Universality of the Catholic Church

Encounter around the Shrine of Belmonte

Anneliese Nuño y la Hermana Fernanda reciben a la Sr. Jacoba Kesselheim, Superiora General de las Hermanas de María Anneliese Nuño and Sister Fernanda receiving Sr. M. Jacoba Kesselheim, Superior General of the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary Anneliese Nuño und Schw. Fernanda begrüßen Schw. Jacoba Kesselheim, Generaloberin der Marienschwestern
El Santo Padre en el Consistorio The Holy Father in the Consistorium Der Heilige Vater beim Konsistorium
El Cardenal Rylko en el Consistorio Cardinal Rylko at the Consistorium Kardinal Rylko beim Konsistorium
P. Ludovico y Hermana Fernanda con peregrinos alemanes en la Casa dell'alleanza Fr. Ludovico and Sr. Fernanda with German pilgrims in the Casa dell'alleanza P. Ludovico und Schw. Fernanda mit den deutschen Pilgern in der Casa dell'alleanza
Comida en casa de la Society Holy Child Jesus en Roma Meal in the House if the Society Holy Child Jesus in Rome Mittagessen im Haus der Society Holy Child Jesus in Rom Fotos: Nuño © 2007

ROMA, Francisco Nuño. To live in Rome and to care for the Matri Ecclesiae Shrine of the Schoenstatt International Family in the "eternal city" brings with it the experience of the universality of the Catholic Church.

Sister Fernanda, Santiago a youth from Cordoba, Argentina, and the Nunos are in Belmonte during these weeks. The great number of people here makes it possible to participate once again in events and special encounters beyond the walls of the Belmonte grounds.

God lives and acts in the world

A few days ago the Nunos were invited to the celebration of Holy Mass and for dinner at the Headquarters of the Society of the Holy Child Jesús. It is a religious community founded in England in the year 1846 by Cornelio Connelly, a woman born in the city of Philadelphia in the United States. "They help others believe that God lives and acts in them and in the world," in small communitites in Europe, Africa, and the United States. Six religious live in the small house of their headquarters in Rome, among them are: Louisa Huni-Dadzie from Ghana in eastern Africa. She is the secretary of the General Superior and is a pleasant and affectionate woman, who is a very good friend of Anneliese Nuno – they took an Italian course together last year. They traveled together on the bus, spoke English for a change, and they were a "spectacle" to those who traveled on Roman buses. Well, Louisa recently celebrated the 25th Anniversary of her perpetual profession, and this was the occasion for which she invited the Nunos to come celebrate. Other religious live with her from different countries – Nigeria, Ireland, USA, and Holland. A Ghanan priest of the Verbum Dei Community celebrated Holy Mass and the renewal of Louisa’s vows was a very special religious experience and the dinner (which was part Italian, part African, and American) was quite a treat. The two African religious, who attended, danced a dance of gratitude, and we were enlivened and convinced of the originality, the universality of our faith.

Truly a treasure for the Mexican Church

On Sunday afternoon, December 9^th, the community of the Mexican Pontifical College celebrated the solemnity of Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Fortieth Anniversary of the founding of the College in Rome. Father Felipe Ruiz, from Chiapas, invited the Nunos to these celebrations. During the forty years of their history at this Pontifical College more than one thousand and five hundred young Mexican priests who came to Rome to specialize in the different pontifical universities have passed through its walls. It is truly a treasure for the Mexican Church.

After the Eucharistic celebration presided by his Emminence, Cardinal Javier Lozano Barragán, everyone went in procession with the picture of the Virgin of Guadalupe from the neighboring parish church to the Mexican college, where they had the opportunity to participate in sharing and partaking of a dinner prepared by the Mexican priests: it was a typical meal with tinga, refried beans, tostadas, and punch. Some also drank a little bit of tequila. The night ended with a celebration on the patio of the college with mariachis and other folkloric attractions prepared by the Mexican priests at the college. It was an unforgettable afternoon in which we could share in the faith and joy of the "Guadalupana" and Mexican culture of the hosts. This is also an aspect of the universal Rome.

Both experiences made us reflect and dream about the future of our International Schoenstatt Center in Rome and about the "universality" of our Matri Ecclesiae Shrine in Belmonte.

At the service of the cause for the kingdom

Beyond these special experiences, we participated in the public acts of the last Consistory that the representatives of Schoenstatt in Rome experienced at St. Peter’s. It was the second Consistory of the creation of new Cardinals appointed by Benedict XVI. Everything took place with the usual solemnity for this kind of event. This Consistory has significantly manifested the universal character of the Church. More than seventy countries are represented in the College of Cardinals. On this occasion the ecclesial universality was visible in a special way with nine African cardinals from Kenya and Senegal and with the presence of Iraq through the presence of the Patriarch of the Chaldean Church, Emmanuel III Delly. It was a delicate and missionary gesture on the part of our Pope Benedict XVI. In his homilies on November 24th and 25th he beautifully and precisely delineated the identity and the mission of the cardinals as the closest collaborators of the Bishop of Rome, furthermore, he stressed the lifestyle that is proper for Cardinals who should be willing to "give their own blood" for the Kingdom of Christ. "The entire hierarchy of the Church, all of its charisma and ministry, each and every one of us are at the service of the Lord, and at the service of the cause of man, at the service of the cause of the Kingdom…to announce the truth of Christ, the hope of humanity," affirmed Benedict XVI.

There is a friend of the Schoenstatt Family among the new Cardinals, His Eminence, Cardinal Stanislaw Rylko, President of the Pontifical Council for the Laity.

On Saturday afternoon of the 24th, as representatives of the Schoenstatt Movement, Sister Lisianne Braunbeck, Anneliese and Francisco Nuno personally extended their congratulations and our commitment in solidarity to him. This is something that is necessary and convenient in the relations of Vatican protocol. On the night before the Consistory, we also had the opportunity to dine with him and a small group of Germans from the parish where Aneeliese and I married and where the new Cardinal maintains friendly and very special relations.

"Illustrious" visits

Recently our Matri Ecclesiae Shrine in Belmonte has been honored with the visit of some "illustrious" Schoenstatters; it is another symbol of the universality of Rome. Sister Jacoba, General Superior of the Sisters of Mary, Father Heinrich Walter, Superior of the Schoenstatt Fathers, and Mrs. G. Pollak, a leader of the Schoenstatt Women. Monsignor Wolf, Rector of the Schoenstatt Diocesan Priests, and a large group of German pilgrims who have visited the Shrine and the Covenant House twice were also here. Every year during the first week of December, a large group from Schoenstatt Germany arrives to Rome and Belmonte. This time there were more than one hundred twenty pilgrims. It’s an opportunity for our German Family to prove their loyalty and solidarity for the construction work at the International Schoenstatt Center in Rome and the growth of the Schoenstatt Movement in Italy. Father Ludovico and Sister Fernanda presented their testimonies in respect to the family retreat, which was held in the House on the afternoon of December 6th.

Translation: Celina Garza, Harlingen, TX, USA/amj