The 26th MSC General Chapter reached a very important moment. After the last day’s discernment sessions, the tenth day was the day of the election of the Superior General. From the beginning of the day, every detail was charged with symbolism. In the Communal Wisdom Prayer, the text by Fr. Jules Chevalier, “The Heart of Jesus is the Center upon which all things converge”, was used together with the readings from Luke 24:28-32, which recalled the end of the journey of the disciples at Emmaus, when they invited Jesus to sit at table, and the reading Philippians 2:1-8, which says, “he emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men.”
It was the turn of Humberto as host, who reminded that St. Vincent de Paul’s Feast Day was also celebrated in the Church that day.
In the first session in the morning, Frances, facilitator, invited all the capitulants to a final moment of reflection, asking the question: “God, who are You calling to the service of leadership?” At that moment, a dialogue between brothers was recommended, small moments to discuss who should be the person to lead the Congregation for the next six years.
These meetings of dialogue, calm and serene, lasted the whole morning.
After lunch, all the electors were called back to the main hall to proceed to the voting. On this occasion, before the vote, a final question was asked to make each voter aware of what he was going to participate in, “Who do you sense God is calling to ‘stay with us’ as our leader for the next six years?”
The election of the Superior General took place in the first round and Abzalón Alvarado, msc, was re-elected for a second term. An official communiqué was then sent out which contained the main ideas of his speech after the election.
The day ended with a Mass of Thanksgiving presided by the former Superior General, Michael Curran, in which Abzalón made the Profession of Faith.
