The Pauline Cooperators 100th Anniversary Conference and Pilgrimage was organized perfectly. All participants felt that they were given the best care in all aspects, especially in food & beverage, accommodation, transportation and meeting arrangements. It was hard to find even one tiny stain in the warm hospitality of the event organizers. They had exemplified the sense of responsibility stressed by Fr. Alberione and Sr. Thecla. They had contributed their best to bring about this beautiful event, giving all participants an unforgettable experience which would enrich them all their lives. What they had learned in this event would also give them powerful motivation and useful ideas for the advancement of the Pauline Family.
It was God’s amazing grace that I could take part in this 100th anniversary celebration. I was surprised by the abundant information and ideas coming out of the conference and felt privileged for for being a receipient of these messages. They widened my horizon and helped me know more about the Pauline Cooperators, and I am eager to share my understanding and insight with you.
1. In the Pauline Family, the Fathers, Sisters and Cooperators are all endowed with different gifts and talents but they all work together and support one another to move forward and explore new domains in the evangelical footpaths disclosed to Fr. Alberione by Jesus. We look forward to obtaining considerable achievements in our evangelical mission.
2. The Cooperators, though vary in countries of origin, races, cultures and languages, come together as one community and share one belief, that is, give support to the Pauline Family to evangelize by mean of the mass media. I was surprised by the good results that they have obtained so far. Thanks be to God!
3. The event included a talk on St. Paul’s missionary journeys which gave me a clearer idea of Paul’s zest for evangelization and the assistance Paul received from his friends and companions. These people had contributed greatly to Paul’s evangelizing activities. I think we are playing a similar supporting role in the Pauline Family and we have a positive impact on our evangelization work.
4. From the sharing of the Cooperators from other countries, we learned that their scope of assistance was much wider, extending to Sunday schools, catechism courses, interpretating messages from the Holy See, organizing parish resources, etc. Their experiences are food for thoughts and some of them may even be feasible in Hong Kong.
5. The event organizer had scheduled for us to see the Pope and participated in the Wednesday Rite at St. Peter Square in the morning of 23rd May. What touched me most in the Pope’s homily was when he reminded us that we, Christians, were the salt of the world, but not only that, the quantity of the salt was equally important. The amount should be just right, not too much and not too little. I think this is true of the Cooperators’ participation in the Pauline Family. The extent of our participation should be appropriate, varying from member to member, depending on each member’s circumstance.
6. After the conference in Rome, the whole group went north to Alba, the birthplace of our founder, Fr. Alberione, and foundress, Sr. Thecla. Here, they were called to evangelize and inspired to establish the various institutes of the Pauline Family. Visiting where they lived and seeing the things in their rooms, I had nothing but respect for both of them and the evangelizing work they had accomplished. This visit also helped me understand their thoughts and words more. I also realized the importance of Eucharistic adoration which is the best way to receive God’s messages. Being a member of the Pauline Family is a blessing. It has deepened my faith and enriched my Christian life.
- Felix Sung –
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