Celebrare la prima messa in una chiesa nuova non è usuale nella cara Europa, però Celebrating the first Mass in a new church is not usual in our beloved Europe; however, it is still possible in the southern world of Chile. And so, this past 7th of July, an unexpected river of people entered for the first time into the church dedicated to Mary Mother Admirable, here in Puente Alto, in the periphery of Santiago. A great feast for all of the community in the new neighborhood Ciudad de Sol which for years has been awaiting this new beginning. We saw more than one person enter into the church and be totally moved.
A new church that appears built just for Ignacio, an autistic boy who is 10 years old who, that day, entered for the first time and asked us if St. Ignatius exists. We told him the story of the founder of the Jesuits and we told him: “You can also become a saint one day!”. He looked at us with wonder and then asked: “And my statue…can I put it in that corner?”.
A new church built for Mrs. Rosa, who had promised that she would return to the Church only with the opening of this new temple. As soon as she set foot within the edifice, she sought out a priest to hear her confession.
The involvement of God with the life of man is always actualized through a precise point
A new church built for the mass of young people and children who live in the new neighborhood of Puente Alto and who desire to meet God, as was recalled by the mayor German who offered the statue of Mary which was placed on the facade.
A new church built thanks to the donation of Mrs. Alicia, who desired that it should be dedicated to Mary Mother Admirable. In her speech, she wanted to underline that Jesus came close to men through the incarnation in the womb of Mary and that this church is Christ who draws near to men.
A new church full of people “who mirror the communion that the priests of the Fraternity of St. Charles live among themselves and which has involved many young people,” in the words of the episcopal vicar Fr. Rodrigo in his homily.
We thought back to the words of Fr. Giussani: “The involvement of God with the life of man is always actualized through a precise point, carnal, in space and in time, in which the interfacing of the Mystery happens. It is the idea of the temple. It is a matter of recognizing the method that God chose for making Himself known to man.” In the past months, we have had many dialogues in the house. We sought to understand together the path that God was asking us to take in this new adventure to live out what our mission has always been: to proclaim Christ to the persons that He entrusts to us. An important part of this reflection was represented by the consideration of the beauty of the church as a fundamental part of this announcement, and the consideration of each detail, which find full dignity in their service to that beauty: from the image to put on the new tabernacle to the position of the pews, to the decision of when to have Mass. Around eight hundred people participated in the Mass and many of them asked for the sacraments for themselves and for their children: Christ remains the thing most awaited, in every time, in every place!
