WHO WE ARE - Our Identity and Charism
We are men and women united through the bond of consecration as a community. We are called to live the evangelical counsels in all states of life: rmarried couples, celibates, permanent deacons and singles yet to define their vocation – two of us called to the priesthood (First Year Philosophy). We are called to announce Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit manifested by the outpouring of our foundation charism. We are evangelizers, a people who give praise and adoration to God, living the experience of the Resurrected Christ in the strength of breaking the Eucharistic bread celebrated in community, the main source of food for our fraternal life, bringing dynamism to our missionary commitment.
Founded in Brazil in July 1993, Santos Anjos Catholic Community is one of the many New Communities already established in that country and in the world. In August 2005, consecrated member VeraLucia Cottim-Coughlan moved to Calgary and began to spread our first missionary seeds outside Brazil, together with her husband Timothy Coughlan and their three children: Marina, John and Joseph.
Bearer of a particular charism in the Church, our community has in the essence of its foundation the experience of the New Pentecost. Christ, following the martyrdom on the cross, and the resurrection, pours out His Spirit upon us and sends us to evangelize until the ends of the earth.
Our Spirituality
The basis of our spirituality lays in the roots of the Church: her history and Magisterium, the authority of the Holy Father and bishops, the sacraments, the liturgy, the spiritual inheritance from the Saints, tradition, sacred scripture, a very close collaboration with priests and by being immersed in her apostolic and missionary life. Our motto, “A means of embracing to proclaim Jesus” gives witness to our spirituality, which comes from a lived reality, at the same time that it inspires and guides those who live it as a support before the demands of the Gospel.
As a charismatic community living the testimony of the effusion of the Holy Spirit, we are open and grateful to the charismatic gifts or extraordinary gifts (CCC # 2003-2005) granted by the Spirit and used for the common good.
The fraternal life in community, “one heart, and one soul,” is sealed by prayer, and life-sharing; it is enriched by the Eucharist and in our service to the Kingdom. They are “solid food” and the means to deepen our roots and strengthen our faith. The community is the space of communion and reconciliation, the place of celebration, forgiveness, and growth for those who participate and “dive into the deep” in the many areas of our apostolate, at our Open Houses or in the vocational path.
Our spiritual path leads us to a concrete experience of the Mystery of the Annunciation. The Angel Gabriel identifies each of us as a child of God, impregnated by the Spirit and resident in the womb of our Blessed Mother, which is “the heart” of the brothers and sisters when the community gathers together to pray, celebrate and share.
As the “Church’s veranda”, Santos Anjos strives to be a place of welcoming to all who are sent to us by the Lord. Ours is a welcome that is fraternal and restoring in the essence of our charism. It is an embrace that heals and has as the source of formation and missionary basis the person of Jesus Christ, IESHUAH, theGod Who Saves, He who comes to do the Father’s will.
