Story telling of the daily heroes of honesty, love and service

A year away from of Argentina’s bicentennial, a reflection not only of value for Argentina - Fr. Javier Arteaga

Misionera en Goya. En el fondo, alimentos para los pobres... Missionary in Goya. In the background, food for the poor Missionarin in Goya. Im Hintergrund Lebensmittel für die Armen. Das gehört an jedem 18. dazu Foto: Petiti © 2009

A few days ago, in a meeting with a group of married couples, the following question arose: Can we "celebrate" the bicentennial? And a woman answered: "unfortunately I do not know what can we celebrate in Argentina today. I do not have hope" and each one there gave its own contribution to the list of national hopelessness: the increasing poverty not only by the world-wide crisis but by the bad internal administration and the corruption; the politicians who continue lying blatantly "building" a reality to us at their will (by ej. Indec, surveys, testimonial candidacies); slow and compliant justice with actual power; the insecurity and overgrown criminality; the flagellum of the drugs that cause death and pain to thousand children and substantial businesses for the gangster; and the great social shudder before all this disaster. Many wonder how we could have gotten to this impoverished situation in the social, institutional and moral aspects. The answer is in the question itself: the moral poverty leads to the institutional and social poverty. "Corruptio optimi pessima est" said the Romans; the corruption of the best one is the worse one. The corruption of the people that is chosen or summoned but has jeopardized their high responsibilities is the worse one, the one which makes greater harm to the society.

In the presence of this situation, what can it be done? Fr. Kentenich said that every moment in history introduces man to problems and challenges; the key to success or failure is in the way to face them. Fr. Kentenich said that they are those who mourn making great analyses of the problems and culminating their conversations like a chat over coffee; they are the passive people. They are those that, blocked by their own omnipotence, begin actions that die with their own personality; they are the activists. And there are those who moved by the common good, with magnanimous spirit of sacrifice and in communion with God and its brothers, build up tomorrow in every day’s hard reality; they are the history builders. They are the ones that we called the Nation’s parents, procers and they built a great nation for us. They are also the simple men and women that they do not get tired to work for their ideals. Do these men and women still exist in Argentina? Yes. They exist and they work too much, untiringly. Only we need to open our eyes and see beyoond, see that there are people who commit themselves and who sacrificed hard, because they believe and they hope that is real change is possible, sustained on the common good, the dialogue and solidarity.

" What are you going to do for your country?"

For example, I know a group young people who, are organising actitities on the streets, on this week of May, in the city of Cordoba, displaying posters, brochures, spots in the massive radios and sending emails with the question " What you are going to do for your country" and soon after another campaign answering that question "For my country: If I drink, I won’t drive ", "I do not soil my city", "Respect the road rules", "I help with solidarity"; "Vote with conscience". I know a woman who for many years ran a very successful NGO, whose aim was to collaborate with organisations of public good in city of Buenos Aires. By its irreproachable honesty, knowledge in the management and great ability to work, was summoned like candidate of a political party for the next elections; her, having everything but seeing the need of her time, has agreed. I know a group people who have taken as commitment to offer themselves as authorities and fiscals in the next elections. I know many missionaries of the Pilgrim Mother Campaign who in these days, when taking the image of the Virgin, ask the people who receive it that they also pray for Argentina. I know lay and religious people who go periodically to inhospitable places of the country to attend medically, materially and spiritually the people who live in total poverty. We know the priests of the shanty towns that expose their lives to save the lives of young people from drugs and the gangs. I also know many people, specially elderly and ill, who not being able to do something extraordinary for the country have taken perhaps the quietest and important task: to pray every day for the country, its inhabitants and governors, requesting that peace, truth, unity and progress descend on us, for everybody. I could pursue other examples and you also surely know many more who are daily heroes of honesty, love and service. We must have them very present and tell others about them in our daily conversations (so that they are not sterile chats over coffee); perhaps they might join some of the initiatives. We should not let ourselves be beaten by hopelessness. Let us change our attitude. We only must be aware, see and tell about it: in the middle of such disaster there are many and good signs of hope. You could to be another one. Come on. Do it!

The time that we dedicate to this work is well invested

When ending that meeting a man said: "God is always next to us, that is our strength and hope; with Him we can look for the way together. It is worth to try it ". We must try it every day; that must be our constant great yearning. "Let’s give a home and a country to the uprooted modern man. The time that we dedicate to this work is well invested… Our great task is to give back to our town a home, a country. "(P. Kentenich. Day "Fight for the true freedom" 1946).

In one week we will celebrate May 25^th, and in a year’s time, the bicentennial of the country. Let us celebrate being thankful by the gift of this blessed land and committing ourselves to improve it. Trustworthy, let us ask Mary for the unity and the moral and social progress of the Argentineans. Let us work daily for that aim. I invite you to join several communities in prayer on May 25th, so we will celebrate the Holy Mass at the Basilica of Luján and, in representation of all the Schoenstatt family, we will renew the coronation to the Holy Virgin as "Queen of the Family country" done 21 years ago. That is our inheritance and our great mission that requests all our giving in, today more than ever: a country with family heart.

Translation: Maria Geraldine Tiscornia Kunc, Coventry, England

Taken from the Covenant Letter, May 18, 2009