The Plenary Council officially started on the 12th of June in Lyon -France with a day of recollection preached by Fr. Laurent Ore, SMA the parish priest of Blessed Marcel Callo in Nantes. Reflecting on “Living according to the Heart of Jesus,” the 23 participants of the third Plenary Council were invited to emulate the virtues of the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Fr. Laurent said the choice of the theme of the day of recollection was inspired by the fact that the month of June is dedicated to the Sacred heart of Jesus whose feast this year will be on the 16th of June.

Community life is one of the core values of the Society of African Missions and the challenge of living together is one that members were encouraged to continue to nature. There is need to continue to fraternally work and dream together and support each other as one SMA family in order to attain perfection in the announcing of the gospel. This, he said, can only be achieved through humility.
It is with the eucharistic celebration presided over by Fr. Laurent at six o’clock in the evening that the recollection came to an end.
Those present include the superior General Fr. Anthony Porcellato, SMA and members of the general council, fifteen provincial superiors, and two delegates representing both Anglophone and Francophone Districts respectively.

                                                                                                                       By Dominic Wabwireh, SMA