Night of the Shrine meets the World

The Schoenstatt Youth of the world are invited to join the Night of the Shrine

Todos son invitados a unirse, espiritualmente... All are invited to spiritually join Alle sind eingeladen, dabei zu sein…
Momentos de oración Prayer moments Verbunden im Gebet Fotos: POS Fischer © 2008

SCHOENSTATT, Achim Schadt. This year's motto of the Night of the Shrine will be High - Higher - Highest. All Schoenstatt Youth members and friends from all over the world are welcome to the 2008 edition of the Night of the Shrine!

We are challenged to make the best of our lives, of our talents, and values. We are challenged to get to know ourselves and find our way through life's roughness and sweetness. We are requested to charge our energy reserves to walk head up high through everyday's life.

Father Kentenich stated in 1914: "Each one of us must achieve the highest conceivable degree of perfection and sanctity according to his state of life. Not simply the great and the greater, but the greatest heights ought to be the object of our increased efforts."

The 2008 prayer

Dear Mary, Mother of God,
You are great because God laid His eyes on you and you gave your Yes.
Now, You lay your eyes on us, and encourage us to believe in our talents and grow in our lives.
Help us to pass on what makes life more precious.
Lead us- together with the entire Schoenstatt Family- into God's future,
and implore His Blessing for the Night of the Shrine and the youth of the world.
Amen.

More than 280 young people have already signed up for the Night of the Shrine 2008

After last year's success with about 200 participants, we're proud to announce that more than 280 young people have already signed up for the Night of the Shrine 2008, and we expect this number to rise in the following days.

Unfortunately we missed the chance to invite you all again to unite yourselves -as members of the International Schoenstatt Youth- with us in this special night, as we did the years before.

Anyway - we would like to provide some more particular information about this year's night and invite you to join us, if you have the chance:

A procession to the Shrine with several stops on the way will be followed by the Covenant of Love Ceremony, which will start August 23rd at 11:15 pm CET at the Original Shrine.

There will be time for Adoration, accompanied by meditating on texts from John's Gospel. (Jn. 17:1, 17:10-12, 17:17-19)

"Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, 'Father, the hour has come glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You.

All things that are Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine; and I have been glorified in them. I am no longer in the world; and yet they themselves are in the world, and I come to You Holy Father, keep them in Your name, the name which You have given Me, that they may be one even as We are.

Sanctify them in the truth; as You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world. For their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they themselves also may be sanctified in truth.'"

Then, we will give our personal contributions into the Capital of Grace by writing a letter to the MTA including all our gifts, concerns, and questions.

By listening to readings from Schoenstatt's founding document, we will recall Father Kentenich's appeal to the young Schoenstatt Movement:

"The slow development of the grace of our vocation and the consequent higher degree of our religious apostolic spirit is not, however, the aim which I want to present you. My challenge goes incomparably higher. Each one of us must achieve the highest conceivable degree of perfection and according to his state of life. Not simply the great or the greater, but the greatest heights ought to be the object of our increased efforts. You will understand that I express such an extraordinary challenge only in the form of a humble wish."

Afterwards, together with the youth of the world, we will renew our Covenant of Love by praying the Consecration Prayer:

"My Queen, my mother..."

On Sunday we are invited to come into the Shrine for a personal blessing by one of the priests.

Are you planning to join?

Let us know and we will be glad to mention you and your friends during the ceremony!

Send a mail to Achim Schadt: schadt.a@gmail.com or pressoffice@schoenstatt.de

If you can share photos, contact PressOffice Schoenstatt pressoffice@schoenstatt.de to get the password for the online photo album.