Spain and Austria

Spain/1: fifth centenary of Saint Teresa  The diocese of Avila has presented the new logo of the activities for the fifth centenary marking the birth of Saint Teresa (1515-1582). Its designer, Sister Mercedes Lahoz, is a religious of the order of the Discalced Carmelites of the Sacred Family, with a degree in architecture. The logo will accompany diocesan events throughout the centenary’s celebrations, but it will not replace the official one. The image presents the Saint with a walking stick that ends with a cross. “It was important to place the image of Saint Theresa in the logo representing the dioceses in the year of the centenary. We didn’t want it to be a mere reflection of her figure, but rather enrich it with Christian and religious connotations. That’s the reason for the cross”, said Sr Mercedes. The image of Teresa with a walking stick is linked to a figure of the province of Avila, given the objective of the fifth centenary celebrations which is: “Saint Teresa, her witness, her life, her spirituality, spread across every corner of the diocese of Avila”. Moreover, the details of the logo are a reminder of her strong spirituality, of the determined personality “of Teresa, who decided to go and evangelize”. The purpose of the diocese for the centenary is to reach out to the consciences of the faithful to be missionaries, and of the non-believers to discover the beauty of Jesus Christ. The hope is that the Saint may not only be “a mere reminder of the past, but rather a commitment for evangelization today”. Jorge Zazo (diocesan delegate for the centenary) pointed out that the logo is not opposed to the official one of the fifth centenary (which bears the caption Stj and number 500). However, “we wished to have our own logo in our diocese since we planned dedicated pastoral activities which we want to make known within the framework of activities planned by the Carmel, the Spanish Bishops’ Conference and the Government”.Spain/2: youth, vocation and mission Past weekend was held the eleventh missionary meeting of the youth which every year is organized by the National Direction of the Pontifical Missionary Works (OMP) in Spain. “Help us” is the theme of the meeting that brought together some 150 young people from 22 dioceses, belonging to missionary delegations of pastoral youth or to missionary groups and associations. On the first day personal testimonies were shared, opened by a Chinese missionary, who said: “it is worthwhile living faith, even if you are being persecuted. Christ is more important than anything else”. Íñigo, from Pamplona, who had to return to South Sudan, where he works with the Salesians, to provide relief during the war, invited to learn to know the situation as it is, not for what we think it is”. Kenneth, of Nigerian origins, admitted: “A young person without a future starts seeking it; poverty forces you to survive. I have learned it on the basis of my personal experience”. When the boat that carried him was shipwrecked, Kenneth offered his life to God. Today he serves as priest in the Murcia. The testimonies were followed by prayer and reflection on the theme “Youth and mission”, the “Gimkhana of the call” and by the Eucharistic celebration officiated by Fr Anastasio Gil, national director of OMP. On Saturday evening Maite Oiartzun, Vice President of the Service of missionary animation presented the various missionary congregations with printed materials. A round table was held Sunday evening on the theme “The certainty of the call” in which was addressed missionary vocation. The closing Eucharistic celebration was presided over by Fr José María Gil Tamayo, general secretary of the Spanish Bishops’ Conference.Austria: identikit of women’s religious communities The annual figures presented a few days ago by the Association of Women religious orders in Austria (Vfoe) show that “the number of nuns continues to decrease”, underlined the president Sister Beatrix Mayrhofen, at the “Quo Vadis” center in Vienna: “Nonetheless the religious continue being a considerable group of women who put themselves at the service of society, of the Church and of Gospel proclamation in Austria”. Figures up to January 1° 2014 show that there are 3.942 Austrian religious, 177 less compared to 2013, 149 of which for death-related causes. Mayrhofen pointed out that many religious today are not Austrian and come from abroad: “many communities are international and carry out spiritual formation also at international level. Today a novitiate includes a multifarious group of women from world countries”. For the Sister the identikit of novices today has changed: “In her thirties, graduated, with professional skills relevant in today’s societies, ranging from gardening experts to physicians”. For Mayrhofen, it is necessary to relinquish the idea that the new nuns “should only work in schools on in ecclesiastic healthcare centres”, as they serve in various sectors in increasing numbers, on the basis of their skills and their formation.