Province of Our Lady of the Americas, Sister Janet Ceja Sáenz, Member of the CODALC team.- The teams of the Confederation of Dominican Sisters of Latin America and the Caribbean (CODALC) and the Interprovincial Conference of Dominicans of Latin America and the Caribbean (CIDALC) were responsible for organizing the Meeting of Dominican Formators.
The theme we reflected on together was around the prevention and awareness of abuse: "Beware of abuse! Let’s create safe and healthy environments for our formators." From August 24 to 31, 2024, at the Dominican Mission of the Rosary Retreat House in Lima, Peru, 23 friars and 55 sisters from Latin America and the Caribbean participated.
The speakers, experts in their subjects, shed objective, concrete, and clear light on the following topics:
- Abuse in initial formation: a canonical reading, by Fr. Juan Manuel Hernández Hernández, O.P., Assistant to the Master of the Order for fraternal life and formation.
- Abuse in initial formation: personal and systemic vulnerability, by Fr. Rafael Colomé Angelats, O.P.
- Prevention of abuse in formation, by Sister Alejandra Albaba, Dominican of the Holy Name of Jesus.
- Accompaniment in cases of abuse in formation, by Sister Soledad del Río, Missionary of Saint Augustine.
In a fraternal, simple, frank, and open atmosphere, various experiences were shared around these topics. The simplicity and closeness of the speakers favored the use of time for consultation and personal dialogue for those who wished to delve deeper into a specific experience. The hospitality at the retreat house made us feel at home; in the middle of the week, we had the opportunity to visit some Dominican places in Lima, such as the Convent of Santo Domingo, the Casa San Martín, the Basilica Sanctuary of Saint Rose of Lima, the Cathedral Basilica of Saint John the Apostle and Evangelist, and other places in the city.
At the end of the meeting, a proposal was made to create a school for formators at the level of Latin America and the Caribbean, for which a group of Sisters and Brothers were asked to be responsible for giving continuity to this proposal, which we hope will be a means to strengthe.
