The Organization of the Augustinians of Europe (OAE) held its General Assembly from 17th-21st June at the Royal Seminary College of the Augustinians of Valladolid.
The assembly involved thirty-two Augustinians from Germany, Belgium, Spain, Holland, England, Ireland, Italy, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, Czech Republic and Portugal, and included Prior General Fr Alejandro Moral, his General Councillors for Southern Europe and Northern Europe, and, joining later, the Vicar General. The meeting began on Tuesday 18th June with the celebration of Holy Mass, presided over by Fr Robert Marsh OSA, Provincial of the Anglo-Scotland Province and also President of the OAE. During his homily, Fr Marsh spoke of how "Jesus exhorts us to go beyond our comfort zone, to push our generosity to the limit … our love for others, for those with whom we live and work, even those who sometimes cause us anxiety or stress, will always be marked by the same goodness and mercy that God has shown us."
In the company of fellow Augustinians, and in a climate of communion, Fr Robert asked the friars to allow themselves to be transformed by "the Holy Spirit, so that He may change us into the image of the Father and we may walk in the joy and freedom of the Gospel. In this way," the OAE President continued, "we can strive to become complete and whole in our love for God and for those with whom we live and whom we serve in our daily work.”
After welcome greetings by the president and vice-president of the OAE (Provincial of Belgium, Fr Martin Davakan OSA), the morning focussed on addressing the matter of “synodality in the Church and in the Order of St Augustine." For this, Fr Gary McCloskey, from the province of Villanova (USA), was present, and he highlighted a number of points of St Augustine's thought relevant to the issue.
Synodality
Both sessions after lunch gave further opportunity to delve more deeply into the issue, this time guided by Maria Cristina Inogés Sanz, a laywoman and participant in the Synod of Bishops in Rome, who spoke of synodality as a process of being Church in another way, to make the ecclesiology of communion a reality, discovering and living communion in diversity, not in uniformity. "We are all Church," she said, "each one in the place given to them by baptism through that personal vocation, but together according to the model given to us by the Trinity, which is otherness and diversity from the origin.
The day drew to a close with an evening stroll through the city in the company of members of the Augustinian community based in Valladolid.
On Wednesday 19th June, the day began with the Eucharist, presided over by the Archbishop of Valladolid and President of the Spanish Episcopal Conference, Mons. Luis Argüello who, in the light of the Word of the day, exhorted in his homily to "evangelise desire and transform actions." The morning sessions focused on initial formation in Europe, led by the friars in charge of three formation houses in Europe: Fr Nolasco Msemwa OSA from Valladolid; Fr Enrique Martín Sanz OSA from St Monica’s in Rome; and Fr Jean-Baptiste Zeke from Belgium.
Formation houses
Each one presented the reality of their formation house, which are currently characterised by the cultural diversity of the students and their formators who constitute them. In the second session of the morning, four questions and proposals were distributed, all of them related to different common formation projects, and for discussion in the various language groups (German, Spanish, English and Italian). After the discussion, it was deemed appropriate to create a working group among those responsible for training in Europe to develop a European Training Programme and unify basic criteria for each of the training stages.
Wednesday afternoon was dedicated to a cultural activity, a visit to the Monastery of Santa María de Valbuena, an ancient Cistercian monastery located in Valbuena de Duero, and which is now the permanent headquarters of the Las Edades del Hombre art foundation. The day wound up with a visit to, and dinner at, a local winery.
Protection of minors
On Thursday 20th June, Eucharist was celebrated by Prior General of the Order Fr Alejandro Moral. The morning sessions focussed on the subject of "abuse and its prevention in the different geographical areas". For this, we had the collaboration of the expert Jesús Rodríguez Torrente, a priest of the Diocese of Albacete, Judge Auditor of the Tribunal of the Rota of the Apostolic Nunciature and Coordinator of the Service of the Offices for the Protection of Children and Adolescents. The subject was discussed in great depth and from multiple perspectives, including initial and ongoing formation, and moral and spiritual formation.
In the early afternoon, there was a visit to the various facilities and institutions of the host convent: the Oriental Museum, the parish church, and the library of the Augustinian Theological Study.
This was followed by the presentation of reports from the provinces and other places where Augustinians are present in Europe. Finally, the venue for the next meeting of European superiors was chosen: it will be, God willing, in Kosice (Slovakia), from 2nd-6th June 2025. The afternoon ended with a tour of the city of Valladolid in the tourist bus, courtesy of the city council.
The Assembly ended on Friday 21st June with the celebration of the Eucharist, presided over by Fr Domingo Amigo, Prior Provincial of our host Province, after which the participants left for home.
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