United in conquering for the RTA crown

Conference of the Girls’ Youth in Monterrey, Mexico

Dinamicas para que se conozcan Presentation games Vorstell-Spiele
Casi todas en el Santuario Almost all of the participants in the Shrine Fast alle im Heiligtum
Hablando sobre la pequeña María Speaking on the “little Mary” Statement zum Thema “kleine Maria”
Luisa Castañeda en su testimonio Luisa Castañeda giving her testimony Luisa Castañeda bei ihrem Zeugnis
Hna. Alejandra con voluntarias de Alemania Sister Alejandra with volunteers from Germany Schw. Alejandra mit Jugendlichen aus Deutschland Fotos: Aleida  Montalvo © 2008 Álbum de fotos – photo album – Fotoalbum

MÉXICO, Aleida Montalvo. The Mexican Girls’ Youth united to conquer the crown for the Regina Ter Admirabilis , Thrice Admirable Queen, and to continue Father Kentenich’s mission of being a living crown.

The conference was in Monterrey, Mexico, where seventy members of the Girls’ Youth gathered to experience a weekend filled with activities. Girls from Quertaro, Monclova, San Luis Potosi, Guadalajara, and Monterrey participated. The conference began on Friday, February 1st at the Movement House then later that evening to the Shrine for a short while and then to rest before the next day’s events.

And the conference began…

All the girls awoke early and left by 8:30 a.m. to go to the conference site. They began with a large breakfast followed by a video, which presented the introduction to the conference. The topic was about freedom and what that word means for the youth of today. The girls made a commitment to the MTA by accepting the task of filling a Capital of Grace vessel in the shape of the RTA crown, which was presented to Her at the end of the conference as a way of crowning Her as queen.

The theme of the talks was about the story of the RTA crown (it is a crown shaped by the letters R, T, A, the original crown was given to the Schoenstatt Youth in Germany by Father Kentenich), purity, freedom and the characteristics of a little Mary. In the afternoon there was more activity; they prepared a rally (a series of exercises) in which the girls interacted with each other to get to know each other better. The ages of the group ranged from twelve years to twenty-five years old, which did not impede them from having a great time of sharing. Then Father Stefano Daneri offered the Holy Mass for the Feast of the Candlemas.

A testimony that was impressive…

Later that little bit colder night, Luisa Castaneda, a member of the Girl’s Youth from Monterrey agreed to give her testimony about a severe automobile accident she had last year. Her car was totally destroyed as a result of speeding and she had a broken leg, hip, skull, face injuries, and her lung was perforated. The doctors had told her that she would not recover her original state of health, and her body would not function as before. But, the doctors could not believe it when they read the x-rays before she entered the operating room the broken hip, leg, and the perforation of the lung had completely disappeared. This was a great miracle for the family!

Thanks to the help of the Blessed mother two weeks after the accident, she arrived at the annual Christmas party, surprising all the members of the Girls’ Youth. She was walking along without help from anyone! Her life is now beginning to return to normal and the consequences of the accident are minimal, since she has returned to her normal activities after a long time of physical therapy. This impressed the girls who participated since they did not know about the accident, and they were happy to see her well and recuperated.

To end the day...

At the end of the day all the girls gathered in the chapel, where the completed Capital of Grace was waiting. There was a gift for them among the candles used to illuminate the place. The gift was a t-shirt with the phrase: Let me be your living heart, accompanied by a bracelet in the shape of the RTA crown. After this, the girls had time to pray and meditate, and at the end photos were taken.

The following day some of the little girls had to leave early because of the scheduled the plane returning to Queretaro, so their farewell was early. But it didn’t end there, the rest of the girls returned to the Shrine for Mass with all the Family from Monterrey, where they enjoyed a warm morning after a cold night.

Until the next time…

The farewells began after Mass, but they were happy since having made new friends, they agreed to see each other in March, when many of them will participate in missions during Holy Week, which will be a new experience of total giving of self.

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