Following the established program, Saturday was designated as a retreat day. Daniel Vasquez, the Visitor of Colombia, led the reflections. As usual, morning prayer was done in language groups.
At 9:00 a.m. we concelebrated the Eucharist with Fr. Daniel as the principal celebrant; he preached his homily using the texts of I Cor. 13:1-13 and Luke 4:16-30. He urged us to be prophets of the Spirit and the Word, men moved by the Spirit to find in God’s word, in our Constitutions and Statutes and in the rich Vincentian tradition the perennial newness and richness of our charism; men who make the Word the norm of their lives learning to discern by its light the signs of the times; men rooted in the love which never passes away, which preserves us from hypocrisy, frees us whatever springs from selfishness and allows us to be seen as men who love.
Later, in his conference, he continued exhorting us to center ourselves on the two poles of our vocation—Christ and the poor. United to Christ we can be the living, active presence of the love of God for the poor.
The Blessed Sacrament was exposed all morning to allow the confreres to contemplate this presence that expresses a love that is infinitely inventive.
At noon, Fr. Vasquez led us in a serious examination of conscience; and at 1:00 we had repetition of prayer in which several confreres participated. To set the mood for this a beautiful graphic presentation of the Vincentian virtues, drawn from a mural depicting these virtues that was recently hung in the Madrid Mother House, was shown. The morning of retreat was a truly brotherly encounter which provided a space of serene joy for all.
In the afternoon, following the dynamic of shared communication, the Visitors met in groups to interchange their experiences of their jobs. They were invited to respond to two questions: “Challenges the Visitor has to face today” and “Internal and External Challenges which the Province Must Face.” It was a peaceful dialogue whose results were later shared in the plenary session.
Tomorrow the Virgin of Guadalupe awaits us in her Basilica. There we will concelebrate the Eucharist and present to the Lord, through her intercession, all our personal and apostolic intentions.
