BOLIVIA, Lucy Copaja de Jiménez •
This is a jubilee year for the Schoenstatt Family in La Paz, Bolivia because we celebrate with enormous gratitude the passage of God in our history, since that first of May 1974 when the Schoenstatt Movement was founded, with the presence of the Spanish priest Father Felix Civor and a small group of young Bolivians open to God’s call, with a simple, almost naive faith. —
Achumani – where it all started
Schoenstatt began in Achumani, on a small piece of land donated by the Contemplative Conceptionist Mothers who generously said it was a donation “for the Blessed Mother”. Surrounded by cliffs and mountains, in the middle of the high plateau of the Andes, it speaks to us of height, close to heaven, in the area of “Achumani”, an Aymara word that means “where everything flourishes, where the crops are renewed”.
It was an autumn day, bright sun that burns the skin, intense blue sky, dry weather, as well as this rugged terrain, without much vegetation, far from the bustle of the city. After 50 years, right here we have a flourishing land, full of vegetation, surrounded by many people and, above all, formed by a family committed to the mission, with a large Family Movement, Ladies, Youth, many children, Professionals, Dawn Breakers, Pilgrim Mother, Apostolates in different ministries, all committed to the Schoenstatt charism and faithful to our founder, Father Joseph Kentenich.
God has been provident and has taken care of the growth of this family. There was no lack of difficulties, crises and trials; they strengthened us and made us grow slowly, but the roots were deep and survived the strong winds… We want to thank Mary’s faithfulness, the faithful Mother who always believed in us, because also 32 years ago, since 1992, she gave us the “Land of Unity” Shrine.
The celebration of the 40th anniversary in 2014, the Jubilee Year of Schoenstatt International, was also reflected in schoenstatt.org with an article.
Founders
Founders
We feel we are heirs of the Cenacle
Our history is so clear: Schoenstatt Bolivia carries the inheritance of the Cenacle Shrine, in fact, we were born in the jubilee of the 25th Anniversary of the mission of the 31st of May (it refers to May 31, 1949, the 3rd milestone in the history of Schoenstatt, linked to the Shrine of Bellavista, “Cenacle Shrine”, Chile) and the wayside shrine was placed before in the New Bethlehem Shrine, in Santiago, Chile.
The advisors who accompanied the growth of this Family for a long time, visiting us once or twice a year, were Father Rafael Fernández, Sister María Angélica Infante, along with other Schoenstatt Fathers, Sisters of Mary and Ladies of Schoenstatt and lay people from Chile, to whom we are grateful.
Dawn Breakers
Lay family
The fact of not having advisors who are close to the work of the branches, over time became a school of growth, making us, as lay people, learn co-responsibility and feel that the mission rested on the shoulders of each one of us, bringing to life what Pope Francis proposes “… the laity are part of the Holy Faithful People of God and, therefore, the protagonists of the Church and of the world…” (SS Francis, Letter to the President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, 26.04.2016).
A Schoenstatt marked by the presence of the Schoenstatt Federation of Diocesan Priests
We are also grateful for the presence of Father Joseph Neuenhofer in La Paz, because he has been a privileged instrument for founding the Federation of Schoenstatt Diocesan Priests. We have four courses of priests who are nourished by the Schoenstatt charism, who are engraving their love for Mary in their parishes and dioceses.
We have reached the jubilee
For the past three months the La Paz family has been preparing for this Jubilee.
First of all, the mystery of God’s choice of that young founding generation who allowed themselves to be captivated by Mary, who built a wayside shrine and the road to reach her with bricks, stone and straw.
In the second month, the fruits of the Coronation as “Queen of Fertility” were deepened, a cry for Her to show Her power in the midst of difficulties and so it happened, the Family was consolidated.
During the last meeting, we shared what we dream for Schoenstatt La Paz for the future 50 years: greater giving of self and commitment, to consolidate the Family, insertion into the Church, Schoenstatt in authentic reaching out…In this preparation, we were accompanied by a very eloquent symbol: the fire of the mission, that first fire of love of the Founding Generation that the Blessed Mother lit was given into the hands of the present generation and explicitly left in the hands of our youth, boys and girls who received it when they were told: “I give you the fire of the mission…” It is the fire that will remain burning in our hearts in the strength of the Covenant of Love with Her.
May Schoenstatt flourish close to heaven, sunny meadow, home for pilgrims, Land of unity that Mary called us to forge with her missionary fire, may Mary always renew the sowing of faith, growing more and more in organic loving, thinking and living.
Youth
The beginnings of Schoenstatt in Bolivia, as narrated by the author of this article
On May 1, 2024, Schoenstatt Bolivia celebrated its 50th anniversary
Original: Spanish. Translation: Marcela Fernández, Toronto, Canada
