“A few years ago, the Marian Congregations were called by God to a change of identity — to a new way of being. Like Abram, they responded with generosity, leaving behind all their securities, accepting even the death implied by letting go of their own name… and as with Abraham, the Lord gave them a new name: ‘Christian Life Communities,’ which implies in itself the meaning of the Mission to which they are called…” — Pedro Arrupe, S.J., Holy Week, 1981

These words of Father Pedro Arrupe, S.J., recalled by Magdalena Palencia during her address at the 2018 World Assembly of the Christian Life Community (CLC) in Buenos Aires, Argentina, express perfectly our origins. It was 1994. Father Prudencio Piña, S.J., who had been living for some years in the Dominican Republic but was then serving at the Parish of Our Lady of Montserrat in Cienfuegos, Cuba, told us about this worldwide event — the transition from Marian Congregations to Christian Life Communities. He encouraged and accompanied us in the formation of the first local communities, most of which were made up of members of the former Marian Congregations, while others came from parish groups or nearby communities. They received this new way of living, being, and serving in the Church with great enthusiasm and openness. We also gratefully remember, in our beginnings, the work of Father Jorge Centelles, S.J., who served as our assistant.

The Marian Congregations have a long history of continuous service in our parish, having been established there in October 1887. It is worth noting that, although at one point — due to the Church–State conflict — the government decided to dissolve lay movements, that decision never reached our parish. The Marian Congregation remained active there until its transformation into the CLC.
Having shared life with those who, through their faith, bravely endured the difficult years of Church–State confrontation, listening to their testimonies of perseverance and their trust in the God of history — while assuming the personal, family, and professional consequences this entailed — forms part of our story of grateful Grace, which continues to inspire our journey.

Our growth and integration into the World CLC were strongly supported by CLC in Mexico, to whom we extend our deep gratitude. Thanks to this sister community that sponsored us, we were accepted as full members of the World Community at the 15th General Assembly held in Fátima, Portugal, in 2008.

Thanks to the collaboration of our brothers and sisters, we actively participated in the various editions of the MAGIS regional program, from the first through the fifth edition (we were only absent from MAGIS VI). Since 1994, we have also taken part in numerous regional gatherings. In 2019, we had the great joy of hosting in Cienfuegos the Meeting of the National Executive Councils of Latin America (CENAL), which we experienced as a true “encounter among brothers and sisters.”

Today, there is only one active local community, and we also have several members in our praying community —those who, because of their circumstances, can no longer participate actively but sustain our community life through prayer. We gather with them for Eucharistic celebrations and commemorative occasions.
Our mission field is diverse: supporting parish services, participating in neighborhood and rural communities, health ministry, outreach to vulnerable people, formation and education, and engagement in digital networks, among others.

As part of the pilgrim people of Cuba, our community life today is marked by challenges similar to those faced by our nation: migration, aging, fatigue, and the struggle for daily survival. As CLC members, we recognize ourselves as pilgrims of hope, motivated to share this gift that the CLC is for us. In our fragility, we feel an even greater need for loving interdependence, which involves all of us, in everything. We wish to listen attentively to what the Spirit — caring for us and our community is saying, and to act, as Saint Ignatius tells us, “doing everything as if it depended only on us, while praying and trusting in God, knowing that everything depends on Him.”His Grace will come — a sign that our story of Grace has borne fruit.