Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - “Faced with the diminishing numbers and increasing age of the members of many religious institutes, which is evident in some parts of the world, some people are asking themselves whether consecrated life continues to be a proposal capable of attracting young men and women. We are well aware, dear bishops, that...the consecrated life as such has its origins in the Lord Himself, Who chose a lifestyle of chastity, poverty and obedience. For this reason, it can never disappear or die in the Church for it was decided by Jesus Himself as an irremovable part of His Church. Hence the call to a general commitment to vocational pastoral care. If consecrated life is of benefit to the whole Church, something that concerns us all, then pastoral care that seeks to promote vocations to the consecrated life must also be a duty felt by all: bishops, priests, religious and lay people.” These are the words of the Holy Father Benedict XVI in addressing the Bishops of the South 2 Region of Brazil, whom he received in an audience on November 5, on the occasion of their Ad Limina visit.
After recalling that “in the divine idea, the Church is one,” the Pope reflected on that “chosen portion of the People of God” formed by consecrated men and women: “ a religious community enriches the Church (of which it is a living part), first and foremost through love: loving its particular Church, enriching her with its own charism and opening her to a more universal dimension.” Regarding the relationship between the pastoral demands of the particular Church and the specific charism of the religious community, he reflected on the document Mutuae relationes, “which is alien to both the idea of isolation and independence of the religious community in relation to a particular Church, as well as to the idea of its practical absorption into the particular Church."
In concluding his speech, the Pontifcc reflected on the importance of continual and permanent formation for an authentic renewal of any form of consecrated life: “The formative capacity of a religious institute, both in its initial stage and in later phases, is fundamental for any process of renewal.” Lastly, he invited the Bishops to express to transmit “the Pope's heartfelt gratitude to consecrated people, telling them that he prays for them, and that he particularly recalls the elderly and sick, and those going through moments of crisis, solitude, suffering or confusion, as well as the young who today knock at their doors and ask to be allowed to commit themselves to Jesus Christ through radical dedication to the Gospel." (SL) (Agenzia Fides 6/11/2010)
