By Phil and Jane Samers Bretherton (Eaglehawk)
Sandhurst pilgrims from Shepparton, Wodonga, Wangaratta and Bendigo joined over 8,000 others in Torino (Turin, Italy) for a World gathering of couples and spiritual companions interested in supporting married couples’ spirituality.
During the week of July 15-20, diocesan members who were among thirty from our Oceania Region of the Teams movement gathered in the Inalpi Arena with others from nearly 90 countries to enhance the place of Spirituality in Marriage across the world. With the main theme breaking open the Gospel of Luke: ‘The Journey To Emmaus and its relevance in our world today,’ participants were treated to the wisdom and experience of outstanding keynote speakers.
We also listened to the experiences of couples facing challenges in Malawi and Ukraine, who were given standing ovations from nearly 8,000 people in the enclosed arena. It was a valuable chance to meet like-minded Christians committed to restoring a world of hope.
Marina Marcolini, in one of her inspiring daily meditations on this Gospel of Luke, reminded us of our special place in building the Gospel story.
“What the Scriptures say speaks intimately to us; it has to do with our lives in a very profound way. In everything we live, Jesus is with us, so even our daily life is sacred history. We are part of the great river of sacred history, the same river in which the lives of Moses and the prophets, of Mary and Joseph, sailed. Our stories are sacred history – the stories of God walking with us. If we stop to think about it, we feel great awe: We are a page of sacred history, the Scriptures are alive, fulfilled in our lives today”
From Sandhurst, our participating group included Helen and David Gill from Wodonga, Maria O’Donnell, Jane Samers and Phil Bretherton from Bendigo, Frs Nathan Varello and Jackson Saunders from Wangaratta and Shepparton. As part of Oceania, we were there with fellow pilgrims from Melbourne, Adelaide, Sydney, Canberra, Brisbane, Tauranga, Timor Leste and the Philippines.
This world-wide movement we belong to was previously known in Oceania as Teams of Our Lady or Equipes Notre Dame, named after the parish in Paris, where the movement began in the 1938. A group of married couples approached their Parish priest Fr Henri Caffarel, for support in their married spirituality.
We were blessed to be present among so many faith-filled people: hearing the challenges of our sisters and brothers in Ukraine, Malawi, Timor-Leste, Lebanon and Syria, among others who struggle to put bread on the table or who live under constant threat of bombardment and horrific circumstances.
We were privileged to experience first-hand the way Teams pull together practical support, through whatever means are available to reach out to others.
In our own region, we are about to commission a new Team in Shepparton and have several new groups across the Diocese in the beginning stages of development. We will provide our support to them in fostering closer relationships in the spirituality of their marriages. Teams is alive and well!
We are grateful for the support of the Diocese and our fellow Teams members in enabling Fr Nathan and Fr Jackson to join us.
Enquiries are always welcome.
Check us out at Teams Oceania on Facebook or the Equipes Notre Dame International website.
Phil and Jane Samers Bretherton (Eaglehawk)
Phil and Jane (right) with other TEAMS members in Turin.
