by TogetherforEurope | Mar 30, 2023 | 2023 Europe Day, News
Preparing for 9th May, Europe Day with the “Our Father”
The itinerary is 9 days of prayer (a novena) to implore the Holy Spirit on our Continent.
Why a Novena? In the last four years we embarked on a six-week prayer journey to prepare for Europe Day on May 9th. However, for 2023, we had the idea of praying for nine days.
The oldest novena in Christianity is the nine days between Ascension and Pentecost, when the apostles, together with the women and Mary, the mother of Jesus, received the Holy Spirit.
This year we would like to invite you to pray the novena together throughout Europe, for our Continent and for all the intentions of our network!
The novena was prepared together by Sr. Lioba Ruprecht (Schoenstatt) and Thomas Roemer (YMCA Munich).
Every day we will pray in particular for some European nations.
Beatriz Lauenroth
Download here the novena in English>>
Download here the novena in Ukrainian>>
Download here the novena in czech>>
by TogetherforEurope | May 30, 2022 | 2021 Europe Day, News
An unforgettable experience
On May 7, 2022, we celebrated Europe Day at the Chapel of Europe in Brussels, where we found a lot of support: besides the use of the premises, they put at our disposal their means of communication. A God-sent providence!
The event was entitled “Europe: builders of peace”, and we prepared for it for months with great enthusiasm, commitment and conviction. Those Movements that could not collaborate concretely with us were close to us with their prayers and unity. What a challenge! Speaking of “builders of peace” in a Europe torn apart by war in Ukraine and where there are constant references to division, separation, etc; and yet we believe that our drop of water is necessary in the ocean. The program was followed in presence and through a webinar.
The two contributions by Walter e Annemarie Kriechbaum of the Munich YMCA were the fulcrum of the afternoon. Through their lived-out experiences they led us into a world of reconciliation. The journey toward reconciliation is long, but one that lasts, and this instilled in us the desire to be instruments of reconciliation wherever we live.
During the days prior to May 7, we had the opportunity to share and hold dialogues with the Kriechbaum couple at the Focolare Centre in Rotselaar; likewise, we met the St Egidio Community in Brussels and we also held a prayer meeting in the Basilica with members of the Renewal in the Spirit Movement. These were unforgettable moments of mutual listening: a really vital learning curve.
The conversations with the friendship cup, which concluded the May 7 meeting, gave us the opportunity to establish new contacts, to meet once again old friends and to encourage one another. We were strengthened with the certainly that, with the help of the Holy Spirit in our midst, we will be able to leave a significant impact upon our Continent and reveal its true values.
Some feedbacks:
“Yesterday I took part in the webinar. Congratulations to the whole group and to you personally. It was wonderful to see you in action. We are very grateful for the contents and the prayers. We found the experiences of Annemarie and Walter to be clear and impressive. Walter’s biblical foundation regarding the meaning of Jesus’ sufferings, death on the cross and resurrection in relation to forgiveness and reconciliation was very central. We hope that many Belgians have followed it, or will do so in the coming weeks. Thank you for all the work invested in the preparation.” (R.R.)
“Many thanks for this extremely rich meeting! As Philippe said, it was a grace-filled moment, that provided support, hope and a new energy! We want to keep on journeying with you! It was nice seeing you! Can we have the link to watch it again on YouTube?” (M.D.W.)
Anne Plancke, for the Belgian Committee of Together for Europe
Photo: pixabay.com
by TogetherforEurope | May 30, 2022 | 2022 Europe Day, Austria, News
Meeting in Graz to mark the Europe Day, May 7, 2022
The venue was a recently refurbished hall that previously was the refectory of the Franciscan Friar Minors. Now it is the baroque heart of a modern conference Centre in the city centre of Graz. The date was May 7, 2022 and the participants were members of Christian communities from diverse denominations. The purpose was to mark Europe Day and it was organized by Together for Europe.
There were about 130 participants and these came from various places in Austria, Hungary, Croatia and Switzerland. They came together to listen to the Word of God and to share lived-out experiences related to the topic of the conference: “How to overcome divisions”.
The various inputs included:
- A dialogue project in Hungary to deal with controversial political opinions;
- Building trust between refugees and those opposed to their presence;
- Reconciliation of families of victims and executioners 75 years after the Holocaust;
Needless to say, all participants were struck by these and they created the right atmosphere for a lively exchange of ideas in small-group meetings.
The leaders of the Catholic and Protestant Churches, together with those of the Baptist community, had words of encouragement. Friends from Slovakia, Slovenia and Italy who could not be present due to their commitment with refugees, or for health and other reasons, sent their greetings.
After a shared lunch and a guided visit of the city, the afternoon was dedicated to an ecumenical prayer for peace.
All the present difficulties, like the war in Ukraine and in many other parts of the world, the climate crisis, the Covic-19 pandemic, the economic uncertainty… were presented to God. This touching intercession prayer was organized by a family from the Schönstatt Movement.
The participants felt strengthened to fulfil their task in the Church and society by the words from the Letter to the Hebrews: “May the God of peace… equip you with every good thing to do His will” (Hb 13, 20-21).
The meeting was enhanced by the contribution of accomplished musicians who injected the event with a festive and spiritual atmosphere. The participants responded very generously toward a project to help Ukrainian refugees being hosted near the Hungarian border.
In the background of the hall there was an expressive painting of “Jesus feeding the five thousand”, a fitting reminder. The day, which was full of enriching encounters, came to a close with the hymn: “Stay with us Lord, because evening is fast approaching. Stay with us Lord, because it’s getting dark. Stay with us Lord”.
Michael Murg, TfE Graz
Photo: privat
by TogetherforEurope | May 30, 2022 | 2022 Europe Day, Italy, News
2022 Europe Day in Italy – Videoconference regarding good practices in education offered by young people from diverse Movements.
This year, Europe Day chose to underline a topic which could seem out of order seeing that there is a war raging in Europe.Together for Europe in Italy highlighted the centrality of an education that offers young generations an integral formation, one that is meant as the only possibility to reconstruct fraternal relationships, to provide a formation for peace and to seek truths that give meaning to life.
This was expounded by Prof Carina Rossa, lecturer at Lumsa and at the University Institute Sophia; she is also a member of the Committee that promotes the Global Compact on Education, the global educative Pact launched by Pope Francis in 2019. It is a Pact that aims to do away with barriers and build bridges.
The EU has declared this year to be the “Year of Young People”, and indeed it was young people belonging to various groups, Associations and Movements that presented good practices in education that were carried out in diverse fields (the downloadable text is at the bottom of the page).
Many shared their impressions in the chat during the link-up via zoom which was being followed live by more than 1,000 persons. Another 700, from Eastern and Western Europe, saw the recorded conference during the following week. Here are some of these impressions:
“I really appreciated the witnessing and the input by young and not so young persons. I was very struck by Beatriz’s lived-out experience and her message of welcoming and love (regarding the Ukrainian refugees). It was an initiative full of enriching contributions”. (An MEP from Milan)
“The first thing that comes to mind is the choir of voices that, albeit with different tones, witnessed to the power of hope. The next thing is the beauty of young people, something quite illuminating. Indeed, young people are our hope, especially with that initiative that sees them close to older persons, where it becomes hard to distinguish between who is donating and who is receiving. I was really struck by the fact that young and old persons need each other. The last lived-out experience that was shared was the one that filled my heart, saddened with the war, with some peace”. (From Sanremo)
“The sharing was edifying. There was a lot of creativity! We were not given only hope, but also the certainty that a supportive Europe, made up of united hearts, already exists”. (From Munich)
2022 05 08 Education our only possibility, Europe Day Italy
Carla Cotignoli and Beatriz Lauenroth
Photo: Trento Archive
by TogetherforEurope | May 6, 2022 | 2022 Europe Day
The network Together for Europe, on Madeira Island, is promoting the rosary prayer for peace in Ukraine, on 8 May, at 8 pm (UTC +1), next to the monument dedicated to Our Lady of Peace, in the “Luta Livre”.
