• Telephone: +39 06 30367865
  • E-mail: secregen@terciariascapuchinas.org
Donate
Facebook-square Twitter Youtube

Mes: diciembre 2022

Categorías
Artículos

Christmas from the heart of the holy family

«A child is born to us, and he is the Prince of peace»

(Isaiah 9:5-6)

  To enter into the climate, the atmosphere, the shelter of Mary and Joseph’s home, to enter quietly, in absolute silence and if possible, in their interiority, with those delicate feelings that deliver the motions of the free spirit, which knows of profound annihilation, of refinement of the soul and of joy that transcends these sensitive coordinates of history, is to follow step by step the pilgrimage of them, Mary and Joseph in the expectation of our Emmanuel.

To go to Bethlehem, a journey that must be made, with few things, in haste, but with the joy that enlarges the heart, lights up the eyes and prepares the being to sing and proclaim with the Baptist: «Prepare the way, make ready the paths for our Good that is coming» (Isaiah 40:3; Matthew 3:3).

Mary and Joseph know that the hour is approaching, they understand that the Child God is about to come forth into the universe, (Micah 5:1-2) in Bethlehem, in a cave, where the irrelevant have made room for shelter, warmth, closeness…. Mary’s whole being is unconditional openness to let the treasure, the light, the Expected One, the promise, life itself shine through…there is a deep silence and a mysterious surge of peace…which is only interrupted by the joyful and tender singing of «Glory to God in heaven and on earth peace to men with burning hearts» (Luke 2:14). The heavens and the earth clap their hands, the stars shine more brightly, the trills of birds sing in unison, a gracious symphony to this newborn, who in a stable establishes the wealth of God on earth (Isaiah 9:5).

Joseph and Mary, absorbed and silent, intertwined their gazes, smile and adore the presence of Love in the universe. (Isaiah 9:2) Mary holds him in her arms, because her whole heart, her whole being as a woman, now contemplates with emotion the Son of the Father, humane, tender, infant, weak… Joseph observes the Mother with the Child, he has no other attitude than to adore, to contemplate… She, the Mother, gathers her immense joy in abundant tears, which run down her cheeks and even reach the little one and make him smile… What a language of love, what a language of poverty, of the self-abasement, of the lack of self-esteem of our God. What a language he discovers who understands the mysteries of love, presence, enchantment, closeness, reverie, because a Child has been given to us, a brother on the way has been given to us (Isaiah 9:5).

And Joseph follows step by step the mystery that now becomes so close to him, so palpable: He who owns the universe, because it came from his hands, now shivering with cold, the one who made this wonderful set of harmony that is the cosmos and in it man, groans of love, what a wonderful exchange, leaves his, takes what is ours, our weakness, outdated, his eternity, immutable. Joseph and Mary, together continue to observe him, they do not want to lose a single one of his expressions…his eyes smile and cry with love, what a sweet smile, what a tender lover, his pink lips express candor, his chest is heaven for the one who is faithful, his small hands, so soft they are, will gladly indicate the good that generates peace in justice; his feet so small, will insinuate the path to follow, the path of strangers and pilgrims who, with nothing of their own, launch themselves to new conquests from the Spirit. Mary and Joseph, from this style of free, poor and humble life, are gathering in their hearts, the language of the highest poverty-richness of God, who becoming one of us, wanted to live in our land, in the periphery, to walk with each of us ….

As we contemplate in joy the Trinity of the Earth: Jesus, Mary and Joseph, in the celebration of our Christmas, a deep cry arises deep within us to «listen to the motions that inhabit us, there where God continues to write his story with us, we are seekers who want to be happy to spread to others the joy of living, each one in her own process, we are invited to enter into our inner sanctuary, to ask ourselves vital questions that push us to continue growing as persons, learning to exist in fullness, to name our needs, emotions and desires» (Caring for our own life, message XXIII Chap. General). It is there, in the warmth of the family of Nazareth, that we recover the renewed joy of knowing we are loved, saved and called to enjoy the very richness of this family which, by gathering us together in a community «fraternal in faith, hope and love» (Constitutions 28), also urges us to «put more joy, trust and hope in our world, and to carry out gestures of evangelical life that lead to justice and peace». (Caring for the lives of the poor, message of the XXIII General Chapter).

Sister Lilyám del Carmen Ramírez Cañizales

Capuchin Tertiary Sister of the Holy Family

Guatemala

Categorías
Artículos

Mary, woman of hope

The end of the fiscal year will soon come to a close, in some countries the academic year has come to an end, others are about to do so, and so on, our life is one of closing some cycles and opening others; each stage is loaded with a myriad of experiences of all kinds. At the liturgical level the Church gives us the gift of a new Advent, and we are invited to make it an experience that renews our strength, like a glass of fresh water after a long journey under the sun.

Looking at the realities experienced this year in the different regions of the world, we contemplate truly hopeless panoramas: the issue of war, which seems to be a trite topic, but which continues to claim lives, causing anxiety and pain, the waves of tired and hungry migrants, the political situation in so many nations that curtails freedom, undermines the basic rights of millions of people, the aftermath of the Pandemic, the indiscriminate damage to our mother earth, to name a few.

For this reason, we are invited to rekindle hope. Although there are many texts written on this subject, on this occasion we could meditate with new eyes on some texts of the Evangelist Luke regarding the attitudes of the Virgin Mary and on the thought of the Brazilian educator and philosopher Paulo Freire.

Let us remember how Mary has given us proof of her hope. This young Nazarene, as a woman of her time, had experiences very similar to ours and even in the midst of them she knew how to listen to the word of God who spoke to her through mediation. The evangelist Luke makes it clear to us:

«In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee, called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; the virgin’s name was Mary. And he went in and said to her, «Rejoice, full of grace, the Lord is with you. She was troubled at these words, and wondered what the greeting meant.  And the angel said to her, «Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God; you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David» (Lk 1:26, 32).

When we look at Mary, we see her capacity to serenely welcome the bewilderment and continue the dialogue with the angel.  Looking at ourselves, we could verify these same qualities and also ask ourselves: How do I encourage true listening to God, to what spaces do I allow him to enter? Perhaps I have established schedules, known patterns, but perhaps there are corners of my being where I have not yet invited him to enter?

«Mary answered the angel, «How shall this be, since I know not a man?» The angel answered her, «The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy and will be called the Son of God.» (Lk 1:34-35

For «precisely one who – like Mary – is totally open to God, comes to accept the Divine Will, even if it is mysterious, even if it often does not correspond to one’s own will» (Pope Benedict XVI, December 2012). Mary gives a response and as a consequence of this listening and availability she receives a mission that surprises her, unsettles her and she sets herself in motion:

«In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah; she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.» (Lk. 1:39-40)

Mary is a woman of active hope, she does not remain with her arms folded waiting to see what will happen. Regarding the hope that Mary brings to life, we could enlighten ourselves with the words of Paulo Freire:

«It is necessary to have hope, but to have hope from the verb, to hope; because there are people who hope from the verb to hope.  And the hope of the verb to hope is not hope, it is waiting.  To hope is to get up, to hope is to go forward, to hope is to build, to hope is not to give up.  To hope is to carry forward, to hope is to join with others to do otherwise.»

Mary shows us that she is a woman of hope because she lived the verb to hope, rising up and putting herself at risk because of the state she was in walking towards the mountains of Judah, she went out in step with Elizabeth’s needs.  And even more so in Herod’s persecution of the Child, she did not give up when she had to flee to Egypt (cf. Mt. 2:13-15).

Let us turn our eyes to Mary, we will find in her courage and strength. How can we live so that this Advent is not just another Advent, but one that brings us newness?

From the reality that surrounds us

In our daily chores

In our encounters with the Lord, with our brothers and sisters.

How do we give life to the verb to HOPE?

 

Sister  Nancy Margoth Monterroso Monterroso. tc

Provincia Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe

Categorías
Últimas Noticias

Pope Francisco promulgates motu proprio on the financial control of institutions

Pope Francis promulgated an Apostolic Letter in the form of a «Motu Proprio» on the «juridical persons instrumental to the Roman Curia» in which he reaffirms the importance of the control and surveillance of financial transactions.

The Press Office of the Holy See released this new «Motu Proprio» signed by Pope Francis on December 6, together with the law «on juridical persons in the Vatican City State» which is scheduled to begin on December 8.

The new law is composed of 22 articles and is signed by the President of the Governorate of the Vatican City State, Cardinal Fernando Vergez Alzaga, and by the Secretary General of the same Dicastery, Sr. Raffaella Petrini.

“The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy in great ones.”

Pope Francis quotes Luke (16:10a) at the start of the Motu Proprio. The Motu Proprio consists of 8 articles. In the introduction, the Pope points out that after the promulgation of the apostolic constitution «Praedicate Evangelium» it is also «necessary to regulate the various funds, foundations and entities which, over the years, have arisen within the curial institutions and depend directly on them.»

For this reason, the Pope established that this «regulation applies to the instrumental juridical persons» that refer to the Holy See, registered in Article 1 of the Statute of the Council of the Economy and located in the Vatican City State, «to the exclusion of the Curial Institutions and the offices of the Roman Curia, of the Institutions connected to the Holy See and of the Governorate of the Vatican City State.»

Among the technical aspects addressed in the document, it highlights the importance of the supervision and «vigilance and control in economic-financial matters» carried out by the Secretariat for the Economy.

Source: Vatican news

Categorías
Últimas Noticias

International Migrants’ Day

In view of the increase in migratory flows in the world, in the year 2000 the UN general assembly proclaimed December 18 as International Migrants’ Day, with the aim of promoting the exchange of experiences and opportunities for collaboration among countries and regions in the face of the difficulties of international migration.

The purpose of this event is to highlight the challenges, difficulties and adversities faced by migrants around the world, as well as to call on the nations of the world to contribute to making migration a safe, regular and dignified process.

Origin of Migrants’ Day

One of the main antecedents in the creation of this event lies in the adoption of the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1990.

Human migration refers to the processes of voluntary or forced migration of people from their country of origin or residence, on a permanent or temporary basis.

Paradoxically, the restrictive migration policies imposed by countries, together with the manifestations of xenophobia, have limited such processes, contributing to the increase of the social phenomenon of «illegal persons» or «undocumented» ones.

Fuente: www.clacso.org

Categorías
Últimas Noticias

Pope on wyd 2023: Volunteers are a «Striking force».

Francis sends a video message in Spanish on the occasion of the World Volunteer Day being celebrated today to speak of the generosity of all those who sustain the work of the church with their volunteer work. «Volunteering,» he explains, «is a grace of God.»

«Volunteering is a ‘driving force’ that allows us to go outside the box in order to achieve something.» In a video message in Spanish, Francis addressed the volunteers of the WYD 2023, from August 1-6 in Lisbon (Portugal), to thank them, on the occasion of the World Day of volunteering that is celebrated today, for «their generosity», the «generosity of each volunteer», they who are an overwhelming force, «a force of the Church, an expression of the mission of the Church», because they are the ones who maintain with their “volunteering, the action of the Church».

Fuente: https://lisboa2023.org

Contact

Address: Via Cassia, 1243 00189 ROMA – Italia

Telephone: +39 06 30367865

E-mail: secregen@terciariascapuchinas.org

Location

Social Media

Facebook-square Twitter Youtube

Capuchin Tertiary Sisters of the Holy Family - 2021- © All rights reserved