On May 9-13, 2022, the Province of St. Joseph, Spouse of the B.V.M. in Romania conducted a formation meeting for formators at the Franciscan Theological Institute in Roman, Romania. The meeting was organized by the Provincial Commission for Initial Formation and was led by Friar Piotr STANISŁAWCZYK, the General Delegate for Formation, assisted by his collaborator, Friar Andrzej GUTKOWSKI.
In addition to formation-related activities, the meeting also gave the friars of the General Secretariat a chance to get to know the other friars and formation houses. Moreover, they got to visit some of the friaries and some of the most significant places in the Province and in Romania itself.
During the meeting, the friars discussed and reflected upon some important themes, including the role of the formator and his authority, and collaboration with a psychologist or psychotherapist: examining the possibilities and limits of what can be done with a difficult brother.
Starting from the premise that the formator carries out one of the most important and delicate services of the Order, Friar Piotr lectured on the topics while skillfully maintaining a helpful balance between theory and practice. He alternated and complemented the theoretical content with personal experiences and testimonies. He provided some very useful advice, suggestions and recommendations. In addition, he would always refer back to specific documents of the Church and the Order and examine how their contents applied to the formation setting in Romania, with its possibilities and limitations. Finally, fraternal discussion and dialogue gave the participants an opportunity to further examine and put into practice the speakers’ proposals and to open other lines of reflection and planning. It is hoped that all of this will yield good results, as soon as possible, in the exercise of the ministry of formation.
The meeting concluded on Saturday, May 14, 2022, with the two guest friars visiting the fifty young aspirants, novices and post-novices of the Province who reside at the Franciscan Theological Institute in Roman.
Friar Virgil BLAJ
