Hello! We’re back!

The beginning of the Schoenstatt year in La Loma, Paraná

Participantes Participants Teilnehmer
Capitalario para las Misiones Contributions for the Missions Beiträge für die geplanten Missionen Fotos: Passi/Deharbe © 2008

ARGENTINA, Tita Rios, "Hello! We’re back!" is how we greet relatives, friends, and neighbors after the long vacation season. This time it was the Schoenstatt Family from Paraná who said, "Hello! We’re back!" to their brothers and sisters and above all to the Blessed Mother in her Shrine. They gathered at the La Loma Shrine for the Start-up Conference. "Hello! We’re back!" along with the Blessed Mother to shake hands and to continue to move forward.

The spiritual team organized the conference. The Family was gathered close to the Shrine of the Mother and Queen for the purpose of placing the entire year under her care and protection. The participants went in procession to the Shrine accompanied by the prayers and songs of the Boys’ Youth in an atmosphere of joy. Once they were settled and anxious to participate in all the activities the origin of the Start-up Conference was remembered as a renewal of familiar attachments. Actually it has become a tradition for the Start-up Conference, to mutually say, "Hello! We’re back!" along with the Blessed Mother and to shake hands and to continue to move forward. Hector and Mariela Passi were introduced as the new coordinators of the diocesan council, appreciation was extended to the spiritual leaders, Tito and Rosita Elizalde, and they welcomed many youth.

Father Kentenich convoked the Schoenstatt Family in Germany between 1946 and 1950. After his exile and during the years of 1966 and 1967, he presided over conferences, which were called the October Conferences or the Christmas Conferences. He saw the need for the Family to have conferences around the Blessed Mother and of again fanning the fire of the Covenant close to the Shrine.

The convocation of the great anniversaries

There are three great anniversaries in the near future. The Schoenstatt Family of Paraná will soon celebrate its 50^th Anniversary. They have issued a call to list everything they are grateful for that has occurred over so many years. They are asking for prayer and to prepared for the Golden Anniversary of the Family from Providencia beginning on August 15^th. In 2010, the Bicentennial of Argentina will be celebrated. The question is: what will contribute? And finally on October 18, 2014, the centennial of the Covenant of Love and Schoenstatt’s birthday will be celebrated.

Chari and Carlos Nesa of the Family Federation presented the main subject, the annual motto for the Movement for the Year 2008, with a motivational workshop that was very well prepared and which provided an opportunity for sharing among the different branches and activities.

The Boys and Girls’ Youth surprised the participants by presenting a project that came about after the Sauce de Luna and Alcaraz’s Family Missions. They expressed, "that they cannot be silent about what they saw and heard," and they want to launch it in the Year 2009 as a gift to the Blessed Mother from La Loma.

The Families from La Plata gave a banner with the Unity Cross as Capital of Grace and the youth from La Loma painted the Shrine. This banner was hung in the hall so that everyone could mark what had been offered for the missions with small crosses.

During the closing Mass all the participants expressed gratitude for all the contributions made during the workshop.

Translation: Celina Garza, Harlingen, TX, USA