The District of Chile of the Congregation of Holy Cross hosted its Ninth “Encounter for Collaborators in the Mission of Holy Cross” on May 11 in Calle Larga, Chile. Held at Nuestra Señora de la Merced Parish, which is staffed by the Congregation, the gathering brought together the religious of the District and approximately 180 lay people.
The religious and lay collaborators reflected on the 70-year history of Holy Cross in Chile and looked to the future of the Congregation’s work in the country. Each of the Congregation’s apostolates shared a presentation on two or three of its apostolic priorities for 2013 and how those priorities fit into the Holy Cross mission and charism.
Explore the Congregation's history and current work in Chile
“The annual Encuentro is an opportunity for everyone in the District and our many lay colleagues to have a sense of a wider participation in the mission of Holy Cross in Chile,” said Rev. Michael Delaney, C.S.C., Superior of the District of Chile. “The insights of some of our most faithful colleagues, those who have served many years with the Congregation, will help mark our future goals and priorities in mission.”
Of the 180 laity who attended, about 50 of them were young people from the Congregation’s schools and parish youth ministry programs.
“This is one of the opportunities they have to come to know one another, and for everyone to sense a vibrant future through their interest and commitment in our apostolic life,” said Fr. DeLaney. “The Congregation of Holy Cross has been for many years, and will be for many more, the way in which they have been invited to serve and participate in the Church as lay men and women, youth, and families.”
Among the Holy Cross religious in attendance were the religious from the Congregation’s International House of Studies in Santiago, Chile, which currently has men from Chile, Haiti, Peru, and Brazil. One of the temporarily professed seminarians, Mr. David Olarte, C.S.C., who is from Peru, spoke of his experience in Holy Cross.