South America Region Formators’ Meeting

From August 11-13, 2022, the Marist Province of Brasil Centro-Sul hosted the Formators’ Meeting of the South America Region.

The event was an essential moment of sharing, an opportunity to evaluate the journey and think about the next steps.

Among the main topics of the meeting were: the reality of the Novitiate and Pre-Novitiates; the intuitions that arise in the Marist world in view of the new Formation Guide; reflections, dialogues, and proposals on the Postulancy; connection and projection for the process of Novitiate postulants.

The activity took place in Curitiba and brought together the Brother Formators of the Pre-Novitiate (Aspirancy, Pre-Postulancy, Postulancy) and the Novitiate of Cochabamba, as well as a Vocation Animator from each Province of the Region: Brasil Centro-Sur, Brasil Centro-Norte, Brasil Sul-Amazonia, Cruz del Sur (Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay) and Santa María de los Andes (Chile, Bolivia and Peru). Brother Ángel Medina, director of the Secretariat Hermanos Hoy, also participated in the virtual meeting.

The intercultural meeting aimed to improve the projects and intensify the work of vocational animation in the houses of formation and, consequently, to strengthen the Marist mission.

The participants in the meeting:

As part of the first day’s program, the Brother Formators had the opportunity to listen to a talk by Father Jaldemir Vitório, SJ, on Formation in Consecrated Religious Life, more specifically on the Pre-Novitiate.

As host of the meeting, Brother Benê welcomed everyone on behalf of the Provincials of the Region and spoke of the importance of a frank and open dialogue on the foundations of the pillars of pre-novitiate formation (spiritual, intellectual, communitarian and apostolic).

For Brother Inacio Nestor Etges, of the Marist Province of Amazonia-South, the meeting was essential to align some concepts and formative practices of the Pre-Novitiate and Post-Novitiate in the formation plan of the Region of South America. In this regard, Brother André Nosini, of the Marist Province of Amazonia South, remarked the importance of building interprovincial plans with all those present to strengthen vocation animation.

According to Brother Antonio Carlos Ramalho, of the Marist Province of Centro-Norte, “the meeting is important to accentuate the direction of the formative community and to encourage the brothers of the meeting to strengthen the mission in the communities.

Furthermore, Brother Oscar Montenegro, from the Province of Santa María de los Andes, pointed out that the meeting can open doors to seek discernment and new lights for the brothers’ formation.

Brother Alberto Aparicio, of the Marist Province of Cruz del Sur, pointed out the importance of the meeting to think about the best future of the Marist Brothers.