My experience sharing the celebration with my brothers Augustinians of the Assumption begins on the morning of August 28th, 2023, in the prayer of lauds, a moment of encounter with the whole "Augustinian family, united in one prayer, asking our holy intercessor St Augustine to enable us to experience brotherhood.
May we, gathered to meet Jesus Christ, experience in our lives the mercy of God, so that, through his teaching and witness, we may find in him a model of life that will enable us to attain holiness. At the end of the prayer all of us at Casa Dufault shared this celebration with a rich lunch.
My brother Jose de Jesús (Assumptionist aspirant) and I, rushed out to support our brothers of our community of San Andrés Apóstol, to organize the feast in honor of our patron Saint Augustine of Hippo, likewise to celebrate the 28 years of religious life of our formator, Father Sébastien Bangandu and the fourth renewal of temporary vows of our brother Rafael Huerta Ramos.
Arriving in the parish, we began to help the cooks in the preparation of food and in the decoration of the parish hall where the conviviality would take place at the end of the celebration of Mass.
After a hard work, the bells of the San Andrés parish sounded for the Eucharistic preparation. As we prepared for Mass, we received the guests and relatives of both brother Rafa and Father Sébastien.
I also met for the first time my brothers Angel Gabriel and Eliud Tlecuile (Assumption postulants) who live in the Emperatriz de América parish; I met the others formator fathers and Father Louis Kivuya, the new regional superior of Mexico, which was a great experience to be able to visualize and know the majority of the members of the Assumptionist community of Mexico.
The moment of the Eucharistic celebration began with the entry of the regional father who presided over the Eucharist, followed by Brother Rafa and his parents, Father Sébastien and some other priests and religious who accompanied them to witness the act of renewal of vows.
The liturgical team included my religious brothers, postulants and aspirants. A good number of parishioners, relatives, friends of the Assumptionist community participated in the Mass.
After the liturgy of the word, the regional father invited Brother Rafa to the altar for the renewal of his vows. This personal moment was the most special, as I have never witnessed a renewal of vows. There were many mixed feelings at that time in my mind, to see how my brother Rafa gave his life to Jesus Christ, promising to serve him in poverty, chastity and obedience, step out of himself to the service of others. His renewal of vows was for me an experience that I keep deep in my heart and that I share in this little review. The mass ended with the blessing of the regional father.
They say that Mexicans make a party for absolutely everything and this celebration would not be an exception. All the parishioners, family and friends of the Assumptionist family, were cordially invited to taste a delicious meal prepared with much love by the community of San Andrés.
The atmosphere was very festive, many smiles, many hugs, we toasted with a little wine, Rafael and the brothers dancing to the rhythm of the cumbias, a moment of joy where each of us could share the gift of life.
In my experience, I can say that in the celebration of St Augustine, I was able to know a little more about the Assumption charism, I could know its warm closeness and I could feel welcomed by a simple but wonderful family.
Erick Maximino Rojas, candidate
