In the ways of Claret and París
24 January 2020The E.VOC.ANDO Cuba 2020 continues on track. On January 17th the group arrived in Havana to start the second part of the itinerary.
The experiences lived in Santiago are many, diverse and intense. From the depth of the sharing accompanied by Ana María, Lia and Soledad in what refers to reflection and interiorization in this “making the journey with the Founders” as the encounter with the places, spaces, persons who in one way or another speak to us of their lives in Santiago de Cuba: the dock, next to the Marina, where María Antonia and her companions disembarked, the journey to the first house in the Callejón del Carmen and the church of the same name, the school and the community where the foundation of the Institute took place and the arrival at the present community, full of emotion.
We visited the Church of St. Thomas, the Cathedral (which holds precious memories of Claret), the old seminary, the Church of St. Francis, the place of convocation in Claret’s time to hear his sermons. The visit to Holguín, Gibaras and the greeting to the Virgin of Charity (Barajagua) on the way back to Santiago.
We celebrated the Eucharist in the Cathedral of Guantanamo, where the Founder arrived on a pastoral visit, and we had the opportunity to see some books where there are marriage certificates signed by Archbishop Claret. All this with the pleasant and fraternal company of the Claretian Fathers of the Milagrosa and our sisters of the community of Guantánamo. On our return we visited La Maya where for a few years now there has been another community of Claretians who attend to a wide area of rural communities.
On the 16th we anticipate the celebration of the memory of the Mother Foundress together with a group of former students of our school of Santiago (which still functions as a state school) and coordinators of the Lay Claretian Family with whom we shared an emotional Eucharist presided by Monsignor Dionisio, who came to our house to share and thank together the charism that we have received as a gift and that with the grace of God, we are invited and committed to make grow where God himself has sent us.
Thank you, my God, for so much welcome!