Encontro Mundial de Famílias
Schönstatt – Paraguay, April 12, 2015
To the Schoenstatt International
Family Movement
“Love is our Mission – The Family Fully Alive”
World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia 2015
Dear Schönstatt Families,
“Your Covenant – Our Mission” – so it could be heard around the world in the great Jubilee 2014 and Fr. Heinrich Walter, the Chairman of the General Presidium, spoke at the commemoration of the fact that we make a missionary decision.
Even the World Meeting of Families (WMOF – World Meeting of Families) to which the Holy Father invites us this year to Philadelphia / USA, speaks of the mission – the mission of love.
As Schoenstatt Family Movement, we are invited to participate in this important meeting. The family as the nucleus of our society, “first school of humanity” is in our day threatened as never before in the history of mankind. Therefore, an international meeting of Christian families is a great sign of hope for all those who care for the family at heart. The Schoenstatt movement is perceived by the Church as a move-ment that specially promotes marriage and family. Therefore, it is important that we are present and visible at the WMOF.
As members of the Schoenstatt Family Movement, we have a mission.
Our mission is the covenant of love with the Blessed Mother and Queen of Schoenstatt, as it is the living experience in our home shrine.
At the sending out celebration of the family on October 19, 2014, we established a network of home shrines. This expresses the reality that has become a great source of strength for all the families of the movement.
So we invite all of you to support the World Meeting of Families from your home shrine through prayer and contributions to the capital of grace.
A prayer in preparation for the meeting can be found on the homepage of the WMOF . All Schoenstatt families that travel to Philadelphia will be borne by the International Network of Home Shrines.
At the Congress in Philadelphia, the Schoenstatt Family Movement will be present at the congress center in 2 ways: the home shrine and some covenant projects from the Family tent. To finance these items, we also ask for financial support.
To all of the Schoenstatt Movement participants at the World Meeting of Families:
Responsibility for overall coordination of activities for the Schoenstatt Movement
Fr. Marcelo Aravena fr.marcelo@schoenstatt.us / Austin and
Sr. Marie Day srmarie@schsrsmary.org / Milwaukee.
These are the primary contacts for the networking of attendees and the exhibit booth in the convention center. We believe it is very important that the Schoenstatt Movement participants know each other and contact each other.
Networking
We invite all participants to be in contact with one another. We ask all participants to send an e-mail to Father Marcelo. Then a list of the participants can be created, which in turn will be sent to all participants. It is planned that a newslet-ter before the event with interesting information will be sent to all who have regis-tered with the coordinators.
Exhibit Booth
As mentioned above, there will be two booths during the Congress of the Schoen-statt Family Movement. There, the experience will be presented with the home shrine and some projects. It is not enough to make an “exhibition” but to share in the lives with the people, who are there, Schoenstatt representatives and with visi-tors who come. Therefore, we cordially invite all participants to volunteer to spend some time at the booth. The organization will be done by the coordination team.
We pray together:
“Through this Nazareth for homeless times
God wants to prepare salvation for families
and mercifully bestow everyday sanctity
on those who dedicate themselves to Schoenstatt.”
With a joyful anticipation in Philadelphia we give heartfely greetings from Schönstatt and Paraguay,
Marité & Ramón Marini (for the Schönstatt Family Federation)
Elisabeth & Bernhard Neiser (for the Schoenstatt Family Institute)