Romana

The Leon Institute of Culture, in Spain, held a round table on October 24 in honor of the tenth anniversary of the canonization of St. Josemaría. Organized by the Tamaral Youth Association of Leon, the event emphasized the communication skills of the one who, ten years ago, Blessed John Paul II called “the saint of the ordinary.”

The journalist Pablo Rioja was the moderator of the event. The Argentinean producer Juan Martin Ezratty took part by videoconference. Mr. Ezratty has produced several documentaries on the spirit of St. Josemaría, including Inspirados para amar (Inspired to Love), Aprender a querer (Learning to Love), Con el impulso de sus palabras (By the Impetus of his Words), and Amor a la libertad (Love for Freedom). Ezratty, making reference to scenes shown of St. Josemaría in public get-togethers, spoke about his experiences speaking with people who have tried to incarnate in their lives, with their joys and difficulties, the founder of Opus Dei’s message.

In the second videoconference of the day, the Belgian writer Paule Fostroy spoke about meeting St. Josemaría through reading his biography and some of his writings. Shortly thereafter she produced an illustrated comic book about his life entitled Through the Mountains, now available in seven languages. Fostroy said that, by focusing on a specific moment at the beginning of Opus Dei, she was trying to portray his abandonment to God in everything, as well as his devotion to our Lady and his trust in the Communion of Saints.

Matilde Alvarez, who works in public education, spoke about how she met Opus Dei, at first through merely fortuitous factors, and the help that the message of St. Josemaría had been for her family and professional life.

Finally Eugenio Rodríguez, property registrar, looked back at his time as a student at the University of Navarra, where he met the founder of Opus Dei. He related some entertaining anecdotes about the saint’s human qualities (for example, his Aragonese accent), which are sometimes overlooked in the informative material about his life.

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Festival of Song at Cerro Alegre, Peru

The San José Educational Center in Cerro Alegre (Cañete, Peru) held its traditional Festival of Song in October. This activity is aimed at providing young people with an opportunity to express and develop their artistic abilities in a Christian framework. For the year 2012, which happened to be the tenth anniversary of the canonization of the founder of Opus Dei, the festival organizers suggested the theme “Gratitude to St. Josemaría Escrivá.” In 1991 they had also chosen a similar theme, when the approaching beatification of Msgr. Escrivá became known. The participants took various aspects of St. Josemaría’s message as the inspiration for their songs.

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St. Josemaría in Italian place names

This past summer, in Marina di Ragusa, Sicily, and in Giugliano, Campania, a street and a plaza were named for St. Josemaría respectively. While on November 24, in Viterbo, a plaza was dedicated to St. Josemaría; presiding over the inauguration ceremony was the diocesan bishop, Lino Fumagalli.

In addition, on September 9, a statue of the founder of Opus Dei was blessed and placed in the chapel of the Monaldi Hospital in Naples.

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A theatrical production in Rome

On October 13, in the Oratorio of Gonfalone, situated in the historic center of Rome, a dramatic rhapsody by Mirella Rossi was presented entitled Per ogni dove in terra è Paradiso (In all parts of the earth one finds paradise). The work was inspired by St. Josemaría’s homily Passionately Loving the World.

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In the parish of Albendin, Spain

Since last June 24, the parish of Albendin, a town with 1,500 inhabitants some 60 miles from Cordoba, Spain, now has an alcove with a statue of St. Josemaría.

On the day of the inauguration, the church was filled and the altar was decorated with flowers. The Mass was concelebrated by the pastor, Fr. Francisco Morán, and Fr. Juan Luis Selma, a priest of the Prelature of Opus Dei. In his homily, the latter spoke about having known St. Josemaría personally in Valencia.

At the end of the Mass, the statue was blessed. The pastor suggested to his parishioners that they go to the intercession of St. Josemaría to learn how to sanctify their farm work.

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Jerusalem celebrates the tenth anniversary of the canonization of St. Josemaría

In the co-cathedral of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, His Beatitude Fuad Twal, Patriarch of Jerusalem, presided over a Eucharistic concelebration for the tenth anniversary of the canonization of St. Josemaría. It was attended by many people who take part in the means of formation imparted by Opus Dei. The Patriarch spoke about the importance of the laity in the effort to re-Christianize society, and the need to lead an integral Christian life in order to do so, through a unity of life.