published: 2007-12-14 | |
Thank you, Dad, for bringing us to this beautiful placeThree groups of couples from Encarnación prepare for the Covenant of Love |
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PARAGUAY, Nelly Ramirez/mkf. The married couples from Encarnación who on December 2nd made their commitment as a Schoenstatt group went on retreat to Tuparenda on the 6th, 7th, and 8th of December for preparation to make their Covenant of Love; the very intense pilgrimage to Caacupé to celebrate the feast of the patron saint of Paraguay on December 8th, left a deep and lasting impression, as well as the no less intense retreat on the Covenant of Love. The Encarnación couples were happy to accept the gift of a retreat from Father Antonio Cosp, but like Papito Martín commented, "what were the contents of this present…. we could not begin to imagine… we couldn’t imagine how excellent, rich, profound, and exquisite it would be… how like Mary. One of the married couples brought their children to Tuparenda. The first meeting after the retreat, Juan and Patricia commented, " that their children were happy, and Alan, the older son told his father, ‘Thank you daddy for bringing us to this beautiful place.’ Now we know why they came… The little ones knew now that their parents belonged to the Family in Covenant group and they knew that name too, and that the other participating married couples belonged to the Footsteps and Sower groups. The other parents regretted not having brought their children to see and live those days in Tuparenda!" A surprise in CaacupéThe novena of Paraguay’s patroness, Our Lady of the Miracles of Caacupé, ended on December 8th, with the Mass at 7:00 PM. This final Mass of the largest pilgrimage day for the entire country is traditionally entrusted to the Schoenstatt Family of Paraguay, a fact that made the participation in that Mass a special gift and feast for the "Children of the Queen" from Encarnación. The brand new Family Branch of Encarnación soon appeared there, along with more members of the Schoenstatt Family, sitting in the wings waiting for the celebration, which was presided over by Bishop Claudio Jimenez of the Caacupe Diocese, a Schoenstatt Father. Concelebrating with the Bishop were other priests of the Fathers’Institute. Also assisting were all the novices; the liturgists were from the local family of the Apostolic Schoenstatt Movement, the choir from the Movement sang the liturgy–a true celebration! A surprise was still awaiting the families from Encarnación: "The facts spoke clearly to the heart. She told us: "I need you, I need your arms and your hearts for many people to see me, I need you, for them to know me. I need to have you guard my work with your life… I am behind all the events and works and I call you." And what was the great surprise? A religious came near the group waiting for the beginning of the Mass "requesting help. What for? Nothing more or less than carrying the image from the basilica to the place for the celebration! Hearts were full of love for the Queen and full of emotion. Who carries whom? Crying made the voice tremble and blinded the eyes, but the arms were up to the task as they carried her carefully." What an enormous privilege to enable us as well today to look at the eyes that looked into Father’s eyes!From the beginning, the Encarnación groups were marked with a strong attachment to Father Kentenich, forged with holy pride from the moment when Father Kentenich standing in Argentina looked over into Paraguay and saw the city of Encarnación. Through the retreat, and after a beautiful meeting with Bishop Claudio Jiménez, they realized that they can refer to themselves in view of Father Kentenich what is so often mentioned in the biographies of saints of the early church: "…he knew those who knew Jesus." Nelly Ramírez tells us, "There are those who walk among us still who had the privilege of hearing his voice, of shaking hands, day by day representing Father Kentenich with their being and their deeds. What an enormous privilege we have to be able to look at the eyes that looked at Father’s eyes. What twinkling lights they give, what commitment they attract! Bishop Claudio Jiménez and Father Antonio Cosp are for us our meeting with the eyes that saw this look. And like children with a thirst for everything, as the new Family Branch of Encarnación still discovering all, they repeat as a commitment: When Father Kentenich looked at Paraguay, he saw Encarnación, he saw us, he called us! Today Father looks at us and calls us with the example of the magnanimous commitment of two priestly hearts that gave us time (without time) to give a sense of mission to our groups. We are told about the time Father Kentenich met these two priests, who were seminarians at the time, and he told them, "Go and set fire to the world." And for the Southern part of the Nation of God, the flame is lit and started lighting!" Fruit of the presence, invoked and asked of the MotherThe flame is already lit in the smallest. The Martins related: "Yesterday evening when they were preparing for the meeting Alan said to his dad: "Where do you go now?" – "We are going to the meeting of your group!" – " Ahh, of the Family in Covenant group? Dad, promise me something?" "Yes, my son, what do you want?" "When you go to the meeting, you have to put on the Family in Covenant group t-shirt because you are from the Family in Covenant!". And so they did… Mirta counted something that came deeply to all. Leila, the greater of the babies, said to her mother, the following thing, "Mom, I don’t want you to give me anything on my birthday. What you would spend I want you to use for Mary’s house, because they told me a larger house was being constructed for her." The commitment of the smallest has a resonance in their dads: "What we live in Tuparenda and Caacupé," recounts Papito Martin, "was the fruit of the presence, invoked and asked of the Mother. She was the one giving the gift, utilizing the marvelous predisposition of Father Antonio, who dedicated, nothing more, and nothing less, those two days to us. What luxury, what privilege, what great love from Father Antonio, but also involves an enormous commitment on our part that we can’t defraud. If today we are twenty-something married couples, we can’t say in a year to Father Antonio: Look, we were seven couples and now we are five. We also couldn’t convince others to join the Movement. Just the opposite, we have to say to Father Antonio in July 2008, when he comes: "Father Antonio, here we present you forty married couples who want to enter Schoenstatt because they saw that it is a Movement that can change the life of the family, they see in us that this is so…. In the South of the Nation of God, with Mary, we want to build a new Family in Covenant, following in the steps that the Sower left in the furrows and the hearts of each one of the families from this part of Paraguay." Translation: Celina Garza, Harlingen, TX, USA/amj |
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Last Update: 18.12.2007