VII Chapter of the Province of Cruz del Sur
The Province of Cruz del Sur held its VII Provincial Chapter from 20 to 23 December 2021. Twenty-one Brothers capitulants and eight lay people from the three countries where the Province carries out its Marist mission: Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay took part in the meeting. Also present for the General Administration were Brothers Luis Carlos Gutiérrez, Vicar General, and Óscar Martín, General Councillor.
Brother Raúl Schönfeld has begun his second mandate as Provincial. To accompany him in his mission, the capitulants have elected the Brothers who will form the Provincial Council for the next three years: José Kuhm, Domingo Jiménez, Horacio Magaldi, Alberto Aparicio and Marcelo De Brito.
Reflecting on the particular moment we are living today and thinking about the future prospects for the Province, Brother Raúl expressed himself as follows: “Almost nothing is as it was; therefore, more than rebuilding, we need a new vision, we need a certain break with the history that preceded us, we need a freedom lived from our charism so that the original answers may appear from there. Let us allow the Spirit to rethink us, to transform us. Let us give him the necessary area, enough space, because he has a tomorrow for us that we do not know about.”
The most significant calls for the Province’s journey, which emerged during the days of reflection, can be summarised as follows:
- To revive Marist spirituality;
- To generate moments and actions that favour dialogue;
- Deploy the pedagogy of care;
- To be brothers who unfold their humanity in community;
- To open our arms to new challenges;
- To recover the passion for the community.
The mission of the Administrative Unit, in the end, was worded as follows: