February 22, 2024

February 19, 2024

The General Directive College of Regnum Christi has announced a change in its international communications team. After seven years in the position, effective April 1^st, Fr. Aaron Smith, LC, will leave his assignment as the international director of communications for Regnum Christi and will be replaced by Raúl Rodríguez, the current director of communications for the Territory of Northern Mexico.

Raúl Rodríguez has a wealth of experience, both in the private sector and in the Church. Since 2020, he has headed up Regnum Christi’s communication strategy in the Territory of Northern Mexico, putting together a solid team, developing content, and transmitting the charism of Regnum Christi through various channels, in addition to serving the territorial government of Regnum Christi, the consecrated branches, pastoral work, apostolates, and localities in Northern Mexico.

In a letter to the territorial directors of communication, the Directive College of Regnum Christi thanked Fr. Aaron for his dedication and service and wished him well in his new mission as a delegate of the Territorial Directive College of Regnum Christi in North America. Likewise, they welcomed Raúl Rodríguez, offering their support and prayer so that he may successfully fulfill his new responsibility.

Here is a short interview, followed by Raúl’s bio.

Raúl Rodríguez, how does it feel to take on the role of international director of communication for Regnum Christi?

The first feeling I can identify is an intense desire to serve Regnum Christi. It is greatly encouraging for me to have the opportunity to keep helping to spur on this charism God gave us. I can also detect a sentiment of amazement, which surfaces when I reflect on the responsibility of the role and on the trust that the General Directive College has placed in me. Finally, I can say that I feel a personal desire to do things as God asks us.

What are the biggest challenges that you anticipate in your new role, and how do you plan to face them?

In these times, I think it is everything relating to the first Ordinary General Convention, this stage of Regnum Christi’s history in which we are invited to participate.

I had the opportunity to take part in this process beginning with the discernment of the thematic guides with my Regnum Christi team, the preparation for the Territorial Convention of Northern Mexico, and now for the General Convention.

I could sense the wealth of initiatives that were generated in the territory, thanks to the Holy Spirit. Now I imagine what has come about on an international level; without a doubt it will be a boost for Regnum Christi’s mission and a beautiful challenge for communications.

I also regard what is coming after the General Convention as an interesting challenge: assimilating the tasks that arise, strategic planning for the following years, sharing the fruits attained with all the Regnum Christi members and motivating them to implement these fruits in their places of mission.

In order to face this challenge or any other that may come up, I think about the huge number of people in Regnum Christi, who possess different talents and who are exercising apostolic leadership, each contributing to the common mission.

As regards the area of communications, I think about the different territorial directors and teams of communications, colleagues with various talents, who contribute to international communications in an important way. Thus, I firmly believe that the best way to face the challenges that arise with be as a team, each with the talents God gave them.

During your time as director of communications in the Territory of Northern Mexico, you established a team of territorial communications, created digital content, and coordinated with those in charge of local communications. How will you apply these experiences to your new position?

For the good of any organization, it is important to establish structures and efficient processes that provide a real impulse to fulfill the mission you have. Work teams should be thought out precisely for this end, and I perceive that the Regnum Christi area of communications has worked with the objective of driving the common mission. There is a very good base on an international and territorial level, with a journey rich with experiences, and that is an advantage.

As for content creation, I would rather call it “sharing the story”: to tell what has happened to those who have encountered Christ and to illustrate that experience of him revealing the love of his heart. In each territory and in every place in the world, there are numerous stories that can inspire us and fill us with hope.

As for the work of coordination, I believe that you must acknowledge that each person and each part of the world has its own challenges and needs before coming up with solutions.

In this life, I have two daughters (and three children who have gone ahead of us and completed their path to heaven), and each of them has needs, some of them similar, others not as much. Sometimes you have to do things together for both of them, but other times you have to give each of them their space, but they don’t stop being part of the family because of this.

In the same way, I believe that we who comprise Regnum Christi have some particular needs, whether because of our country, the vocation we were called to, or the apostolic work we are carrying out, while always being part of the same family. I think keeping this in mind will be very helpful for good coordination.

Finally, what is your vision for the future of communications in Regnum Christi, and how do you plan to implement it?

I think that communications in Regnum Christi should be an expression of the charism. I really can’t conceive it otherwise. Personally, in this moment of my life, being “a spiritual family and an apostolic body” resonates deeply in my soul.

There are many things I could say about implementation—techniques, processes, and theories—but I think we should take advantage of the fact that Pope Francis chose hope as the virtue for the Jubilee of 2025 to propose a communication of hope, so that we don’t forget that Christ continues to change lives, form apostles, and send us on the mission.

Bio

Raúl Rodríguez is a native of Tampico, Tamaulipas, Mexico. He has a degree in marketing from IEST Anáhuac. His career spans over 15 years in educative marketing, institutional communications, and public relations. Raúl collaborated in the UNID system, in the Semper Altius Network of Schools, and, since 2020, in communications for Regnum Christi in the Territory of Northern Mexico.

Raúl is a husband, father, and lay member of Regnum Christi, who belongs to the Monterrey-Cumbres men’s section. Together with his wife, he serves apostolically in the program Recién Casados de Familia Unida, as well as Mission Youth and Family.