2016-04-05
VENEZUELA
Fourvière Experience
After a long journey by air, land and river during Holy Week, a group of Champagnat Marists of Venezuela came to Santa Catalina to celebrate the “II Experience of Joint Fourvière Formation.”
Since the first experience in 2014, the dream of making a new joint training with a missionary colour was developed. In this way, we accepted Brother Emili’s invitation to go out of our comfort zones, and so despite the difficulties that our country is facing, we set out to make our dream a reality.
Fourteen lay people as well as eight brothers of Zulia, Falcón, Aragua, Miranda, Caracas and Delta Amacuro were invited to live this experience.
Our days were guided by the experience of Holy Week and each day was accompanied by Mary of the Promise, Mary of the Vocation, Mary of Service, Mary of the Journeying and Mary of Fidelity.
We did our experience of mission in a Warao indigenous settlement called El Remanse, which is around one hour down the river from Santa Catalina.
When we arrived, we visited the community and invited them to join us to share in playing games and other things…
We felt God was present in our Warao friends and that we were evangelised by them.
We received more than we gave and they have a sense of community.
They were all there: children, youths, adults, enjoying and sharing experiences.
We appreciated the gift of their hands and their beautiful handicrafts. It was an invitation that challenges us to view the world, our country, from the bottom up: “to view the world with the eyes of children and the poor.”
As Marists of Champagnat, we felt inspired by the consecration of the founders of the Marist Family.
We felt called to re-found and renovate our commitment as Christians in our localities, in our country, to continue moving to the margins of cities, to the peripheries, where the Lord calls us and needs us.