Schoenstatt Shrine Golden Jubilee – Homily by Fr Michael Hagan ISch

It is a great joy that we are gathered here today at the Bedfordview Shrine. I am sure that the heavens are singing today. I think that we may congratulate the Schoenstatt Sisters in South Africa for fifty years of dedicated work!

The Year of Hope – “A Sign of Hope!”

We are celebrating the 50th Jubilee in the Year of Hope! Today is a Sign of Hope for the Schoenstatt Movement and for the Archdiocese of Johannesburg.

Today we are celebrating the present, the past, and the future!

The Present

Thank you that you are all here today!

Today we can think of the late Sr. Marian and also Sr. Edith, who is present online in Cape Town! We remember also all the Sisters who lived and worked here in Bedfordview!

The Past 50 Years!

A question: Who was here fifty years ago?

I am personally from Bedfordview, and my first visit to the Bedfordview Schoenstatt Centre was in 1972; however, I was in Port Elizabeth in 1975 when the Shrine was blessed!

Today we say thank you to all who were here fifty years ago, especially those who built the Shrine!

A Brief Reflection within the Past Context

I would like to invite everyone here present today to look at the past fifty years! We cannot mention everything, but here are a few reflections regarding the history.

Firstly, Our Lady has affected the lives of many people from Bedfordview. Secondly, the history of the Bedfordview Shrine over the past fifty years must be seen within the context of the times.

I first met the Sisters in 1971 before they lived in this house. They were two Sisters without a Sisters’ habit, and they had no vows! In addition, Sr. Edith worked as a Professor at Wits University.

Sr. Marie Clara and Sr. Edith represented a new Church, a different Church, and a Church of the Second Vatican Council.

The building of the Shrine, the blessing of the Shrine, and the development thereafter were affected by the major historical events within Southern Africa at that time.

Building a Shrine in the Context of the 1970s:

• As mentioned, the Church after the Second Vatican Council.
• April 25, 1974: The revolution in Portugal and the consequences in Mozambique and Angola.
• How many people here today experienced the consequences of the revolution affecting Mozambique and Angola personally?
• The local Parish, Malvern Parish, changed immediately, and a Portuguese Mass was then held every Sunday.
• The Soweto Riots of June 16, 1976.
• The change of government in Zimbabwe, which started in 1978 (Zimbabwe Rhodesia).

Perhaps one does not remember, but this Shrine was a source of refuge for many people in the midst of many political and cultural changes. At that time, the Saturday morning Mass was very important for the members of the Movement. I personally lived permanently in Bedfordview from 1976, and I witnessed much of this turmoil.

As a response to the context of the times, Sr. Edith and the laity set out to study the Catholic Social Teachings and the teachings of Fr. Kentenich regarding social issues, and as a consequence, the Catholic Business Management (CBM) emerged. Toni de Gouveia and Deacon Francis Graham, here today, are still involved in the CBM project.

Fr. Uriburu came to South Africa in 1984 for the Pilgrim Mother project, especially in Soweto, and Sr. Iracema came to Johannesburg in 1988 for the Portuguese Community in Johannesburg.

In addition, Sr. Connie came to Johannesburg to study at Wits.

There is so much which one could say as to how Our Lady worked in the background. In addition, the Movement experienced the establishment of the Family League and the Family Union, the Mothers’ League and the Mothers’ Union.

Sheila Coleman is here from Harare, Zimbabwe! Sheila, you are most welcome! In the midst of uncertainty and political upheaval, the Schoenstatt Movement was established in Zimbabwe in 1976, directly as a result of this Shrine.

I was recently in Harare for the ‘October Weekend’ of the Schoenstatt Movement, and there is a small, dedicated, and involved Schoenstatt Movement. The altar of the Shrine is in the home of Sheila Coleman.

On such a day, we are called to think of all those members who have died and also all those who have emigrated from South Africa.

The ‘Living God’ with Mary and with many dedicated laity have been very active for the past fifty years around the Shrine.

The Next 50 Years

It is easy to celebrate the present and then to reflect on the past fifty years, but there is a challenge for all of us: The next 50 Years!

A few questions!

• Who is 20 or 30 years old today? Please stand up!
• The future is about those who are under 30 years old. In 30 years’ time, you will be 80 years old!

Once again, the context of the Church is changing; politically and culturally, many changes are taking place, and many changes will take place.

As Fr. Kentenich said, a ‘New World Era’ is emerging; the ‘Old World Order’ will disappear. I can give witness that the Old World of Europe is disappearing, and a New World Era is emerging. We welcome Pope Leo and pray for him as a leader of this New Era.

We live in a world in crisis, and as Pope Francis said, the Year of Hope is an answer to the Signs of the Times.

There is a challenge for the Schoenstatt Family throughout the world and as well for the Schoenstatt Family of Johannesburg!

• What role should this Marian Shrine play in a world in crisis?
• How can this Shrine continue to be a place of refuge, a place of hope, a place of prayer, and a place of relationships?
• How can this Shrine be a place where the covenant of love with Mary is alive and where the ‘New Person in the New Community’ emerges?
• What are some of the challenges and changes which we can observe?
• Uncertainty / Hopelessness / Mental Health Issues / Economic Issues / Corruption / Political Insecurity / Diversity / ‘Gender Issues’ / Emigration / Migrants / and many more!
• And the Schoenstatt spirituality is relevant for this New Era!

A Personal Witness

I have worked in Germany with families, especially with young families, and I can say that the charism of Fr. Kentenich is highly relevant for this New Era of our world, that is, a charism as a ‘covenant culture,’ a ‘relational paradigm.’

It is not simply about God, Jesus Christ, and Mary, but rather it is about a relationship:

• a relationship with God,
• a relationship with Jesus Christ,
• a relationship with Mary,
• a relationship with people.

In our world today, we experience a lack of capacity to enter into deep relationships, and in the future, this lack of capacity will grow as human relationships become digital and not personal.

Schoenstatt is about personal relationships being CONCRETE.

• I love God, I love Mary, I love people, but I need to show this love through concrete acts of love.

Schoenstatt is about being personal, about PERSONALISM.

• I encounter God, not as a thought but as a personal encounter.
• I encounter other people, regardless of their origin, in a personal encounter. I look for the ‘Gold of the Father’ in the other person and in myself.

Schoenstatt is about The Development Of Competence through self-education, that is, through emphasising positive psychology.

Conclusion

In 1981, the Schoenstatt Family of Johannesburg crowned Our Lady as ‘The Queen of Africa,’ and she has been active as the Christ-formed woman and as the Christ-forming woman.

And in 2001, we placed the Father Symbol in the Shrine in the midst of much uncertainty. The Father Symbol was a direct response to the challenging situation of Johannesburg and not simply as a traditional act.

Today, as we celebrate the Golden Jubilee of this Shrine, we thank the Triune God, our MTA, the Sisters of Mary, and you, the members of the Schoenstatt Movement in Johannesburg.