The true colors of hope- the colors of home

Celebration of the anniversary of the Sion Shrine in Florencio Varela, Argentina

Homilía: P. Juan Pablo Catoggio Sermon: Fr. Juan Pablo Catoggio Ansprache: P. Juan Pablo Catoggio
Pepo y Patricia Köstner, del Instituto de Familias, entregan el rosal Pepo and Patricia Köstner, of the Institute of Schoenstatt Families, offer the rose-tree Pepo and Patricia Köstner vom Institut der Schönstattfamilien überreichen den Rosenstock
P. José María García con los Köstner Fr. José María García with Pepo and Patricia Köstner P. José María García mit Ehepaar Köstner
En el Santuario In the Shrine Alle wollen einmal ins Heiligtum
Sopresa: visita de jovenes de Alemania Surprise: youth from Germany present Überraschung: junge Frauen aus Deutschland sind da! Fotos: Crivelli © 2008 Album de fotos

ARGENTINA, mca. February 24^th at 11:00 a.m. Father’s Sion in Florencio Varela is filled with cars and buses. It is the Family of the Father, which has come once more to celebrate another anniversary – the 14th – of the Sion Shrine, the Shrine of the Fathers, the Shrine of the children.

The first surprise – and certainly most pleasing – was to discover Father Horacio welcoming them at the foot of the altar. Not in person (or was he?) rather it was photo of him in which he is contemplating everything and everyone with that expression of his aflame with the fire, the passion of mission.

It was also very natural to remember Flora Anselmo who died on February 19^th at the age of ninety; she was the founder and the energetic heart of the Vocations Circle. A very common sight in past years was her descending from a bus filled with people she had invited each year for this celebration.

More than 600 people

As usual along with the pilgrims and those close to the Shrine, the local Schoenstatt Family gathered represented by more than 600 people from all the Branches, Institutes, Federations, and the Rosary Campaign, and on this occasion Father José Maria Garcia, a member of the General Council of the Schoenstatt Fathers, joined them. There were a large number of seminarians and novices who will depart for Paraguay in a few days to begin their studies. This year representatives of the original Schoenstatt were also present: four girls from the German Girls’ Youth visiting our country. And as if this was not enough, Pastor Achával who is about to be ordained as a priest on Sunday, March 2^nd assisted in the Mass as a deacon. There were so many gifts! The weather was better than ever; there was a light rain at the start cooling the heat of the day, and the sun and clouds came out intermittently as if to make everyone happy. Sion was resplendent.

Church of open arms

The celebration began after the greetings and reunions during this time of the year at the end of vacations. Everyone there followed the Mass with rapt attention, and absorbed every word of the homily centered on the readings of the day and given by Father Juan Pablo Cattoggio, Superior General of the Schoenstatt Fathers. "If you knew the gift of God and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water, …" resounded once and again as a great leitmotif.

Father Juan Pablo affirmed: "In reference to the passage where Jesus says that he is the living water and that in him the depths in us respond, it can and should apply to everyone, to us, and the entire Church; as we come close to many Samaritan women, many Samaritan men of today. In response to this message, the bishops in Aparecida concluded with a call to the entire Church to open itself to a great mission. And they utilized an image I like very much: to be a Church of open arms, infectious because of its conviction and through its joy. Many times I think we try to communicate the Good News. But we do it in such a bad way that where is the good news? Or the joy of the news of the Christian Church of open arms, an open Shrine? – we have heard it so many times. A church with open arms, not with fallen arms; with arms that welcome and receive, with arms that embrace, support, contain, with arms that encourage, with arms that accompany, with hands that bless…A family Church, a home Church, a missionary Church, an enthusiastic Church, a Church of open arms.

I believe if we also remember Father Horacio, we would remember this same spirit. He was someone who wanted to cultivate this in all of us and in himself, to infect us, and to awaken that strength of the word. He was surprised by the impact of the word. ‘The word – he said at one time – when it is transmitted clearly and with mercy can impact life, it can raise people, it can transform, it can generate something new, when it is borne from conviction, from certainty, from enthusiasm.’ That is why he wanted to infect us so much with this certainty that nothing can go wrong because the power of God is stronger, our smallness is never an obstacle for God, the victory of God through the infinite power of his love is greater and he can do everything. Church of open arms."

We belong to the Shrine; we are the Shrine’s

After the homily, Father Juan Pablo Catoggio reminded everyone of the nearness of the source of living water, "Sometimes it is so close that we do not notice it: It is our Shrine. Today we are celebrating the anniversary of the Shrine, and in ours we are celebrating every one of our Shrines and every one of the communities from which we come. Because we belong to the Shrine, we are the Shrine’s; each person is from his Shrine. We, Schoenstatters, have a unique home, and it is our Shrine. This is our secret, our treasure, it is our home, and it is our strength. This is the rock from which the water of life flows for all of us. Here Jesus opened this source of life for us through Mary, our most Admirable Queen. Thousands of Samaritan men and women of the present world need to discover this gift and someone to call them; they are seeking that source to slake such a deep thirst in the heart of their lives. For this reason, brothers and sisters, we do not go far from the Shrine because we will dry up, let us drink constantly from this source time and again. But if we are truly missionaries, we are missionaries of the Shrine and from the Shrine. If not, there is little we can offer and give if we are not united to this profound source of the Shrine and the heart of Jesus and the Blessed Mother. And we are responsible, we will held accountable, and we should give the Shrine an account, we should give an account of the fruitfulness of our Shrines. God will demand it, our nation will also demand it, and the Church will demand it.

May we truly be instruments like Moses so that the water from the Shrine, from the rock will flow and run to all the roads of the nation. We want to build a new nation, and family, because it has a father and mother, because this nation of Mary is where she weaves our attachments, she made us brothers and sisters, she encourages us with her smile, she shelters us with her embrace, and she sits us around one table where life is happy with the celebration. A nation that is family is a nation of Mary. The Youth here in Argentina express it very well; the youth proposed that by the year 2010, the bicentennial of the nation – this is what they say: ‘we will have an Argentina that is blue and white.’ These are truly the colors of hope, the color of Mary, the color of the nation.

We should be a Church of open arms, like the arms of Mary in the Shrine, like the arms of the Mother who welcomes, who sustains, who waits for us, and not fallen arms. We should make this treasure known, we should open this fountain of the Shrine, which is the source converted in each one of us, and also into the source so that the nation family becomes a source for eternal life."

Sion 2008

A very touching moment was experienced during the offertory when Pepo and Patricia Kostner – representing the Institute of Families – brought a rose bush to the altar that will be planted close to the tomb of their beloved and greatly missed adviser, Father Horacio, in memory of his favorite saint to which he referred many times during his life: to Saint Therése of Lisieux.

The Magazine Sion 2008 was distributed to everyone after the Mass; it was full of the latest, excellent news, and photos. Besides other news, it was a joy to read about the vocations: "Nine young men will enter the new course of the novitiate this March in Tuparenda, Paraguay." They are not the twelve who we prayed for, but the Blessed Mother was more than generous anyway. Six are from Argentina, two from Paraguay, and as a special gift, the first novice of our sister country of Uruguay, the first charrúa, River Plate Indian for our community. Oh, the ecclesial surprise: The Bishop of Quilmes, Monsignor Luis Stockler, earnestly asked us to help our area of Varela. We could not refuse this very clear request from the Church, and during the following weeks we will help Saint Pantaleon, a small neighboring parish, and Father Kentenich’s Children’s Home, which belongs to that parish. In this way we want to serve the local Church and our neighborhood. Father Juan José Riba, who will replace Father Pablo Mullin, will be the rector of the main house in Sion, and he will also be the pastor of Saint Pantaleon."

Lunch as a family

Then it was time to visit the Blessed Mother in her Shrine after being in the long line, and then they quickly went to the Joseph Engling pavilion of the Boys’ Youth to share lunch. There was applause for those in charge of the bar! The organization was truly impeccable to the full extent of the word. The Institute of Families with the collaboration of the Family from La Plata, did magnificent work – for the first time there was enough food and drinks for everyone! Furthermore, through a simple and very efficient method, they kept us from standing in a long, agonizing line under the rays of the sun to obtain the lunch tickets. Our most sincere gratitude to all of them!

There were varied groups animatedly conversing everywhere about the things they have experienced and those to come. And of course there was a grateful remembrance of Father Horacio. How we miss him! The great one who was missing and at the same time the one who was present. He was not here, and yet he was here, like never before…

At precisely 3:30 p.m. they gathered again for a time of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament under the direction of Father Marcelo Gallardo – and literally – in the shadow of the Shrine, it was a truly profound time. Then they slowly left, thanking God for another Sion anniversary filled with blessings in the company of so many brothers and sisters as a Family from which they returned re-energized and animated to once again undertake the activities for the new year. The Fathers will wait for us on the last Sunday of February 2009 with heaven knows how many surprises and marvels!

• Funeral Mass for Fr. Horacio Sosa Carbó Homily by Fr. Juan Pablo Catoggio

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