O for the life on the Synod wave! All at sea with Synod! Aye, Aye Skipper Becquart

I was asked via Twitter how Sister Nathalie Becquart started her career before becoming a power woman in Rome. 

She was President of Vie en Mer, Life at Sea which has an affiliated to the Jesuits.

This is what prepared her to run a much larger organisation called Synod, also without much reference to Jesus Christ.  I once heard her lecture in person without any mention of her Divine Master, nor His Grace, nor his Cross. 

Camps for 18-35 year olds, neither great sailors nor great worshippers

The Association

Life at Sea is a non-profit organization (French law of 1901), open to all. Its purpose is "to organize nautical activities in an educational setting by offering an introduction to the spiritual life in the tradition of Ignatius of Loyola." The association organizes sailing cruises for its members, primarily for young adults aged 18 to 35.

It is part of the MAGIS-Jesuits-Ignatian Family network (an Ignatian youth network for 18-35 year olds).

Our Values

Love of the Sea and the Marine World

Sailing on a sailboat teaches us to discover the world of the sea, its beauty but also its demands and rules: taking into account the weather, the currents, the buoys, respecting nature... We feel very small. We also discover ourselves capable of wonder at a successful maneuver, a school of dolphins, a sunset...

A Simple Life with a Crew

Sailing with a crew means learning kindness, the reality of a simple and fraternal life. It means trusting others and helping each other. It means communicating truthfully, but also singing, dancing, laughing, and taking pleasure in being together in a "close" environment where only the essentials are indispensable. For the volunteer skipper, it's about sharing their knowledge to help everyone grow and develop a love of the sea.

Inner Life, Spiritual Life

Sailing means casting off, hoisting the sails, setting a course, holding the helm, and listening to the crew. This can resonate with our inner life and give us inner freedom in our discernment: What is my course? How do I lead my own life? What are my markers? What are my inner currents? Ignatian spirituality can help each of us take stock and discover our own path.

Governance

Our Statutes

Members are offered the opportunity to participate in the association's governing structures. The association is run by an executive committee and a board of directors.

The executive committee is made up of four members elected by the board of directors (president, vice-president, treasurer, secretary) who represent and direct the association on a daily basis. The Board of Directors, composed of 4 to 12 members elected by the Ordinary General Assembly for 4-year terms, sets the year's direction. These two bodies are composed of Jesuits, religious sisters, and lay people of all ages. Committed volunteer members bring the activities to life.

Volunteering

All members of the "Vie en Mer" association are volunteers. They dedicate themselves to bringing the association's project to life, drawing on their expertise as skippers, spiritual guides, network leaders, and communicators.

The skippers are volunteers with experience at sea; they sail responsibly and are there to reassure participants. Sailing is most often done on rented boats and sometimes on the skippers' own boats, provided free of charge to the association.

Spiritual guides, whether religious or lay, are volunteer and receive training primarily within the Ignatian family.

The activities and communications team is made up of young people who have participated in "Life at Sea" activities and are committed to supporting the association.

She has written a book about her experiences as President

Nathalie BECQUART

Spiritual Life and Discernment

Sailing with Saint Ignatius describes the maritime and spiritual journey of the Life at Sea, Entry into Prayer cruises, designed by the Ignatian Youth Network to introduce a greater number of people to the spiritual life—particularly those on the threshold who are, at the outset, "neither great sailors nor great prayer-makers." For while many of our contemporaries have a great thirst for God and are seeking meaning in their lives, few, especially among young people, are ready to immediately experience a "classic" retreat according to the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, a privileged means for learning to pray and choosing one's direction. With Nathalie Becquart, in this book with its multifaceted entry points (stories, poems, photos, analyses, and reflections, etc.), we discover how the adventure of the sea becomes an experience of the Spirit through an original pedagogy that links physical exercises—in this case, navigation—and spiritual exercises. Embarking to cross the waves is conducive to the inner journey: carried by the foam and the wind of the Spirit, we are, like the sailors-retreaters, invited to build our lives in the footsteps of the Risen One.

Reference: 543

Publication date: 02/09/2008

Number of pages: 98

Dimensions: 15 x 21 cm

€12 incl. VAT

Author's biography

Nathalie Becquart is a Xavierian nun. A skipper and spiritual guide, she chairs the association "Life at Sea" and participates in leading the "Life at Sea, Entering Prayer" camps and the "Praying and Sailing with the Breath of the Spirit and the Wind" retreats. Having been involved for several years in the pastoral care of young adults and the Ignatian Youth Network, she is currently responsible for the student chaplaincy at the University of Paris-XII in Créteil and deputy director of the SNEJSE (National Service for the Evangelization of Young Schoolchildren and Students) in charge of university pastoral care.