During the weekend of October 15-16, 2016 the CLM of Portugal gathered in Viseu for their National Assembly and for their second formation meeting on the topic of, “The Word as (with) Vocation,” moderated by the CLM Paula Clara.
During the Assembly, we as CLM had the opportunity to reflect over what was accomplished this year and see the many marvels the Lord has worked in us. We remembered the return of Marcia from Mozambique, and of Élia from the Central African Republic. We remembered the departure of María Augusta for the Central African Republic and of Marisa, who is studying the language in England. Many milestones were reached along the way right here. Above all we concentrated in organizing the European Assembly of the CLM to which we were all committed and for which we felt responsible, and in which we all worked a lot without leaving any detail to chance. We also spent time evaluating and then electing the various ministries of those who, as CLM, are responsible for the organization, such as the coordinating team, the formation team, the finances and many other things that are necessary for the future life of the CLM.
All this reflects what Pope Paul VI wrote in the dogmatic constitution Lumen Gentium (#7): “As all the members of the human body, though they are many, form one body, so also are the faithful in Christ. Also, in the building up of Christ’s Body various members and functions have their part to play. There is only one Spirit who, according to His own richness and the needs of the ministries, gives His different gifts for the welfare of the Church.” We are different people with different ministries and responsibilities. We journey together here at home and beyond our borders, praying and committing ourselves in the name of God according to the charism of Comboni.
The meeting on formation could not have been more connected with the Assembly. While some were reflecting on vocation, others were reflecting on what their vocation had produced. In such a journey there are moments when walking together is not enough, but we felt the need to abandon ourselves to divine providence through our commitment. For this reason, on Sunday, relatives and friends joined the CLM family to witness the promise of Neuza, Rufina and Paula.
The journey takes place by walking as a community whose nucleus is Christ. After a day of formation and discernment we wanted to pray with our lives what we daily pray in the Our Father, “May your will be done.” We choose to follow a path of happiness, knowing fully well in advance that we will suffer, laugh, cry, love, fall, get up, get lost and be found. Here we feel at home, the hugs get longer, the laughter echoes in the hall, and often we pray with tears and in silence, because words are not enough to express the love of God. Here we learn that there are no distances that can stand in the way of staying united. Here, like St. Augustine, we turn Love into a greater prayer. Together, we are the thousand lives for mission that St. Daniel Comboni dreamed of. We are the dream of Comboni and we dare to follow in his footsteps making it possible to have much more than a thousand lives for the mission.
Paula Sousa, CLM Portugal
