Schoenstatt Women’s Federation
Free by love, faithful in freedom
Our community
The essential elements
Freedom and love are the essential elements of the community of the Schoenstatt Women’s Federation. These elements are reflected in the commitment of its members to the community, in their relationships, in their profession and in their apostolate.
10+
Countries
Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Chile, Czech Republic, Ecuador, Germany, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico and Switzerland
1920
FOUNDING
December 8: Founding of the Women’s Federation through the consecration of Gertraud von Bullion and her cousin Marie Christmann
Life Vocation
Consecrated Life in the midst of the world
The community is made up of single women who have consciously chosen to live a consecrated life in the midst of the world, in the particular place and profession to which God has called them.
The members of the Schoenstatt Women's Federation organize their personal, professional and social lives independently. At the same time, they maintain a deep connection with the international community of the Federation, meeting monthly and sharing their spiritual lives, accomplishments and challenges. In this way, they nurture the family spirit of the community.
The spiritual life of each member of the Women's Federation is a source of strength and inspiration for a meaningful life in the midst of the world. Through personal and community retreats, members turn to their spiritual core in contemplation and prayer. The days of silence are deepened with nourishment so that they can live from the inner strength that moves them in accordance with their being and their mission in the Church and in society.
Spirituality
Moved by the Holy Spirit
As a lay community, we make no legal commitment to the community to which we belong. For us, freedom and generous love of God and neighbor must be at the center of our being and doing. This attitude gives us great flexibility to integrate ourselves into different ecclesial and social contexts.
The origin and constant source of the love and freedom we value so highly, is the Holy Spirit. Wherever he makes room, as he did in Mary, freedom is possible. Freedom is also demanding because it implies responsibility for the people we are called to serve.
My “yes”
It all begins with a desire
God has a unique plan for me. He has a plan of love for me. He wants to be the center of my life. This is the experience of our vocation! As followers of Jesus Christ and in covenant with Mary, we are called by God to live according to the spirit of the evangelical counsels. In daily life, this is manifested in a simple lifestyle, in listening to the Word of God and the community, and in the call to consecrate our lives completely to Jesus Christ.
As a Schoenstatt Women’s Federation, we have an experience of family. For us, it means having a home and knowing where we can find refuge, where we are loved and where we can have a real and human relationship. Being a family also means respecting and protecting each personality, based on the fundamental law of love and appreciating the best in each person.
Service
What is the mission of the Schoenstatt Women’s Federation?
We work in various professions, according to the free and responsible choice of each member. Within the community, we are encouraged to engage in apostolic and missionary activities, as well as social and charitable projects of a humanitarian nature, according to our possibilities.
As a Christian community of lay women, we want to make our spiritual and creative lives meaningful by putting our personal and community gifts at the service of the Church and society. Quality and ethics are important to us, both in our professional experience and in our human relationships.
Basis
Covenant Life
For us, living the Covenant with God through Mary means living the idea of the Covenant in daily life, with the people we meet. We share with them joy and sorrow, but also hope. We look like the people around us, but we want to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world through our faith and our actions (cf. Mt 5:13-16).
We give our lives to Jesus Christ and through this love we want to help shape the world in the spirit of Christ. Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ is our model and our companion. We want to be guided by her, the ideal of a woman who lived what she believed. In her we have the opportunity to grow in faith, joy and hope.
The Pioneers
When was the community founded?
The first people with whom Father Joseph Kentenich began the Movement of Spiritual Renewal and sealed a Covenant with the Mother Thrice Admirable of Schoenstatt were young men preparing for the priesthood in the community of the Pallottine Fathers. During the First World War, these young men continued the divine and human initiative they had experienced in Schoenstatt. Their example became widespread. In 1919, the “Apostolic Union” was founded, the original form of today’s Schoenstatt Movement. Over time, the Movement has expanded to include branches and autonomous communities, united in a common effort in an independent and federative way. Today, Schoenstatt welcomes people from all walks of life and in their diverse circumstances.
Women were admitted to Schoenstatt in 1920. The first woman to apply was Countess Gertraud von Bullion (1891-1930). She is therefore a co-founder of our community and had a decisive influence on the beginnings of the Schoenstatt Women’s Movement.
Contact
Our contacts in the world
The community's central house is House Mariengart, which is located on the site of Schoenstatt's founding. This house is also the seat of the International Board of Directors.
Schoenstatt Apostolic Federation of Women
Am Marienberg 3, 56179, Vallendar
Email: info@s-fb.org / Phone: (49) (0)261-65000
Website: s-fb.org
E-mail: fmregionnazaret@gmail.com
Cell Phone: +54 9 266 436-2647
E-mail: unifem.sch@gmail.com
E-mail: info@s-fb.org
Phone: (49) (0)261-65000