It was another dark and cold night, when our third retreat in two months arrived this past week.
Four members of Regnum Christi drove up the winding driveway to have a peaceful small group retreat at the Mary Theotokos Center.
After a long drive up from the White Plains area of NY.,they arrived just before midnight. Even though the drive was long, their spirits were warm and friendly as they jumped out of the car.
There wasn't much time for introductions that first night but the next morning as they settled down to their breakfast a more lengthy welcome was offered.
Regnum Christi is an apostolic movement at the service of mankind and the Church. It shares the charism of the priestly congregation, the Legionaries of Christ. Its current membership consists of about 70,000 youths, adults, deacons and priests in more than 30 countries.
Regnum Christi is precisely this: a movement for apostolate, a movement for evangelization. It is a movement in which each member has decided to take seriously and responsibly the great missionary commandment that Christ gave to all those who call ourselves his followers.
These four consecrated men enjoyed their time to pray in the Chapel, hold meetings and strategy sessions as well as find some peaceful time to reflect while exploring
the great out doors.
They were wonderful guests, so kind and generous. Always ready at a moments notice to engage in conversation. At The Mary Theotokos center one of our missions is hospitality. We want every retreat group or individual to feel welcome and that there is always someone here, in the Catherine Doherty tradition, to make a cup of coffee and listen to their story.
These four men seemed to do most of the listening, most of the time.
And even though they had come to recharge their spiritual batteries, they still found even more ways to share in their generous spirit.
On the last night of their visit, they cooked us a feast!
Fernando and Bernardo worked outside in the almost below zero conditions to grill up several different dishes while Tony and Matthew concocted other delicious edibles inside.
When all was done we walked into the retreat kitchen stunned by the quality and quantity of food!
It was a struggle to stand and wait to say Grace until everyone arrived, but once we did, we all sat down to a sumptuous feast of wonderful food and heart warming fellowship.
Even "baby doll" was thrilled by the event!
Many thanks to these dedicated men of Christ from Regnum Christi for their love, generous spirit and inspiring lives that filled the house with the warmth of fellowship
on these cold winter nights.
Meanwhile, the work continues to meet the fire inspection codes!
But more on that later.
I hope you will visit the website for Regnum Christi and see how truly inspiring the work of these men and many more like them is in their missions around the world.
I also hope we will see this group again, but as others have said when they leave. "We'll be back" so there is always hope.
Hoping your winter is kept warm by the love of Christ,
Pax et Bonum
from
The Mary Theotokos Center
