The spirituality of the Shalom community, which celebrates 41 years of foundation on July 9th, has two elements of greater importance, or to use a term in “Shalom” spirit, two primacies. According to the co-founder of the Shalom Catholic Community, Emmir Nogueira, this means that those who are called to this charism need to be more vigilant and dedicate greater zeal to these two elements.
The primacy of grace and prayer
The Shalom charism was born to evangelize. And, therefore, grace occupies a place of primacy. As the founder Moysés Azevedo often repeats, “everything is grace”, and every action in the Community is established from this statement, whether blessings or challenges. From this springs praise, which should never fade from the lips and hearts of those who are vocated to this Charism. For, if everything comes from the hands of God, what only remains to a Shalomite is a posture of surrender to Providence that uses all things in order to lead to His Will.
“We want to be saints not by our own merits, but by trusting entirely in God’s grace,” writes Moysés in the Writing Spousal Love no. 11. And in the Letter to the Community 2005, he adds, “I want, with affection and firmness, to remind everyone of our call to the primacy of grace. It is the grace of God that works in us the transformations necessary to follow Jesus Christ as Shalom. It is grace that sanctifies us, leads us, clarifies us, strengthens us, and firms us in our vocation and on the path of peace.” (Letter to Community 2005, no. 62).
Prayer in the Shalom Vocation
Prayer springs from the primacy of grace, after all, so that grace can act within the Community and in all its actions, it is necessary that those who possess this Charisma give the life of prayer a prominent place.
“All those who possess the Shalom Vocation must be aware that it is a vocation founded on prayer, that this Spousal Love must inflame souls and that the source of this love is found in the path of prayer, in the full sense of the word: personal, daily, contemplative, being with God, following the example of St. Teresa of Avila,” writes Moysés Azevedo in the Writing Spousal Love, no. 17.
That is why, in Shalom, everything begins and ends with prayer. “We are called to configure ourselves to Jesus Christ: like Him, we are called to be contemplative in action, to devote intense and long moments to intimacy with the Father and, at the same time, to embrace the tireless duty of, anointed by the Spirit, announcing the Good News and doing good to all people.” (ECCSH Preamble)
Youth Primacy
“Born among young people, the Community should have a special love and dedication for them. Without neglecting the other dimensions of the apostolate, the Community should dedicate special care to welcoming and supporting young people. The members of the Community should continually cultivate their youthful ardor and always maintain the spiritual youthfulness that marks us. The Community presents Saint Theresa of the Infant Jesus as a model and faithful intercessor in the challenging mission of evangelization of youth”. (ECCSH Preamble)
Emmir explains: “The primacy of youth evangelization is part of the founding grace of the Charism. That is, it is part of the original grace of the Charism. It means that without it one cannot understand the Shalom Catholic Community, the Shalom Charism. Young people are not an accident. Young people are in the founding grace. They are not an ornament or circumstances that will pass with time. The primacy of young people is part of the founding grace of the Shalom Charism.”
Examination of Conscience on the experience of the primacies
Emmir points out an exam with simple questions to evaluate how the living of the primacies of vocation* is going:
- How do we establish primacy in our life? How do we make one thing the most important in our life?
- How do I make God the most important thing in my life? Do I put everything below God and “spend” time with Him in prayer, in lectio divina, in the apostolate, in community life?
- How do I establish the primacy of young people? Does my mind think about young people, does my heart love young people, do I dedicate my time to young people, are young people the first thing in my life?
“May the Lord Jesus give us the grace to live out this vocation of ours!” (Shalom Writings, no. 17)
* Extracted from the article: The primacy of youth in the Shalom Vocation