A son of Schoenstatt was ordained bishop for the Argentinean episcopate
Monsignor Jorge Esteban González, 54 years old, originally platense, was ordained Auxiliary Bishop of La Plata, in a celebration that was followed by a large number of faithful catholics through the social networks. "Magnificat! Because I experience this step as another sign of the love of Mary who was always by my side. Thank you, Mother," said the new bishop.
By María Jimena Ciuró
In the middle of the pandemic, and in a historical scenario, Jorge Esteban González was consecrated auxiliary bishop of La Plata, in the main temple of that city. In a Cathedral without faithful, where the only participants were bishops, priests and seminarians, his family and a few laymen representing the people; Father Jorge became the first Argentinean bishop born from the Shrine. The consecration Mass could be followed through the social networks. Small but eloquent symbols deeply united the celebration to a new anniversary of Father Kentenich’s passing: the chasuble with the cross of unity that the new bishop wore was a gift sent from Milwaukee by the founder to Monsignor Plaza on the occasion of the blessing of the La Plata Shrine; and the chalice used in the Eucharist was also a gift from Kentenich to Pope Paul VI on his return from the United States.
Dilexit Ecclesiam means that Christ loved his Church
The Archbishop of La Plata, Monsignor Victor Manuel Fernandez, was the main consecrator and Monsignor Guillermo Garlatti, Bishop Emeritus of Bahia Blanca together with Monsignor Gabriel Mestre, Bishop of Mar del Plata and Monsignor Alberto Bochatey, Auxiliary Bishop of La Plata, were the co-consecrators of the celebration. “Dilexit Ecclesiam means that Christ loved his Church and washed it with his precious blood. Those same sentiments will be yours no matter what happens. And you are ordained because Pope Francis proposed it to you and he did it so that you would accompany him on the path that he presents in Evangelii Gaudium: return to the heart of the Gospel, return to the essential, to missionary fervor, to a sense of community and society.
That is why love for the Church must also be love for the earth, love for the world, society and people. And help so that the Church can converse with the world and be able to tune in to what may be in common, because the Holy Spirit sows good things everywhere with an enormous divine freedom,” said Archbishop Fernandez.
“We know your ability to work, your affability, your good treatment and let’s offer all this to God so that it becomes a blessing for his people” said Archbishop Fernández and asked the new auxiliary bishop to imitate Mary “the one you love so much, that she can teach you that receptive and happy confidence until you say yes even among black clouds… For all of us this ordination is a day of joy.
It is not a diploma of Jorge in his career, the Sacred Order is a gift totally oriented to the good of the people of God, and for that reason from today there will be more grace in each one of us, for the Archdiocese of Plata, for this world, and as Pope Francisco tells you, the gifts of the Savior will be more effective”, Fernandez finished.
As Francisco says: walk with others and enter into dialogue
After the rites of ordination the new bishop offered some heartfelt words: “As my episcopal motto I chose from the reading of the disciples of Emmaus that always marked my life strongly: ‘He came and walked with them’. This accompaniment of Jesus with us gives rise to the image of a pilgrim Church, on the move, called to discover the face of Christ in the Eucharist.
A journey made with the people of today, with their challenges, and why not with the provocations. It is a matter of approaching them with respect and knowing what desires and needs the human heart harbours today in order to be able to communicate the message of salvation coherently, as Francis says, to walk with others and enter into dialogue”.
“Magnificat,” repeated the new bishop on several occasions, and in this way he gave thanks for what God has worked in each one, for the call and the confidence of Pope Francis, for the accompaniment of the archbishop, for the priests, for the Federation of Schoenstatt Priests, for the laity; for his mother and father who accompanied him in this context in spite of his advanced age.
“Magnificent because I am living this step in a national Marian year; our Mother of Heaven did not hide and continues working in our lives. Personally, I experience it as another sign of the love of Mary who was always by my side. From my childhood I grew up to a life of faith in the Pilar, together with an experience of the conciliar Church,” he said.
Fr. Kentenich encouraged and motivated my presbyterate
He continued: “My vocational path matured in the shadow of the Shrine of the Mother Thrice Admirable, Queen and Victress of Schoenstatt. My experience as a father and pastor of a community was forged in a few long years lived in the heart of Mary in City Bell. These last brief and intense years I spent with her, the one who remained at the foot of the cross, the painful one, and it is in her day that as pastor of Our Lady of Sorrows, I receive the Episcopal consecration.
Thank you Mother! Finally, if my heart speaks of gratitude, I cannot fail to mention another great companion on the road: Father Joseph Kentenich who on a day like today, 52 years ago, was returning to the house of the Father. His life encouraged and motivated my priesthood, his love for Mary shapes my spirituality. That is why I choose to say goodbye by placing on my lips a prayer born in the hell of a concentration camp, from the captivity of this son of Mary: ‘Make us like you and teach us to walk through life just as you did, strong and worthy, simple and kind, spreading love, peace, and joy. In us you walk through our time preparing it for Jesus Christ. Amen. With this prayer Monsignor Gonzalez ended his greeting.
Thanksgiving, joy and emotion among those who are close to him
The faithful through the social networks shared their excitement and transmitted their greetings and closeness to the new bishop. Pamela Pagalday, a member of the 18th course of the Apostolic Federation of Schoenstatt Families, expressed her profound joy for the episcopal ordination of Monsignor Jorge González, saying: “He is a son of our shrine in La Plata.
For us, the members of the movement of this diocese, it is something very significant, because it will be a deepening of the relationship with the local Church and a confirmation of our mission. It also comes on an important date for Schoenstatters because it has the mark of Dilexit Ecclesiam: he loved the Church”.
On his part, Father Tomás de la Riva, of the Schoenstatt Federation of Priests, expressed: “The rite began in the Shrine with the profession of faith of Jorge and his promise of loyalty. There we also prayed a prayer for him, as we have been doing since the moment of his election. This encounter with the Blessed Mother, in community, renewed us to accompany him in his ministry at the service of the entire Church.
Thanks to God, several members of our Region, the Fathers of El Plata, were able to be present accompanying this brother of ours in this unique moment. This ordination is a great joy for all of us. We definitely see his election as a grace from the Blessed Mother to take another step towards the Church of the New Shore,” concluded the young priest.