June 8  to 12, 135 Redemptorists and Lay Associates met at the Lago de Guadalupe in the state of Mexico as part of the process of the formation of the new Seelos Province of North America. Confreres from Mexico, Baltimore, Ex-Patriam and Denver made their way to the bishop’s retreat house for a four-day long gathering.

The main purpose of the meeting was to talk and plan for the mission of the new Province. It was stressed in the key note speeches, in the small group sharing and in our prayers that the purpose of restructuring was not for governance, but for the sake of the mission. That being said I would like to emphasize something else of importance that happened at the gathering: the building of community and the creating of a common story together as members of the new Province.

During the four days together, there were moments of prayer, there were meals shared together, there were talks given to the full group and there was time for small groups. There was also time for recreation together—watching the World Cup matches together, sharing a drink or just chatting in the large open meeting room. Confreres who hadn’t seen each other for years had the opportunity to talk together and many new relationships and friendships were formed.

Constitution 21 says, “Community does not truly exist when members merely live together; it requires as well genuine sharing on the human and spiritual level.” During the four days at the Lago of Guadalupe this real sharing was happening, with everyone together in large groups, small groups and one on one. We still have a long way to go before we will have a shared identity as members of the new Seelos Province of North America, but these days together were a step in the right direction.