Slide Show

Article No. 9 of the 53rd General Chapter (2004) after petitioning Fr. General to declare 2008 “the Augustinian Recollect Year of Vocations” goes on to state that all the religious of the Order should be “. . . the first agents for stimulating vocational interest through their joyful witnessing to their religious consecration and their life of good example (cf. Const. 159). They should strive to live fraternally in community being zealous in serving and joyful in their experience of God. In this way, the communities’ appeal will be contagious and be itself a vocational calling.”

In conformity with the call of the General Chapter, the friars of St. Augustine Province inaugurated the special Augustinian Recollect Vocation Year (ARVY) at the regional days of recollection, East and West. This special day of recollection for the Eastern Region was held at Tagaste Monastery in Suffern, New York on February 14. Fr. Provincial, Charles Huse, read a protocol letter officially opening Vocation Year 2008 for the region. The discussion for the day centered on the first chapter of Reflectionar y Orar por las vocaciones which speaks about the need to continuously renew our community and to faithfully live our charism if we are to attract vocations. The participants broke into small groups to spend time reflecting in depth on the discussion questions at the end of the chapter. They discovered that the reading represented something of a collective “examination of conscience” in which they were confronted with the weaknesses in community life today and challenged with finding solutions that will strengthen the bonds of fraternity and so help attract others to the Augustinian Recollect way of life. The Tagaste students had filled the recreation room where the meeting was held with symbols of the vocation year and photographs of OAR community life and ministry.

At the evening prayer service, which included Evening Prayer and Benediction, Fr. Provincial blessed a Vocation Cross to be displayed throughout the year. Afterward, a special Commitment document to pray and work more intensely for vocations was read and signed by all those in attendance. Following the prayer service the community gathered in the large dining room for the customary gaudeamus and a Mexican dinner of chicken enchiladas with all the trimmings. Finally there was a delicious Haitian rum cake to celebrate the birthday of Fra. Juan José Guzman and a remembrance of all the other friars’ birthdays that fall in the month of February.

Fr. John Gruben, OAR