From now on, each 18^th is another 18^th of October

Covenant Celebration at the Original in Schoenstatt - a first time experience to go on

Dia 18, fue un día de primavera espectacular ... Covenant Day, finally a real spring day... Bündnistag, endlich ein wunderbarer Frühlingstag
Coro Callegari – Nikolayczik The Callegari – Nikolayczik Choir Der Callegari – Nikolayczik-Chor
Misa de la Alianza, entrada Entrance procession of the Covenant Mass Einzug zur Bündnismesse
La familia se reune en el Santuario Original The family unites at the Original Shrine Die Schönstattfamilie versammelt sich um das Urheiligtum
Fuego Fire Feuer Fotos: POS Fischer © 2006

SCHOENSTATT, mkf. "Happy COVENANT MASS, Happy PILGRIMAGE!!!" The missionaries of the Rosary Campaign from Puerto Madryn, Argentina, unite ourselves from the heart and from our Covenant to all who are present in the Original Shrine and have the grace of experiencing your Mass on this very special and beloved date for all of us who love our Mother Thrice Admirable. We pray for them and for the entire world that they may have peace in their hearts and that we may always live in gratitude for everything that Divine Providence constantly provides in our lives – writes Monica, missionary of the Rosary Campaign, congratulating the Blessed Mother, the Original Shrine, and the Schoenstatt Family on this 18^th of April. "It is like the 18^th of October, said a German woman. Amazed at her own words, she repeats: "Yes, it like the 18^th of October. From now on each 18^th of the month will like the 18^th of October…"

The Covenant Mass in the Shrine on the 18^th, which is very common in most of the Schoenstatt Shrines, was impossible in Schoenstatt for 40 years. "There are many here that came from far away, with the desire of being in the Original Shrine on the 18^th", shared Father Widamier at the end of the Mass in the Pilgrim Church. "There are people in the entire world that cannot be here today but they are spiritually present. Along with all of them we now go on pilgrimage to the Original Shrine." Spiritually they all walked along with the 400, 500, people, who headed towards the Original Shrine. "Congratulations and blessing for everyone who is at the Original Shrine on April 18^th. We, in Miami, will pray the One Thousand Hail Marys, praying that things will be resolved and that the city will approve the construction of the Shrine very soon. We will also have a Covenant Mass at 10:00 a.m.", writes Sara Ycasa, while from Peru news was received from Queca Espinoza: "Congratulations to everyone who could be in the Original Shrine for the Mass and the Renewal of the Covenant of Love with the Blessed Mother, and many blessings for the people who made this possible after 40 years. In the Shrine of Molina in Lima, Peru, we will be connected with the Original Shrine at 8:30 p.m.". Raquel Antonioli, from La Plata, sent this message: "Dear Blessed Mother: We wish to be in the Original Shrine spiritually, we renew our Covenant and we will remain loyal, we will be praying the One Thousand Hail Marys in our Shrine of Liberation in La Plata, for the intentions of our family and those of all the pilgrims". The missionaries of the Rosary Campaign from Rosario de Goya, Argentina, also felt "united to the Covenant Mass, our heart in your heart, our hands in your hands! We unite ourselves to such a beautiful event in this land of God. Father, we follow your footsteps with Christ your son, may your eternal ally bless us!!!"

A wave of prayer

April 18^th began with sunshine, a spectacular spring day after so many days of rain. Since early in the morning, the pilgrims began to arrive at the Original Shrine, which was decorated abundantly with flowers. At noon, the news that Father Angel Strada had suffered an arterial obstruction spread like wildfire throughout all of Schoenstatt, which started many prayers in the Original Shrine and prayer chains in the Shrines and wayside shrines of Argentina and many other countries. "The missionaries are already in our Shrine praying the One Thousand Hail Marys, dedicated to all the needy, the sick and very sadly for our beloved Father Angel, whom the Family of San Isidro was anxiously preparing to welcome, to converse with, and to get up to date on all the news of the wonderful work that he is carrying out, sometimes we have to offer something more to the Capital of Grace. We are all united, holding on to the Blessed Mother, our Father and Founder, as well as Father Esteban, we start this pilgrimage for a speedy recovery for Father Angel Strada", writes Mariana Onnis, from San Isidro, Argentina. "The Blessed Mother cannot do this to us, affirms a Sister of Mary, as she walked to the Pilgrim Church, referring to what happened to Father Angel. "I already told her that she could not do this to us; she has to heal him if she doesn’t want to lose my friendship!"

A Garden around the Shrine, a Garden of New Creation

At 7:30 p.m. the Pilgrim Church was full of people. Mothers from the Federation, youth from the Boys’ and Girls’ Youth, a course of Family Federation, many Sisters of Mary, pilgrims from Chile, Argentina, Mexico, Bolivia, and South Africa are present. Since before the Mass started, the orchestra of the Federation Mothers – two sisters along with their husbands and the three daughters of one of them created an atmosphere of joy and anticipation. The entrance of the priests and the altar boys was impressive – Schoenstatt Fathers, Priests of the Institute and of the Federation entered in solemn procession. The joyful songs, full of life, masterfully accompanied by the orchestra, made this first Covenant Mass a Paschal Feast! Simon Donnelly, a seminarian from South Africa, who is studying in Rome, read one of the readings in English; songs were sung in English and Spanish….In his homily, Father Penners referred to the Gospel of the day, speaking of the new creation as a garden, and he said that from the Shrine a garden is also born, in which we can all contribute to its flourishing and to its growth.

United at the Original Shrine

After the blessing, everyone went on pilgrimage to the Original Shrine, with flags, praying and singing, while the members of the orchestra tried to find another way to arrive at the source of grace, to wait for the pilgrims with music! The Original Shrine was filled quickly; the courtyard was full of pilgrims…Those who did not understand German missed a little. "When was the renewal of the Covenant?" asked a lady from Argentina. The song? "No, no, we do not recognize a song as the renewal of the Covenant!" It is the first time that this celebration was held here after so many years, so we were a little out of practice, which was also manifested later at the bonfire where the papers from the vessels with the contributions to the Capital of Grace were burned. The majority of the people did not know the songs that were sung. "The celebration should be more of the people, more international", commented Father Franz Widmaier, National Assessor of the Pilgrim’s Movement. It doesn’t matter; joy predominated because we were together as a family in the Original Shrine, united to many people in the entire world who are also celebrating the Covenant today, united spiritually to the Original Shrine.

Thank you beloved MTA, for this Covenant and for this family!

• Photos
• Video Original Shrine
• Video Covenant Celebration
• Prayers for Father Angel Strada