Dear Schoenstatt Family:
Some of us remember the wonderful celebration of the inauguration of the Belmonte/Rome Shrine on September 8, 2004. The procession from many countries with the vases in which we brought the Capital of Grace of the international Schoenstatt Family to Rome was unforgettable. They were our contributions to the fruitfulness of Schoenstatt for the Church in the spirit of “dilexit Ecclesiam”.
Meanwhile, the construction of the large conference building in Belmonte has been completed. The growing Family from Rome and all of Italy gathers regularly in and around the Shrine and the house. After the difficult period of the pandemic, we hope that more groups of pilgrims from all over the world will come to the Shrine and also use the house for their gatherings.
Faced with the challenges of the present situation of the Church and the world, the Italian Family has expressed the desire to offer a crown to the Blessed Mother.
Through this crown we want to ask the Mother of the Lord to manifest herself as Queen and Victress in these times of change.
Within the administrative council of Belmonte and the International Coordination Office of our Movement, we perceive many signs that such a crowning could be of interest not only for the Italians. We consider the Belmonte Shrine as a Schoenstatt symbol for the future of the Church. It was promised towards the end of the Council, in the presence of Father Kentenich, who symbolically laid the foundation stone on December 8, 1965.
We see an open door for this current of life by the Italians to include many others. The social and political crises as well as the transformations in the Church are a global reality nowadays. Perhaps Our Lady is inviting us to converge in Rome our love for the Church, our trust in God’s guidance and our desire for global action. As we have read in the report from Rome, many things are still pending, so the different countries and communities can join this current with their ideas and contributions.
We recommend you ponder this initiative in your hearts and discuss it with your friends to see if this is also a sign from God for you in these times.
International Coordination of the Schoenstatt Movement.
Sister M. Cacilda Becker
Father Heinrich Walter
Coronation of the Queen of Belmonte in 2025 – 1st. Information Letter here.
