From December 9 to 16, 2024, the Monastery of San Alfonso, located in Villa Allende, Cordoba, Argentina, hosted a special retreat in preparation for the religious profession. The retreat brought together 10 novices in an atmosphere of prayer, reflection, and spiritual deepening, offering a moment of great significance in the vocational journey of the participants.
The retreat was led by the formator of the Redemptorist studentate in La Plata, Argentina, Father Carlos Furmento (Fr. Charlie), whose experience and spirituality enriched the novices’ reflections and moments of sharing. Each day included intense moments of meditation, liturgical celebrations, and spiritual dialogue, with the aim of strengthening personal and community commitment to religious life.
The community of the monastery of Saint Alphonsus welcomed everyone with fraternity, offering a favorable space to live this period of discernment and consecration. This retreat represents a milestone in the formation of future religious, strengthening the novices for the next step of their vocational journey.
During the retreat, participants had the opportunity to deepen their reflections on central themes of Christian life and religious vocation, drawing on documents that deal with human and divine love, as well as the mission of the Church today. The meditations were based on the Encyclical Letter Dilexit Nos and the final document of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, entitled For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation and Mission.
With the closing of this retreat, the novices prepare for the Eucharistic Celebration and Religious Profession that will take place on January 5, 2025, in the Sagrada Familia Bella Vista Chapel, Argentina.
Léo Vieira, SCJ Novitiate – Argentina
