The Provincial tells us about the visit ...
To the religious brothers of the Province of St. John XXIII. A fraternal greeting of thanks for your welcome and availability. Two important events in the month of August for our Province: the feast of our founder Peter Julian Eymard and the celebration of the canonical visitation of our Father General, Philip Benzy Romician, and the General Consultor Father Francisco Junior de Oliveira. These two events inspire us to grow in our Christian faith, to reaffirm our charism and to live as a Blessed Sacrament family, to review the role of our Province within the SSS Congregation.
I would like to mention two numbers of the RL that help us to understand the reason for the canonical visitation:
RL 74 - "The Superior General exercises his authority at the service of the Congregation’s unity and its mission in the world, in conformity with the norms of the Rule of Life. In union with his council, he animates and coordinates the life and mission of the Institute as a whole by, among other things, visits to the provinces and meetings with individual religious. He is the permanent and official representative of the Congregation to the highest authorities of the Church and to international organisations, a function which he may delegate to one of his consultors. His duties are defined more precisely in the General Statutes."
RL 5 - "The love of God and our vocation gather us, at the heart of the Church, into living communities, where all truly love one another. Open to the summons of the Spirit and attentive to the needs of the human family, our communities become places of prayer, reconciliation and celebration, signs and leaven of the unity which the world seeks."
I would like to share with you how the work was carried out during the tour of the local communities during the canonical visitation.
On August 5th Fr. Francisco Junior arrived from Sao Paulo. He was received at the airport by the provincial and taken to the vocation house.
Vocational house, Las Ferias neighbourhood Bogotá
On the evening of August 8, Father Provincial and the General Consultor went to El Dorado airport to welcome Father General Philip Benzy, who was coming from Rome via Madrid. We stayed at the formation house in the Las Ferias neighbourhood of Bogotá.
On August 9th, the canonical visitation began. Thanks to Fathers Alfredo Poveda, Wilmer Gómez, Gustavo Chagüendo and those in formation for their welcome and friendship. The day began with day began by sharing prayer and the community table. Then Father General, the Provincial and Consultor had a brief meeting to give the General an overview of the life and make-up of the Province of St. John XXIII, and to plan together the schedule of the visit and the duration and stay in each local house.
Father General then listened to each religious individually to get to know each one better. In order to commune with our pastor of the Diocese of Engativá, Monsignor Francisco Antonio Nieto Sùa had been invited to be with us. Monsignor Francisco could not come due to health reasons. In his place came Monsignor emeritus Carlos Julio, who is in charge of Religious Life at the diocesan level. We had a brief meeting with him to share a little about our Province and to hear Monsignor tell us about the reality of Religious Life in our Diocese of Engativá. After the brief meeting we went to the table to share lunch.
In the afternoon we, the professed priests, met with Father General and his Consultor who gave us some guidelines for the smooth running of the Province and the local community. After our meeting, the young men in formation, i.e. aspirants, postulants, scholastics, were called to meet them and hear from them about the process they are entering as candidates to religious life.
In the evening we celebrated the Eucharist with the groups of the Chapel of Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament, but especially with the small group of lay aggregates that Father Gustavo Chagüendo is preparing for their consecration. We also had an agape with the groups and the lay aspirants to the SSS Aggregation.
On the 10th of August: we had the grace of celebrating the Eucharist with the presence of the group of sponsors of the vocational house. They are men and women who contribute with prayer, financial help, activities and work to support the candidates in formation and the seminary.
In the afternoon we went out in the company of Father Alfredo Poveda to get to know the city and its most frequented places: Monserrate Hill, the historical cultural centre called the “Chorro Quevedo”, Bolivar Square, the Primatial Cathedral of Bogota and walked around the flea market along the Seventh Street. In the evening we were invited to have dinner with a family who have always collaborated with us and who are neighbours of the vocational house. Thanks to Don Héctor and his wife Doña Sarita for their kindness.
Corpus Christi Parish, Bogotá
Sunday 11 August: Father General and his Consultor were taken to the Corpus community to be hosted there. On our arrival we were welcomed by Brothers Lucinio Martín, Juan Echevarría, Álvaro Vásquez, and Hernán Zuluaga. Thank you for your welcome and friendly reception. The parish council and the representatives of each sector of the ten sectors into which the parish is divided were waiting for us.
Then we were invited to celebrate the Eucharist at midday in the presence of Monsignor Julio Solorzano, the religious and the parishioners of the parish. After the celebration we were invited to share the table to continue what we had celebrated in the Eucharist. In the afternoon Father Álvaro Vásquez took Father General and the Consultor to visit some places near the parish.
On Monday 12 August: Father General and his Consultor met with the Provincial Council to discuss some issues related to the smooth running of the Province. This was followed by a personal meeting with each of the religious. In the afternoon, we were invited to greet the young people preparing for confirmation, the Emmaus women’s group and the Eymard youth and adult group. It was a friendly and intimate sharing. We shared the group’s time, work, spirituality and commitments.
Tuesday 13 August: in the morning Father General and his Consultor concluded the personal interviews of the religious. In the afternoon we had a meeting with the religious community where we shared the experience of this local community. In the evening Father General interviewed our scholastic Brother Adán Timote.
Parish of Our Lady of Loreto, Medellín Antioquia
Wednesday 14 August: we went to El Dorado airport to board the plane that would take us to the city of Medellin, the city of eternal spring. We arrived in Rionegro Antioquia around 11 am. From there, we took a taxi that brought us to the parish of Nuestra Señora de Loreto.
On arriving we were welcomed by our brethren Fathers Fabián Velásquez sss, Fr. Anyel Mesa sss and Fr. Carlos José sss. After the formal greeting, we were invited to share the table for lunch. The afternoon was spent resting and getting to know the house and the parish.
In the evening we celebrated the Eucharist with the parish council and all the groups of the parish. Then we gathered in the parish hall where Father Fabian told us about the history of the parish, recalling the names of parish priests who have worked for the community of Loreto. The members of the Parish Council and the groups offered some signs to Father General and his Consultor: a garland of flowers, the garland of arepas paisas, and the paisa hat. We also shared some food with them. It was a very fruitful and friendly meeting. Thanks to the groups and the Parish Council.
Thursday 15 August: we went out as a community to visit the famous Peñol rock and the lake of Guatapé, where we admired the beauty of the place and the farms and properties of some of Colombia’s wealthy men and women.
Friday 16 August: Father General and his Councillor had a personal meeting with each religious to listen and get to know better their life and experience as consecrated persons. In the afternoon we had the general meeting with the local community. Father General stressed the importance for the Congregation of the celebration of the General Chapter in Vietnam, the 40th anniversary of the Rule of Life, the 100th anniversary of the beatification of St. Peter Julian Eymard, to be in harmony with the whole Congregation in the world by working together. Hence, the importance of community life.
For this, he enriched us with four images to appreciate the capacity of living in fraternity.
- A wall built of bricks: all organised, neatly compacted, but there without life between the bricks.
- Birds in flight: they always fly together, work together, eat together, pray together, sometimes have the same likes and dislikes, but no one knows how the other feels. More often they leave without knowing why they leave the community.
- Bees: 24 hours working, flying from flower to flower looking for pollen, though busy for 24 hours, but without time for prayer, eating together, going out together, meeting together, they are always outside the community looking for things, doing things and without knowing what they are doing. That makes the religious suffer and the community suffer.
- The butterfly: looks for flowers, flies from side to side, perches happily, seeks to be out of the community, flees from things, does not confront, looks for friends, distractions, but always flies out of the community.
He used these four images in the four local communities visited.
In the evening there was a meeting with the group preparing to join the SSS Aggregation.
San Cristobal Parish, Lima Peru
On the 17th of August: we got up early to leave for the airport of Rionegro to board the plane that would take us to the city of Lima, Peru. There we were picked up by a taxi that took us to the San Pablo Chapel.
On our arrival we were welcomed by Fathers Camilo Gagnon, Elibien Joseph, Alexander Espitia and Juan David Zapata. Thank you all for your welcome and hospitality.
On Sunday 18th August: we participated in the Eucharist and visited some places in the jurisdiction of the parish where we serve the chapels that make up the parish. In the evening we had a meeting with the lay associates, those who have already made promises and those who are preparing to make them. They invited us share the table with delicious chicken broth.
On Monday 19 August: Father General and his Consultor interviewed the religious individually.
In the afternoon we had the celebration of the Eucharist with delegations from the nine chapels that make up the parish. Monsignor Jorge Izaguirre Rafael, Bishop of Chosica, was present.
Then we went to the table and shared dinner together.
On the 20th of August: we got up early to celebrate the Eucharist together. After breakfast we went to visit the museum and desert of Pachacamac. It is a place to remember and learn about the colonial culture in Peruvian lands. Then we went to the village of Pachacamac and shared lunch together. From there, we went to the sea where we spent only a few moments contemplating the immensity and beauty of the Pacific Ocean or Sea of Grau as it is called.
Then we went to the city centre of Lima: cathedral, government house, other churches, the house where Santa Rosa de Lima was born, the house where San Martin de Porres lived and other beautiful places of the city.
In the evening we were invited to St. Francis Chapel. There we were welcomed by the representatives and the Council of each Chapel that makes up the parish of San Cristobal. Father General spoke briefly about his election, his nationality, the importance of the laity, where the Congregation is going today, and the centrality of the Eucharist. He encouraged the parish community to continue working with courage for the parish and the Church. Father Carlos José, the Provincial, also spoke and thanked the religious brothers for their dedication to the parish as well as the gathered community for their love and commitment.
On 21 August: Father General and his Consultor concluded interviewing the religious of the community and in the afternoon there was a meeting with all the brothers who make up the local community of San Pablo. Here we were also given some pointers, guidelines about how to continue growing in fraternity, in prayer, in service: the Rule of Life, one hundred years since the beatification of the founder, the work of the Congregation, the study of religious, the work of the province with internationality, the importance of dedicating time for reading, reflection, among others. Finally, Father General presented the four images to grow in the experience of fraternity.
Lastly, Father General, his Consultor and Provincial met to conclude the canonical visitation of the Province of St. John XXIII. The evaluation and conclusions will be sent in writing and will be made known to all the religious who make up the Province.
In the evening we accompanied Father General to the airport to board the plane that would take him to Rome. Father Francisco Junior, General Consultor, stayed a few more days in the community of Lima before his departure to the city of Quito, Ecuador, to participate in the International Eucharistic Congress.
Personally I would like to thank Father General, Father Junior, the General Consultor, all the brothers of the Province for their welcome, participation, attention and hospitality. We know that there are many things to continue doing in working for the good of our Province.
Father Carlos José Sierra Rodriguez, sss
NOTIBIP September 2024
Province of St John XXIII
Colombia-Peru
