About Our Weekly Prayer Gathering In Minia

• Three main questions I will answer now as brief as possible. How the idea started? What are we doing and with whom? What’s our vision?
  I’m Rudy, a jesuit novice in my 2nd year, joining the jesuit community in Minia – 365 km south of Cairo – to live with them for around 4 months and to experience their missionary life!
  Full of passion to discover what’s awaiting me in Minia, I spent the first two weeks exploring the scholar field in the Jesuit Fathers School. Besides that, I accompanied Bassem – scholastic in his 1st year of regency – in his mission with the youth group – scouts and other missionary groups. While learning from my fellow jesuit brothers, the question came up. What about me? It may be too early to start something and on the other side I really felt that the place here misses a spiritual time, especially with the youth! Not to mention my preference to work with youth. Oh, and I love to pray too!
  – Hey Bassem, what do you think about starting a prayer time each Wednesday in in Church?
  – Interesting idea, let’s share it with the community!
  The community encouraged us and we started 6 weeks ago, Bassem and I, to share our friendship with Jesus each Wednesday with the different groups that the community in Minia work with, and of course their friends are welcome too!
  Step by step, we try to help them assimilate the ignatian contemplation and meditation! Using different styles like watching a short movie on the nativity or the Carravagio painting of the vocation of Saint Matthew to catalyze our imagination. The repetition of the psalms wasn’t a bad idea either and it was good to know the Taizé way of prayer too! Some overwhelming feedback would encourage us to move forward in a deeper relationship with God!

•  الوقت دا بيبقي مميز جدًا بالنسبالي إني بقعد مع نفسي وافصل عن زحمة اليوم . ‎الصلاة بطرق مختلفة سمحلي اشوف ربنا من نواحي مختلفة، واشوف بساطة يسوع وانه بيحاول يقرب مني ودا خلّاني أقرر أتعامل مع يسوع كصديق ليا، وتكون علاقتنا بسيطة .‎كمان الصلاة عن طريق المشاهدة شجعني ألمس المشاعر الموجودة في النص و أتأثر بيها كأني موجودة في نفس الوقت دا معاهم. – “ميرنا”

• For the past three years space we have experienced a spiritual growth. We started initiatives where we gather our friends and pray at our home however We still need external motivation to encourage to form a community and Be continuous. Being in the prayer meetings in the Jesuit satisfied a great need for a way to pray that is immersive and engaging. The Taizé meeting in particular was a chance to experience a different culture of prayer that we’re not used to but found to suit us. Today it can be quite challenging to encourage young people to pray and this I have found to be very true, however this activity which I hope will not be hindered by the going or coming of individuals but rather become stable and help us continue to deepen in our relationship with God. – “Chaker”

•  أنا مصدقة جدًا إن أزمة الحياة هي إننا نعيش في جماعة وده تحدي كبير مش سهل وكل جماعة عبرته شافت الحياة بمعناها الأشمل. ‎أنا مبسوطة بالخبرة لأنها بتتم بينا وفينا وإحنا كلنا سوا بكل خبراتنا وخلفياتنا وعلى مستويات مختلفة من التواصل كمان (الروحي والاجتماعي). قادرة أشوف إزاي تدرج الخبرة بأدواتها وازاي إنها بتمشي بشكل أعمق هادي مترتبة من رودي وباسم ومتوافق عليه بشكل إرادي من كل شخص بيقرر ييجي كل مرة. ميزة الخبرة إنها بتقوم على شباب بيهتموا بالصلاة، بتحصل بشكل مستمر، فيها خطوات مش عشوائية بشكل بيحترم قدرات الأفراد واختياراتهم. بتخيل ازاي استمرارية فكرة زي دي هيخلق حالة هتفرق في حياة كل شخص بأبعاد مختلفة تمامًا وهتخلق مساحات مكناش شايفينها فينا وتساؤلات، وخصوصًا لو خلفياتنا فيها نسبة مش قليلة منها مشوهة عن العلاقة مع الله. – “ريهام”

Spending “intimate” time with Jesus enlightens the fire in my heart and it seems that what is personal is universal. It feels like the desire for a close friendship with God is personal to them too and maybe to you! Believing that the smallest candle could set the heart on fire! So we are going forth to share our fire that was illuminated freely by others!

الأخ رودي خليل اليسوعيّ