MTA

April 2, 2021 By Sr. M. Cacilda Becker

Behold your Mother

It is Good Friday, April 2nd, 1915, in a small town located in Vallendar, Germany. A group of young seminarians, together with their spiritual director, Father Kentenich, had sealed a Covenant of Love with Mary five months before, had invited her to establish her home in a small chapel, and are searching for an image of the Blessed Mother to place in the chapel. During that Good Friday they relived the Passion of Christ.

Sister M. Nilza P. da Silva
April 2021

It is Good Friday; we are enveloped in the Calvary’s atmosphere. We experience the passion and death of Christ, God’s son, who loved us until the very end. Raised on the cross, totally stripped of his dignity, his rights, even his robes, there is only one thing that remains as his: his Mother. No one can take that away from him! She is totally his and nothing in this world can take Her away from him.,

Then, Jesus surprises us once again, even at this time of a most dreadful suffering, he willingly gives us his most precious gift: “Behold your Mother”. His love for us is perfect, he does not keep anything for himself. And John “took her into his home” (Jn 19,27).

She is and acts as our Mother

Mary assumes her role as mother of each member of the Mystical Body of Christ. As his collaborator, she continues loving and guiding each child engendered by her Son’s sacrifice. Throughout history we see how she loves us until the very end, just like Jesus did, keeping nothing for herself. Following Jesus’ example, she gives her all so that we may experience the Father’s merciful love. She remains beside each of her children’s cross and guides them towards the morning of the resurrection.

Behold our mother, our MTA

It is Good Friday, April 2nd, 1915, in a small town in Vallendar, Germany. A group of young seminarians, together with their spiritual director, Father Kentenich, had sealed a Covenant of Love with Mary five months before, had invited her to establish her home in a small chapel, and are searching for an image of the Blessed Mother to place in the chapel. During that Good Friday they relived the Passion of Christ. The priest and the young seminarians want to take part in Jesus’s suffering as vividly as possible. They are spiritually present at the Golgotha, on Calvary hill, as they listen once again to Jesus’ testament of love: “Behold your Mother”. (Jn 19:27)

The seminarians were busy with the preparations for that day’s sacred liturgy. Brothers Joseph and Christian went to the train station to pick up a package that had arrived for Father Kentenich: the Blessed Mother’s image which had been sent by Father Eugene Huggle, one of the professors at the Seminar, to be enthroned in the chapel. Since the brothers were not the recipient indicated on the package, the station’s chief refused to give them the package and told them to return the following Monday after the Easter celebration was over. Joseph wants to take the Blessed Mother home and is so persistent that the station’s chief finally agrees to put the large octagonal image in their cart, and it arrives at Schoenstatt within ten minutes.

She agrees to be taken home

And so, the Blessed Mother arrives to take possession of her throne of grace. She is wrapped up, placed in a cart, without making any noise, attracting no attention. Thus, on that unforgettable day 106 years ago, that sacred moment in Christ’s passion is relived. On the day he leaves this world, he offers his mother to us as our Mother, and she arrives without us noticing. Her Son is the focus. That day they meditate on Christ’s suffering as they stand by the cross. The MTA’s image arrives as a sacred legacy of that unparalleled point in time. It feels like Jesus is telling Father Kentenich: “Behold your Mother”. Due to the Holy Week’s celebrations, the image is enthroned in the small chapel on April 11, the Sunday after Easter, on the Feast of the Divine Mercy.

He takes her home. To the small chapel, the home where she acts as educator and dispenses abundant graces. To the home in his heart, to the home in the heart of every seminarian, and, even today, he continues taking her to the home of everyone who seals the Covenant of Love. She comes to stay with her children, in their tribulations and life’s trials, so that they can be touched by the Father’s merciful love and experience each day the resurrection to a new life in Christ.

She came to form her children in the image of Christ

She arrives with her heroic Son on Good Friday and transforms the small chapel into her own Mount Tabor. In 1947, Father Kentenich said in Brazil: “Our Mount Tabor must radiate our Blessed Mother’s glory. What does the fullness of Mary’s glory consist of? How do we see her before us? She is the remarkable woman formed and capable of forming others in the image of Christ. Her main task is to bring Christ to the world”.

We are part of this history

As on April 2, 1915, it is Good Friday once more. Jesus gives us his mother once again, giving us her presence in the Shrine. Let us allow ourselves to be educated by her! Let us bring her into the home that is in our heart, and she will reveal her glory in us and in our family. Let us allow ourselves to be taken to the Shrine by the words of Father Kentenich, to whom the image of our Blessed Mother was entrusted:

“If you want to understand her well, you have to penetrate profoundly into these three truths:

Christ, the ideal of our life

Christ, the foundation of our life

Christ, the form of our life.

For Mary, Christ became her life’s ideal and its foundation, to the point of adopting Jesus’ form in her life. This is the great importance that the Mother of God has for us in relation to Jesus. We do not want to focus on her. We know that her whole being and her whole person always point to Jesus. We see her as the bearer of Christ because she took the form of Christ and is capable of being formed in the image of Christ”.

Bibliographic source:

Tabor Our Mission, Words by Father Kentenich in Brazil

A new vision, a new life. Father Jonathan Niehaus

Final text by F. Kentenich: Brazil, 1947

February 12, 2021 By Sr. M. Cacilda Becker

Daring to yearn for greatness and working to achieve it

Sister Erika-Maria Bukovics, along with four other Sisters of Mary from the filiation house in Timisoara, the third largest city in Romania, speaks with us about the joys, needs, and projects of the small, but highly committed Schoenstatt Family in Romania

Interview by Claudia Brehm
28. Februar 2021

Sister Erika-Maria, what are your current thoughts, efforts, concerns, and joys in the movement?

In 2019 we opened our first filiation here in Romania at Timisoara. It’s a great joy for us to be able to keep on building the Schoenstatt Movement in Romania, as has been done before by the Sisters of Mary. Currently there are five sisters, four of them are Romanian and one is German. Our movement here in Romania is still a very small family; we have a Family branch, Schoenstatt youth, the Pilgrim MotherApostolate, seven Sisters of Mary -one is in Germany and two of them are in Austria- and approximately ten priests who have sealed their Covenant of Love. We hope to make the Schoenstatt Movement better known in Romania so that it can continue to grow in our country.

What activities do you perform?

At this time, most of it is online. We get together monthly on the 18th for the celebration of the Covenant Day, for youth and family events, and for the Pilgrim Mother meetings which are held at the chapel in our house. For the time being, those are virtual encounters.

Our ministry includes reaching out to people on the streets. We establish contact with the local parishes and priests. Three of our sisters work in the Timisoara diocese doing pastoral work and getting involved in local projects. Furthermore, we get involved, with Germany’s cooperation, in social projects among the people in our country.

Every big project starts with a wish and a dream. What are your hopes and dreams?

Our biggest hope is to build a Schoenstatt Shrine and a small Schoenstatt Center here in Romania. The Blessed Mother will let us know if this will remain as a dream or if it can become a reality. I read that “The future begins with you” in the song for the women and mother’s movement. I really liked that because we should not wait for others to shape the future while we just wait to see what happens. We should help to make our dreams come true ourselves. We must believe in the future of the Schoenstatt movement in Romania, even if it is still in its infancy. Even though we don’t have the land or the money for a Shrine and a Schoenstatt center, we firmly trust in the Virgin’s power. If the MTA wants to establish herself here in Romania, as in the Original Shrine, she will show us the way. I am truly convinced of this.

There are many challenges in your country which you must face with courage.

Yes, we do have many challenges here: unemployment, emigration, parents who have to live somewhere else to find work in order to sustain their families. This sometimes results in broken marriages. We also have to deal with the loss of faith. For our events, the diversity of languages is a big challenge. Even in Timisoara we have to deal with three languages: Rumanian, Hungarian and German. Having to take this into account at every event demands great effort.

But we are certain: it is precisely for these difficult times that we have Schoenstatt offering a home for everyone with stability for their faith and their families. Our founder, Father Joseph Kentenich, once said: “Without hardship, without sacrifice, without battles, nothing great will emerge from us. Great individuals always grow on the cross.” So, we keep taking courageous new steps in our country and we rejoice for each person who is called by the Blessed Mother to the movement.

In Germany we have always heard about Romanian hospitality. What is your experience?

Yes, it is a great joy for us to see that the people here are so open, hospitable and helpful. They enjoy helping with social projects. For example, I am always touched by the fact that poor families, young people, or the elderly, like to share what little they have with others. I was recently traveling on the tramway and started a conversation with a woman beggar. She said that she was glad she could help another woman who couldn’t go begging because she was too frail. She had received a blanket and gave it to the other woman because “she needed it more.” She trusted that someone else would give her a blanket, and so it was. When I asked her if she needed another one due to the very cold weather, she said “Not at this time since I already have one and that is enough.” These experiences really move me! Here, in this country, you can clearly see that there is solidarity amongst its people, concern for the wellbeing of others. There are exceptions, of course.

What has the pandemic brought in terms of challenges and opportunities to make new things out of old ones?

One of the greatest problems is that many people have lost their jobs because of the pandemic and this, of course, exacerbates poverty. Online schooling is a great challenge for many children, as well as for the teachers and parents; it requires a larger effort in the children’s upbringing. Nevertheless, there is also a positive effect. The students I’m responsible for have often expressed how nice it has been to spend more time with their parents at home or to do things as a family, like taking small trips, for example.

Furthermore, during this time various virtual prayer groups have flourished that strengthen the bond with others and trust in God. The longing for community is growing strongly. One comes to appreciate more what was possible in previous times. In addition, several social projects to help people in need have emerged.

Tell me about an initiative…

At the end of November 2020, the Sisters of Mary launched a Christmas campaign in cooperation with Germany. We wanted to help the people of Romania with disinfectants and protective masks. It was a great joy for us to receive support from so many people. Thus, we were able to deliver the packages to children’s homes, homeless shelters, some social institutions, families, and single people. We are so grateful to our many and generous benefactors, both in Germany and Romania. This was a very special experience for us.

How do you envision the future?

We should not be afraid of the future, even if we are going through great hardships in our country. If we only believe that the good Lord holds each one of us in His hand and knows our future much better than we do, we can continue moving forward. Our task is only to walk with Him.

Thank you, Sister Erika-Maria, for your time. We are deeply grateful for having the opportunity to meet the Schoenstatt family in Romania. I am sure that some of our readers will keep you in their hearts and pray for you from now on, especially for the Romanian Schoenstatt family’s great desire to build a shrine. I will be delighted to take you, your sisters and our fellow Romanian brothers back to our Blessed Mother’s Original Shrine.

Translation: Maribel Acaron

February 5, 2021 By Magdalena Rosario Lira

In the Clutches of the Holy Office

In order to evaluate the events that eventually led to Father Joseph Kentenich's exile, it is important to take a closer look at the position and functioning of the "Holy Office."

29. December 2020.
Press Office Schoenstatt International

As the supreme guardian of the faith of the Catholic Church, the institution had an exceptional position in the tradition of the “Holy Inquisition” as well as outstanding, even unrestricted rights to judge and, if necessary, condemn life and faith processes in the Church.

The institution of the Holy Office

The Position of the Holy Office

The “Holy Office” was the most important of all the Congregations and had a primary authority. It did not have to explain itself or justify its actions to anyone. Its instructions were to be followed absolutely. Thus, procedures remained non-transparent and incomprehensible to outsiders. For those accused before the Holy Office, there was no protection against possible injustice. The good of the church as a whole took precedence over the good of the individual. In this regard, the congregation alone could determine what did and did not serve the common good of the Church in each case. The term “holy” in the name of the authority already signaled inviolability.

In concrete terms, this meant that anyone who was accused before the Holy Office generally had no possibility of taking a stand or defending himself. Disagreeable theologians had their teaching faculties revoked. “Being under the Holy Office” was tantamount to ecclesiastical ostracism. To this end, everything was usually done in great secrecy.

The Causa Kentenich at the Holy Office

The Causa Kentenich was in the hands of the “Holy Office” in the 1950s. Father Kentenich, however, was apparently not very familiar with the workings of this institution. At a lecture in Münster in 1966 he confessed: “Actually I was a novice in all the methods that were common in Rome. I had always thought they were as eager to ascertain the truth as I personally had always been.”

Therefore, the fact that Father Kentenich contradicted the ecclesiastical authority in his request, had to have corresponding consequences. But he was not the only one to suffer the full harshness of the proceedings. When Father Adalbert Turowski, General of the Pallottine Fathers until 1953, wanted to do defend Father Kentenich at the “Holy Office,” it had harsh consequences for him. He expressed that no one should be condemned without a defense. At the following General Chapter of the Pallottines, at which his re-election as Superior General was pending, the “Holy Office” intervened and in a letter declared Turowski as a persona non grata and thus ineligible.

In the aforementioned 1966 lecture, Father quoted Cardinal Lavitrano, the Prefect of the Congregation for Religious and a friend of the Schoenstatt Movement, to illustrate the approach of the authorities: “If I had known how the law is dealt with in Rome, I would never have accepted the post as Prefect of the Congregation for Religious.” And further in that talk, Father confessed, “[I] knew – I had experienced this on my world travels – how even the highest ecclesiastical authorities trembled when the Holy Office spoke.”

The theologian Hans Küng, himself condemned, describes the “system” of the “Holy Office” thus: “Only in the case of more well-known victims does one hear something in public. Certainly, no one is physically burned today, but are psychologically and professionally destroyed, wherever necessary for the ‘good of the church’. … No less serious than the public condemnation of the few, which is resorted to only in the case of great public resonance, is the secret harassment of the innumerable, who are called to ‘order’ through a bishop or religious superior, and under certain circumstances are unceremoniously silenced deposed, transferred, placed under special censorship, or banned from publication and speech. On such occasions, the official letter of the Sanctum Officium (or of another Roman Congregation) is usually not handed to the accused by his own superior, but at best is read aloud, so that the person being reprimanded has as little evidence in his hands as possible.”

The Reform of the Holy Office

It was not until the Second Vatican Council that the supremacy of the Holy Office was publicly denounced. In the Council Hall on November 8, 1963, Cardinal Josef Frings of Cologne, in front of more than 2,000 bishops and to the applause of the Council participants, broke the wall of silence by publicly denouncing the Holy Office headed by Cardinal Ottaviani. It had done serious damage to the Church and offered “a nuisance to non-Catholics.” Frings said, among other things: The Office – the successor to the medieval Inquisition – accuses and condemns orthodox scholars without lending them or their bishops a hearing. Theological books are banned without the author being told why. The cardinal demanded that no one should be condemned in the future without he and his bishop being heard. Furthermore, no one should be subjected to a sanction without having had the opportunity to make amends for his errors.

Pope Paul VI initiated the required reform toward the end of the Council. On December 7, 1965, in the motu proprio Integrae servandae, he reordered the tasks and structure of the congregation.

Contributions to a More Comprehensive Picture in the Causa Kentenich

In cooperation with various persons from the Schoenstatt Movement, topics are being researched on behalf of the General Presidium of the International Schoenstatt Work which concern Father Joseph Kentenich, the founder of the Movement, and which are currently examined. This is done on the basis of the respective current state of knowledge available in the accessible documents and writings. The results of the research and conversations can be read in articles related to each topic.

Press Office Schoenstatt International

The Media Commission is responsible for articles signed by the Schoenstatt International Press Office.

It is composed of Sr. M. Cacilda Becker and Fr. Heinrich Walter, International Coordination of the Schoenstatt Movement; Sr. Dr. M. Lisianne Braunbeck, General Council of the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary; Heinrich Brehm, Schoenstatt Press Office, Germany; Michael Defrancesco, Schoenstatt Family Federation; Fr. Ludwig Güthlein, Director of the German Schoenstatt Movement; Dr. Gertrud Pollak, General Superior of the Institute of Our Lady of Schoenstatt and Sr. M. Veronika Riechel, Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary. The texts come from different groups of authors: from the Media Commission, Prof. Dr. Hubertus Brantzen, Fr. Heinrich Hug, Prof. Dr. Joachim Söder, Sr. Dr. M. Nurit Stosiek, or from research carried out by other private persons.

January 31, 2021 By Sr. M. Cacilda Becker

A parish in Paris welcomes Our Lady of Schoenstatt in a special place, close to the Seine

The image of the Mother Thrice Admirable of Schoenstatt was enthroned in a large picture in the church of Notre Dame des Champs, a parish in Paris, France, on Sunday, January 17, 2021. The parish is the first Marian shrine in the Île-de-France region, which includes Paris, erected by the first bishop of Paris in the second century, during the evangelization of France, formerly Gaul.

Virginie de Préval, coordinator of the Pilgrim Mother Campaign in the Île-de-France region.
31. January, 2021

About eighty people, including children and families of various nationalities, were present, with many others in prayer. There were also thirteen people who sealed their Covenant of Love on this day, the 40th Covenant of Love sealed in that region. This is a beginning and a pioneer act in France, and the fruits of the Pilgrim Mother are becoming more and more evident. There are many signs and miracles.

Initially the MTA picture was to be enthroned on January 18, but the curfew forced us to change the date in less than 24 hours, and the MTA showed us that she wanted to establish herself with her picture on the 17th itself, at the end of the solemn Mass, so that the whole parish community could accompany her. This date is also special for us in France, because it commemorates the 150th anniversary of the apparition of Our Lady of Hope of Pontmain, who manifested herself to children saying to them: “But pray, my children. God will hear you in time. My Son allows Himself to be touched”.

What do we expect with this act?

The Blessed Mother was enthroned with the title of “Queen of Physical and Spiritual Health”, just as she was crowned last April in the Original Shrine.

With this gesture, we ask her to triumph over the current situation:

That she may heal us physically and spiritually, and that the crypt where she is placed may be a local place of healing.
May Mary fill us with peace, joy and missionary fire.
We consecrate her to France, Paris, the Île-de-France region, and to each one of us.

Why in this place?

It was the MTA herself who chose this temple:

For six years the Pilgrim Mother has accompanied every Thursday, in this parish, a youth prayer group called Magnificat.
In 2017 and 2018 other young people prayed the rosary every Thursday with the MTA in the crypt.
The pastor, Fr. Antoine d’Eudeville, who already sealed his Covenant of Love, promotes a missionary congress in his parish every year since he welcomed the Pilgrim Mother image four years ago. That image, the Queen of Families and of the Mission, was offered to France by the shrine of Atibaia, Brazil, on October 18, 2015.

How did we prepare?

With a novena and with our contributions to the capital of grace, we conquered this space for the Blessed Mother. We burned the offerings on the following day, January 18, in our home shrine, called Bethlehem.

We hope that Mary will perform many miracles, as Queen of Health, and that Parisians will come to her. May Mary crush the head of the serpent, especially in this situation we are living in the whole world.

If you travel to Paris, do not forget to visit the Blessed Mother in this Church.

Paroisse Notre-Dame des Champs – 92bis, boulevard du Montparnasse 75014 Paris.

Perhaps you can also say hello to the parish priest Fr. Antoine d’Eudeville.

December 17, 2020 By Luciana Loyola

Mother: you must lead our Family

Schoenstatt media community crowns Mary in the Original Shrine

December 17, 2020 - M. Nilza P. da Silva

Webcam Original Shrine - Schoenstatt International

“We say to Mary: you must lead our Family, each and every member, every son and daughter of the Family. We give you this right, you must be the Queen! This is how Father Joseph Kentenich prayed in a moment of great difficulty for Schoenstatt and for the entire world at the coronation of Mary in the Original Shrine on December 10, 1939. The history of the International Schoenstatt Movement and its personal life history prove how seriously the Blessed Mother took the coronation.

“Here we are full of gratitude, to give you responsibility and rights, choosing you as the Queen of Schoenstatt Communication. Last December 10th, about 60 communicators from eight countries joined a prayer from the Original Shrine via online.

Almost all of them are volunteers, enthusiasts, called and chosen by God to take the Schoenstatt charisma, Father Kentenich’s mission to the Church and the entire world. “We want to thank them for all the support and kindness that we, as Schoenstatt International, have experienced.

We are grateful for the commitment of each one, especially in the translations to the different languages and in the critical revision. Thank you very much for the quick, honest and spontaneous responses you have expressed to us. Blessed Mother, we want to thank you for so many small miracles,” expressed Hemma Strutz, from Austria, in her prayer.

Zoom meeting communication team - Schoenstatt International

The proposal for the crowning in the Original Shrine originated from the communicators of Brazil and through Sister M. Cacilda Becker, from the International Coordination, it quickly inflamed the hearts of Germany, the USA, France, Austria, Ecuador, Venezuela and Chile. The diversity of languages is not a problem when the hearts speak the same language. We want to act together with all decision makers in this historic hour and contribute so that future generations can narrate the victorious achievements of our Queen.

In Brazil it was a whole day of crowning. The communicators who could not meet with the others because of their work, received the coronation prayer the day before and they connected to the Original Shrine by webcam early in the morning. An international group met at 8:30 p.m. from Germany and the last group met two hours later at 8:30 p.m. from Brazil. We believe that the Original Shrine has never received so many Schoenstatt communicators together. At the altar, the Virgin contemplated the name of each one, on printed sheets in which each person also wrote their personal intentions for the coronation.

A coronation that connects

During the coronation, in the Original Shrine, the communicators from Araraquara, in the State of Sao Paulo, also crowned a small image of the Virgin of Schoenstatt, gathered in their local shrine. It will travel to the residence of the members of the Communication Team, always reaffirming their confidence in the Queen.

In Poços de Caldas, in the State of Minas Gerais, the coronation also took place in the Shrine. It counted with the participation of many others through the social networks. Monique Vaz, from Mairiporã/SP, joins a small crown with the logo of the communicators of Brazil, making clear to the Queen her mission.

A coronation that inspires and transmits

Enthusiasm for the mission is coupled with responsibility for the consequences of what is communicated. For this reason, among the petitions that are entrusted to the Queen of Communication, all pray with Father Joseph Kentenich: all resistance may be overcome which obstructs our fruitfulness and prevents others from seeing the Father’s plan in faith. Help it to spread throughout the world and go victoriously through all the nations that soon there be one flock and one shepherd leading all peoples to the Trinity. Amen. (Heavenwards, 527-528)

All renew the Covenant of Love with the Queen and undertake a mission, remaining connected by the Queen’s heart, as instruments committed to setting the world on fire. As brothers in the Covenant they experience that in unity there is strength, and it is in sharing that all are enriched.

“In the heart of Mary we are united,” wrote Ana Christina Melquiades of the Institute of Our Lady of Schoenstatt, at the end of the day of the coronation. “Everything for our Queen and for the mission of communication,” adds Caroline Moraes de Freitas, from Pocos de Caldas.

Source: Schoenstatt Brasil

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