Chronicle Report: Provincial Chapter of the Dominicans of the Our Lady of the Rosary Province
Royal Monastery St. Thomas, Ávila, Spain
August 23, 2025
The sixth day of the Provincial Chapter of the Dominicans of the Our Lady of the Rosary Province, held on August 23, 2025, at the Royal St. Thomas Monastery in Ávila, Spain, was a significant day marked by the official installation of the new Provincial Prior, Fr. Mariano González Martín. The day included a morning Mass, fraternal celebrations, and a well-deserved rest in the afternoon. Below is a detailed chronicle of the day’s activities.
August 23, 2025 (Saturday): Official Installation
The day began with a solemn Mass presided over by the new Provincial Prior, followed by his profession of faith and official assumption of office, concluding with free time for rest and fellowship.
-8:00 – Laudes y la Misa (Morning Prayer and Mass): The day opened with Morning Prayer followed by the Mass, presided over by the new Provincial Prior, Fr. Mariano González Martín, in memory of Saint Rose of Lima, Virgin. During the Mass, Fr. Mariano made the profession of faith and officially took the office of Provincial Prior. In his sermon, he reflected on the day’s readings, emphasizing the centrality of Christ’s love in the Dominican vocation.
Sermon by Fr. Mariano González Martín:
“Allow me a few comments on today's readings, the feast of Saint Rose of Lima.
Today's readings speak to something fundamental to our faith and our Dominican vocation: the centrality and necessity of living united in the LOVE of Christ, so that we can share and proclaim it to others and thus be happy ourselves and become new and better creatures every day.
1st Reading: (2 Cor. 5:14-17)
Love of Christ: the old has passed away = the new has begun. He who belongs to Christ is a NEW Creature. Christian mysticism is a mysticism of the NEW.
It implies the creation of a totally new situation where men begin to walk beyond their own historical burden... Walking toward the new, walking toward others, until reaching the Resurrection, until total Reconciliation with God...
The Love of God is the root of our life... it makes us forgive and reconcile with God and with others... and makes us free, new creatures every day...
Today, as I take possession as Prior Provincial, we begin something new... together we begin a new journey... which, lived in Christ, will be blessed with abundant fruits... Courage, and together let us work with living FAITH and joy in the personal development of our Dominican and missionary vocation...
The Gospel of Saint John (15:4-11) describes the famous allegory of the vine. The evangelist John insists, more than other evangelists and perhaps because he was the last to write the Gospel, on the need to remain united to the source of our life, which is God... in order to live, we are like branches, like branches of a tree, which must be united to the vine, to the trunk, and to the roots in order to live and bear good fruit.
With this allegory, Saint John insists on the need to be united to Jesus... 'remain in Me,' that is, remain in my love.... As the Father and Jesus love each other and remain united,
so we Christians must remain united to Jesus, the Vine,
- to remain united to Jesus is to remain in his love,...
- To remain in his love is to listen to his words; to follow, to believe them and live them; it is to keep his word (his commandment, his testament), which in a word is 'to LOVE.'
- To love by accepting the Love that God offers/gives us, opening our hearts and feeling God's forgiveness and reconciliation, so that we can then love and forgive others...
- It is a practical, living, active LOVE, with mutual respect... not a theoretical or philosophical one.
For this reason, I hope that we can all live like this, following the example of Saint Rose of Lima, loving and helping others... I'm not asking you to 'kiss each other every day' or to be super friends... no, but to be kind to one another, respectful, greet each other with joy, and help the other friars in their tasks, sharing the work, working as a team... Let us live the love of God every day, and thus we can begin anew, become new creatures, and be truly happy...
because as the Gospel reminds us today, true and complete joy is found only with Jesus... Let us be happy people and share that happiness with others...
Today we begin something new, one more step toward realizing the 'Kingdom of God' among us... keep your spirits up and keep going. God is with us and wants us to be happy and bear much fruit in our missionary work.
May God bless you all!”
-9:00 – Desayuno (Breakfast): A nourishing breakfast followed the Mass, marking the start of the day’s activities.
-9:30 – Trabajo de comisiones (Commission’s work): The commissions resumed their work, continuing the deliberations and proposals initiated in previous days.
-11:00 – Descanso (Break): A brief break allowed participants to rest.
-11:30 – Trabajo de comisiones (Commission’s work): The commission work continued, delving deeper into their assigned topics.
-13:30 – Comida y Cumpleaños de Fr. Rubén (Lunch and Fr. Rubén’s Birthday): The midday meal included a joyful celebration of the birthday of the former Provincial Prior, Fr. Rubén Martínez Ortega, with expressions of gratitude and fellowship.
- Tarde libre (Free afternoon): In the afternoon, the brothers enjoyed free time to rest from the intense commission work. Some visited the beautiful city walls of Ávila. Fr. Rubén invited some of the brothers who came to Spain for the first time to visit his hometown.
-21:00 – Cena (Dinner): Dinner closed the day, providing a moment for reflection and conviviality following the day’s activities.
The official installation of Fr. Mariano González Martín as Provincial Prior, accompanied by his inspiring sermon, marked a new beginning for the Province. The celebration of Fr. Rubén’s birthday and the free afternoon strengthened fraternal bonds, preparing the community for the chapter’s final stages.
Reported by the Chronicler of the Provincial Chapter
Royal St. Thomas Monastery, Ávila, Spain
August 23, 2025