"Investing in family is more worthwhile than anything else."Lupita Venegas studied psychology and has a master's degree in family therapy. She was born in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico in 1963, in a Catholic home. Her parents belonged to the Christian Family Movement and later became part of the Salesian Cooperators. Since she was a child, she participated in evangelizing missions and collaborated with social works for the most vulnerable.
In her youth, she was a member of the Jornadas de Vida Cristiana team, where she started as a lecturer on life and faith topics. She is married to Ricardo Pérez Mainou. They have 3 children and 3 grandchildren. Lupita is host of the program "Enamórate" in El Sembrador TV, she is a lecturer on family formation. She is also author She is the author of the books "Despierta mujer dormida" and "Sin límites", among others. She is president of the civil association VALORA and is considered a Catholic "influencer" in social networks.
In this first interview with Lupita Venegas, Omnes' new columnist, she talks about the importance of putting Christ in the center.
How did the formation you had at home, as a child, influence your choice of a vocation to marriage?
- The best form of evangelization is by example. I lived in a Catholic Christian home with two parents who loved God and lived their faith. For this I thank God and I have always loved the Church because I was born naturally in a Christian environment. My parents had difficult lives, a time without Christ. But they overcame that past and broke their chains of pain because they invited Christ into their lives. They both found the Lord and when they got married they said "with Christ at the center". My parents were part of the Christian Family Movement, CFM. My dad called it "easy way to dinner" because of the initials CFM. And indeed, every time they got together, the dinner was delicious... but we children lived together and shared with other couples who were holding God's hand and the atmosphere was Christian.
I had the grace of living in a Christian home. It was natural for me to pray in the morning, to bless the food, to give service to others, to accompany my parents to deliver groceries, and so on. It was the natural, Christian environment. Then I realized, as the years went by, for example when I went to other friends' houses, that in some homes they did not pray. And that was not normal for me.
In this natural environment, where mom and dad loved and respected each other, I always felt a call to get married. However, I had a vocational doubt. During that time, I wondered if I should consecrate my life to God as a religious. So, as a young woman, I lived for a few months in a Marist religious congregation. It was an international community and I loved living with them. I was happy. We had a life of prayer, apostolate?
When I was about to finish college, I told them about my desire to consecrate myself. They told me that vocation was a call from God. It was not whether I liked it or not. And they told me: "Go finish your degree for one more semester and when you come back we will talk about it". And I said, "No, Mother, I love this religious life. And she told me: "vocation is a calling, it is not your will". I remember that I left and in that semester I met my husband Ricardo, who is now my husband. I realized that God wanted me to form a family.
What advice do you give to families for the formation of their children in the faith?
- Today's world takes us away from the supernatural vision and wants us to live only for this world. Sometimes it is believed that, as a parent, I am doing good by getting my children to go to a good school, or to have a good job. Studying and working is not wrong. It is very good, but life is not only this material world, life is, above all, an eternal life. So the recommendation is to form children in the faith, by example. Live their faith, for example, by attending Sunday Mass as a family.
I also recommend that they let themselves be helped by the church. The church is a mother who accompanies and is also a teacher. Sometimes our pride prevents us from seeking help. We think that "nobody teaches me anything" or that "I already know how to do things and that's it". But in family matters, the Church is mother and teacher. She is wise for thousands of years and has the knowledge of human nature.
Pope Benedict XVI has predicted that the church will continue to live through small communities that radically live their faith. That truly live their faith as a family. Being part of church groups will help us to transmit our faith with more conviction and to generate environments where our children can naturally develop a love for God. Belonging to church groups for me is a "must have" for this 21st century. Alone we are going to become extinct, we are going to extinguish. It is like the log that comes out of the campfire. It goes out quickly. But if we remain in the campfire and there is someone who is stoking the fire of the Holy Spirit, that campfire continues to live forever.
So, I recommend that if, as a family, you can be part of a church group, it will help you a lot. There are many movements in the church for the family: Christian Family Movement, Family Educator in the Faith, etc. Look for a movement in your parish that can accompany you, because being parents is a challenge and an art.
