The prior provincial of Our Lady of Candelaria Province, José David Niño, presided over the Mass that opened the assembly. The participants, responding to the invitation of Pope Benedict XVI on this Pauline Year, reflected in those days on the person and spiritual message of Saint Paul, and on their vocation and mission as lay people based on two documents: “Christifidelis Laici” of Pope John Paul II and the decree “Apostolicam Actuositatem” of the Second Vatican Council. They looked upon Saint Magdalene of Nagasaki, patroness of the SARF (Secular Augustinian Recollect Fraternities), as model of apostolate, witnessing and martyrdom.
The celebration of the Eucharist, the liturgy of the hours, and the praying of the rosary and the Way of the Cross were intense moments of personal and communitarian encounter with the Lord. Friendship and the joyful living together spontaneously emerged during the walks, meals, games and typical dances of the Boyacá region.