Presentation

The Project Renewed Universities wants to answer, in the spirituality of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal - CCR, to the frequent appeals of the church about the evangelization within university (1). The Project is now called Lucas Office (student youth). It is in the condition of specific work and its staff is composed by more then twelve people (2). Among them are undergraduate, graduate students of several institutions throughout Brazil, and teachers too. Besides, the Project counts on a group of collaborating students related to several different fields.

One of the goals of the Project is to present a work proposal which will be implemented along the following years heading for the New Millennium. The proposals described here should be worked gradually according to the structural, physical and financial organization.

In the spiritual level, we will be in full communion with the proposals of Rumo ao Novo Milenio of CNBB (National Confederation of Brazilian Bishops) as well as with the Action Plan of the National Offensive of CCR (Catholic Charismatic Renewal) in Brazil, for this year.

Considering the help of the Holy Spirit and the collaboration of everyone who longs for the celebration of the great Lord's jubilee, you can count on us.

1. - Presence of the Church in the University and in the School Culture. (Magistério Collection) (Pauline Pub. 1994)
2. - Member's names can be found on the bottom of this page.

Goals

In preparation for the beginning of the Third Millennium and invested in power of the Spirit sent by the Lord and under Virgin Mary's protection, Mother of God, our mother as well, we want:

Evangelize,
With renewed missionary passion, testifying Jesus Christ in our schools and in our future profession;

Evangelize,
Trusting in the possible conciliation of faith and science (reason);

Evangelize,
In fraternal communion with the Church, forming new human beings that perform their functions under the Gospel's light;

Evangelize,
With the power of Spirit, so that our hearts,
(students, teachers and professionals) join the heart of GOD.

We want to dream and believe that, in communion with the Lord, it is possible to change the reality and build once and for all the Civilization of Love, as sign of God's Kingdom in Brazil and throughout the world.

Motivation

The Roman Catholic Apostolic Church asks the people guided by the courage and intellectual creativity to be present in the privileged places of culture ,such as schools and universities, centers of scientific and technical research, in places of artistic creation and humanist reflection. (Christofidelis Laici, no. 44)

The presence of the Church in the university environment through committed peoples who serve the university and the society. These people play important role in the process of development of faith. This is a demand from evangelization. The announcing of the Gospel becomes more urgent, considering the approach of the coming millennium, in which the Christian culture will have great importance. There is a need for communities of faith able to transmit the Good News of Christ to all the ones who graduate, as well as to those who teach and to the ones who work in the context of the university environment. The urgency of this apostolic work is huge, because the university is one of the most fertile grounds which creative culture.

The university students should become the first and immediate apostles of other students. They must accomplish the work among them and through them, taking into consideration the social environment (university) in which they live ." (I Reconcile Vatican II / AA 1377 and Est. of CNBB 44, #. 87)

"The University Pastoral also seeks to mold the elite, so that they influence in the future developing Christian sense and the society freedom. However, the primary and main objective is to work in the university and within the world of science and in the systematized culture, so that they presently obtain evangelization and become instruments of the Kingdom of God." (Est. of CNBB 66, #. 244)

Relationship with the University Pastoral

The project Renewed Universities wants to be a "church" developing charismatic communities in the universities in communion with the local Church. It is extremely important that the identity of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal is preserved, though.

For this reason, no one may keep us from providing the university students throughout Brazil with a testimonial baptismal life, and life in presence of the Holy Spirit. There must be an authentic and profound prayer activity in the universities.

Initially, the communication must be done to the senior coordinator of CCR of the diocese in which the university is located. We believed that the transformation of the society comes first by the conversion of the heart. This is the reason why there is a need to take the project to all students, teachers and employees of the universities of world!!!

From this from point on, as it is already done in some schools, the GOU (in portuguese) or, in english, UPG (University Prayer Group) should form an alliance with the University Pastoral, Fraternities and Sororities, or Central Union of Students, in order to develop specific activities for to that reality.

Examples: partnership in events such holy week, anti-smoking / drugs campaign, traffic violence, demanding acts addressed to teachers, directors, academic deans such as outrageous tuition, teachers' negligence, lacks of material to develop researches in laboratories, etc. However, it is necessary that, before discussing certain decisions, the GOU is mature enough to develop the activity to be accomplished.

Members of the national team of the Project Renewed Universities

See the actual team members address in the page in portuguese: www.pur.com.br/equipe