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Continental Formation Assembly in Nuremberg
Friday, July 15, 2016
The vocation promoters, formators and coordinators of ongoing formation of the Circumscriptions of Europe, together with two representatives of the General Administration, met from 5 to 13 July for the Continental Formation Assembly, in Nuremberg. The participants made an assessment of the implementation of the decisions of the previous Assembly which was held in Granada. Other themes dealt with were: the project for youth and ministry vocations; candidates who are over 35 years – what kind of formation programme to offer them; the ad extra mission experience (in Africa and America) for European aspirants; the ongoing formation of superiors, the vocation promoters and formators; the unification of the Secretariat of Formation at the general, continental and provincial levels. The Conclusions of the Assembly were presented to the Provincial Superiors of Europe and the General Council for their approval. The Participants have also written a letter to the confreres to express the sense of communion that binds us all. Below we publish the text of the letter.
In the picture above, from left:
Fr. Rubén Rocha Padilla,
Fr. Fermo Bernasconi,
Fr. John Baptist Opargiw,
and Fr. Karl Peinhopf.
Comboni Missionaries
Continental Assembly of Formation
Europe
Nuremberg 5 – 13 July, 2016
To the attention of the confreres and the Comboni communities of Europe.
Dear Confreres,
It is with an attitude of gratitude to God and responsibility in the service with which we have been entrusted that we have gone through this Continental Formation Assembly for Europe, the first after the 2015 General Chapter. We lived in a very serene climate of prayer and friendship, of listening to the Lord and to one another, always attentive to our social, cultural and religious situations, and in continuity with the previous Assemblies. The presence of the representatives of all the Circumscriptions of our continent and of the General Administration made us feel in communion with the whole Institute.
The theme of the Assembly “Our Comboni Formation as a single process of growth in the passion for Christ and for the people” has guided us in the moments of sharing, listening, prayer, discernment and planning. The service to which we are called is not limited to the promotion of vocations and to basic formation, but also to help us live our missionary vocation with joy and passion in every moment of our life. Young people feel the need to meet missionaries who have made the mission the ideal of their life and who have a passion for Christ and for his people.
And so, as representatives of all the phases of our formation process – right from the vocations and youth ministry to ongoing formation passing through the stages of initial formation – we have allowed ourselves to be challenged by whatever we encounter in our missionary service. We joyfully thank the Lord who continues to call many young people to the missionary life according to the charism of Daniel Comboni, and we thank him for our candidates in formation in the various Postulancies, in the European Novitiate of Santarém and the Scholasticate of Casavatore.
For the first time, the Coordinators of Ongoing Formation took part in the Continental Formation Assembly: their presence has helped us understand the importance of continuing to always grow in a spirit of docibilitas in our missionary passion for Christ and his people.
Mission has been very much present in our reflections, because it is from mission that we are born; it is mission that stimulates our renewal, and it is for mission that we form our candidates. The news reaching us from Juba fills our hearts with sadness, and we continue to pray for the gift of peace not only in South Sudan but also in the many situations of war and violence all over the world.
We thank the confreres of the German-speaking Province (DSP) and especially those of the Nuremberg community for their very brotherly welcome and the many services rendered us. They really made this Assembly a moment of communion that has helped us experience the joy and beauty of being true cenacles of Apostles.
We also thank you for being close to us with your prayer and witness of a joyful life. May the Lord accompany us on our journey and help us all to be always Comboni missionary disciples who live the joy of the Gospel in today's world.
The Continental Assembly participants of training (Europe):
Fr. John Baptist Opargiw, Fr. Fermo Bernasconi (Curia of Rome); Fr. Leonel Claro, Fr. Jorge Domingues, Fr. Victor Tavares Dias (Portugal); Fr. Daniel Villaverde, Fr. Pedro Andrés, Fr. José Juan Valero (Spain); Fr. Celestino Prevedello, Fr. Davide De Guidi, Fr. Rinaldo Ronzani, Fr. Jesús Villasenor, Bro. Alberto Parise, Bro. Antonio Soffientini, Fr. Maurizio Balducci (Italy); Fr. Melaku Tafesse, Fr. Rubén Rocha Padilla (London Province); Fr. Karl Peinhopf, Fr. Roberto Turyamureeba, Fr. Michael Zeitz, Bro. Friedbert Tremmel (Germany – DSP); Fr. Maciej Tomasz (Poland).