The CLT wrote to all Provinces/Regions in May 2004, outlining a process for reflecting on our identity and setting in place a timeline for the development and acceptance of a Congregational logo. A period of six months was set aside, with guidance provided, for Brothers around the world to reflect on our identity and to put down in a statement, what our identity means.

We have collected those statements from around the world, some coming from individuals, others from communities or Leadership Teams (see below). Our thanks are expressed to all individuals, communities and leadership Teams who put energy into this process and sent forward their articulations of our identity.

Our intention at this stage is to bring together images presented by a variety of artists and to post these on our website for the perusal of Brothers around the world. Designs will need to reach us in a form whereby they can be posted on to the website or scanned in.

Timeline for submission of designs – for posting on website any time up until the end of July 2005. In time we will be asking Brothers to provide their assessment of the various symbols with a view to arriving at a decision at the Leaders’ meeting in the Philippines in January 2006.


From submissions made during 2004

Our Identity
Edmund Rice, rich, talented, loving husband, sorrowing widower, father of a handicapped daughter, lonely, prayerful love of Scripture, and the Eucharist, sensitive to the needs and fears of all, generous provider for the powerless and the poor.

We are his brothers – we use our Jesus/Edmund inspired energies to continue in the World and the church, the mind, heart and work of Edmund Rice.

We are lovers – we care, we empower, we believe in, we brother

We are pray-ers – passionately in love with our God, who calls and gifts and shares life

We are Church – sent missioned, credible believers, loyal evangelisers, apostles, and consecrated vowed disciples

We are celibate men – we acknowledge our sexuality, our incompleteness, our complementarity, and our fragility

We walk alongside – accompany in love, without threat or domination, brother, trained and skilful in our ministry

We are of our time – prepared to challenge structure, process and institution to make ever more real God’s kingdom, passionate for justice

We are in the story – the story of God among God’s people, moving, empowering, channelling faith, hope and love in Edmund’s mould

We have a past – a story within the story, which tells of our unique heritage, peopled by giants, and ‘characters’, saints and battlers and sinners, sidetracks, tragedies and triumphs

We treasure our present – full of challenge, vibrancy, hope, life and opportunity for God’s kingdom

We anticipate the future – fearful in the joy of the call to go on opening the treasure of God’s love and Kingdom with the keys that Edmund forged and handed on to us.

We are more than our ministries – we are the noble band that strives to keep alive the drive and force of Edmund Rice to make God’s love known to all the world.

Who are we:
"We are Catholic religious brothers – not priests."

"We believe in and follow Jesus and are motivated to bring the Good News of Jesus – news of human dignity – to people."

"We are founded by Edmund Rice – the Irish Christian Brothers, not the French of De La Salle or Marist Brothers."

"We work in love, hope and joy with and for people at the margins."

"We know the importance of working with youth and value education in its many forms."

"I really think our greatest gift [The Heart of Being Brother] and being brother is what we should proclaim. We do have both an Irish and an international heritage, thus my other thoughts. When people ask about our brothers or our charism, it is almost always in terms of being "BROTHER" in Christ's way."

"There are two groups of Christian Brothers: we are Edmund Rice's brothers."

"The identity of the CB centres on – prayer, compassion, action."
 
"Our greatest gift is being brothers we are an international group within the Catholic Church, and we have an Irish heritage."

"Our core elements are - fraternity [brotherhood in community ] and education [broadly understood]."

"We are universal, we reach out rather than gather in."

"The identity of the Christian Brother is around prayer, compassion, action."


I feel most like a Christian Brother when:

"We share hopes and fears in the midst of vulnerability."

"We share community life and share ministry and the experiences of ministry."

"I work with the poor and disadvantaged."
 
"I acted as a brother to someone."

"My ministry is with the poor and the strugglers."

"We share brotherhood – best experiences have been through reconciliation services, and affirmation of the gifts of one another, and sharing the struggles of our personal lives."
 
"We share our vulnerability with one another."
 
"We share common ministry and talk about it in the community and relive the experiences of the day."

"We gather in support when tragic events occur."
 
"I see the aged Brothers helping each other make it through their last years."
 

Vision and Internationality:

● We agree that the drawing of the logo should only happen after a process of discernment re identity and take into consideration the emerging new vision of the Congregation. We do need a new logo I’m sure.

● I suppose one thing that comes to my mind immediately is the global or international dimension - the many faces and cultures of the brothers.

● Another is a deepening interconnection of the men with the laity and the earth and the widening of the education charism to include forms other than schooling and youth.

● There seems to be in many religious on the margins a simplification of life, a joy to just be part of the experience of those who struggle to get the basics of life with a spirit that is making religious more part of than apart from.

● Probably the integration of the anima personally and institutionally still has a way to go but it is having a gentling and freeing effect where it has occurred and is very much in keeping with any contemporary Marian aspects of the life.


Some Specific Points re Logo:

● A green and gold logo with a title

● Simplicity defines our life, therefore simplicity should define our logo.

● We are Christian (and hence there is a cross somewhere; that we are of Irish origin (and hence a Celtic cross, perhaps); that we are community (and hence there's more than one figure; that we are moving, (and hence there's something non-static).

● There is more in the constant than in the evolving and it's the constant that we want to capture in the logo.

● Green with a gold trim, a celtic cross and the word Christian Brother on it. I've always afraid that the symbols we wear are not recognizable. We don't have big ways to advertise what the logo means so it ought to be pretty clear symbol to start with. We are Christian Brothers and I think the colour and symbol tell our heritage.

● There are some principles which I would like to see included:
Striking in appearance; Rich in symbolism; Mission-oriented as well as religiously-oriented. Eg the Christian symbol of the Cross is there but among other symbols; Having artistic merit and

● Generating a "wow" in the observer when seen at close range.

● We are universal hence no language or ethnic symbol or connections.

● Include a celtic cross to be true to our heritage.

Recently a Sisters' Congregation came up with a stylistic cross and a pretty lavender heart. Not only did people not recognize the logo: it meant nothing to the sisters and they now are going through the whole thing again.


On Our Name:

If one were to ask a Franciscan to identify what his, the reply would undoubtedly be, “I am a follower of St. Francis”. Somewhat similar replies would be given if a Dominican or a Benedictine were asked the same question. Likewise a layman or laywoman would have no difficulty associating Franciscans with St. Francis, Dominicans with St. Dominic and Benedictines with St. Benedict. Therefore in order to help us to articulate and clarify our identity we ought to identify with our founder Blessed Edmund.

Although the title “Congregation of Christian Brothers” says who we are it does not identify us as Brothers who have a special charism and who have accordingly a distinctive role to fulfil in the Church, like the word “Franciscan” does for the followers of St. Francis. To complicate matters there are other congregations of Christian Brothers and people find it difficult to differentiate between them. And so to clarify and identify who we are why not identify with our founder and change the title of our congregation to “The Edmundians” or simply “Edmundians” ?

The congregation has now spread to over twenty countries and is continuing to grow, so a sense of unity and solidarity is very important. The title “Edmundians” would help to achieve this and enable Brothers from different cultures to identify more with Blessed Edmund and the charism he has bequeathed to us.