August 6, 2021 was a glorious day. On the one hand we celebrated the Transfiguration of our Lord Jesus Christ with the Universal Church. On the other hand, it was a magnificent day in the lives of Brothers Adan Malik, Nabeel Pius and our new Novice, Jabran Bhatti, as they professed their first Vows and received the Holy Habit of the De La Salle Brothers, respectively. The day was of equal importance for the seven temporary-vowed Brothers, Brothers Amir, Naqash, Robin, Taimoor, Sajawal, Gulfam and Zafar, as they renewed their annual vows and continued their journey of transformation.
“I chose you before I gave you life, and before you were born I selected you to be a prophet to the nations.” (Jeremiah 1:5)
This verse notifies, of the selection of a Christian, for a special purpose in life. God has set a plan for each person to announce his Word to the nations. This is what we understood during this remarkable ceremony for the Lasallian Family in Pakistan.
The feast of the Transfiguration of our Lord this year brought transformation in our Lasallian Family of Pakistan and the number of Brothers is growing each passing year.
This coincidence of feast and ceremony was a well-planned reminder for the Brothers pronouncing their first vows, that as they continue to be of Jesus, their initial formation might end in a couple of years, but God would continue to shape and colour them through the splendor of his beauty present amongst the people they encounter on a daily basis and in the places they visit.
His Excellency, Dr. Bishop Indrias Rehmat, stated in his sermon, “To be a religious Brother is not just a profession, rather, a service of the poor” and in our case this service of the poor is through education.
Brother Nabeel and Brother Adan professed their first vows and devoted their life to the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools; Postulant Jabran received his Holy Habit and was given permission to enter his next stage of formation, the Novitiate; and seven of the Brothers in Temporary Vows renewed their annual vows.
This event was an enriching sign of hope for our Sector, District, Region and Institute, despite the many challenges we face as members of the Universal Church.
Towards the conclusion of the Mass the newly professed Brothers, Adan and Nabeel, were given the opportunity to express their sentiments and appreciation to all who had helped them in their Formation Journey.
Brother Shahzad, Sector Coordinator, thanked all the Brothers in the Formation Team who had guided these young Brothers. On behalf of Brother Visitor, David Hawke FSC, he thanked the parents for generously allowing their sons to become Brothers and for encouraging them in their vocation.
Brother Shahzad reminded everyone seated there about the uniqueness of the Novitiate and Postulancy program. He added that it was first time in history that we had virtual Novitiate. The Novices were very lucky to have presenters from LEAD District as well as presenters from others Districts. The time difference was the biggest challenge that Novices faced for a number of months as they would get up at 4am every morning.
Brother Shahzad appreciated them for not losing heart and for being persevere in their vocation in spite of all the odds. He also congratulated them as they had achieved a milestone in their Initial Formation and had professed their First Vows. Brother Shahzad expressed his happiness as the sector is producing new Brothers consistently and prayed to God that it continues like this.