“The goal is the Cross, the challenge to love it, and the desire to offer it to others”

Lima, 05/05/14 (Sodalit News – Peru). In an atmosphere of joy and thankfulness to God, Sodalits Christian Vinces and Felipe Peligrinelli Duarte were ordained deacons of the Lord on May 3 in a ceremony presided by the Bishop of Lurin (Peru), Mons. Carlos García Camader.

Alessandro Moroni, Superior General of the Sodalitium Christianae Vitae, was present at the ceremony along with various Sodalit priests and many other Sodalits who reside in the diocese. Many other members from different associations in the Sodalit Family also traveled to participate and accompany the new deacons with their presence and prayers.

The ordinations were celebrated in the quasi parish Resurrection of the Lord, located in the district and city of San Bartolo, a beach town to the south of Lima, Peru. Mons. Carlos Garcia Camader, bishop of Lurin, offered the deacons and those present a joyful exhortation to follow the Cross. The mass was celebrated on the occasion of both the Feast of the Cross, a feast day observed in various places in America, as well as the Feast of the apostles Philip and James. He reminded those present that the call of the apostles – men who were tied to the sea, much like those who live in the Sodalit formation center – was the call to follow Christ even unto the Cross.

Addressing Vinces and Peligrinelli during his homily, Mons. Garcia emphasized the importance of the “ordination of two sons of this family here in San Bartolo. This leaves an indelible mark on you and on all of us.” Afterwards, speaking once again to the new deacons, he pointed out that the ceremony of ordination “is the only invitation that the Lord makes to you today. It is very clear. I don’t know when you first felt the call of this word, but today it is powerful and real. ‘Come and follow me’, and I propose to you as your goal the cross, as your challenge to love it, and as your desire to offer it to others.”

“Life is like a light in the midst of darkness,” Mons. Garcia remarked, “in order to overcome the darkness, this light has to be turned on, not off. But I turn it off because I’m stingy; I always try to have this light but never let myself be illuminated by it.” Referring to the consecrated life he said, “many times one thinks oneself to be self-sufficient. We turn off the light of the tabernacle, we turn off the light of the Word, we turn off the light of the lamp, we turn off the light of the Resurrected Christ and we live exposed to our own light or the darkness that the world offers us. The result – well, you already know where it leads us.”

Mons. Garcia Camader recalled the mission of the vocation to the diaconate highlighting the words that Christ said to St. Peter in his pontifical crowning: “‘Do you love me?’ This is how Christ crowned him, ‘Do you love me?’ Then serve me; ‘pastor my sheep.’” The prelate added that “his last words were the same, ‘they will take you where you do not want to go’: to Peru, to Chincha (Peru), to Brazil, God knows where. In this way, he presents to us the Cross. How important it is to remember this today!”

The bishop of Lurin concluded his words entrusting the new deacons to the protection of the Virgin Mary: “May she guide you who have received the diaconate today and make you always available to serve others. May she prepare you and guide you so that you may be good and holy men, consecrated to God”. He also invited all those present to “pray for them so that they may be faithful for all eternity. Just as they have sung here on this beautiful sunny morning, let us sing all together in heaven.”

We invite you to visit the photo gallery of the diaconate ordinations of Christian Vinces and Felipe Peligrinelli.