was Mary’s wish to have a group of “Mary-ists.” When hearing about the idea, one of the group, Jean-Claude Colin had said to himself  “yes that suits you!”

I was talking to a local Māori Catholic recently. She had woken in the night and decided to go outside and sit for a while. It was a clear night with many stars. She had recently lost a brother and was still grieving.

At the time of preparing this reflection it was Pentecost – the birthday of the church.  And it got me pondering about being present with others, and those flames that get  sparked in our lives sometimes.  

Over the school holidays our family were captivated by the Artemis II 10-day crewed mission orbiting the moon. Following the safe return of the astronauts to Earth, Christina Koch, one of the astronauts, shared her touching observation when looking back at Earth from space.

I’d like to start off today with a question: what sort of relationship do you have with your mother? Or if you have grown-up children, what is your relationship with them like?

A few days before the beginning of Lent, in eastern Guatemala—part of Central America’s Dry Corridor—the dry season has stretched on for months. The air burns, and everything seems thirsty.

Perhaps you’ve already heard that this year has been marked by Pope Leo XIV as another special Jubilee (yes that’s two Jubilee’s in a row!). 2026 is the Jubilee Year of Saint Francis of Assisi - marking the occasion of the 800th anniversary of his death.