ECUADOR, Dory and Carlos Manrique •
On Saturday 19 October, 150 group leaders from Guayaquil met at Ecuador’s National Shrine “Family of the Father, home for the world” under the motto “United in the paten, let us love the Church.” —
All communities gathered to discuss how to the charism of our father and founder can help us to respond to what is happening today.
The central elements of the reflection were:
- IDENTITY: Fr. Joseph Kentenich consecrated Ecuador on a paten that he received as a gift from a girls’ group, and there he consecrated the whole family of Ecuador.
- SENSITIVITY: to respond based on an examination of the national reality, wounded by the days of chaos that the country experienced a few weeks ago, but in search of harmony with the will of God.
- SUBMISSION: from the shrine we educate, train and offer ourselves as instruments so that the Blessed Mother can help us establish a Marian kingdom of God the Father in Ecuador and take up the challenge of the mission with hope and determination to influence in all possible areas, in the strength of the Covenant of Love and promoting family bonds.
After a workshop, which reviewed and analyzed the signs of the times, Fr. Felipe Ríos, the National Movement Director and Sr. Ma. Auxiliadora Bohórquez further showed how we can use Fr. Kentenich’s charism to commit ourselves to our Church with greater solidarity and concreteness: by accompanying, discerning and integrating.
The atmosphere was one of an authentic cheerful and dynamic family, which creatively and responsibly seeks to take up its mission: Schoenstatt loving and serving the Church as our father did.
Original: Spanish, 27 October. Translation: Sarah-Leah Pimentel, Cape Town, South Africa
