On Thursday we welcomed Fr Michel and Nicky and we immediately involved them in the last rehearsals of the Nativity Play.

On Friday, after the usual commitments, we received a great gift from the Community: an unexpected afternoon of meeting and prayer with our families at the Monastery of Our Lady of Hyning in Warton: many emotions but also a lot of smiles especially from the lads who met with their parents for the first time since entering / coming to Kendal.

Saturday: the last preparation and we started to welcome our guests, who arrived in large numbers. We prayed the Rosary then we lived a deep moment of Eucharistic Adoration. At the end all the priests close to our community celebrated Holy Mass together. Just time for some dancing and then we ate a lovely Italian and English lunch with pizzas, lasagne and shepherd’s pie.

In the afternoon we listened to the testimonies of Louis, Mateusz and his parents, and we involved also some friends of our fraternity who testified how the Cenacolo Community has affected their lives. This confirmed the word of Mother Elvira who asked the families to walk with their sons and daughters.  In the evening we started the Nativity Play and, notwithstanding some technical problems, we were happy to become like children acting out the story of the child Jesus.

Sunday morning we met just with our families for a day dedicated to conversation, reconciliation and sharing about our time spent in Kendal. After the usual moments of prayer we showed our loved ones some videos of Mother Elvira in order to transmit to them her strength and her charisma. A last cup of tea and we said goodbye to everybody in the hope of seeing them again next year.

We want to really say thank you to the Community for this long weekend of meeting, prayers and great emotions.

Thank you Lord Jesus for your mercy, for the strength you give us to forgive and to feel forgiven, and for the possibility to reconcile with our past and to look at the future with faith and hope.