IHS
Buenos Aires, 18 May 1986
To Rev. Fr
Cayetano Bruno, SDB
Buenos Aires
Dear Fr Bruno:
Pax Christi!!
In your letter of 24 February you asked me to try to put something in writing about my experience with Bro. Zatti (with whom I had developed a great friendship) in reference to the lack of Coadjutor Brothers. I apologise for being so long in responding, but lately it has really been very difficult to find a quiet moment to remember everything and put it in writing. But it is never too late...
-
We did have a certain lack of Brothers. I am speaking of 1976 as my point of reference because it was then that I came to know of Bro. Zatti. That year our youngest Brother was 35, an infirmarian and four years later would die of a cerebral tumour. The second youngest was 46, and the third, 50. After that they were all elderly (many continuing to work splendidly even today, at 80 or more years of age). This “demographic picture” of our Brothers in the Argentine Province was making many think that we were dealing with an irreversible situation, and that there would be no further vocations. Indeed some were questioning the relevance today of the Brother vocation in the Society (of Jesus), because – given the facts – they seemed destined to extinction. From a number of quarters there were efforts to draw up a “new profile” of the Brother to see whether – by doing this – we could find a greater number of young men who would follow this ideal
-
On the other hand, the Father General, Fr Pedro Arrupe, SJ, insisted much on the need of the Brother vocation for the whole Society as a body. He said that the Society would not be the same Society without the Brothers. Fr Arrupe's efforts in this area were enormous. It was not just a crisis in some provinces but in the whole Society (in reference to the Brother vocation).
-
In 1976, I think it was September, during a visit I carried out with the confreres in northern Argentina, I stayed in Salta archdiocese for a couple of days. There, between one conversation and another, Archbishop Pérez spoke to me of Bro. Zatti's life. He also gave me a book to read on his life. His very full life as a Brother struck me. And from then on I felt I should ask the Lord, through the intercession of this wonderful Brother, to send us vocations. I made novenas and I asked the novices to do the same.
-
I need to be clear about two things: firstly that these dates are not exact. By speaking of September 1976 I am really pointing to a longish time frame, around about 6 months. I would need to go to documents from the Province Curia to get an exact date. But for this account a general indication of the time frame is enough. The second thing is that at Salta I also often felt an inner urge to recommend a growth of vocations to the Lord and his Mother (in general, that is, not specifically of the Brothers; and I implored Bro Zatti's intercession for this). I also made a promise that the novices would go on pilgrimage on Feastday of the Lord and the Virgin of the Miracle [ed: special Feastday at the Shrine at Salta] if we got to 35 novices (which happened in September 1979).
-
Let me come back to the prayer for Brother vocations. In July 1977 the first young brother arrived (he is now 32 years old). On 29 October that year the second came (now 33 years old). Then it went as follows:
-
the third entered in 1978, now 33 years old;
-
the fourth entered in 1978, now 26 years old
-
the fifth entered in 1979, now 42 years old;
-
the sixth entered in 1980, now 24 years old;
-
the seventh entered in en 1981, now 39 years old;
-
the eighth entered in 1981, now 27 years old;
-
the ninth entered in 1981, now 23 years old;
-
the tenth entered in 1981, now 27 years old;
-
[the eleventh is missing in the original version]
-
the twelfth entered in 1982 now 25 years old;
-
the thirteenth entered in 1983 now 25 years old;
-
the fourteenth entered in 1983 now 25 years old;
-
the fifteenth entered in 1983 now 22 years old;
-
the sixteenth entered in 1985 now 25 years old;
-
the seventeenth and eighteenth entered this year and are currently in the novitiate.
That is, since we began to call on Bro Zatti 18 young Brothers have entered and stayed, as well as a further 5 who left in the novitiate or juniorate. In total: 23 vocations.
6. The novices, students and young Brothers made a novena in honour of Bro. Zatti on several occasions asking for Brother vocations. I myself did so too. I am convinced of his intercession in this case, given that this was such a rare number in the Society. As a gesture of thanksgiving, in the second and third edition of the Devotional booklet to the Sacred Heart we inserted the Novena asking for Bro. Zatti's canonisation.
7. An interesting fact is the quality of those who entered and persevered. They are young men who wanted to be Brothers just like Saint Ignatius had wanted, without “gilding the pill”. The Brother vocation is very important for us, and Fr Arrupe said that without them the Society would not be the Society; they have a special charism nurtured through prayer and work. They do the whole Society good. And they are demanding. Father Swinnen, who was the Master [ed: of novices] when these Brother vocations were arriving (he then became the Provincial and is now Novice Master again) knew how to infuse them, right from the outset with the true Brother vocation. And the same happened with the one who took over as Novice Master when he became Provincial (Father López Rosas). Young people become disillusioned if they see half-measures or soft touches being applied to their vocation. They want it all (even if they protest at the time, but in their heart of hearts they are looking for authenticity, not imitations).
In general this has been my relationship with Bro. Zatti regarding vocations to the Brotherhood in the Society. I repeat that I am convinced of his intercession, because I know what we asked for, invoking him as an advocate in this business.
That's enough for today. I remain yours, in our Lord and His Blessed Mother,
Jorge Mario Bergoglio, S.J.
P.S
8. Re-reading your letter I see that I should add to no. 7, speaking of the quality of the young Brothers. They are prayerful, cheerful, hard-working, healthy. They are true men and are aware of the vocation they have been called to. They feel a special responsibility of prayer for the young students preparing for priesthood. We never see any “inferiority complex” because they are not priests, nor does it even occur to them to ask to be Deacons... They know what their vocation is and that's the way they want it. This healthy. It does good.
