Laity and the charism of Betharram

The F.V.D. group of the young Betharramites from Paraguay, had the excellent idea to combine a journey to the origins with a full immersion in the life of the Christian world. Their destinations: from Betharram to Krakow, without transition. And was one really needed after the training in cultural diversity and fraternity without borders offered by the young brothers in the session?

It is difficult to express in a few words what we experienced both at Bétharram and at World Youth Day. These are moments full of emotion and feelings that marked a ‘before and after’ in our spiritual journey.

To begin with Bétharram, the cradle of our charism, we proposed to follow the footsteps of our Father St Michael. We all had a preconceived idea of a shrine and a seminary, but, once there, we had a different perception of the place: it was like coming home.

This place where we have never been before turned into a family home; we almost reverted to being children, and we started to move here and there, amazed by every detail, contemplating with moist eyes the bedroom of our Saint.

How to express what we felt when entering the sanctuary and contemplating Our Lady of Betharram, so bright and so beautiful? I tried to imagine the moment when St. Michael has focussed on this image and discovered his mission. Never before now, did I feel so strongly the presence of Saint Michael: his example and his legacy could be seen in the religious and seminarians we met.

It was as if we were meeting the Risen Lord at every moment. What an amazing experience to share the Eucharist with Betharramites of other countries! To see clearly that the charism could have travelled so far from its place of origin and continue to fascinate the heart of people.

I would like to share with you the phrase that marked this visit. After praying the rosary, Father Gaspar addressed us with the words: “The future of the Congregation is in your hands. “What a mission and what a responsibility! How could we not meet the living God in Betharram, where everything speaks of his presence in this place full of nature, peace and joy?

The F.V.D. welcomed in Betharram by the young participants in the session for a day of sharing

After leaving Betharram, with hearts swelling and on fire, we set out for the youth meeting with Pope Francis; many memories crowd in when I think about this week. We were assigned a lodging, not in Krakow, but in a village two hours away by train. The great thing is that basically, it allowed us to sleep with Polish families, a wonderful experience as we could see their way of life.

The World Youth Days were characterized by joy; people were happy, singing everywhere, dancing, jumping; strangers who, on meeting you, greeted you with a ‘good morning’; friendships made while in the queue for lunch; dialogues exchanged with strangers from other countries during the two-hour train journey; a joy that was expressed at every opportunity and got the better of fatigue. Each of the days spent in Krakow was incredible: I was impressed by the large number of pilgrims from all over the world and the fact that we were all there to share the same faith and the same love of God.

If I were to recount everything that we experienced during these days, I would have to write a book!

In summary, I can tell you that the Church is more alive than ever, that we young people are not afraid of going out into the world and speaking about God, we are ready to fight for a fairer world and especially that we are ready to show mercy vis-à-vis our brothers.

During these days, an echo resounded to which we could not remain indifferent: we are called to live and share God’s mercy, to go out in search of others, to bring what we lived these past few days, to every family, every parish, every person we meet, because we cannot keep such joy only in the memory. I can certainly say that God took me in his arms in a special way and I felt a lot of love and affection from him during these days.

My life of faith is now different from the way it was before this meeting. And I’m sure the Betharramite charism is the way I wish to know Christ and to follow him.

Alejandro Gross Brown Bobadilla