Cleber LOPES, OMI
Recently, Christ Redeemer Parish, an Oblate mission in the vibrant city of Recife, the capital of Pernambuco in Brazil, celebrated the feast of the Immaculate Conception.
Christ is alive! With his mother, Mary Immaculate, they are the joy of the Youth!
2023 will be remembered for focusing on the mission with the youth. A Parish mission was organized for all youth groups to motivate and attract other young individuals to the Church. In July, the Encounter of Youth with Christ, widely known as EJC, took place with the theme: “I Found a Reason Not to Give Up.”
Sixty participants lived an extraordinary weekend, assisted by another 150 young attendees to this mission, where the youth dedicated themselves to evangelizing their peers. Every effort was made to ensure participants experienced a personal encounter with Jesus Christ.
The event was meticulously organized to allow participants to immerse themselves in the merciful love of Jesus the Savior and appreciate the legacy left by our founding, Saint Eugene de Mazenod. This initiative was inspired by the recent General Chapters, which prioritized the mission with the youth.
The result was a prominent presence of the parish youth, both at the evening mass of the feast and the following day in the procession.
In Recife, December 8th is a festive day, and tradition dictates the celebration of a grand procession to the hill named after the Immaculate Virgin, known as “Morro da Conceição.” From the summit of this hill, the Virgin blesses the city of Recife. Once again, the youth actively participated in this devotion, making pilgrimages at different moments to pay homage to the patroness of the Oblate Missionaries of Mary Immaculate.
On the morning of December 8th, they gathered with the Oblate Missionaries residing in the small community of Saint Eugene to celebrate that brave young woman who, with her immaculate “YES,” brought the Savior to humanity.
Let us stay focused on Jesus, living out the Oblate charisma in this land and choosing the mission with and for the youth. May Christ live and guide us with his eternal youth!
