Three Brazilians, three Mexicans, one from Costa Rica, one from the Dominican Republic and another one from Panama prepare their definitive membership to the Order of Augustinian Recollects. They hold it in the monastery of Yuso of San Millan de la Cogolla (La Rioja, Spain). These young religious come from four of the eight provinces of the Order throughout the world; namely St. Nicholas, St. Thomas, St. Augustine and Our Lady of Consolation.
Bernardo Cerda, the director of this course of preparation for solemn profession, defines this month as "a moment of preparing oneself having as means an intense community life, especially, the reflective meditation so that the candidate become aware of the importance and transcendence of solemn profession".
Four Weeks
During these four weeks the young religious will live a life of prayer and community experience. The head of the organizing team, Bernardo Cerda, has chosen a main theme for each week with corresponding speakers who are experts on the different topics for discussion.
During the first week, Fr. Cerda explained to them the anthropology of religious life and the anthropology of the vows of chastity, poverty and obedience.
Fr. Jose Ramon Perez, the provincial of St. Joseph province directed the spiritual exercises in the second week. After which on the third week, Angel Antonio Garcia Cuadrado, an expert in Augustinian recollect spirituality, coming all the way from La Rioja, shared to the future solemn professed the history and spirituality of the Order. Then the missionary activity will be expounded by Santiago Martinez Lazaro who works for many years in our mission in Brazil.
The fourth and last week will be focused more on the pastoral ministry, giving the participants an integrated and documented panorama of our apostolate in the parishes, schools and mission territories. Roberto Sayalero and Jose Maria Sanchez, will share their expertise on these areas.
During these four weeks the young religious will live a life of prayer and community experience. Visitors
Some provincials came to visit the participants of the course. On July 11 Fr. Miguel Angel Hernandez Dominguez, provincial of St. Thomas province shared to them the present situation of his province. He was accompanied by Fr. Roan Cleber Ataide Souza, a missionary in Marajo (Brazil) who, in turn, by his simplicity and evangelizing charism inspired very much the young candidates.
August 12 was the turn of Fr. Francisco Javier Jimenez Garcia Villoslada, the new provincial of St. Nicholas to be with the future solemn professed. While in San Millan he presided in the renewal of vows of Manuel Antonio Flores, Jose Cleuto, Francisco Jose Coelho, Juan Jesus Olvera.
Resources
Both the responsible team and the participants are aware that these courses are moments of grace wherein God is the Real Protagonist. Some measures were undertaken in order to benefit from this experience for discernment such as experience of community life, meditative reflection, individual and common prayer, silence, recollection, spiritual reading, lectio divina, sharing of experiences or testimonies by our missionaries and the practice of recreation in common.
Participants
– St. Nicholas of Tolentine Province: Gustavo Adolfo Avila Leon (Costa Rica), Manuel Antonio Flores Garcia (Mexico), Jose Cleuto Rodrigues (Brazil), Francisco Jose Coelho Veras (Brasil), Juan Jesus Olvera Martinez (Mexico).
-St. Thomas of Villanova Province: Antonio Candido de Oliveira (Brazil).
– St. Augustine Province: Juan Jose Alfaro Munoz (Mexico).
– Our Lady of Consolation Province: Cesar Augusto Encarnacion Rodriguez (Dominican Republic), Bolivar Salomon Sosa Madrid (Panama).