JUBILEE OF MERCY: Meeting of the Holy Father Francis with Participants in the Jubilee of Consecrated Life (FULL TEXT: English)

JUBILEE SPECIAL OF MERCY: Feb. 1, 2016

Dear sisters and brothers ,

I prepared a speech for the occasion on the issues of religious life and on the three pillars; there are others, but three important of consecrated life. The first is the prophecy, the other is the proximity and the third is the hope. Prophecy, proximity, hope. I handed the Cardinal Prefect the text, read it because it is a bit 'boring, and I'd rather talk to you than what comes from the heart. Agree?

Religious men and women, that men and women consecrated to the service of the Lord that exercise in the Church this way a strong poverty, a chaste love that leads them to a spiritual fatherhood and motherhood for the whole Church, but in obedience ... this obedience there is always something missing, because it is the perfect obedience of the Son of God, who humbled himself, became man by obedience unto death on the Cross. But there are some of you men and women who live strong obedience, obedience ... - no military, no, no; that is discipline, another thing - an obedience of heart donation.

And this is prophecy. "But you did not want to do something, that one? ..." - "Yes, but according to the rules I have to do this, this and this. And in accordance with this, this and this. And if I see something clear, I talk to the top, with the superior, and, after the dialogue, I obey. " This is the prophecy, against the seed of anarchy, it sows the devil. "What are you doing?" - "I do what I like." The anarchy of the will is the daughter of the devil, is not a child of God. The Son of God was not an anarchist, did not call her to make a resistance force against his enemies; He himself said to Pilate: "If I were a king of this world would call my soldiers to defend myself". But He did the obedience of the Father. He only asked: "Father, please, no, no ... But this cup you do what you want." When you agree to obey something that perhaps many times we do not like ... [makes gesture to swallow] ... you have to swallow that obedience, but it does.

Therefore, the prophecy. The prophecy is telling people that there is a road of happiness, of magnitude, a road that fills you with joy, that is just the way of Jesus. It is the way of being close to Jesus. It is a gift, is a charism prophecy and you must ask the Holy Spirit: that I know of that word, in the right time; me to do that thing in the right time; that my life, the whole, it's a prophecy. Men and women prophets. And this is very important. 'Well, do like everyone else ... ". No. The prophecy is to say that there is something more real, more beautiful, bigger, more good to which we are all called.

Then the next word is near. Consecrated men and women, but not to get away from people and have all the amenities, no, to approach and understand the lives of Christians and non-Christians, the sufferings, the problems, the many things you only understand if a man and a consecrated women become neighbor in the vicinity. "But, Father, I am a cloistered nun, what should I do?". Think of St. Therese of Lisieux, patroness of the missions, which with its fiery heart was next, and the letters he received from the missionaries were closer to the people. Proximity.

Become consecrated does not mean go up one, two, three steps in the company. True, many times we hear parents: "You know Father, I have a daughter, sister, I have a son, brother!". And they say it with pride. And it is true! It is a satisfaction for parents to have their children consecrated, this is true. But consecrated persons is not a status of life that makes me look the other way [detachment]. Consecrated life I must lead to the proximity with people: physical closeness, spiritual, know people. "Oh Father, in my community the Superior gave us permission to go out, in poor neighborhoods with the people ..." - "And in your community, there are older sisters?" - "Yes, yes ... There is the 'infirmary, on the third floor "-" And how many times a day you go to find your nuns, the elderly, who may be your mom or grandmother? "-" But, you know Father, I am very involved in the work and not I can go to ... ". Near! What is the first of a next anointed or consecrated? Brother or sister of the community. This is your first neighbor. And also a close pretty good, with love. I know that in your communities you never talk, never, never ... One way to chatter away. Feel good: not the chatter, chatter terrorism. Because who is a terrorist chatter. It is a terrorist in their own community, as it throws a bomb to speak against this, against that, and then if it goes quiet. Destroys!

Who does this destroys, like a bomb, and he walks away. This, the apostle Santiago said it was perhaps the most difficult virtue, virtue and spiritual human harder to get, to master the language. If you are to say something against a brother or sister, throw a bomb to talk, bite your tongue! Strong! Terrorism in the community, no! "But Father if there is something, a flaw, something to fix?". You say to the person: you have this attitude that bothers me, or not well. Whether or not it is convenient - because sometimes it's not safe - I say it to the person who can fix it, which can solve the problem and no one else. I got it? The rumors do not need. "But in the matter?".

There yes! In public, all I feel you have to say; because there is a temptation not to say things in the chapter, and then out: "Did you see the prioress? Have you seen the abbess? Did you see the top? ... ". But because he did not say in the matter there? ... Is that clear? They are virtues of proximity. And the Saints had this, the Saints had consecrated this. Saint Theresa of the Child Jesus never, ever complained about the work, the nuisance that gave the nun who was to lead to the dining room, every night, from the choir room dining. Never! Why this poor nun was very old, almost paralytic, walked badly, had pain - I know! - It was also a bit 'neurotic ... Never, never went to another sister to say: "But as this bothers." What did he do? He helped her to sit down, brought her napkin, broke bread and made ​​her smile. This is called proximity. Near! If you throw the bomb to a chat in your community, this is not close: this is going to war! This is to get away, this is cause distances, causing anarchy in the community. And if, in this Year of Mercy, each of you could never do the terrorist talkative or chatty, would be a success for the Church, a great success of holiness! Take heart! The proximity.

And then hope. And I confess that cost me so much when see the decline in vocations, when I receive bishops and ask them, 'How many seminarians have? "-" Four, five .... " When you, in your religious communities - male or female - you are a novice, a novice, two ... and the community is aging, aging .... When there are monasteries, great monasteries, and Cardinal Amigo Vallejo [turns to him] he can tell us, in Spain, how many there are, that are brought forward by 4 or 5 little old nuns, until the end ... And to me this is be a temptation that goes against hope: "But, Lord, what happens? Because the belly of the consecrated life becomes so barren? ". Some congregations do the experiment of "artificial insemination". What do they do? Welcome ... "But yes, come, come, come ...". And then the problems we have in there ... No. We must accept with seriousness! It must discern whether this is a true vocation and help it grow. And I think the temptation to lose hope, that gives us this sterility, we must pray more. And pray tirelessly. To me it does so much good to read that passage of Scripture, in which Anne - the mother of Samuel - prayed and asked for a son.

He prayed and he moved his lips, and prayed ... And the old priest, who was a bit 'blind and could not see well, thought she was drunk. But the heart of the woman [God said]: "I want a son." I ask you, your heart, in front of this decline in vocations, pray with this intensity? "Our congregation needs children, our Congregation needs to daughters ...". The Lord has been generous enough not miss his promise. But we have to ask. We have to knock on door of his heart. Because there is a danger - and this is bad, but I have to say - when a religious congregation sees that has no children and grandchildren and is beginning to be more and more small, it sticks to money. And you know that money is the dung of devil. When they can not have the grace to have vocations and children she thinks money will save lives; think of old age and: not miss this, you do not miss that other ... And so there is hope! The only hope is in the Lord! The money do not you ever give. On the contrary: they throw down! I got it?.

I wanted to tell you, instead of reading the report cards that will give the Cardinal Prefect after ...

And thank you so much for what you do. Consecrated persons - each with its own charisma. And I want to emphasize the religious, the nuns. What would the Church be if there were no nuns? That's why I said it once: when you go to the hospital, colleges, parishes, neighborhoods, missions, men and women who gave their lives ... In the last trip to Africa - that's why I told you, I think , in a hearing - I found a nun 83 years, Italian. She told me: "And 'since I was - I do not remember if I said 23 or 26 years - I'm here. I am a nurse in a hospital. " We think the 26 years up to 83! "And wrote to my in Italy that I will not be." When you go to a cemetery and see that there are many religious missionaries died and many sisters died at age 40 because they took the disease, these fevers of those countries, they burned the life ... You say these are saints! These are seeds! We must tell the Lord to come down a bit 'on these cemeteries and see what happened to our ancestors and give us more vocations, because we need it!

Thank you so much for this visit, I thank the Cardinal Prefect, Monsignor Secretary, the Undersecretaries for what you have done in this Year of the Consecrated Life. But, please, do not forget the prophecy of obedience, the closeness, the next most important, the next closest is the brother and sister of the community, and then hope. May the Lord make birth to sons and daughters in your congregations. And pray for me. Thank you!

Speech delivered by the Holy Father :

Dear brothers and sisters,

He's glad to meet you at the end of this year dedicated to the consecrated life.

One day, Jesus, in His infinite mercy, addressed to each and every one of us, and asked us personally: "Come! Follow me! "( Mk 10:21.) If we are here it is because we said "yes". Sometimes it was full endorsement of enthusiasm and joy, sometimes more painful and even uncertain. We still followed, generously letting ourselves be guided by ways that we would not have imagined. We shared moments of intimacy with Him: "Come away by [...] and rest a while '" ( Mark 6:31); moments of service and mission: "You give them something to eat" ( Lk 9:13); even his cross: "If anyone would come after me [...] and take up his cross" ( Lk 9:23). He introduced himself in his relationship with the Father, we have given us his Spirit, has expanded our heart to the measure of his, teaching us to love the poor and sinners. We followed him along, learning by him services, acceptance, forgiveness, fraternal charity. Our consecrated life has meaning because they stay with him and go on the roads of the world carrying him, leads us to Him, makes us be Church, a gift to humanity.

This year we are concluding helped to shine more in the Church the beauty and holiness of the consecrated life, consecrated in intensifying the call for gratitude and joy of the response. Each dedicated and consecrated had the opportunity to have a clearer perception of their identity, and thus to the future with renewed apostolic zeal to write new pages of good, in the wake of the charism of the Founders. We are grateful to the Lord for what He has given us to live in this year so full of initiatives. And I thank the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic life , who prepared and carried out the major events here in Rome and around the world.

The year ends, but continues our commitment to remain faithful to the call received and to grow in love, in the gift, in creativity. So let me leave you three words.

The first is prophecy . It 'your specific. But what prophecy expect from you the Church and the world? You are first called to proclaim with your life even before the words, the reality of God: God say. If at times he is rejected or marginalized or ignored, we must ask ourselves if perhaps we were not quite transparent to his face, showing rather ours. The face of God is a Father "gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, abounding in love '( Ps 103.8.) To make it known you must have a personal relationship with Him; and for this it needs the capacity to worship Him, to grow day after day friendship with him, through a heart to heart talk in prayer, especially in the silent adoration.

The second word that I give you is near . God, in Jesus, has reached out to every man and every woman has shared the joy of the spouses at Cana in Galilee and the anguish of the widow of Nain; He entered the house of Jairus touched by death and in the house of Bethany perfumed with nard; it is loaded into diseases and sufferings, to give his life as a ransom for all. To follow Christ means to go wherever he went; upon himself, like the Good Samaritan, the wounded that we meet along the way; to seek out the lost sheep. Be, as Jesus, close to the people; share their joys and sorrows; show, with our love, fatherly face of God and the Church's maternal caresses. That no one ever will feel distant, detached, closed and therefore sterile. Each of you is called to serve the brothers, according to their charism: who through prayer, those with catechesis, those with education, those with caring for the sick or the poor, those who proclaim the Gospel, those making the different works of mercy. Important thing is not to live for themselves, as Jesus did not live for Himself, but for the Father and for us.

Thus it come to the third word: hope . Testifying God and his merciful love, with the grace of Christ can instill hope in our humanity marked by a number of reasons for anxiety and fear and sometimes tempted to discouragement. You can make people feel the renewing power of the Beatitudes, honesty, compassion; the value of goodness, of simple living, vital, full of meaning. You can nourish the hope in the Church. I think, for example, to ecumenical dialogue. The meeting a year ago between consecrated the various Christian confessions was a good news, which should be carried out. The charismatic and prophetic witness of consecrated life, in its various forms, can help you recognize all closer together and back to full communion.

Dear brothers and sisters, in your daily apostolate, do not be influenced by age or number. What matters most is the ability to repeat the "yes" to the initial call of Jesus that continues to be felt, ever anew, in every season of life. His call and our response keeps our hope alive. Prophecy , proximity , hope . Living in this way, you will have joy in our hearts, hallmark of the followers of Jesus and even more so of the consecrated. And your life will be attractive to many, many, to the glory of God and the beauty of the Bride of Christ, the Church.

Dear brothers and sisters, I thank the Lord for what you are and do in the Church and in the world. I bless you and entrust you to our Mother. And please, do not forget to pray for me.

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