Dialogue re-joined in Boston, MA

Our young group of religious missionaries from the two provinces of St Charles Borromeo and John the Baptist of the United States held their annual meeting 6-10 November 2000 at St John Pastoral Institute in Brighton, Massachusetts.This year's theme focused on the challenges and future perspectives in the Brazilian apostolate in the Archdiocese of Boston.

Fr Vincenzo Rosato CS, pastor and current director of the Office for Ethnic Apostolates (OEA) in the Archdiocese of Boston, together with Fr Samuel Fonseca, CS organized the programmes which heightened the awareness of the participants of their pastoral services as well as their cultural and spiritual values in the Hispanic and Brazilian communities.

The two provincial superiors Frs Pat Murphy and Sergio Dall'Agnese took part in the said event.They engaged as equals and dialogued with openness between their young members in the communities and the attempt to enhance their working relationship as missionaries for the migrants.

Various speakers from the religious groups include:Fr Claude Scrima, OFM who spoke on Priest as the Disciple of the Lord.Sr Marilyn Gignac SVSC, Sr Charlotte Kane SND, and Antonietta Pasquariello presented some pastoral models in their ministries and shared their own experiences with the immigrants abroad as well as in Boston.Bro Michael Galvin however dealt on the social and legal concerns with the Brazilians in Boston.Sr Barbara Cicolini SND recounted her own experience how she was able to help organize the Portuguese speaking immigrants in the archdiocese.Fr Robert Bonfier, co-ordinator of the Brazilian Apostolate, addressed the issue of developing a praxis-oriented programme that acknowledges the pastoral approach and integration of immigrants and refugees in the local parish and the Archdiocese of Boston at large.He discussed also the challenges and formation programmes for potential leaders of the Brazilian apostolate.

Along with the richness of cultures articulated in the Eucharistic celebrations, each ethnic community participated in the liturgy and prepared the variety of food for everybody.Two Scalabrinian parishes such as St Antony's in Everett and St Tarcisius in Framingham provided hospitality.

Like Mary's Magnificat, her berakah or thanksgiving to God for the great things the Lord had done to her and his people, our group also thanked the Lord for all the blessings and gifts we have received including the success of our meeting.

Towards the end, while we were leaving back home, some of us who were five (5) years or less of priestly ordination commenced the following day with Fr Alvirio Morés, CS as our retreat master.