Quito, Ecuador. The Biblical Ministry Encounter of the Major Institutes of CICLA, held from August 8 to 16 has ended. Fr. Agustín Monroy CMF, General Prefect of Apostolate, who participated in the encounter, encouraged those present with a reflection on the exhortation ‘Men on Fire with Love’ of the XXIV General Chapter of the Congregation. The document has been read from

the key of the Word of God and of the Plan of Action of the Prelature. The Chapter expression has strongly resounded: “We will transform our communities, formation centres and apostolates into schools of the Word” (MFL 59,1).

Religious and Lay persons have participated in the Encounter, representing all the Major Institutes of CICLA. Each Major Institute presented its biblical experiences and a diagnosis, by which the situation of the Claretian biblical ministry in the region has been identified.

During the encounter we have advanced toward a systematization of the Biblical Ministry and of the ‘biblical animation of the whole ministry’, having as our keys: the reading of the reality, the “impoverished” as interpretative key, the community dimension of the reading of the bible and a popular spirituality based on the Word of God.

With all this background, CICLA seeks to articulate a Net or Claretian biblical movement, in which several initiatives, already in progress, may be included such as: Claretian University Foundation (FUCLA) in Chocó -Colombia Occidental-, the Claretian Biblical Centre (CEBICLAR) en Chile and similar experiences in other Major Institutes, the yearly publication of the ‘Biblical Diary’. CICLA also looks for the better use of the technologies of information and communication (TIC’s) for the formation of the pastoral agents, based on the Brazil experience.

The encounter stood out for the cordial acceptance of the host communities of Ecuador, as well as for the fraternity and the ideals lived in shared mission (Photos)