Open forum, evaluation and conclusions
The last day of the Extended General Council, Saturday 26 May, began with prayer directed by the brothers of the District of Amazonia, based on communion with the Earth and with the rivers that give life.
Then there was question time for the General Council. The General Councillors went about responding to questions about the Ad Gentes project, the General Administration, the General House, the works of Africa, the community of the Hermitage, and other short questions.
Next was the evaluation of the meeting of the Extended General Council. Those who desired expressed verbally some aspect to all present.
After the recess, they finished with the Eucharist. At the end of the celebration, Br Emili Turú addressed his concluding words with the following ideas.
First: “What word am I left with from this meeting? – a word which in English has a stronger meaning: I care, ‘I am concerned’. Which we should conjugate: I am concerned… he is concerned… they are concerned…” then he thanked each one present for what he is doing for life and the Institute; for the spirit of acceptance, transparency, and deep fraternity lived at the meeting.
Second: he encouraged them to live their leadership and made allusion to his experience of other regions of the Institute: “Is it necessary to touch bottom in order to be bold? See where the shoots of life are and push them with vigour”.
Third and last: he returned to the word “care”, which generally is held from the great – he expressed. But also before the fragile. “to care for life consists primarily in not extinguishing it, protecting it, pruning it, nourishing it”. He concluded by again thanking everyone.
Finally, the Eucharistic celebration terminated with the symbol of the “apron”, signifying “service”.
One Provincial council went around putting it on another Brother Provincial or District Superior, and so on, until all the Provincials and District Superiors also put the apron on Br Emili.
With this symbol of the apron, of service, ended the Eucharistic celebration and the Enlarged General Council of Brasil and Cono Sur.
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