We want to share a small chronicle that comes to us from Zimbabwe about the constitution of a group of Lay Claretians. Our congratulations!
Every journey begins with a single step! That is what we intended to do last Saturday, January 22: to take the first step of our journey as Lay Claretians in Zimbabwe.
With great enthusiasm, full of eagerness and with the uncertainties and questions of any beginner, a group of 49 ladies and gentlemen gathered to discover the meaning and implications of following the example and apostolic zeal of St. Anthony Mary Claret in our daily lives, in our secular contexts, in our jobs, in our fields, among our families and with our friends. A group of 49 people coming from the Claretian parishes of St. Charles Lwanga in Ruwa and St. Dominic in Zimre, both in Harare, asked ourselves about our identity, our vocation and our mission as lay people in the midst of the world and as Christians inflamed by the same spirit of St. Anthony Mary Claret.
Manuel Ogalla CMF and Fr. Look Life Ndhlovu CMF, we were able to deepen in Claret’s way our understanding of shared mission (¨to do with others”), the richness and plurality of the Claretian Family and the origin and nature of our own Lay Claretian movement. The day concluded with a vibrant celebration of the Eucharist and sharing lunch, enjoying the communion that makes us one family, with one heart and one soul.
If it is true that every journey begins with a single step, we fervently hope that this was the first of many more to come. Let us pray that it will be so.
