350th Anniversary Celebrations Conferences, Group Councils and Diocesan Councils have held individual celebrations over the past few months. The celebrations will culminate with a National Celebration, to which the whole Vincentian family is invited, at Carfin on 25th September 2010. The Principal concelebrant will be Cardinal Keith O'Brien and the liturgy will include a rededication to Vincentian service of all those present. Michael Connick, VMP has sent a full description of the arrangements for this prestigious event to all Conferences. August Newsletter As the "Voice of the Poor" schools programme gets underway we issue the August Youth Newsletter. Reflection Papers 350th Anniversary The Heritage Commission of the Vincentian Family for the 350th Anniversary of the Deaths of Saint Vincent and Saint Louise of the Vincentian Familyhave now presented twelve Reflection Papers. You can find them at www.famvin.org/anniversary or www.ssvpglobal.org

Haiti EconomicDevelopment Project In commemoration of the 350th anniversary of the deaths of St Vincent de Paul and St Louise de Marillac, the Vincentian Family are launching Zafen.org. This is a joint project and will enable people worldwide to contribute to sustainable economic development in Haiti. Full details will follow later. The Papal Visit to Scotland The Society welcomes the historic State Visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Britain. The Society hopes that this once in a lifetime visit to Scotland will help strengthen relationships between faith groups in our local communities. At the same time, the Society hopes that the State Visit will strengthen relationships between Britain and the Vatican. To see a commentary on the Papal Visit click on the above link. Floods in Pakistan The situation in Pakistan is huge and complex and it is beyond the resources of the SSVP there to provide emergency relief services. Under the circumstances, the Council General of the Society has not launched an appeal for donations. It may be of interest to our Scottish Conferences that SCIAF has joined with other relief agencies in bringing much needed aid to a huge area where entire villages and towns are still under water. For further information click on the above link.

Ozanam News Online Easter is the season of hope, of joy and gladness. The deep sadness of Holy Week has passed: Christ is risen, alleluia! Maybe the most consoling thought at the time of the resurrection should be that all our suffering, no matter how bitter, will come to an end. After the passion came the resurrection, after despair comes hope, after sadness comes joy. So we in our suffering can look to the resurrection when all our suffering will seem worthwhile. Bishop Charles Renfrew (Former Assistant Bishop of Glasgow) As we introduce our first issue of Ozanam News on line we hope it will create a wider and greater interest in our activities. Please take note of the comments made by our National President on page 4 of our Easter issue. To see the full edition click on the link above Protecting Children and Adults at Risk SSVP Scotland follows the policies of the Catholic Church on protecting and safeguarding. You can find out more about these policies and procedures by clicking the link above. Conferer@tioNews Bro. Michael Thio (Singapore) has been elected President General with 87% of the votes. Visit the web page www.ssvpglobal.org to see the video.