INDONESIA: International Meeting of SMM Formators
An international formators meeting of the English speaking countries was recently held in Malang, East Java Province, Indonesia, from October 20 to November 2, 2013 in the retreat house of the Passionist sisters. The participants were coming from India, Malawi, Philippines, Rome, and Indonesia as the host. As all the participants arrived in Malang, they were welcomed in the scholasticate community with some Indonesian cultural performances. The meeting officially begun with a solemn Mass which was presided by Fr. Enrique, SMM and a serenade by the choir of Scholastics community. The first week of this meeting was a retreat conducted by Fr. Darminto, SJ, on the theme, “Searching for Religious Formators Today.” Fr. Darminto underlined the qualities of a formator such as, a man who can live and identify his whole life with Christ-Incarnate Wisdom, in order to be the bread of life (John 6:9-11,35), the living water (John 7:37-39), and the light (John 8:12) for the candidates. A formator himself must have an intimate relationship with God, with the congregation, and with the church. In addition, he must be a man who is always ready to be formed. He is called to show his genuine love for Christ-Wisdom and his personal call and mission as a Montfortian. These must be his priorities. All sessions were deepened and enriched by group sharing, presentation, and discussions. These became the source of inspiration and foundation of the journey in the following week of the meeting. The second week of the meeting was focused on the Ratio, formation volume 2, especially on the stages of vocation animation, aspirancy and postulancy. Each entity presented the reality of formation process on these stages. Through the sharing and presentation, each entity learned from one another in finding the best and possible way of doing these ministries in their respective entities. It was also somehow an exchange of knowledge and experiences and at the same time tightened the bonds among formators who would certainly enrich and nourish each one of us. They also realized that it is indeed a big challenge to be a formator of today, and therefore, walking together must be in the minds and hearts of all the formators in-charge. The meeting was closed by a mass presided by Fr. Luigi, SMM and followed by a simple dinner and cultural program where all were involved and participated actively in the spirit of brotherhood and oneness.
Thank you for your presence and participation.
-Fr. Anton, SMM
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