“WITH CHRIST ALL, NOTHING WITHOUT CHRIST”

The John XXIII Movement is an international association of the faithful, established according to the canons of Canon Law of the Catholic Church, and inspired by the principles that emanated from the Second Vatican Council. It was born in Puerto Rico, in the Diocese of Arecibo, created under the pontificate of Pope John XXIII, to be "an evangelization movement" and to work mainly for those far from the Church and also marginalized from society. The John XXIII Movement does not work for itself, it seeks to be a leaven and serve as a launching pad; it works out. A movement that from its origins goes out in search of the forgotten and the marginalized, the most remote, those who, because of their problems, live anonymously in life, thinking that the Gospel cannot be preached to them and they need someone to Find and announce Jesus Christ to them: it is the John XXIII Movement. In fulfilling this Mission, the John XXIII Movement has its own mysticism, a charism, a gift that the Lord has entrusted to it, a spirituality of authentic service, framed in Love, Surrender and Sacrifice and expressed in this option of life: "With Christ All, Nothing Without Christ."

GENESIS OF THE MOVEMENT

In a small chapel in the Allende Community, in the Sabana Hoyos neighborhood, the largest neighborhood in Puerto Rico, only 30 or 35 people attended Sunday Mass. This fact, which could go unnoticed, was the reflection of a reality: a diocese, created by Pope John XXIII, which, with all the problems it had, lived through the effervescence of Vatican II but, despite its efforts, could not reach everybody. Faced with this unmet need, the Holy Spirit, faithful guardian of the Church and its mission, intervenes, inspiring and prompting a lay person, Nelson Rivera Beauchamp, to worry about the situation of “his chapel”. With the authorization of his Pastor, Nelson begins a series of visits, meetings and one-day days with members of his community that end in what would be the beginning of the John XXIII Movement: a three-day retreat, from the 13th to the 15th of July of 1973, for 24 young people, most of them drug addicted, in a humble food store on a farm where chickens were raised. The John XXIII Movement thus emerges, with a specific charism, as a response elicited by the Holy Spirit before a fundamental need of his Church: that evangelization go where it is not going. Thirty years after this first retreat, the John XXIII Movement has a recognized and authorized presence in more than sixty dioceses in eight countries: Puerto Rico, Peru, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Honduras, United States of America, Italy and Spain. Where he carries out his evangelizing work in communion and harmony with the Church and its Pastors.

A MOVEMENT AT THE SERVICE OF THE CHURCH

The John XXIII Parish Retreat Movement is a movement of lay people who have lived the deep experience of God's love from an encounter with the living Christ and who want to live their baptismal commitment with a total dedication of service and a spirit of communion and participation with the Church and its Pastors. A Movement that feels that each and every one of us is the Church, that feels and lives the Church as its own, lives its reality and its needs, and therefore participates with joy in whatever is entrusted to it. A Movement that wants in communion with its Pastors and in harmony with diocesan initiatives to bring the Gospel of God to all.

The John XXIII Movement meets on Fridays at 6:00 p.m. in the church basement of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church.