From I to WE: from the gift received to the shared gift
Article by Antonietta Mongiò about the meeting of 1 June 2024,
with Prof. Marinella Perroni as speaker
On 1 June, members of 41 Charismatic Families gathered at La Salle House to experience a day of exchange and sharing.
The day was prepared by the Association of Charismatic Families in Dialogue, which, for more than ten years, through its Executive Committee, has been at the service of those who embark on a journey of communion (together, consecrated and lay) around their specific charism in order to be a Charismatic Family. The days (two a year) represent an extraordinary opportunity for discussion, listening and mutual gift; a synodal table where each person goes, bringing as a gift the experience of his or her own Charismatic Family, and from which one returns enriched by that of all the others.
The central part of the meeting was, after the initial prayer of invocation to the Spirit, the talk given by the theologian Prof. Marinella Perroni, on the theme: 'From I to we: weaving relationships of communion constantly open to the Spirit's initiative'. The re-reading of some passages from the Old and New Testaments offered many rich points for reflection on the constant and ever-new action of the Spirit, on creative fidelity, and on the need for responsibility on the part of each individual in the process of growth of the Charismatic Family. Particular attention was focused on the transition from the "I" to the "we", which highlighted some important elements in an organic and reasoned manner, including the dangers and ambiguities possible in the journey towards the "we", also within the Charismatic Family.
The working tables deepened the various points of the main theme, through the concrete experience of the various Families present. In the Charismatic Family, the custody of the charism-gift is a shared responsibility between lay and consecrated persons in respect of their own vocation and identity. Participation in the Charism, in different states of life, is a wealth, it is a gift that the Lord is giving us, to be lived as a time of Grace. It is a challenge, but it is also a great opportunity. Walking together today, consecrated and lay people, is not a necessity to fill gaps or replace absences, but it is the only true response to a call, to a vocation. What we see today, and which gives us so much hope, is perhaps only a very small part of the possible fruits, of what we will be able to offer the world, and which is realised if there is a climate of trust, of dialogue, of forgiveness. If we commit ourselves in our relationships, not only on a personal level, but among the various components of our own Family and with other Charismatic Families, if we welcome the Holy Spirit who makes us go beyond the wounds of our own histories, something new will come forth, much more beautiful than we can imagine.<br>
The journey continues; from 2014 to today there have been steps, everyone has committed themselves, in the Executive Committee of the Association, as they have been able, finding the time, even if they are general managers or members of general councils, precisely because there is a desire to live and build the Charismatic Family, a sign of the times, which attracts us and motivates us in depth to participate and be protagonists.
For the Executive Committee
Antonietta Mongiò, COMI
Mazenodian Family
Some photos
