This day began with a joyous Eucharistic celebration, imbued with the faith of Mary whose Nativity we celebrated. Bishop Joao Bosco Barbosa de Sousa, ofm, bishop of Osasco, presided over the liturgy which beautifully reflected the international dimension of our mission as we praised the Lord together in Swahili, Portuguese, Italian and English.
Later in the morning Sr Annamaria Gasser continued to enlighten us in the economic reality of our Congregation, emphasizing that we must increase collaboration and mutual support to advance the apostolate and solidarity with those in need.
She encouraged us to live the economy of communion as the apostles did, putting all goods in common. Even today’s society is recognizing that humanity can only progress if it shares the resources meant for all. This means not only a communion of money but a communion of experiences, of resources, of works.
An important aspect of this economy of communion is transparency in our administration. Transparency is a sign of love for our apostolic work because administrative guidelines do not represent a lack of trust but instead a support for a fruitful apostolate.
In the afternoon we continued personal reflection on the presentations of these days in preparation for the group work beginning September 9th.
