Welcome Brother Seán!
During the afternoon of Saturday the 20th May, the Brother Superior General arrived in the Province of Cruz del Sur for a short visit and a meeting with the brothers and the lay Marists of Argentina and Uruguay. Brother Demetrio Espinosa, Provincial, and Brother Agustín Martínez, Vice-Provincial, welcomed him at the international airport of Ezeiza, Buenos Aires.
On Sunday the 21st, the meeting with the brothers took place in the Basilica of Our Lady of Luján at nine o?clock in the morning to celebrate holy Mass together. Then, in the city of San José, a family meeting took place in the presence of about ninety-five brothers having come from all the communities of the Province. The meeting finished at midday with lunch. In the afternoon, still at Luján, there was a meeting with the Community Superiors and Provincial Animators.
On the morning of Monday the 22nd May, Brother Seán met with the Provincial Council of Cruz del Sur at the residence of the ?Holy Family? house, in Buenos Aires, in the aim of taking the pulse of the Province, listening to the brothers, seeing the Provincial journey during these last three years of life and contributing his experience and his institutional vision of the Marist mission in the world.
In the afternoon, a meeting was held with the brothers responsible for initial formation in the recent scholasticate of Lugano, one of the localities on the periphery of the federal capital.
On the occasion of this visit, Brother Demetrio addressed a letter to the brothers and lay Marists, in which he said to them:
Dear brothers and laypeople of Cruz del Sur,
I wish above all that when you receive these lines you will find yourself very well and taking advantage of this beautiful day when we are celebrating the birthday of our Founder. Marcellin is 217 years old and, from the heights of heaven, he is celebrating them with the joy and gratitude that have always characterised him.
Through these lines I wish to welcome our dear Brother Superior General during his brief but intense visit to the Province.
Dear Seán,
On behalf of all the brothers and laypeople of the Province, I wish you a most fraternal and cordial welcome. We receive you with open arms and hearts as the successor and replacement of Marcellin. Your visit will allow us to feel as brothers assembled around Christ seeing to be faithful to their commitments and trying to adapt their mission to the needs of the times, as Article 130 of our Constitutions. Thank you Seán for your presence, your witness, your advice and, above all, your love of the brothers. Our dearest desire is that you feel at home here with your family, a large family of brothers who welcome you, love you and esteem you. May your stay be comforting and beneficial!
Dear brothers and laypeople, at the end of this day so important for all Marists, I leave you in the hearts of Jesus, Mary and Saint Marcellin.