This “First ARY Workshop” for the formation of youth leaders who will organize this youth movement and put it in motion in their countries, was directed by those in charge of ARY in Argentina, Father Ezequiel Soria, OAR, and Ivana Serrano, one of the lay leaders.
The participation of young people from all of the Order’s ministries in the Dominican Republic, together with various groups from Panama and Guatemala, gives clear evidence of the interest in the Augustinian Recollect life and charism that is coming to life among young people.
One of the keys to the success of the “First ARY Workshop” in America was the cooperation of the Secular Fraternities in the Dominican Republic, in the form of contributions and particularly in taking charge of hospitality and housekeeping details during the workshop.
Conclusions
The ARY groups that are being formed in the Dominican Republic, Panama, and Guatemala aim to assure that the young people who belong to them will give evidence, as the characteristic sign of their membership, of a profound living of their faith, a faith born of a personal encounter with the Lord, a faith lived in community for the community, a community aware of the spiritual experience of Saint Augustine and of the Augustinian Recollection, a faith and spirituality that motivate all of the members to live in a manner consistent with what they believe in their sociocultural surroundings, open to God’s call and to discerning their vocation, without excluding a vocation to the consecrated life.
In 2012 the Second ARY Workshop will be held in Panama, as part of the celebration marking the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the Augustinian Recollects in that country. Guatemala will host the Third ARY Workshop in 2013.