So that this missionary Church may become a reality

The Archdiocesan Family of Buenos Aires has a start-up Journey a few days before the V Conference of CELAM in Aparecida, Brazil

Siempre se puede cortar la cadena de mala onda We can trigger a chain reaction of bad mood… or stop it Die Welle schlechter Stimmung kann man abbrechen... wenn man will
Conferencia Talk Vortragsrunde
Taller Discussion group Arbeitskreis
Intercambio Discussion Lebhafter Austausch
Ideas y propuestas Ideas and suggestions Ideen und Vorschläge Fotos: Crivelli © 2007

ARGENTINA, Monina Crivelli. On Thursday, April11th the Archdiocesan Family from Buenos Aires gathered at Confidentia at 9:00 p.m. for the start-up Journey of the year, with the participation of all the branches and groups of the Movement from the four vicariates and the area of the Blessed Mother’s School. This meeting was very well organized in every detail from the point of view of content as well as the practical part; it was totally directed by the laity, especially by the Professional and the Mothers’ Branches.

After a prayer written by two young couples of the Family Work there was a very original and motivational dynamic which presented four scenes from daily life at different times of the day. These scenes were linked to each other, each one showing the lack of harmony in co-existence and interaction among the different people. As a "leit-motiv" (dominant theme or underlying pattern), each one of these "dramatizations" ended with the well known complaint: "This city is an inferno, one cannot live like this".

A civic responsibility

After a warm applause for the improvised actors, who transmitted the message very well, Father Javier Arteaga, Director of the Movement, elaborated on the subject in a brief and very inspiring manner, basically from the perspective of the family’s motto for the year: "From the Shrine, missionary disciples for a country that is family" "We have just seen four images of our reality in the city. It is like a chain of bad reactions that is repeated, beginning at breakfast time, later at work, at school and in the Shrine. The interesting thing is that this chain can always be broken. We have the opportunity and we are prepared for this, but sometimes we do not want to do it. Each one of us can do it; the question is if we want to do it.

As Schoenstatters we can make a difference. Father Kentenich spoke about a double responsibility as Christians: a civic responsibility and the fact of being citizens of heaven, which demands even more from us. We cannot be citizens of heaven if we are strangers on earth.

Our motto of the year reminds us of the V Conference of CELAM in Aparecida, Brazil, which will be celebrated in the month of May, with the presence of the Holy Father. From our originality we want to collaborate so that this missionary Church will become a reality. In order to do this we should be disciples of Christ.

A Movement that is Marian, family oriented or apostolic

From the Shrine: we want to live our own charisma. We belong to a Movement that is Marian, family oriented and apostolic. We are distinguished by the Shrine. We are a Movement that has a Shrine. The Movement is born at the Shrine. The Shrine is our starting point.

In the second place: what do we want to be? Missionary disciples. As was seen at the Journey of delegates, no one can be a disciple if he is not a missionary. The true disciple ends up being a missionary. "We cannot keep that which we have received" says Saint Paul.

And finally, we want to make our country a large family.

Our school as disciples of Christ is the spiritual school of Father Kentenich. As his children, we are loyal to his promise to Pius XII and Paul VI that the Schoenstatt Movement would make the Church a true family.

Applying this to the family of our country, what do we want for the country? How are the Schoenstatters going to do this? We want to impress it with the family, with the spirit of a family, contrary to the spirit that presently reigns, which a spirit of a jungle. We want to make this city more of a family, showing that in this city it is possible to live because I am going to give the face of family"

Missionary disciples

Then the participants divided into groups according to areas (The central vicariate was divided into three areas because of the large number of participants) to answer the two questions that Father Javier had posed:

1. What do we want to stress?
2. How are we going to do it?

There was a very rich exchange within the groups; it was full of life, ideas, and impulses. Among other things, it was mentioned that we had to go out to encounter those in need, of taking this spirit to the parishes, of becoming more aware, to create a family spirit in all areas and situations, to have a current of Homeshrine. The dialogue was blended with sandwiches and soft drinks that were needed at this hour of the night…

Finally, the things that were discussed in the groups were brought to the attention of all the participants, from which the aspect to be stressed was extracted –missionary disciples – and two lines of concrete operatives – to go on pilgrimage as a Family of Buenos Aires to the National Shrine in October and to place a Capital of Grace of the Family of Buenos Aires in the shape of the city in each one of the Shrines and in the Blessed Mother’s School.

The participants left this place with the joy of knowing that they had been protagonists of a key moment in the life of the Family of Buenos Aires, where the work for the year was begun.

Translation: Celina Garza, Harlingen, TX, USA