From Venezuela to Spain, passing through Colombia, Mexico, Argentina and the Dominican Republic, the Augustinian Recollect Augustinian Recollect Youth continues to be a living family, passionate and deeply rooted in the Augustinian Recollect charism. On its 30th anniversary, different young voices share with us what it means to be part of this community.
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A living community that continues to grow
Thirty years after its foundation, the Augustinian Recollect Youth (ARY) continues to be a concrete response to the desire of thousands of young people to walk towards Christ from the spirituality of St. Augustine. Today, more than ever, the Augustinian Recollect Youth has become a safe space for growth and transformation.
María José Contreras, from Venezuela, expresses it clearly:
“The RAY today is a movement that has grown in learning to accompany processes, more creative, more courageous, but above all a movement that has learned to rest in God.”
From Guadalajara, Jorge lives it as “a path shared in community, where faith, friendship and service are lived with meaning and with the heart”.. And for Joshua, in Colombia, it is a place “to find God’s love in others and also to be able to give it to others”.
Spaces to love, grow and share
Rosalina Báez, from the Dominican Republic, affirms that the Augustinian Recollect Youth Association provides “moments and spaces for formation and integration in which young people can discover this truth they are constantly searching for. “moments and spaces of formation and integration in which young people can discover within themselves the truth they are constantly searching for..
María Virginia, also from Venezuela, defines the JAR as. “my safe place, where they understand me, they understand me and I can be who I am without fear of anything”..
From Mexico, Darío expresses that “being a JAR means listening and giving oneself for the most needy”, while another Mexican young man summarizes it as followswhile another young Mexican sums it up:
“To be a JAR is to be part of a family that walks united towards Christ”.
The young face of a restless faith
For Ignacio, an Argentinean postulant of the Order, “to be a RAY is to live in community as St. Augustine asks of us, moved by charity, as young people in love who decide to spend time together, to grow in faith together and to work for the Kingdom also together”.
Meli, also from Argentina, experiences it as “being a community and always having a restless heart”, while Lourdes describes it as “getting to know Jesus a little more every day, hand in hand with my brothers and sisters in community”.
Juan, from Spain, affirms: “To be a member of the JAR is to split my faith and grow as if pursuing God”.and Santino, from Argentina, adds:
“Being a RAY means rediscovering the loving face of Jesus in my brothers and sisters, so that I can love Him and follow Him more and better every day”.
A present that is built in community
The voices of the young people today remind us that the RAY continues to be a place where the Gospel is lived with joy, where community is built, and where every restless heart finds its place. It is a family that never stops growing, searching and transforming.
With thirty years of history, the Augustinian Recollect Youth continue to focus on what is essential: living in community, searching together for the Truth and responding to the love of God with generosity and dedication.