LETTER OF CONVOCATION FOR THE XII WORLD ASSEMBLY

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LETTER OF CONVOCATION FOR THE XII WORLD ASSEMBLY OF IESUS CARITAS FRATERNITY OF PRIESTS
BUENOS AIRES, ARGENTINA, MAY 6 to 21, 2025

Dear Brother,

In a world torn apart by wars and wounded by the suffering of the innocent, especially the elderly, women and children, Pope Francis has raised his prophetic voice countless times to remind humanity of an essential truth of the Gospel: “YOU ARE ALL BROTHERS” (Mt 23:8). He has painstakingly carried out significant activities, both inside and outside the Church, with Christians and non-Christians to achieve the longed-for universal brotherhood and world peace.

We, disciples of Jesus of Nazareth, inspired by the testimony of St. Charles de Foucauld, who made UNIVERSAL FRATERNITY the nucleus and horizon of his life in God, want to make a significant contribution to this cause, both within our presbyteries and in the civil society of which we are a part. For this reason, the theme of our Assembly is: PRIESTS OF IESUS CARITAS: WITNESSES AND FORGERS OF PRIESTLY AND UNIVERSAL FRATERNITY.

In the attached annex is the Questionnaire that the National Responsible need to answer with kind attention and the main topics that would set the direction and process of our meeting.

Our Assembly will take place at the Monsignor Aguirre House of Spiritual Exercises, Santa Rosa 2341, B 1644, city of Victoria, Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina (the house is one hour from downtown Buenos Aires). It will cost approximately US$600 or Euros 560.

Who are the participants?

According to our Statutes (Art. 19), the following are invited to participate in the Assembly with the right to speak and vote:

  1. the International Responsible and his team,
  2. the two International Responsibles who preceded him,
  3. the four Continental Responsibles and their Teams,
  4. the National Responsible of the different countries,

  5. some delegates specifically invited by the International Responsible and his team.

To enter Argentina, citizens of some countries require a visa. Click www.migraciones.gov.ar/accesible/indexdnm.php/visas), download the registration form and fill it up. Send a scanned copy of your passport with your address and contact information1 to Tino (robertoferrarilujan@gmail.com) for the invitation letter. These documents must be processed well in advance so that we could still avail of cheaper airfares. Thank you very much.

Let us hold this Assembly close to our hearts in prayer so that it may bear the fruits that the Spirit has called us to do and be in our times. We humbly entrust the common aspirations and concrete plans of our Assembly through the intercession of our Brother St. Charles de Foucauld.

In Jesus Caritas,
Eric, Matthias, Honoré, Tony and Fernando
International Team.

1 Contact information is a collection of information; namely, name of residence and/or workplace, its address; nature of your work; telephone number of residence/place of work; your personal mobile number

Read in PDF:

1. LETTER OF CONVOCATION FOR THE XII WORLD ASSEMBLY

2. ANNEX TO THE CONVOCATORY LETTER

3. REGISTRATION FORM FOR THE WORLD ASSEMBLY en

Chronicle of the Pan American Team Meeting, September 2024. Carlos Roberto dos SANTOS

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To the brothers of the Jesus Caritas Fraternity

The Pan-American team met in Brazil, in the city of Goiás, between September 16 and 21, 2024. We were at the House of Fraternity these days, where the spirituality of Brothers Charles de Foucauld is lived. Father Carlos Roberto, the Pan-American leader, who lives there, welcomed us and organized the activities of this meeting.

Every day at 7:30 we had a half hour of silent Adoration and at 8:00 we celebrated Lauds. Lunch every day was at 12:30. At 18:30 we had Mass with the community and at 20:00 we had dinner.

On Monday afternoon we had a first meeting simultaneously in person and online. The four members of the team participated: Carlos from Brazil, Mártires from the Dominican Republic, Alex from the USA, Tino from Argentina, Fernando Tapia and Arturo from Chile and Jhonfer from Venezuela. At first, Fr. Tapia told us about the organization of the XII International Assembly (May 6-21, 2025), the Directory and the Statutes of the Fraternity, which the International Team is reviewing. He also informed us about the need to send the registration forms of the leaders and delegates with the respective flights to organize the logistics of the meeting. The invitation letter will be sent from the bishopric of San Isidro for participants who need a visa to enter Argentina.

Then we shared what the fraternities of each of our countries are experiencing and in a special way the formation of the fraternities of other countries such as Venezuela (Fr. Jhonfer was present), Colombia, Cuba, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Panama. On Monday at 6:30 pm we celebrated Mass with the small community that participates in the activities of the House of Fraternity.

On Tuesday morning we met again online, hoping to receive some enlightenment from Fr. Honoré Sawadogo on the topic: “Fighting clericalism with St. Charles de Foucauld,” but it was not possible because the instability of the internet where he was, did not allow him to connect with us. Therefore, he later sent us the text so that we could have it. In this situation, we continued to share about the life of our fraternities in each country. We experienced a very good exchange of experiences of the existing fraternities and the new ones in formation. Good news is that the Month of Nazareth has been held in several countries of the Americas, and also that there are seminarians and young priests coming and participating in our spirituality.

On Tuesday afternoon, the organization of the logistics of the IV Pan-American Assembly that will be held in São Paulo, Brazil, continued.

On Wednesday we had Desert Day in the Goiás desert, since it was unbearably hot. We conclude with the celebration of Mass with the People.

On Thursday morning we continued the work on the organization of the IV Assembly. In the afternoon we visited the parish of Our Lady of the Abbey, in the city of Itaberaí, and in the community of San José we went to the homes of some sick people. In the evening we celebrated Mass in the community of San Antonio, together with Father José Mateus Domíngues, who belongs to the Fraternity.

On Friday we spent the morning and afternoon visiting the Paraíso Therapeutic Community, where we shared with the men who live there, who are being helped in their recovery from their chemical dependency. We introduced ourselves, gave our names and where we are from, had lunch with them and ended with the celebration of Mass in the chapel of the Community. During the Mass, each of those present were able to share their pain and suffering, as well as their hopes of achieving a cure and returning healthy to their lives and families. It was a very important moment, which helped us all.

On Saturday morning we discussed the text of the liturgy brochure in various languages, which we will conclude in another meeting. In the afternoon we wrote the text of the invitation for the IV Assembly and finished with the text of the chronicles of this meeting.

On behalf of the Pan American team, a big hug,

Carlos Roberto dos Santos

Continental responsible

Read the document in PDF: Chronicle of the Pan American Team Meeting, September 2024. Carlos Roberto dos SANTOS. en