Golden Jubilee Celebration of the Schoenstatt Movement in Burundi

BURUNDI, Diomède Mujojoma. On Sunday May 20, 2012, the Apostolic Schoenstatt Movement celebrated fifty years at the service of the Church in Burundi at the Mount Zion Gikungu Shrine.  The ceremonies began on Saturday May 19^th in Mutumba, the site of the first Schoenstatt Shrine in Burundi.  The Archbishop of Bujumbura celebrated the Mass.  After returning from Mutumba, the joy of the Jubilee continued throughout the evening of the 19^th at the Mount Zion Gikungu Shrine.  Various groups provided the evening’s entertainment with songs, skits and dances.  It was a joyful night.

On Sunday, the main 50^th anniversary celebration began with a thanksgiving Mass celebrated by Bujumbura Archbishop Evariste Ngoyagoye and was concelebrated by the Bishop of Ruyigi, Blaise Nzeyimana. Fifty Schoenstatt Fathers and other priests accompanied them.  The Holy Mass started with a procession from the sacristy to the church.  The Sancta Maria and St Nicolas de Flue choirs provided the music for the Mass.

In his welcome, Fr. Evode Bigirimana, the rector of the Mount Zion Gikungu Shrine started by thanking each person for participating in the celebrations of the Schoenstatt Movement.  He then recalled Bishop Michel Ntuyahaga, who was responsible for the arrival of the Schoenstatt Movement in Burundi, by asking the congregation to observe a minute’s silence in his memory.  Currently the Schoenstatt Movement is active throughout Burundi and is present in the countries of the Great Lakes Region.  He thanked the Blessed Mother who unceasingly displayed her presence and her motherly love towards her children.  To her we owe the spread of the Schoenstatt Movement.  Fr. Evode also highlighted the four currents in preparation for the celebration of the 100 year Jubilee of the Movement in 2014: 2011 was dedicated the Father current, 2012 is dedicated to the year of the Shrine current, 2013 to the current of Apostolic mission and 2014 is the Covenant current.  He then asked the Archbishop to celebrate the Eucharist.

A request to the Superior General of the Sisters of Mary

In his homily, Bishop Ngayogoye referred to the day’s Gospel reading, focusing on God’s will in the proclamation of the Good News throughout the earth, including Burundi.  This is how God brought the Schoenstatt Movement to Burundi through Bishop Michel Ntuyahaga.  The Bujumbura diocese had recently been established when Bishop Ntuyahga who had attended an enormous conference in Germany, asked the General Superior of the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary to come and start the Schoenstatt Movement in Burundi — even if it was only three sisters, Monsignor Ntuyahaga insisted.  The superior declined the request, and so the bishop left her with a photograph of himself, saying: “each time you look at this photograph, remember my request.” The superior later wrote a letter to the community in South Africa asking them to send three sisters to Burundi to examine the situation in the country.  They traveled for a month to reach Burundi.  After they had arrived, Bishop Ntuyahaga showed them the Mutumba hill and they accepted his challenge.  Since then, the Schoenstatt Movement was established; it spread, and currently operates in five countries in the region: Burundi, Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania and Kenya.

An Apostolic Project for the Church and the Country

Bishop Ngoyagoye congratulated the jubilant members of the Schoenstatt Movement and dedicated Jesus’ prayer for his disciples (John 17:11-19) to them.  He expressed his hope that their projects in the next fifty years will be fruitful for the development of the country, and especially the Church.

At the end of Mass, the regional chaplain for the Schoenstatt Movement, Fr. Anicet Nyandwi expressed his joy by thanking the Blessed Mother for creating the unity that is visible in the community life of her sons and daughters who have been at her service for fifty years.  He also thanked the people of the Great Lakes region who welcomed the Blessed Mother’s mission by being missionaries of the 5,500 Pilgrim Mother images, each of which visit about fifteen families.  He urged the Schoenstatters to take the Blessed Mother’s mission seriously and to continue it by renewing their shrines, which are the most visited in the world, as is the case of the Mount Zion Gikungu Shrine.  He ended his address by reading the message of congratulations and encouragement from the Provincial Superior of the Swiss Province of the Schoenstatt Fathers.

In addition to the delegations of the Schoenstatt Movement in the Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania and Kenya, representatives from South Africa, Germany, and Switzerland all attended the celebrations. With a toast and speeches, the ceremonies continued in the Queen of Confidence Centre, belonging to the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary.

Source: sanctuaire-mont-sion.net

For more information www.schoenstatt.ch

Translation: Sarah-Leah Pimentel, Johannesburg, South Africa