CHILE. “In these times of pain for the death of loved ones, times of insecurity and material losses for so many of our brothers and sisters,” Fr. Mariano Irureta on behalf of the Schoenstatt Family National Council of Chile and Fr. Eduardo Aguirre, Director of the Movement, issued a message asking for prayer and solidarity with the victims as well as asking for mutual help in viewing the catastrophe from the standpoint of Divine Providence. We publish here the entire message.
Dear Schoenstatt Family, dear brothers and sisters in the Covenant,
We are deeply disturbed and touched by the earthquake which devastated Chile. In the measure in which we are becoming aware of the dimensions of the catastrophe – which seems to be more serious and more terrible than it seemed at the beginning – a feeling of concern with the great pain and anxiety of so many persons and families grows within us.
In these times of pain for the death of loved ones, times of insecurity and material losses for so many of our brothers and sisters, we should be encouraged by a deep sense of compassion and solidarity. Probably members of our Schoenstatt Family or some relative or acquaintance may have been directly affected by the effects of this disaster.
These events at the beginning of Lent require of us an attitude and a response in the light of Divine Providence. As Father Kentenich would say, it is about historical moments in which God writes with “lion’s claws.” With these events we experience again our smallness and weakness which remind us of the precariousness of our life, of our strengths and of our human securities. These strong and painful experiences which knock down our pride and self-sufficiency show us how easily our expectations and constructions can be demolished, dragging us into despair and anxiety, if they are not rooted in the solid rock of faith in Christ. We turn to Him to ask for strength and faith in adversity and we also ask for the ability to be proactive and confirmed in solidarity with those who are close to us and who need our help.
Let us unite in prayer in our Shrine – also in our Home Shrines – to ask for the victims of the earthquake; to ask the Lord and the Blessed Mother to renew us in faith and hope as we face these tragic events which we must live through during this Lent…..so that in some way they can also guide us toward interior conversion and to the experience of the saving power of the Cross…..in the Resurrection of Christ.
Motivated by our Covenant of Love with Mary, let us also quickly respond as She did, placing ourselves on the road to go and help those who need us…..there where we may be able to offer our support, collaborating with the activities which are being developed through the Church and other instances of solidarity, etc.
May the example of our Father and Founder motivate us toward a more generous surrender and fidelity in the Covenant of Love as it is demonstrated in this phrase which he pronounced in our Shrine of Bellavista on May 31st of 1949:
“The central thought which motivates us, which drives us constantly, and which assures us a peaceful calm in all situations of life is the thought of the Covenant.”
Greetings and blessings from our Cenacle-Shrine of Bellavista,
Fr. Mariano Irureta
Schoenstatt Family National Council
Fr. Eduardo Aguirre
Director of the Schoenstatt Movement
Translation: Carlos Cantú, Schoenstatt Family Federation, La Feria, Texas USA 030910
