On Sunday, July 27, the General Congress of the Secular Institute of the Ladies of Schoenstatt began at Haus Regina, its headquarters in Germany. Over the next three weeks, the delegates will engage in prayer and intensive discussions to address current challenges for the international community and deliberate on important questions for the future. They will receive reports on the state of the community and conclude for the coming years. A central part of the congress will be the election of a new leadership team.
The congress is taking place from July 27 to August 16 and has brought together 26 women from nine countries. They come from Germany, the Czech Republic, Poland, Switzerland, Spain, Portugal, Chile, Brazil, and Argentina. Among them are 14 elected representatives from regional communities, the superiors of various sub-communities, and the current general leadership.
For these important and intense days in the life of the community, the Ladies of Schoenstatt ask the entire Movement for support and accompaniment in prayer.
Who are the Ladies of Schoenstatt?
The members of the Secular Institute of Our Lady of Schoenstatt dedicate their consecrated lives to God according to the evangelical counsels (poverty, chastity, obedience) and live amid a globalized and largely secularized society. “We belong on the streets… we go right into the world,” said the founder of the community, Father Joseph Kentenich.
The international community is part of the Schoenstatt Movement and lives by its spirituality. The model for their way of life is Mary, who lived among people, sharing their concerns and sufferings, but also their joys. In covenant with her, the members follow the path of discipleship of Christ.
All ladies of the institute remain in their professions. There, they commit—through their consecration to God—to shaping their environment with a Christian spirit. Like Mary, they want to assist Christ in today’s world. They make daily life the content of their prayer and strive to permeate the world with Christ’s spirit, binding it to God. Spiritual life and apostolic commitment depend on and complement one another.