Stage 05 · The Path
Conversion, the spring sky.
Cassiciacum.
Take up
and read.
Augustine, unsettled, enters Cassiciacum. Like a spring sky, this stage conveys the trust that takes root in faith and the inner peace of contemplative seeking.
Youth · 17+ years
Here Augustine
makes his choice.
Augustine, unsettled, enters Cassiciacum. It is the place where a thousand voices pull at his cloak. On one side, the passions he knows and that hold him back. On the other, the "take up and read" of God's Word; alongside them, fear and doubt. And in the midst of it all, Augustine makes his choice, steps forward, and surrenders his heart to God.
The participants are young people over the age of 17. The dove symbolises perseverance in faith, the discovery of God's will, and an attitude of attentive listening to the divine voice.
Stage objective
An intense, inward
preparation.
An intense preparation focused on the interior life and a deeper knowledge of Sacred Scripture and the Augustinian charism. Echoing through this stage is the famous "take up and read" that changed Augustine's life — and continues to change the lives of many young people today.
Four disciplines
of the heart.
What we live in Cassiciacum:
silence, the Word, and discernment.
Interiority
Learning to dwell in one's own heart. Not fleeing from silence — discovering it as the place where God speaks.
Sacred Scripture
Getting to know the Word in depth. Not superficially, not as culture: as daily bread, as the One who calls.
Augustinian charism
Studying and living what is distinctive of the Augustinian Recollect family: the search for truth, life in common, dedication to the Church.
Vocational discernment
Taking seriously the question of what God wants from me. And letting the answer have real consequences.
Tolle, lege. Take up and read.
Cassiciacum · Year 386
If you are at this moment in life
Cassiciacum
is about deciding.
There is a JAR community where you can seriously ask yourself what you want to do with your life. Find it.
