To say goodbye – By way of message
The Third Age group of Spanish- and Portugese-speaking Brothers have completed their two month course successfully. The DAWN programme was followed in its fullness and the personal and community evaluations expressed full satisfaction. The work groups endeavoured to express their evaluations in three points and send it in the form of an automessage. It will be wonderful record which will help them relive the shared experiences of the two months and commit themselves to their immediate life of community and mission.
Discharge and commitment
We Brothers of the DAWN programme, of the Third Age, feel deeply blessed by the Lord ? always faithful and bountiful – throughout our journey in religious life. We consider a great gift of God and a special grace the time he has offered us, for our spiritual growth and commitment, in the course now ended. Truly, the Lord has done great things for us.
During these two months, we have lived in brotherly community with authenticity and transparency, following the example of our Founders, motivated by the careful preparation of the Eucharist and the times of common prayer, and encouraged by the many attentions provided by all the personnel of the General House.
The ample time for quiet reading and personal reflection have led us to a better knowledge of ourselves, a deepening of our spirituality ?enriched by the moving pilgrimage to the Marist sources-, and a greater acquaintance with our congregations.
On our spiritual itinerary, we have experienced the presence of God and our Good Mother. This reality has helped us feel a great desire to live with joy this stage in our lives, confident in the future of the Institute, because we see its vitality and dynamism, and because we feel stimulated by the calls the General Chapter has addressed to the older Brothers.
We commit ourselves to continue our human, spiritual, and apostolic growth, generating an authentic family life by our joyful attitude, close to young people and centred on the simple family of Nazareth.
We strongly desire to share our charism with lay people, striving to turn into reality the directives coming from the XXI General Chapter, especially the document ?AROUND THE SAME TABLE?.
We regard ourselves as active agents of the present time and not mere spectators. We seek to collaborate, to the extent of our possibilities, in making real the four points proposed to us by the General Chapter: WITNESS, PRESENCE, JOY AND PRAYER.
We place special attention on keeping ourselves healthy, physically as well as psychologically and spiritually, using the practices of physical exercise, reading, healthy entertainments, personal exchange and frequency in prayer.
We conclude by expressing our gratitude to our religious Institutes and their representatives for the opportunity of ongoing formation they have offered us in this time of grace. Our response will be the hopeful relationship with the Lord and the generosity towards all those who have placed their confidence in us.
May Mary, our Good Mother, inspire our journey in this new DAWN of our life.
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Brothers Ricardo Izura and Felipe Vegas