16 October 2023 · 2023-10 newsletter
Do you wear the "glasses of the Covenant" to contemplate the world?
Like Fr. Kentenich, we are invited to contemplate reality by seeking the signs of God in our daily lives.
Changes in the world’s society are moving faster than seasonal changes, affecting all facets of our lives.
With the development of artificial intelligence, and many other technologies, we are surprised by the speed of information. And we can ask ourselves: how are we interpreting the situations and messages of our time? Are we using “Glasses of the Covenant” to look at the world and reality?
Today’s society seems to lack the basic skills of compassion and communication with reality, looking for answers without a human touch, a mechanistic approach. Many experience no human initiative, organic thinking, living, or loving. How does one respond to this behaviour?
The Covenant of Love is our answer!
Through our faith and loyalty in renewing our Covenant of Love and through practical faith in Divine Providence, we live our mission in our encounter with Mary by bringing her contributions to the Capital of Grace.
Drawn to the Shrine, one fosters a strong attachment and everything it implies. In doing so, we grasp the profound message of Schoenstatt, and the graces of the covenant will allow the inner transformation of heart and soul to go deeper in our faithful call to Mary. In that dynamic of the covenant, our heart embraces to hear the voice of God.
Fr. Kentenich sought God’s signs in everyday life, even reading a newspaper
Let us recall how the voice of God inspired Father Kentenich. World War I was on the verge of outbreak, and during this time, an article on the Shrine of Pompeii found its way into the hands of our founder.
Father Kentenich asked himself: Is God telling me we can do this too? He wrestled with what God was saying through these outward indications. In the end, it was a leap of faith. Today …
“This little chapel belongs to our small sodality family, guided by our heavenly Mother. It belongs completely to us and only to us” (Founding Document.)
She has chosen us because we are important to her; she chose us as her own on covenant day.
Through the challenges of today’s reality as a Schoenstatt family, we, too, have an awareness of community spirit just as the young sodalists and our Founder embraced the pulse of the time through the voice of God.
In the covenant, Mary showers us with unconditional love. Using the elements of brotherly love, sisterly love, compassion, forgiveness, openness to listen, without fear of languages, and sharing new initiatives, all give hope for new traditions.
We experience God in many ways during our day. May these thoughts inspire us to build community and invite others to our Shrine so they may experience all the graces; get excited and share this wonderful gift of joy. We can become a beacon of hope in our parish and Church.
As an International Schoenstatt Family, let us come together, and assist each other as a family, not just as a community, fostering new friendships and forming bonds. With our ear on the heart of God and our hand on the pulse of the time, we can become the new person in the new community. Can we once again become afire for this mission? To save our Shrines, our communities, and our families?
Perhaps you have more thoughts. Can you start a conversation at your dinner table to listen to one another, or in your groups or among your friends, and find ways to grow and build a covenant culture, creating a stronger, united movement in the Covenant of Love with Mary?
Kathleen Colunga, International Leader
International Apostolic Schoenstatt Mothers’ Federation, July 2023
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