Every year around this time (the anniversary of Schoenstatt’s founding), the leaders of Schoenstatt gather in national conferences to reflect on the state of the movement and discuss how it can best serve the church in the coming year. We’ve been honored to attend the US leadership conference for 4 of the last 6 years, including the 2019 gathering which ended today. Schoenstatt is primarily a small group movement (couples, mothers, men, youth) and is mainly organized at a diocesan level. So, opportunities to meet with leaders from other regions of the country is a special opportunity to get a sense for the needs of the church outside our neighborhood and brainstorm on ideas to better serve our communities.
The primary focus of the conference is to come up with a motto for the year. That motto is then given to the groups around the United States to bring some unity to the often-disparate groups spread from Oregon to Florida and from New York to Nebraska. One aspect that stood out to me this year was a quote from Fr Kentenich, something to the effect of, “what Mary was to Christ, Schoenstatt is to the church”. So, how can we serve the church in this moment? We talked a lot about the need for forgiveness and unity in the midst of divisions (inside and outside the church), the need to passionately express our faith and various other topics brought up by the voice of our time. Our goal in Schoenstatt is to always have “our finger on the pulse of the times, and our ear to the heart of God”.
The motto discerned by the movement for this year is: United in Mary- On fire we go forward!
At first, we saw this statement as having two focuses; building unity and passionately going forward. The focus on unity was a major one for us. In this time of conflict and disunity within the church, our mother moves us to mercy. Mary’s role always reminds me of the unity cross, where Mary gets as close as possible to Christ on the cross. That is especially true in our season. As scandal, criticism and complacently attempt to tear the Church apart, our Mother would get as close as possible to the Body of Christ, to bring comfort and care. To love him. And that is where our mission starts. We need to be the peace makers and voice of forgiveness and mercy that brings our church together. And from there, we must passionately go forward. In the spiritual life, we are either going forward or falling backward. There’s no such thing as standing still. Its like swimming in the ocean and not realizing that the tide is gradually moving you down the beach. So it is in our faith. We are either swimming against the tide, or we are getting swept down the beach without even noticing. And so, we must passionately press against the current and look for the open doors to bear Christ to the world.
This year’s motto matches well to the overall mission of Schoenstatt, particularly when viewed through the three graces of Schoenstatt; the grace of a home, the grace of inner transformation, and the grace of apostolic zeal. Unity in Mary matches well to feeling at home. And this is the root of everything in Schoenstatt. If we don’t feel at home, then we won’t be open to transformation. And if we aren’t transformed, we won’t be moved to go forth with apostolic zeal. So, it is on us to promote unity this year, in our families, in our groups and beyond. Lets help each other and our community to find peace, compassion, forgiveness, and a home wherever we are. From there, we must be lit afire by the holy spirit. Our Blessed Mother stands eager to pour transformative grace upon us. Are we open to it? Do we long for it? We must passionately implore the grace of God, if we are going to be the husbands, wives and children of God which our generation needs. And lit afire, we must go forward with apostolic zeal. Let everyone who doubts the greatness of God’s love for them, find it in our words and in our deeds. Lets once again recommit ourselves as instruments in our Mother’s hand, gradually dying to ourselves more deeply to make more room for his grace, that others may come to know Him through us.