WHERE and HOW the DREAM BECAME TRUE?
In April, 1976, I went to
In a particular moment, after presenting on a blackboard a series of
different Projects and Programs to develop the concept, that being the essence
and the meaning of ENCOUNTER, REENCOUNTER and RETORNO among all the members of
each Home or Family – and not just among the married couples, someone
challenged me to put a name to my dreams and new Programs. Everybody applauded
with great enthusiasm.
I asked for a silent place in the home. They gave it to me. And before retiring to reflect about the
“name” of my dreams, I invited them to help me by praying together while I
searched for the name.
It was quick. The owner of the home where we were spending the weekend was
a professional fireman, and FIRE was
one of the few words I knew in my limited English vocabulary. Then I listened
to my heart and I felt FIRE,
and the words of JESUS of NAZAETH: “I have come to cast fire upon the earth, and
what will I but that it be kindled?” (Lucas
12:49). I left the room and when I joined the families, someone asked me: What’s
the word?
And I put on the blackboard: F.I.R.E. Meaning:
F = FAMILIES I = INTERCOMMUNICATION R = RELATIONSHIPS E = EXPERIENCES.
“Is this another organization or a
movement?” asked a lawyer in the group. The answer was quick and clear: “No!
FIRE will be just a SERVICE to organizations dealing directly with marriage and
family life. The lawyer added an S to the selected name, and everybody shouted: FIRES! Our friend the lawyer wrote on the
blackboard: F.I.R.E.S Inc.
After almost 30
YEARS, its name is the same, and everybody sings:
FAMILIES, created by GOD, are called to become GOD’S FIRE!!!