On Christmas Eve, the communities of brothers and sisters in Rome gathered at the brothers' house. The evening began with the celebration of the Eucharist, presided over by the Superior General, Alberto Toutin. In his homily, Alberto highlighted how when God offers himself as hope, he manifests himself as patient waiting like a newborn child. What God wants to make of this child full of promise: "Strong God," "Prince of Peace" or "a great joy for all the people," is entrusted into human hands that are invited to cooperate in the fulfillment of the promise.
The Congregation - "the work of God" (L’œuvre de Dieu) as our founders called it - is God's action and our action. For God to continue his work, he asks us to welcome him into our lives and be open to being transformed by him.
From our Founders we also receive two invitations:
The Good Mother invites us to cultivate among ourselves a "spiritual dialogue", that is, to help each other to recognize God's passing through our lives. By ourselves we run the risk of being wrong, but if we allow our brother and sister to help us, then and more visibly, will the Lord will be in our midst.
The Good Father shows us the importance of having a strong hope to go through uncertain or difficult times, trusting in God who already has us by the hand and who “will give us the clothing we need according to the cold” (espérons qu'il nous donnera la robe selon le froid) to which we are exposed.
In this momentous night of great hope and new birth we renewed our religious profession. After the Eucharist, there was time for the family photo and dinner which finished with carols in several languages. Metuchela and Bob, two young immigrants who have lived in the brothers' house since October, joined in our sharing this night. Their presence remind us of the first lesson of the manger: the welcome.
12/25/2019