Let’s keep sharing stories about the great involvement of local communities and Friends of Saint Juana Antida in the Religious Province of Latin America. This time, it’s from
- Elena, AJA, from the Santa Juana Antida Chapel in Paraguay
- Ingrid, Friend of Juana Antida, who participated in the Charismatic Family Meeting of Saint Juana Antida on 24 and 25 May 2025 with the participation of the three communities of Paraguay.
- Sister Rina Flores, from the Colonia María Antonia community, Paraguay
Ingrid, Friend of Juana Antida,
who participated in the Charismatic Family Meeting of Saint Juana Antida on 24 and 25 May 2025
with the participation of the three communities of Paraguay
As Jesus says in the biblical passage from John 4:13-14, ‘Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst again.’ And so we set out to reflect that the water of life that Jesus offers is water that does not need to be constantly replaced, as it satisfies a deeper and more lasting need in the soul, providing spiritual satisfaction that cannot be obtained with material things.
Juana Antida was a living example of giving this water to drink, as she taught us to love God deeply and all that He has created, to never lose faith, and to use the resources around us. This is what prompted us to share some experiences and knowledge with our brothers and sisters in Puerto Triunfo in the face of one of the problems afflicting the world, as Pope Francis said: the responsibility of human beings to care for one another.
Faced with this reality, we cannot stand by with our hands tied. We must all get involved in caring for this important and vital resource that is ‘water,’ a resource for human survival and the maintenance of ecosystems. Without water, we cannot live.
And so, ‘living the charism of Saint Juana Antida means learning to serve with love, humility and dedication, devoting our lives to those most in need.’ This is what must continue to inspire us to look at our neighbours with compassion and to gradually transform the world from the simplicity of our hearts. Without a doubt, these were two days of reflection, prayer and extraordinary grace that will remain in the depths of my heart.
Ingrid Lorena Guerrero, Friend of Saint Juana Antida. Fernando de la Mora. May 2025
Feast of our Patron Saint Juana Antida
Jubilee Year 2025
Parish of Saint Catherine of Siena
‘Pilgrims of Hope’
We began the Novena on Wednesday, 14 May, at 6:00 p.m. with the Holy Rosary followed by Holy Mass at 7:00 p.m.
We organised ourselves well in advance with the aim of experiencing the SYNODALITY that our Church proposes to us, sharing with the three sectors that make up our parish. We also invited our base communities, twelve in total.
For this celebration, we received the support of our parish priest and his collaborators, the Sisters of Charity of Saint Juana Antida, Sectors Two and Three, the Friends of Saint Juana Antida and the unconditional help of the Neighbourhood Committee ‘29 September’.
During the novena, there was good participation by the faithful and the solidarity of the entire community, thus reawakening our Church’s proposal for this jubilee year. ‘PILGRIMS OF HOPE’ culminated in a large procession through the streets of our community.
Elena, AJA, from the Santa Juana Antida Chapel in Paraguay
Experience in the community of Colonia María Antonia, Paraguay, 17 and 18 May 2025
We arrived in the community on Saturday morning and spent the morning with the family of the coordinator of the Chapel of St. Anthony of Padua. In the afternoon, we welcomed the young people to the chapel, where everyone introduced themselves. This meeting was part of a treasure hunt with riddles and obstacles to overcome in order to discover the treasure… What is the road that leads to the treasure? Where is the treasure? Who is the treasure? The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field… or like the disciples who recognised him when he broke bread and felt their hearts burning within them as he spoke to them…
To conclude the meeting, we kept the treasure we found, like the man who found it, who hides it and goes to sell everything he has to buy the field…
They made an appointment to meet again the next day to continue discovering the value of the treasure.
Second day: We remember the meeting in search of the treasure. The words that accompanied us in discovering the value of the treasure were John 1:35-42. On the journey to discover Jesus, we have John, who shows us the Lamb of God. The young people experienced the importance of LISTENING to those who show us Jesus, the disciples who followed Jesus, saw where he lived and stayed with him that day…
The joy and happiness of meeting Jesus: this is how the young people who met the Messiah felt during these two days, and then shared it at home or with other young people, just like Andrew… The invitation of today’s meeting is to continue to discover this dream that God has for each of us young people, just as He did for Simon Peter.
Sister Rina Flores
