The Prior General, on the occasion of the Ordinary Chapter of the Province of Mexico: "We must continue offering our brothers the Gospel as a hope for a fuller life"

On May 22, 1533, the first seven Augustinian friars sent by the then Province of Castile to the New World disembarked in San Juan de Ulúa, New Spain—present-day Mexico.

Today, nearly 500 years later, the work of the Order remains fully relevant in what was the first Augustinian province in Ibero-America.

Twenty-seven Augustinian brothers—twenty-eight if we include the presence of the Prior General—gathered during the first week of June for the Provincial Chapter of the Province of the Most Holy Name of Jesus of Mexico.

“These have been days of fraternity, of gratitude to Father Jorge Villareal for his service to the Province, and of welcoming the election of Father Ussay as his successor,” Father Alejandro Moral remarked at the conclusion of the Chapter.

“I saw in our brothers a desire to live in unity. An awareness that the challenges we face today in our parishes and in the school we maintain here call for communion. We want to achieve this through synodality as well, conscious of the deep pain and the shortcomings and needs present in our society,” affirmed the Prior General. “We must continue working for justice and peace, so that our brothers may enjoy better conditions and so we can offer them the Gospel as a beacon of hope for a more fulfilled life.”

A mission shared through community

The Prior General wished to highlight, among the proposals and work tools presented by the new government for the next four-year period, the efforts the friars are making to promote vocations.

“Although this year has seen a slight decrease compared to previous years, vocations are gradually increasing. The Province of the Most Holy Name of Jesus of Mexico is a circumscription that has always known how to renew itself, and I am confident they will continue to grow.”