Greetings from the Confidentia Shrine and Happy New Year!
The new decade and year are just two weeks old and we may still be in the habit of writing 2019 on our checks and letters. But let’s take a closer look at 2020 since we can discover a lot of meaning in it.
To have 20/20 vision means to see clearly without lenses. The 20/20 TV news magazine proudly claims that their reports give clarity of insight. And those of us old enough may remember Johnny Nash for his 1972 lyrics: “I can see clearly now; the rain is gone. I can see all obstacles in my way. Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind. It’s gonna be a bright, bright, bright, bright sunshiny day!”
What message bears the Year 2020 for us as Joyful Apostles Living the Covenant? We recall that our father and founder, Joseph Kentenich, came to a decision on January 20, 1942, which is difficult to understand at first sight. Indeed, it took more than 20/20 vision for his followers to align themselves with his death-leap of faith to go to the concentration camp in Dachau and not to take advantage of another physical exam which may have declared him unfit for camp due to his advanced age and a lung disease. Only with a supernatural vision and a profound faith in God’s providence can one muster the courage to act against one’s nature and the advice of all his friends and counselors, to freely choose a life of hardship, starvation, and perhaps even death.
And what’s the message for us? As joyful apostles living the covenant, we are invited to deepen our covenant of love and to make the supernatural vision of our founder our own. This new level of surrender will have an effect on our daily life. This month’s example of a joyful apostle living the covenant can inspire all of us.
With greetings from the Confidentia Shrine,
Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary