Brothers

The order of Marianist Brothers celebrates 125 years of educating young men at Saint Louis School, and of supporting all people in their ‘journey of faith’. Pictured on the cover left to right: Brother Jim Dods, Father Tim Eden and Brother Luis Gamboa in the Mystical Rose Chapel

Wednesday - October 28, 2009
By Chad Pata
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Brother Bertram shot this undated photo of the Saint Louis choir

past 125 years. Gone are the chest-length beards of Brother Bertram, and the traditional habit of the shirt and tie covered by a dark Prince Albert coat have been replaced by aloha shirts and jeans.

Monarchies have given way to statehood, but through it all, the Marianists have stayed true to their mission to serve.

Finding new brothers to commit to the three vows of poverty, chastity and obedience does not have much appeal to the MTV generation. In fact, it is the opposite of what kids these days hold most dear. But Brother Gamboa has faith that others will seek out the brotherhood as he did.

“I decided to find God in my life; he was the missing aspect to my life,” says Gamboa, on how he turned down his Ph.D. acceptance at UCLA to join the Marianists. “I looked at different orders, and the Marianists are right for me. I don’t want to wear a habit. I want to be part of a community where everyone has the same equality. I can be anything I want within the brothers and I want to find God in my life.”

There is a fourth vow in the church, the vow of stability. In most orders, that means a commitment to one community for life, but for the Marianists, it is a stability in belief, something Gamboa and his brothers are sure to need in the daunting days ahead.

“The mission is to bring God, like Mary did, as a servant,” says Gamboa. “Can I be stable enough to rejoice in God in times of pain, in times of solitude, in times of indifference, in times of not understanding? Can I follow God in my darkness and my light? The hope is to say yes, and that is our stability and how we bring God to the world.”

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