The Pontiff met with members of six religious congregations on the morning of Monday, 15 July 2024.
Newsroom (19/07/2024 17:00, Gaudium Press) This Monday morning, 15 July, Pope Francis received at the Vatican members of six religious congregations that are holding their General Chapters these days: Order of Minims, Minor Regular Clerics, Clerics of San Viatore, Missionaries of St. Anthony Mary Claret, Sisters of Reparation of the Heart of Jesus and Augustinian Sisters of Divine Love.
In his speech, the Holy Father emphasized the importance of the new vocations to religious life and celebrated the diversity and richness of the congregations present, which are “a living image of the mystery of the Church, where ‘to each one is given a particular manifestation of the Holy Spirit for the common good of all’ (1 Cor 12:7), so that the beauty of Christ may shine in all its light in the world”.
Continuing the legacy of the founders
The Pontiff also reflected on two important aspects of religious life: beauty and simplicity. Regarding beauty, he emphasized that the stories of each congregation, in different circumstances, times and places, are stories of beauty, because in them the grace of God’s face, transcribed in the Gospels, shines through.
He also noted the importance of continuing the legacy of the Founders of the congregations who, “under the impulse of the Holy Spirit, were able to grasp the traces of this beauty, and to respond to it in different ways, according to the needs of their times; writing marvelous pages of concrete charity, courage, creativity and prophecy, dedicating themselves to the care of the weak, the sick, the elderly and children, in the formation of young people, in missionary proclamation and social commitment; pages that are entrusted to you today, so that you may continue the work they began.”
Empty yourself of everything that is not the love of Christ
Speaking about simplicity, Francis explained that this step is only possible when the choice is for the essential while renouncing the superfluous, allowing oneself to be forged every day by the simplicity of God’s love that shines through in the Gospel. “Ask the Lord to be simple, stripping yourselves of everything that does not serve or that can hinder listening and harmony in your discernment processes; stripping yourselves of calculations, ambitions, envy, pretensions, rigidity and any other temptation made of self-reference.”
Finally, the Pope assured that religious “embrace poverty precisely in order to empty themselves of everything that is not the love of Christ and to allow themselves to be filled with His beauty, until it overflows into the world, wherever the Lord sends them and towards any brother or sister that he puts in their path, especially through obedience. And this is a great mission!”
Pray for vocations
“Do not leave prayer, a prayer of the heart; do not leave the moments in front of the Tabernacle talking to the Lord, speaking to the Lord and letting the Lord speak to us. But the prayer of the heart, not that of parrots, no, no. The one that comes from the heart and keeps us moving forward on the Lord’s path. Pray for vocations. You need successors who will carry on the charism. Pray, pray. And be careful in your formation: let it be a good formation,” he concluded. (EPC)
Compiled by Sandra Chisholm