After one hundred years of shared history between the Augustinian Recollects and the Brazilian Amazon, what does this mission represent for the Augustinian Recollect Family?
I have been serving in the Prelature of Labrea, in the Brazilian Amazon, for 27 years now, fulfilling the dream of being a missionary that I’ve had since childhood. I believe this mission represents a great challenge due to its isolation and geographical dimensions, as well as its many unique ecclesial, social, cultural, and ecological characteristics.
It is one of the poorest regions in Brazil. As human beings, as consecrated persons, and as Augustinian Recollect missionaries, Labrea challenges us because we must overcome the temptation to “take the easy way out.” This mission has enriched me as a human being, as a person, and as a consecrated person.
Labrea is a vibrant Church, characterized by its evangelization efforts, its commitment to the poor and to liberation, and its Basic Ecclesial Communities. The poor are the central figures here, and this vision has been further strengthened by the Synod of the Amazon.
I hope the Augustinian Recollect Family continues to support Labrea. Because of the Centenary, I’ve had to study its history, and I’m very impressed by the example of the many Recollect missionaries who came before me and who knew how to fully combine their identity as Augustinian Recollects with their passionate missionary work.
I would like to highlight one of the first missionaries, Ignacio Martínez, who, despite his youth and recognizing the enormous challenges ahead, spared no effort in his dedication. It sometimes seems that some of my Augustinian Recollect brothers perceive Labrea as a problem, but I see it as a solution and as something that challenges us to be better.
In Labrea, a strong spirituality is essential, but that doesn’t contradict being an Augustinian Recollect. A strong sense of community is also necessary, but the missionary, when faced with great distances and many days separated from his brothers in the jungle, knows he is on a mission in the name of his community. This isn’t even something new or unique to Labrea: every Augustinian Recollect carries out his ministry in the name of his community.
What would you say to a religious person who needs to rekindle their missionary spirit or who doesn’t find a mission like the Amazon attractive?
If someone is afraid of insects or jungle diseases, for example, well, that’s part of the mission. I’ve been on two missions, in Sierra Leone and the Amazon, and I was warned that I would likely get malaria. Of course, you have to take care of yourself and protect yourself, but there are ways to deal with it and overcome it, and it’s becoming easier all the time.
We also have to overcome our fear of other cultures. The mission has enriched me as a person; being in contact with the impoverished is enriching. They are far superior to us in evangelical values, such as their complete trust in God. We have everything figured out, and there you see incredible faith in people living in extreme poverty, with family difficulties and all kinds of problems. And their faith keeps them going.
In this mission, sharing, solidarity, and resilience are commonplace —an impressive richness. There are also tremendous testimonies of spirituality and evangelical courage, for example, from those who live under threat for denouncing attacks against our common home, against indigenous peoples, or against the dignity of all.
The mission, in short, has enriched me as a person and as a Christian; and undoubtedly as a religious. I think, for example, that this continued contact with the impoverished is a clear case of “religious geopolitics.” The mission is the natural place not only for the Augustinian Recollect, but for the consecrated life.
Consecrated life is about following Jesus’ way of life in this world. He was poor and wanted to reach everyone. Mission, then, is a framework, an evangelical space for following Jesus.
No one is ever excluded from the mission. After 27 years among them, I can say that the impoverished unsettle us, they pull us out of our self-referentiality (and I think we Augustinian Recollects are too self-referential), they lead us to defend the Common Home, ecology, and love for our brothers and sisters and for Creation.
Let us not be afraid of the mission ! It is a great enrichment to live it!
What has this centenary left in you?
Deepest gratitude. We are grateful to the missionaries who came before us, and to those who are here now as well. Let us continue with this mission, embrace its challenges, welcome the teachings of the Synod of the Amazon, and commit to this integral vision of evangelization that reflects the dreams of Pope Francis in his encyclical Querida Amazonia.
The Amazon teaches us that everything is connected: the ecclesial, the cultural, the ecological, the social, evangelization, small communities and basic ecclesial communities, the defense of life in all its dimensions.
To all those involved in this mission, religious and lay, take heart and onward, let us continue moving forward!
