ecumenism Tag

Bergfest, Marienberg,  Bamberg
GERMANY, Renate Siebenkäs • Since the founding of the Schoenstatt Center on the Marienberg (Schoenstatt Center of the Archdiocese of Bamberg, Mount Mary), the great mountain feast in honor of the patron saint, Bavaria, has been celebrated every year on May 1st. Several hundred faithful come to this feast day with a large package of graces generously given by the Blessed Mother. — The morning is dedicated to the celebration of the solemn Mass with the celebrant, this year Fr. Martin J. Emge, Cathedral Chaplain, followed by the procession withRead More
TOGETHER FOR EUROPE, Editorial Office • “The Fall of the Wall for Christians” – this is the title of an interview in the Newsletter of Vatican News (German) on November 11th with the press references of the network “Together for Europe”, which celebrated its 20th birthday in Ottmaring and Augsburg with a meeting weekend and celebration.— “At the place where 20 years ago representatives of the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church signed the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification, about 300 representatives from 55 Christian communities andRead More
GERMANY, Maria Hosters • During a “500 years of the Reformation” commemoration, the entire Arnsberg parish council and Schoenstatt Family invited everyone to an ecumenical prayer service to the Blessed Mother, in the little Wintrop chapel, on Saturday, 1 October 2017, at 4:00 pm, along with the pastor, Fr. Johannes Böhnke, and Pastor Hubertus Böttcher. Spontaneously, Auxiliary Bishop Hubert Berebriner, who had been on a confirmation trip at that time, also attended. Mrs. Ritt-Appelhans was in charge of the musical accompaniment with her guitar and a group of flautists. AboutRead More
Maria Fischer • At the end of September Fr Dr Michael Joh. Marmann celebrated his eightieth birthday in Schoenstatt with many who had accompanied him on his path through life – as a Schoenstatt Father, as Leader of the Schoenstatt Movement in Germany when it entered into the covenant of love for our people, as well as the year when we commemorated Fr Kentenich’s hundredth birthday. He saw the re-unification of Germany (“God acts in our history”), and was Superior General of the Institute of the Schoenstatt Fathers and ChairmanRead More
TOGETHER FOR EUROPE by Fr. Hans-Martin Samietz • We were surprised.  Eighty collaborators of the Schoenstatt Movement gathered on Sunday to celebrate a Mass of thanksgiving at the Munich Schoenstatt Center.  Throughout the weekend, Christians kept the city of Munich in suspense with the congress and the “Together for Europe” rally. And Schoenstatt was in the middle of it Eighty-nine Schoenstatters had registered for the congress. Schoenstatt held the third place, according to the number of participants.  Moreover, it was estimated that there would be up to 120 Schoenstatters involvedRead More
TOGETHER FOR EUROPE – Impressions of the Ecumenical prayers on 2 July 2016 • In the morning of 2 July, the morning of the Rally at the Stachus, out in the open and surrounded by shopping, strolling, or telephoning pedestrians on their way to watch football, a participant at the Congress “Together for Europe” managed to visit all six churches within which Christians of very different confessions had gathered simultaneously for ecumenical prayer. It was the conclusion of the Congress and spiritual preparation for the rally. The other participants decidedRead More
TOGETHER FOR EUROPE – Impressions of 1 July 2016, morning • “That’s awesome that’s absolutely awesome!” Manuela Miller didn’t spend much time with the welcome. She and her husband, Peter, were collaborating in one of the nineteen forums on the first day of the Congress “Together for Europe”, but they didn’t have much to say about that. Their main concern was their experience of the openness for one another, the togetherness they had experienced from the first day of the congress in the countless people they met – old andRead More
TOGETHER FOR EUROPE – Press Release July 2, 2016 • “We won’t be able to separate these Christians again, they belong together.” Not only Cardinal Reinard Marx showed that he was moved by the atmosphere among the five thousand present at the final rally of “Together for Europe” in Munich. After two days with a filled programme in Circus Krone, the Christians from two hundred communities and Movements from thirty-two countries wanted to offer a public sign of reconciliation and togetherness of the confessions. “Your togetherness is a force forRead More
FRANCIS IN ROME • “Then, suddenly, the Spirit blew over Paul VI Hall. With all of the synod fathers and during the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Synod of Bishops, Pope Francis announced the urgency of a “healthy decentralisation” of the Church that results in a “conversion of the papacy” and the authority of the Church, where first and foremost, the people of God are heard,” who “participate in Christ’s prophetic office.” One of the many comments in the international press on Pope Francis’ speech during the ceremonyRead More
Today, Father Elmar Busse (*1951) answers: He has known Schoenstatt since his childhood, because his parents belonged to the first course of Family Federation in the German Democratic Republic. The Friedrichroda Schoenstatt Center in the region of the Thuringia Forest (Shrine blessed in 1954) was his spiritual home. Since there were no priests for the Schoenstatt youths, he made the decision, along with other adventurous students of theology, to found the community of Schoenstatt Fathers in then East Germany. This became a reality on June 18, 1978, after a longRead More