“The place at the heart of the mother –
the place of the child – is your place.
Come and take it.”
This was the message of the first Schoenstatt Day in Romania!
On Saturday, November 19, 2024, the Schoenstatt Family in Romania, mainly from the Diocese of Timisoara, was invited to the first Schoenstatt Day in a most famous Marian place of pilgrimage,
Maria Radna. In glorious sunshine, the basilica of pilgrimage and the adjoining monastery building were perfect for welcoming the 180 or so guests from various parishes. Big and small, young and old, priests and sisters, representatives from all the branches of the Schoenstatt Movement hurried to celebrate the 110th anniversary of the covenant of love with the MTA, to renew the covenant, or to seal it for the first time as did two women from the Diocese of Sathmar.
Sister M. Ilga Dreier, the provincial superior of the province of sisters in Germany to which the branch in Romania belongs, traveled to us for the occasion. To begin, she greeted everyone present.
As moderator, Sister Erika-Mária Bukovics introduced the day’s program. As is the custom in this diocese, all of the points on the program took place in three languages: Romainian, Hungarian, and German. To get everyone in the mood, a short video took us on a virtual trip to every daughter shrines in the world. In conclusion, one saw the altar in the sisters‘ house for a Schoenstatt Shrine in Temeswar. The question burned in many hearts: When and where will the first Schoenstatt Shrine exist in Romania?
A family music group accompanied the liturgy of the festive Holy Mass which followed. The 12 priests at the altar, with the Vicar General of the Diocese of Timisoara, Msgr. Johann Dirschl, as the main celebrant, was regarded as a special joy and with family pride. With healthy pride and self-confidence, the priests showed their affiliation to Schoenstatt with their self-designed stoles which carried the inscription: Servus Mariae nunquam peribit.
The sermon, by the Canon, Father Kapor János, one of the first Schoenstatt priests in the country, emphasized–among other things–the importance of places of grace such as Maria Radna and the Schoenstatt Shrine, where our souls can seek and find a home: “What a deep thought and what a noble intention to enter this place of grace, knowing that as I enter and lift my gaze, I can see and feel that the place above the mother’s heart – the child’s place – is your place, my place, our place. Come and take it. It is waiting for you, too.” – He noted the founder who said of himself: “Whoever seeks me will always find me in the shrine.”
The subsequent lunch in the spacious dining rooms of the monastery building offered the opportunity to exchange ideas and socialize. Afterwards, everyone was invited back to the basilica for a panel discussion about personal experiences in relation to the covenant of love. The panel consisted of young people, members of the Schoenstatt Apostolate of the Pilgrim MTA, a married couple, priests and sisters. We experienced how the Blessed Mother chooses her instruments–each one with a unique personal story – in order to educate them to be little missionaries and make them a blessing for their surroundings, because all those who gave testimonies are united by a great longing and mission: to make the world a little more of a beautiful-place.
After a familylike coffee-break in the sunny monastery garden, the first Schoenstatt Day concluded with a Marian devotion and the renewal of the covenant of love in front of the exposed Blessed Sacrament.
In the symbol of a red candle, everyone took the Schoenstatt fire, newly lit in their hearts, into their everyday lives. Again and again, feedback of the day expressed the joy of this wonderful event and the experience: We were on “Tabor” and we can say, as in the Founding Document: