Orden de Predicadores. Capítulo General. Bogotá 2007.

FRIARS OF THE ORDER OF PREACHERS
GENERAL CHAPTER OF PROVINCIALS
Bogotá – 2007

OPENING DISCURSE
By
Fr. Jose Gabriel Mesa Angulo, OP
Prior Provincial
Province of San Luis Bertrand, Colombia.

My dearest Master Father, dear Timothy, dear brothers and sisters in Our Saint Dominique Father: A Fraternal and warm welcome to this Province of San Luis Bertrán of Colombia.

I am going to tell you a story: I was 15 years old when I came for the first time to this Convent of Saint Dominique in Bogota. The friars of my School, the Lacordaire in the city of Cali, invited me then to go to a mission in the forest of the Catatumbo, in the northeast of Colombia. Imagine how exciting this was for me! I remember that I entered into this room; it was very different from the room we are using for this Chapter. Hanging on its walls there were some paintings of Saints dressed like the Friars that I had seen when I was a child, and the caught my attention. When I saw the painting that is behind me I said: “I know him!”. I had seen this image of San Luis Bertrán in a vocational magazine of the Dominicans; in that moment I felt that in this convent there was something for me. A Friar said to me: “They are paintings from the XVII century. It seemed like a long time to me… So, now it seems that you and I are from the last century!... And even worse, we are from the last millennium!!! I never though that after three decades after that youth experience, I would be right here in this situation, greeting on behalf of our Province of San Luis Bertran de Colombia, important Friars of our Order like you! Now I understand that the compassion of the Order goes beyond of what I came to ask for, here in this same convent.

We, the Dominicans in Colombia, are very glad to have you here in our house. We welcome you with fraternal spirit and it is our best wish that you all feel at home.

Your presence here is very good news and a nourishing witness for our life, especially in this country with so many diverse realities.

Columbia is a marvelous country: the people’s enterprising spirit, their spirit of solidarity and welcome; its landscapes and its biodiversity; its multi-cultural character, its history and its people’s religiosity all constitute a richness that is important for humanity… We are also a country of many problems. We are always conscious of them and as a family of preachers confronted with these problems we try to respond to them, together with the Church and the whole of the civil society, which in this part of the world has produced many new martyrs.

The General Chapter of Dominicans’ presence in this country, unknown to many of you, is a sign of solidarity from the whole Order, not only with our friars, but with the Dominican Family (a very large body here), and with the Catholic Church of Columbia, firmly committed to the unending struggle for peace, respect for fundamental human rights and social justice in the name of the Gospel.

Our Province has San Luis Bertrán as its Patron Saint. His Dominican life and his holiness are an important referent to us, especially like a man of faith, witness of the truth, teacher and missionary. We, the Dominicans, are in Colombia since the beginning of the XVI century in 1528. Our Province was founded in 1551 at request of Fray Bartolomé de las Casas. A Few years later, our friars founded the Santo Tomás University, the first university in Colombia. Our Province was suppressed by the national government in the year 1861, along with all the other religious orders and restored by a heroic group of Colombian friars, who lived in the exile for more than forty years. Late in the 19th century we began to restore our convents and in the year 1910 the pious Jacinto Maria Cormier declared the Province restored.

Remembering the 20th century, I, humbly, use the language of the Father Lacordaire, especially to express that our Province has a great gratitude with the French Dominicans, who formed to our missionaries in an immense love for Saint Dominique and for the Order and in the conscience on the high value of the study for the Dominican life.

Our gratitude is also deep with the Province of Spain, who granted us excellent brothers to strengthen the restoration of our Province and promote our university. We are grateful with God for the good things that have happened here in the Order for 480 years, which, also foretells the best for this Chapter. Each General Chapter is a moment of grace and blessing for the Order. We are sure that this also will since in it we are not going to deal with problems, but we also should dream of the future that we want for us, for our brothers, for the new generations of Dominicans and for the Church for which Our Father Saint Dominique wanted us to be at its serve with zeal. Let us not fear to draw on the always black and white canvas of our Order brushstrokes of the new sky and new land with all the colors that shelter our universal polychromy.

May the Holy Spirit guide our dreams, illuminate our reflections and bless our decisions.

That the Lady of the Rosary, Protector of the Order and Our Father Dominique, who interpreted successfully the signs of the times, help us to discern the will of Father God and His Son Jesus for the all the Order at this concrete time of history.

And while this is happening, a welcome hug to all of you. Welcome, brothers and sisters to this, your house, located 2600 meters closer to the stars!

Many thanks!

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