Dear Beloved Congregation:

We have just concluded a two-week Claretian Renewal Encounter (CRE) which had begun on the second of this month with the celebration of the Holy Eucharist and ended today with the Fire of the Holy Spirit celebration. The Encounter was organized by St. Charles Lwanga Independent Delegation, and was specifically meant for the missionaries within the first ten years of ministry. We were twenty Claretians from various mission fields of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, and Mozambique.

The Encounter followed the dynamics of a Forge experience in a miniscule manner and traversed through the three processes of transformation envisaged by the XXV General Chapter: Missionaries adoring the Father (Patris Mei), Missionaries following Christ in Community (Caritas Christi), and Missionaries Going Forth (Spiritus Domini). The CRE also included a four-day intensive retreat (Spiritual Exercises), culminating with a full day “wilderness experience” at the Resurrection Garden in Nairobi. We are very grateful to you, our beloved Congregation, for caring for our ongoing formation, by organizing such beautiful encounters.

We thank God for the gift of our facilitators who came all the way from Forge Center in Madrid, to guide us through the Renewal Encounter. Frs. Roland Onuekwusi and Paulson Veliyannoor clearly articulated the three thematic phases of the Claretian Renewal Encounter and led us through a unique experience of renewal. We express our deep gratitude to them. These days were indeed a privileged time of reflection, study and discussion, and a sense of renewed commitment. We return to our mission fields, carrying the renewed fire of God’s love in our hearts.

During the days of the Renewal Encounter, we had been praying for each Major Organism by name and for the Church in general. We thank our Superior General Fr. Mathew Vattamattam, and the members of the General Government as well as our Major Superior Fr. John Francis and his Council for their love and care towards the missionaries, the true resources of the Congregation. O, beloved Congregation, you are really a mother who cares for her children; we thank you for the same.

Above all, we thank God, for His abiding love for us. Long live Christ the King, long live our Mother Church, long live our beloved Congregation.

Yours in the Forge of the Heart of Mary:

Sd/-

The Participants of the Claretian Renewal Encounter

St. Charles Lwanga Independent Delegation

Nairobi, 15 July 2018