By Christopher Wells
Pope Francis met Monday morning with members of six religious congregations – Minims, Clerics Regular Minor, Augustinian Sisters of Divine Love, Clerics of Saint Viator, Reparatrix Sisters of the Sacred Heart and Missionary Sisters of Saint Anthony Mary Claret – who are in Rome for General or Provincial Chapters.
At the beginning of the encounter, the Holy Father asked them how many novices they have – and warned them that, without “children,” their orders will die. “I ask this,” he said, “because it is asking about the future of your congregations.”
Pope Francis went on to highlight two aspects of the spiritual life of consecrated men and women: beauty and simplicity.
The grace and beauty of God’s face
The histories of each order, the Pope said, “are stories of beauty, for in them, the grace and beauty of God’s face shines forth.”
He invited his audience to “take up the witness” of their founders, who “were able to perceive this beauty and to transmit it in different ways according to the needs of their times.”
“It is up to you”, he said, “to continue, as they did, to seek out and spread the beauty of Christ in the concrete circumstances of today’s world.”
Simplicity: choosing what is essential
Pope Francis went on to note that the founders of the various orders “chose what is essential … and renounced what is superfluous.” In this way, he said, “they allowed themselves to be shaped daily by the simplicity of God’s love shining forth in the Gospel.”
He invited consecrated men and women to pray for “the gift of simplicity” as they prepare for their Chapters, calling on them to “strip themselves” of whatever might prove an obstacle to “listening attentively and preserving harmony” in their discernment.
By doing so, Pope Francis said, they will be able to understand the needs of the present moment and “make the best decisions for the future.”
A great mission
The Pope went on to highlight the religious commitments to poverty and obedience, which allows them to undertake the “great mission” given them by God the Father.
And he reminded them of the necessity of prayer, especially prayer before Christ in the tabernacle; prayer which must come “from the heart” and which “moves us forward in the way of the Lord.”
Prayer for vocations
Pope Francis concluded his remarks with words of gratitude and encouragement, before concluding with an admonition to pray for vocations. “It is necessary for you to have successors who will carry your charisms forward,” he said, adding, “Pray, pray! And be attentive to formation, so that it is good formation.”
