The congregation with the whole Church celebrated the 2022 Sunday of the Word of God. This is one of the steps in the realization of our dream with Claret, of a Congregation that, following the example of Mary, treasures in its heart, fulfills and proclaims the Word of God. The General Prefect of Bible and Communications, Fr. Henry Omonisaye, CMF, sent a well-prepared guide to the entire Congregation to make the celebration extraordinary and all involving. From Asia to America, Europe down to Africa, as the sun rises from the east to west, the Claretian communities, parishes, institutions gathered, shared, celebrated the Word, the center and source of strength of the Claretian missions.
Claretian Major Organisms around the world who were able to document the event shared their photos and videos, and you may find them on the Facebook Page of the Congregation (https://www.facebook.com/claretians). These celebrations reveal the different faces of the Congregation and the mode of celebration of the Sunday. We had the enthronement of the Bible with cultural diversities accentuated, the installation of Lectors, and the show of personal copies of the Bible.
At the General Curia in Rome, the celebrations started Friday before the Sunday of the Word. A special Lectio Divina took place instead of its normal weekly celebration. The Eucharistic celebration of the Sunday took place on Saturday evening at the Curia chapel, presided by its Local Superior, Fr. Vicente Sanz, CMF. In his homily, Fr. Henry Omonisaye, CMF, shared with the community the importance of the Gospel of the day, a text that is very dear to our Father Founder, St. Anthony Mary Claret. It reveals the identity (the Christ) and the Mission (preach the Good News) of Jesus.
“Let us all find our identity in Christ and be open to the mission to which we are called as Listeners and Servants of the Word”—Fr. Henry Omonisaye, CMF (Sunday of the Word 2022)
The XXI General Chapter of 1991 declared us to be Servants of the Word, and the whole Congregation strived to live that identity. In the XXV General Chapter, we deepened this reflection in our characteristic trait as Listeners and Servants of the Word of God. In the recently concluded XXVI General Chapter, we now dream of biblically animating all our ministries. It is to appreciate God’s Word, find our identity in Him, devote more time to personal growth that is nurtured by the Word and be more open to the mission to which we are called.
Let us, like Mary, keep the Word in our hearts, treasure it, and proclaim it with our lives.
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