Meeting of Brothers and Lay people in Valladolid

A good number of the members of the now defunct European Network of Spirituality wanted to make a retreat together in the Marist house of Valladolid. This house, once the international Juniorate, is very well suited for meetings and adult retreats. The older Brothers of the Province live in the same building.

The retreat, which took place at the end of July, was centred on the document Water from the Rock using different chapters. Each theme of the day was presented by a member of the group. The different chapters were studied and meditated upon personally. The group meetings enriched the participants through the ideas and experiences lived by each individual. We must emphasise the creativity of the shared prayers, as well as the spontaneous participation.

Brothers from Iberia and Mediterranea took part, coming from Italy and Lebanon. The lay people came from Pamplona, Murcia and Jaen.

The presence of Brother Teófilo Minga, with his experience and his knowledge greatly enriched us. He provided us with abundant materials that will help us to go more deeply into the topic and the power to share them in the different places where we work.

The meeting closed with a tour of the city of Valladolid, the highlights being the museum of sculpture and the cathedral.

The words that were most used in the course of the meeting were: the spirituality of compassion, simplicity, family or community, school of faith? and we ended by saying that we should all be sowers of hope.

Brother Carlos García