On February the 2nd, Feast of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple, we celebrate the World Day for Consecrated Life that Pope John Paul II established 25 years ago. This celebration invites to present to the Lord the dedication and service of many consecrated men and women, a living presence of Christ in the midst of our world and, at the same time, prompts us to continue carrying out the mission we have received and sharing each day with our brothers and sisters the light of the Risen Lord that illuminates all darkness.
The motto of the XXV Day of Consecrated Life of this year 2021 has been: «Consecrated life, a parable of fraternity in a wounded world». In the message that, on this occasion, the Congregation for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life sent to all consecrated people, we find a constant reference to the Encyclical “Fratelli Tutti” written by Pope Francis and inspired in Saint Francis of Assisi; through it, the Pope invites us to operate together to rekindle in all «an universal aspiration to fraternity» and “to dream together” (n. 8) so that “in the face of present-day attempts to eliminate or ignore others, we may be able to respond with a new vision of fraternity and social friendship (n. 6). This Encyclical is a precious gift for every form of consecrated life that, without hiding the many wounds that affect fraternity, may find in it the roots of its prophecy.
In our community in Rome, we celebrated the Consecrated Life Day´s Eucharist together with our Capuchin Tertiary Brothers of the General Curia renewing our consecration to the Lord, in the Church and within our charismatic family at the service of our discarded, most vulnerable, injured and abandoned brothers, at the edge of the existence path.
We tried to express the very motto of this day through the following signs:
- A lighted lamp: through it we manifested that we are urged to be the light received from the Lord, a “light to enlighten the nations”, in the very realities we live;
- A skein of wool that, once woven, creates a network, intertwining the fraternity: through it we asked Mary, an expert weaver, to accompany us in our follow-up and dedication as consecrated persons and we gave thanks for the gift of the brothers;
- A poster presenting some of our world wounds: through it we expressed that, together with Mary, the offering Virgin, our Mother of Sorrows whose soul was pierced by a sword, we feel called to be a balsam and a compassionate and merciful presence for our brothers and sisters whom we accompany and serve.
At the end of the liturgy of the Word, holding in our hands our lit lamps, we renewed our commitment to live in obedience, poverty and chastity and we prayed to the Lord that He may be the “All” of our lives and to give credibility to our missionary announcement, as men and women of solidarity, communion and love for the others.
After the Eucharist, we shared the meal in an atmosphere of authentic joy and brotherhood. With the words of our Founding Father, Luis Amigó: Let us give thanks to God for all!