May 15, 2024
This past April, the annual get-together of the mothers of the second-year novices took place at the Novitiate of the Legionaries of Christ in Monterrey.
In the Sunday Mass, Fr Fernando Villaseñor, LC, underlined the feast that was celebrated that day, Divine Mercy, whose psalm repeats, “His mercy endures forever.”
He reminded the novices about what they had reflected on during the Easter season, how people experience Resurrection. In our own way, whether we feel great or small, the experience of Easter shows that his mercy endures forever—a display of God’s love, which brings deep peace.
Fr. Fernando emphasized the feelings of fear the Apostles had one week after the Resurrection, when they were still behind closed doors, hiding from the Jews, and he drew the analogy to what is happening to each and every one of us today, since we cannot experience God’s mercy and the great interior peace he brings if we are filled with fear.
Returning to the words of the day’s Gospel, Fr. Fernando accentuated how Jesus, on this second occasion he visited them, repeated to them these words: “Peace be with you.” In this greeting, he referred especially to Thomas, who did not believe the good news of the Resurrection.
This is why Jesus goes in search of Thomas specifically and invites him to touch his wounds and to leave behind his sadness, since he has overcome death and fear; he is alive and is with us.
“This is Easter: to embrace God and to tell him, ‘You are my Lord, my God, my Father, my friend.’ This is the Easter message: that we feel loved, like good people, that we feel a great inner peace, which depends on the trust we are able to place in God.”
Fr. Fernando Villaseñor, LC
He ended by stressing that each one of us needs to be an image of God’s mercy, going about being merciful, embracing, forgiving, and encouraging others.
After the Eucharistic celebration, the rector of the novitiate, Fr. Jesus Cardier, LC, thanked the mothers present on behalf of all the priests for their affection and support, assuring them of their prayers and a special blessing from God.
Some of the mothers in attendance shared their testimonies.
Soledad Galván, the mother of Br. Diego Milán, affirmed that her son felt God’s call at the early age of eleven. It has been a blessing and a trial for the family that he is in formation in the novitiate and that he is sure of the path God wants for him.
“This get-together has been the peace I need as a mother in order to see the path God wants for each family member, that we are blessed by Diego’s calling and that we were able to know the path to follow for our children.”
Claudia Rodríguez is the mother of Br. Ramiro Ayala, who from the age of six pictured himself in the Apostolic School, which he entered at age twelve.
“I will not forget the happiness and glow of that face when he put on his uniform and told me that his dream had come true. It has already been seven years on that path, and he has kept that same face, so as a mother it has been a great blessing that my son has given his ‘yes’ to God.”
For Claudia, the get-together has been a slice of heaven, getting to know what he is doing, his activities, and above all the very special moments they had with Jesus, in which she reaffirmed that God is the one who conquered Ramiro’s heart, and experienced the joy of knowing that her son is in love with God and the great mission he has for him.
Nora Castillo, Br. Gabriel Garza’s mother, was happy and thankful for the opportunity to spend time with her son, since it was a chance to speak heart-to-heart with him. Nora remembers that from a very young age, Br. Gabriel felt the call to the priesthood and has been very happy to live out each stage of discernment, above all looking toward his upcoming profession.
“It was a gift from God that he gave us especially as mothers, and my son’s happiness in doing his will fills me with peace.”
Emma Aguilera, mother of Br. Alfonso García, remembers the hours this discernment entailed for her to be able to arrive to the core issue she needed to see. In her heart, Emma knows that Alfonso was born with his vocation, and its story began very early in his life, at the age of six, continuing through all the ways he has lived close to the Legionaries of Christ through apostolates and retreats.
“I believe he discovered his vocation at the age of three, when he got to know St. John Paul II by television; his emotion was unheard of for such a small child. I didn’t understand and was just content to see how deeply it touched him. He has made the most important decision of his life by being here, giving up everything to follow God’s path, no matter what happens later.”
The experience of this weekend’s camaraderie, feeling God’s love in their hearts, seeing their children fulfilled, and being in communion along with the Legionaries of Christ, has filled them with immense gratitude because true love for God and for the Blessed Mother is in their homes.
During the get-together, Rosario Rosas, mother of Br. Abel Moo, has found in the company of Mary and the Holy Spirit the great motherly love that unites her with the Lord. She knows that through a simple embrace, God can give them everything they need to make free decisions throughout their lives, like appreciating the blessing Jesus has placed in their hearts to be the mothers of these young men in formation, who are making the decision to serve the good of many souls in the Church.
From very early on, Br. Abel served as a Knight of the Altar, and as he got closer to adolescence, his desire to follow God in the religious life grew stronger. After a vocational discernment retreat he was invited to at the Apostolic School, he knew that his place was there, and he knew that in his heart he was called to the religious life.
“The accompaniment of the Legionary priests at the Apostolic School was extremely important and transparent; Abel kept being himself while honing his desire.”
Now that the second year of novitiate is almost over, their formators opened the doors of religious life to these young men’s mothers, showing them their everyday life, what they eat, where they sleep, their work responsibilities, and above all the brotherhood they share. These young men come from different environments and circumstances, but Our Lord is inviting them to be by his side, and they are becoming true brothers.
“With Mary as an example, I gave my son to God so that he might do his will, and the advice I gave Abel was this: ‘I don’t know where you are going to be, but you will be very close to a tabernacle, and he will be our link; we will always be together, because that is how the Lord is.’”
Kirsten Dudley is the mother of Br. José Luis Laporta, whose vocation has been an enormous gift to her heart. From a very early age, he already showed signs of wanting to form himself and to be always close to Jesus and the Blessed Virgin, until the day he shared with his parents his desire to be a priest, news they accepted with great happiness.
Before entering the Legionaries, José Luis decided to offer one year of his life as a missionary in RC Mission Corps, during which he reaffirmed his desire to serve God as a priest.
The distance and infrequent contact with him have not been easy, but Kristen affirms that she has always felt connected with her son through Jesus and the Blessed Virgin.
“I see him so fulfilled and happy; it is what we all want as mothers. This makes me happy, and I ask God to give him strength, wisdom, certainty, and peace in his heart. May he sustain and increase this generosity, that it may always be a ‘yes’ to God.”
After these days of being together, she reiterated that her son continues to be the same boy she had at home, the same friend, the same brother; the openness of his heart has simply increased. Kirsten has gained more sons, who are all the brother novices, and has gained sisters in each of the mothers of José Luis’ companions.
“I feel that the suitcase full of candy that I brought for the novices returns full of spiritual gifts for me.”
Let’s pray for these novices and their families, that the Lord God may continue to enlighten them on their path of vocational discernment and may keep giving us holy priests.
