Witnesses of the universal soul that makes itself felt in Belmonte

The new custodians of the "Shrine of All of Us" begin their work

Imagen del Niño Jesús de Praga, regalo de la familia de Schoenstatt de Chequia Picture of the Baby Jesus of Prague, gift of the Czech Schoenstatt Family Prager Jesuskind, ein Geschenk der Schönstattfamilie von Tschechien
El Padre Frantisek Jarisek y su hermana Maria Jiraskova de la República Checa, con los Musolino Father Frantisek Jarisek and his sister, Maria Jiraskova, from Czech Republic, with the Musolino Pater Frantisek Jarisek und seine Schwester Maria Jiraskova aus Tschechien, mit Ehepaar Musolino Fotos: Nuño © 2006

ROME, Francisco Nuño. Francisco and Anneliese Nuño, who had been the general superiors of the Schoenstatt Institute of Families until the summer of 2006, have assumed their new task as custodians of the "Shrine of All of Us" in Belmonte, Rome. Francisco Nuño also assumed the task that he had dreamed about for years: to be a correspondent of Schoenstatt.de so that he can transmit "live" what happens in Belmonte and Rome.

All great events, even those without much fanfare, have their time. That is what happened on Tuesday, November 7^th when we left from Schoenstatt in Germany on our way to Rome. The day before Anneliese and I, were invited to a meeting of the General Council of the Work. We sat at the table with all its members in the House the Diocesan Priests of Moriah to celebrate together as a family our last activity as members of the Council (six years) and to cheer us up before our imminent departure to Belmonte just outside Rome. It was a gift and an unforgettable social evening: those present with us were the superiors and general superiors of the five other Schoenstatt Institutes with their respective Assistant Priests or General Directors, as well as the leaders of the international Federations and the Director of the Movement in Germany. This diverse group experienced the presence of our Founding Father, the father of all, who has united us into a happy and joyful community. Without an agenda or ‘order for the day’ we experienced the family of the Father.

An unforgettable night

And so that this evening would be even more joyful and complete we had the joy of welcoming, at a very late hour, our Martino, Jensen and Kostner Families, who came to our house to help us pack the suitcases and load the car for our trip. It was a great surprise to see them all and we experienced the joy of real family. They helped to put the finishing touches to the kitchen at the house in Vallendar- the one that we will leave for always after twelve years in Schoenstatt. And when the suitcases and all the boxes were in the car we sat in the living room tired and happy, knowing that we were loved and spoiled by God. That night was short, but unforgettable. We went to bed late and we arose early the next day to attend Holy Mass at seven fifteen in the morning in the Original Shrine. We left this holy place to go directly to Rome. A little after eight in the morning Anneliese and I were on highway No. 61 gazing toward the south.

The most "Italian" of all…

The trip was good, without mishaps. It took us two days on the highway from Schoenstatt Germany to Rome. We spent the end of the first day in Italy, south of Milan. To make the trip less tiring Anneliese and I took turns driving our ‘Volkswagen Golf". The happy and open people of this Mediterranean country also have a different way of driving their autos, and their traffic is also different. In Italy when you drive, one has the special ability to make the traffic laws flexible and relative depending on a given situation. The important thing, we noticed, is to move forward.

It was a special atmosphere for Anneliese. She took her driving lessons "a la Mediterranean" when we lived in Madrid. When we crossed the Swiss border shared with Italy, I had the impression that "she was at home" in the auto. She had just taken the steering wheel and the chaos of Milan on Wednesday afternoon was quite an experience. The traffic was very intense. Thousands of Italians, each one in his ‘machine’, tried to get home after work and there, in the middle, our German auto with my wife at the wheel! Fascinating! The most "Italian" of all of them was my Anneliese. At least that is how I felt, since I could barely read the signs of the route to indicate the right road. For her it was no problem. At one point I said that we had had bad luck reaching Milan at rush hour. Anneliese, in her typical joyful way, affectionately corrected me saying: "No, it is not rush hour"; she said it like that in English, so that this Andalusian, who comes from farther south, would understand it well!

It was quite an experience. When we arrived at the hotel, a few kilometers away, we thanked God for the good trip of this day and for the health that he so graciously gives us each new day.

Sharing roof and table

The first days in Rome have been very intense. The Musolino Family waited for us in the Shrine of Belmonte. The four of us knelt there when we arrived on the afternoon of Wednesday, November 8th. This is how a new era of our lives began. Our residence in Rome will temporarily be an apartment at Via Ovada 29 where the Abram’s lived for two years and where Lito and Rosita Musolino are presently staying. The Covenant House (Casa dell’Alleanza) is still not finished; the detail work is still needed. In Italy there is always time and things have their rhythm. Patience.

The Musolino’s will return to Argentina on December 2^nd. During the next three weeks we will share roof and table and at the same time they will help us and ease us into our work as custodians of the Shrine. On Friday, November 10^th we had our first meeting with the Council (Cosiglio) of the Shrine. It was held in the shadow of the Schoenstatt Shrine in Rome, the Cor Ecclesiae Shrine of our Sisters of Mary. We met there because Sister M. Asunción had just arrived a few hours earlier from Germany. The members of the Consiglio – an institution convoked by the Diocesans – are representatives of the Institutes in Rome, Father Ludovico, Sister M. Asunción, and Mrs. Roberta Cuccaro, as well as those of us who work at Belmonte, Anneliese and I and Sister Fernanda. The Diocesan Priest, Father Michael Gerber from Germany presides over the Consiglio. During this first meeting we had the opportunity to have a discussion about the life that is already felt in the Shrine and about the different needs of the members of the Consiglio. Two large streams can foster life and give the Shrine its own identity and projection. On one hand, the Shrine in Belmonte can be the spiritual center of the future Schoenstatt Family in Italy and on the other hand, the Shrine can be the place chosen by our Father and Founder to project the charisma of the Founder and his Work as well as the internationality of our Schoenstatt family to the universal Church and to the entire world.

Two concrete experiences

Two experiences during these first days in Rome have helped us to understand what was noted before: on the afternoon of Saturday the 11^th we were invited to the home of the family of Gianna and Pietro Lapiana , leaders of the Schoenstatt Rosary Campaign in this area. Besides their two children and a friend, who is a coordinator of the Campaign, other people had tea with us; among them was a professor from the University of Lublin in Poland, a friend of Sister Fernanda. It was a family meeting with eleven people of six different nationalities with a vital exchange about the experience of our faith and of our love for Mary, the Mother Thrice Admirable Queen and Victress of Schoenstatt.

On Monday the 13^th, Father Frantisesk Jarisek and his sister Maria Jiraskova from the Czech Republic arrived at Belmonte. They brought a picture of the Infant of Prague from the Shrine of Rokole that a Czech, Schoenstatt Family has given to the International Center of the Schoenstatt Family in Rome. These gifts and others like them that come from all the Schoenstatt Shrines in the world are and will be an integral part and witnesses of the universal soul that can be felt in this holy place that the Family gave to our Father and that he blessed since forty years ago.

Translation: Celina Garza, Harlingen, TX /Christi Jentz, Milwaukee, USA