Sisters Gladis Suarez and Aurelia Oppezzi hosted the celebration in Moreno. On June 24, all areas of the Congregation were invited to pray the Benedictus, the prayer of thanksgiving said by Zechariah at the birth of his son, John the Baptist. The Benedictus pointed out these attitudes of Zechariah: remember and give thanks for the past, and preparing, without fear, the path of peace toward "the sun of a new day."
As Holy Union women, they "remembered" and shared their history with the help of a timeline. They "gave thanks" and celebrated the 200th anniversary by sharing the food they had brought and birthday cakes. They sang, danced, and watched a video from the General Council in Rome.
Later they imagined the future that they desire. They asked: “What does the future look like at this moment of manifest cruelty on the part of various leaders throughout the world?” They named their desired future and the paths that could follow "without fear" to approach this future.
They blessed themselves by praying and singing the Blessing of St. Francis. At the close of the celebration, they felt the energy generated by their shared faith and hope. To close the celebration, they prayed the Bicentennial Prayer together.
The representative of the Holy Union Family of Mendoza gave each sister a souvenir bookmark (left) with a prayer to John Baptist Debrabant. The sisters shared texts and video greetings they received from other areas of the Congregation. The the sisters began to plan the details of their upcoming celebration, a pilgrimage to the first Holy Union site in Argentina on September 20th.
Here are some photos of the celebration
