Saturday, June 20, a group of Vincentians from different branches of the Vincentian Family met online to consolidate the creation of the  CONFRATERNITY OF LAY ADVISORS FOR VINCENTIAN FAMILY. But, like all things that are God gifted, this meeting is part of a community process, which arose in FAVILA (The Latin American Vincentian Family), when the Spirit inspired us with a unique creative proposal: to unite and communicate to those members of the Vincentian Family who share the same trade or profession. In this way, we will be able to strengthen our charism, help each other and help as brothers and sisters from the position of our workplaces and with our professional skills. To this day, that proposal has materialized with the establishment of ten Vincentian confraternities … and I am sure there will be many more in the near future.

The reason why I created this is very simple: as our Vincentian Family work multiplies everywhere, and so also do the good activities that are derived from this work. Let us not forget that when God asks more of us, God also gives us more. That is what happened on Saturday. For different reasons, this first meeting of our Confraternity was not only attended by Vincentians from Latin America, but we were joined by members from the United States and Spain … members who had a desire to learn and to share.

We began the meeting with prayer. Immediately afterwards we chose a secretary. Then we began to review the journey of the different Confraternities that already exist and the process that has led us to our present situation. After a brief analysis of the current situation of the different branches that participated in this meeting, we became aware of the need for specific training for lay people in the area serving as advisors to the different Vincentian communities and associations that already exist and that will continue to exist in the future.

In a matter of minutes, we became aware of a number of Vincentian Lay Training Schools that we have on the continent as well as their syllabus. In light of the present need for the formation of Lay Advisers, it was surprising to see this wealth of formation that is available as well as the openness the various directors of these institutes and their delegates. In other words, we are not talking about structures that have to be established, but rather we are speaking about realities that have been taking place for several years now… and that could be easily replicated in other places on the American continent and beyond. Among these schools we highlight: The Berceau School in Chile and schools in Central America, El Salvador, Mexico, Ecuador, Honduras, Panama, etc. All of this potential has great significance for the future of the Vincentian Family in Latin America and beyond.

So, as a challenge for our next meeting, we have decided to study and analyze and share our reflections on the different experiences of the LAY FORMATION SCHOOLS FOR THE VICENTIAN FAMILY  (the syllabus and content of the various subjects). At the same time, we will outline the journey and the objective of this Confraternity. We will meet next again on July 18, to continue the process. If you believe you can contribute something to our discussion about this matter or are interested in participating in this Confraternity, you can contact Alejandra Chacón through the following email  alexache33 @ hotmail. com .

Mónica Villar Guisado
MISEVI and AIC