YOUNG CONSECRATED World Meeting for Young Consecrated Men and Women 15/19 September 2015 Vatican City Rome
16 September: Listening to the Calling Programme Wake up the World Gospel, Prophecy, Hope Master, where do you live? Come and see (Jn. 1,38-39) Like a Pencil in God s Hand In the Church, the place for hearing and meeting Question and Answer Period Workshops/Eucharist Card. João Braz de Aviz Archbishop José Rodríguez Carballo Fr. Fabio Ciardi, OMI Sr. Mary Melone, SFA Celebrate and Witness - Prayer of Praise, Adoration and Intercession. Going forth together in mission and contemplating beauty 17 September: In the Heart of Fraternity Living Together and Being United (Ps.133, 1) The Biblical Roots of religious fraternity A Church in Bethany. Family, Faith and Witness Audience with Pope Francis Workshops/Eucharist Fr. Paul Bere, SJ Sr. Junkal Guevara, RJM Celebrate and Witness - Prayer of Praise, Adoration and Intercession. Going forth together in mission and contemplating beauty 18 September: Humanity s Anguishes and Hopes Mission as the mysticism of drawing close (EG 272) in the light of the Scriptures The Mission of Consecrated Life in the Church Today: a socio-environmental commitment Passing Through the World, Doing Good: Instruments of God s Love Wake up the World Question and Answer Period Workshops/Eucharist Fr. Andrzej Wodka, CSSR Sr. Maria Inés Vieira Ribeiro, MAD Fr. Fabio Ciardi, OMI Card. Óscar Andrés Rodríguez Maradiaga, SDB In St Peter s Square Wake Up the World Music and Witnessing 19 September: Within the Church Communion Colloquium Final Message Card. João Braz de Aviz Archbishop José Rodríguez Carballo Eucharistic Celebration in St. Peter s Basilica - Presider: Card. João Braz de Aviz
Sharing of Ursuline (Roman Union) participants Sr Amy Cynthia The, Province of Indonesia I am grateful for the grace of God which I have received as an Ursuline of the Roman Union and for the opportunity of attending the international meeting for young consecrated men and women. It was my first time in Rome. I never dreamed that I would be in Vatican City in the middle of the Year of Consecrated Life and staying in our Generalate. God is merciful. During those days, I met many young consecrated persons, both men and women, from many countries and congregations. We were there to spend time together and to look at our vocation as consecrated persons. It was an amazing moment because we came from different countries, cultures and languages, but we felt united in Christ. There were several activities in which we spent time together such as the audience with Pope Francis and the conferences with some expert speakers, sharing in small groups, visiting many chapels and churches in Rome to pray and adore Jesus in the Eucharist. I also met a few Indonesian sisters who live in Rome. We shared our consecrated life, our situations in Rome and Indonesia, and strengthened each other. During the small group workshops, we shared about our religious life, especially the challenges, the obstacles and the joy of prayer, community and service. I had time to meet and get to know many new friends from other countries. They allowed me not only to meet them personally and say hello but also to know a little bit about their congregations, their cultures and their customs. I was glad to see Pope Francis in person and very near me. Previously I had seen him on television. He is a simple person. I was touched when he talked to participants with simple questions, Where are you from?, What is your name?, What is your congregation? He greeted them personally. I felt that I saw Jesus in the Pope, and I was very amazed. It interested me that Pope Francis said: the ability to warm hearts does not come from books; it comes from your heart. If your heart is aflame with love for Jesus Christ, you are a good evangelizer. It is true. If the heart is burning with Christ s love, a person will become simple and open to others. The Pope also said No to narcissism, to looking at oneself. And yes, on the contrary, to what strips away all narcissism, yes to adoration. And I think that this is one of the points we must carry forward. We all pray, we all give thanks to the Lord, we ask for favours, we praise the Lord. The Pope asked us the question: Do we adore the Lord? Do you, men and women religious, have the capacity to adore the Lord?...Be men and women of adoration. I experienced meeting God through people and activities during the meeting. This made me admire the great goodness and generosity of God who gives to His church and to consecrated persons. I thank God for my calling as a consecrated person. I also feel more love in my choice as an Ursuline Sister. One unforgettable experience was the time to meet and know young Ursulines of the Roman Union from many countries. Although we used different languages and sometimes did not understand each other because of languages, we felt a unity as daughters of Saint Angela Merici. We laughed a lot together. I would like to thank Sr. Edith Watu, Sr. Agatha Linda Chandra and the Provincial Councillors of Indonesia who gave me the opportunity of attending this meeting. Thank you also to Mother Cecilia Wang, the General Council, and the Generalate Community who received us with generosity of heart. May God bless you all with His great grace. United in prayer.
Sr Grete Traußnig, Province of Slovenia I was very happy to be able to participate in this worldwide meeting of consecrated men and women. Because of my novitiate experience (in the European novitiate), going to Rome will for me always be a kind of coming home. For me it was a joy that despite a tight schedule I found some time to visit the novitiate. The organizers of the Vatican, the staff and the many volunteers really deserve a big THANK YOU! It is a lot of work to organize so well for more than 5000 people. The sharing with brothers and sisters from so many different countries, congregations and charisms was a special, joyful and uniting experience for me. I found the presentations of Cardinal Braz de Aviz and Fr Fabio Ciardi practical and close to our everyday life, and with some humor. Their topic was community life as the only way to spiritual growth and the way to know, deepen, value and love our Founders and their charism; and thus to live it more fully. The audience with Pope Francis, was however something that was the most beautiful and touching for me in this week. Do you know how to adore the Lord?, he asked us. We should be men and women of adoration, who are before our Eucharistic Lord. Not asking for something, thanking for something, praying, but simply adoring Him for his own sake, for His beauty and goodness. Besides his natural and sympathetic way of speaking about our communities, I was touched with a deep and exceptional peace by the way Pope Francis addressed us sisters. In our times, where there is so much confusion and disorientation through gender ideologies and a wrong understanding of what it means to be a woman, to be feminine, the pope, so simply and with so much love made a clear statement about the role of consecrated women in the Church: We should not lose, but witness to the tender maternity of the church, he said. A sister is an icon of Mother Church and of Mother Mary. You have truly this role in the Church. Do not forget this: Always on the front line, but like this! I felt that, with these words, he restored the real meaning and beauty of the word: feminine. He concluded this topic adding, Sisters are the spouses of Jesus Christ and they draw all their strength from there, before the Tabernacle. The experiences of this week were so rich that I could still write more pages about it, but I am limited to one page Therefore, I only want to conclude here with thanking all the sisters who made it possible to participate in that meeting and for the wonderful hospitality of our sisters in the Generalate, who cared so well for all our needs. THANKS BE TO GOD
Sr Herlina Helena Simanjorang, Province of Indonesia First, I would like to say thank you very much for everything. Truly, I am very grateful for being invited to take part in this meeting, especially for the opportunity of meeting Ursulines from other countries who were also at the meeting. It was an amazing and happy occasion. Each morning in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican we listened to the keynote speeches on vocation, community life and mission. We gathered to celebrate the beauty of our own vocation through sharing our reality, desires, wishes and expectations. In the afternoon, we were divided into language groups in various locations in Rome and had the opportunity to express and share our experience based on the material presented. In the evenings, we chose from various itineraries offered such as: the Path of Encounter (helping socio-ecclesial organizations, like Caritas, St Egidio Community, Talitha Kum), the Path of Adoration, Praise, Intercession, the Path of Beauty (visits of the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel), or the Path of Announcement (evangelization and witness). The second day was beautiful when Pope Francis came to the meeting and spoke realistically, humanly, simply and in a very touching way. He urged us as consecrated men and women to choose true freedom which comes from the Spirit and not from worldliness, to nurture great dreams of God and to have a heart burning with love. The Pope s final message was to be men and women of adoration. This led me to a personal reflection in order to build a deeper relationship with God in silence. May the Holy Spirit lead us to follow St. Angela s spirituality. In living our vision and mission, we will work together with others through prayer and action, signs of the courage to be in communion, avoiding gossip. Pastoral conversion will lead us towards mutual encounter and adequate responses for the needs of humanity today. Our community will be a welcoming home for everyone to proclaim the kingdom of God. Soli Deo Gloria.
Sr Małgorzata Niemiec, Province of Poland During the meeting for young religious in Rome we had the opportunity to think of how we can reply to Pope Francis challenge: Wake up the world! What was most important for me was that we could meet people who wanted to be God s people from many different nations and cultures. We could share our life, our hopes and our problems. The meeting opened my heart and helped me to see the Church, my vocation and my mission in a different way. The meeting with the Holy Father touched me very deeply, especially his response to our question about being faithful in our world considering our social conditions and the culture of the inconstancy. The Pope said that there is a problem of comfort in the consecrated life. Our heart must be open to listen to the Lord, to dialogue with superiors, the community, and the Church. What he said about forgiveness was very strong for me. He said that the biggest sin in our community is not being able to forgive, that gossip is like terrorism and can destroy our community life. I took these words to heart. Another thing which I carry in my heart is that we must be women and men of ADORATION and be first in LOVE. I have many experiences from these days but I want to share with you what I recognize in a new way, that I, and we as a people who follow Jesus, must change our thinking and remember that God needs people, not works, and we must take care of the Kingdom of God. However this requires being courageous and ready for something new, ears and a heart open to the Holy Spirit. I pray for this for myself and for all of us. I am very thankful that I was able to participate in this meeting. Praise the Lord! Sr Růžena Svačinová, Province of Czecho-Moravia This Meeting of Young Consecrated Persons in Rome was an important time for me and getting to know our Generalate was also a good experience. The most rewarding point of the whole meeting was the audience with Pope Francis who told us about his own vocation through a confession to a Salesian priest. One of our questions to the Holy Father was about our fear of whether we will be able to persevere in our vocation when we live in this culture of the makeshift and temporary. The Holy Father said that we must not be a part of this culture because God has a culture of definitiveness. He sent His Son to all people forever, not only for one generation or nation nor for a while, but for all and forever! Pope Francis recommended that we read the Fathers of the Desert to know what perseverance is The Holy Father s words about the martyrs in Iraq and Syria were very impressive. He received a little cross from a priest from Iraq; this cross had belonged to another Iraqi priest who was murdered for Jesus. We could see that the pope has all these Christians in his heart and is thinking of them a lot. His compassion showed us that Holy Father isn t only a title, but he really has a fatherly heart and feelings for suffering Christians.
Sr Mária Pavla Hudáčeková, Province of Slovakia I am very thankful and happy that I could meet my Ursuline sisters from other countries and take part in the meeting of consecrated men and women with them. I was very touched by the audience with Pope Francis. I felt that he spoke to my heart, to my situation, as a caring father who wants to help his daughter. He spoke about the lack of forgiveness in our communities and the gossip, which is like a terrorism that destroys our communities. Pope Francis also spoke about the mission of consecrated women in the Church. We should reveal the motherly face of the Church, through tenderness, motherhood and love. He spoke about memory, that we should remember our first meeting with the Lord, our vocation. At the end Pope Francis warned of narcissism. We should seek the opposite, adoration: You are the Lord. We should be adoring men and women. I have reflected on these words many times. We had an opportunity to share our experiences living the vows, community life and mission in the international groups. I was surprised by the number of vocations from the countries of Asia and Africa. The face of the Church is changing. Also our travels by bus were opportunities to share and to enjoy that we all belong to God. Every holy Mass, every place with Jesus in the Eucharist was for me time to give thanks to God and to pray for many intentions. In their talks, Cardinal Braz de Aviz, the Prefect, and Archbishop José Rodríguez Carballo said that what is most important is our intimate relationship with Christ, that we consecrated men and women are called to be communities of humanity, forgiveness and love, and we are also called to cooperate with the other Institutes to realize the mission which we have in the Church. We also visited the European Novitiate community at the Generalate and shared with the sisters. Mother Cecilia, thank you very much for your invitation to this meeting. I am also very grateful to all my sisters at the Generalate, who welcomed us, talked with us and cared about us with love. May God bless you and reward all your love!
Sr Oksana Grynchyshyn, Province of Poland During our meeting I experienced the church community as very diverse and open. Already on the first evening I saw how different my idea about the Church today was from the real Church community. Many times I have heard that the number of Christians and vocations in Europe is decreasing and that it is sad. At the meeting I saw this reality, but this was not the cause of sorrow. I realized that a grain of wheat is dying in one part of the world, but much life and a new spring is appearing in other places: Africa, Asia... the Church is alive and is full of hope, joy and energy. For me the cultural differences, languages, and different clothes worn by us religious were something beautiful and enriching. They do not prevent us from being together and being enriched by one another by sharing the joy of a consecrated person. During some of the conferences presented to us and during the audience with the Holy Father, the topic of community came up. The content of these conferences was very interesting, real and concrete. I will share a thought that is important for me personally. At the end of the conference, one consecrated person asked a question about fraternal admonition. The bishop said that we have to be careful on that matter. It is not enough to come and tell the person the truth. He said: "When you go to your brother/sister to make a remark/give him/ her a warning, first think whether you are ready to give your life for him/her or not. If yes, you are ready; then go to him/her. These words of the bishop gave me the answer to many questions which are in my heart about the issue of dialogue in community. First is LOVE, and we, as the Holy Father tells us, have to be the first one in Love. Sr Atanázia Dobošová, Province of Slovakia A few thoughts on the world meeting for young consecrated men and women: I have often heard that our vocation is a gift. I am familiar with this idea. My vocation is a gift for me. I am thankful to my Lord. However, I now see each vocation as a gift: the vocation of my sisters - those I get on with and those I don t. I take to heart the words of Archbishop José Rodríguez Carballo: Take courage, be strong! Remain, be faithful! And bear fruit; wake up the world! The Lord called me to share his life and his mission. I am not consecrated for my own sake, but for others. Love is our mission. Pope Francis said: I am grateful for the testimony of consecrated women. You women are always in the front line. You are mothers, and you are close to the people. The nun is an icon of Mother Church and of Mother Mary. This is your mission in the Church to incarnate her act of kindness, motherhood and love. You stay in the front line with this mission. Pope Francis said that for consecrated persons adoration is important. I was happy to meet the sisters from my Province, Zdenka, Veronika and Sara, and to get to know new sisters from Brazil and Indonesia. Thank you for the invitation, for sharing and for kindness! God bless you!
Sr Sue Cochrane, Province of Australia It was certainly a different experience gathering in Rome for the World Meeting for Young Consecrated Men and Women. People of different cultures and languages came together through their common desire to live out their experience of the love of God in their lives. I found the expression of religious life quite different to my own experience and yet there remains a richness in our diversity. I admired the energy of the younger sisters, who were often out from early morning until late at night participating in the activities offered. As someone who fits more in the 'middle aged' category I found I needed to pace myself more! The talk that had the most impact on me was The Mission of Consecrated Life in the Church Today: a socio-environmental commitment by Sr Maria Inés Vieira Ribeiro M.A.D, the President of the National Conference of Religious of Brazil. The words that have stayed with me were those that called us to be people of tenderness and compassion as well as people of hope. Pope Francis reminded us not to become rigid and to remain open to the Spirit speaking in our lives today. He urged people to dialogue and not to be afraid of disagreements, even with people in leadership. A number of times he recommended that we read Matthew 23 and learn from it how we live. I was impressed that Cardinal Braz de Aviz and Archbishop Carballo were present for all the talks and appreciated the concerns of young religious expressed in their questions which were answered generously and with reflection. I am particularly grateful to the Generalate Community and the Council for welcoming us in Rome and providing abundant hospitality. It was a positive experience of the richness of our internationality. Sr Alžbĕta Ladnarová, Province of Czecho-Moravia I am grateful to God and to the sisters for giving me the possibility of participating in this meeting which brought me joy, new strengths and a widening of my horizons. This happened not only through my presence in the Generalate, but also by the fact of being in the place which gave birth to our Church. I touched the roots of Christianity and met other young religious. I experienced a lot of beautiful moments, but I also became aware of our weaknesses and sinfulness. I knew that despite our efforts to be holy, we are sinners, but I had never thought of the real meaning of that. The Holy Spirit gave me new eyes which help me to see people and things differently. I know why I have to pray to love our Church as well as all my sisters. The common prayer, the conferences and the words of Pope Francis were the source of new inspiration for me. They gave me a stronger motivation in my formation process and pushed me to a greater fidelity in my religious life.
Sr Velarci Coutinho da Cruz, Province of Brazil Being in Rome between September 12 to 20 was a great grace, confirming my call to the Consecrated Life and my desire to serve Jesus and his Church, drinking from the sources of the merician charism. The conferences were imbued with spirituality and truth. I was particularly touched by issues relating to community life, mentioned by many speakers and confirmed by the Holy Father. Speaking about community life, the Pope told us: One of the sins that I often find in community life, among brothers and among sisters, is the inability to forgive. Ah, she will pay for this! I will make her pay for it!... Gossip in a community hinders forgiveness... Gossip is not only a sin... But gossip is also terrorism! Because someone who gossips drops a bomb on the reputation of the other and destroys the other, who cannot defend him- or herself. Forgiveness! Forgiveness was one of three words I had engraved in my heart. Firstly, to forgive myself for, sometimes, consciously or not, having acted as a terrorist in my community; to forgive the people who have done the same to me; to forgive in order to be able to give assistance to others in their fragility. Another strong word was prayer, the capacity to adore. The Holy Father in answer to a question: You young consecrated people are you able to worship the Lord? Our whole life should be a prayer, in order to get to know him, he who loves and calls us. How can I announce someone I do not know? This question takes us to the third word: Testimony. Pope Francis: Consecrated life is sterile, it is not prophetic when it is not truly prophetic, when it does not give witness. These three words: community, forgiveness and witness led me to reflect on how I am living my consecration and what I do to improve our relationships in my community and province. I realize that we have a long way to go and I am also responsible for this process. I assume, therefore, with joy and renewed enthusiasm the mission entrusted to us. Interacting with our sisters of the General Council, the Generalate Community, the Community of the European Novitiate, consecrated young people and all the participants in the World Meeting for Young Consecrated Men and Women made me experience the piacevolezza so dear to St Angela. We benefitted from the care given to one another, this humanity in relationships and I felt very happy to be altogether. I thank our Beloved for the opportunity, and all the sisters who contributed for the good running of that trip. In particular I thank Mother Cecilia who with her simplicity made me feel at home; Sisters Neusimar and Maria José for their attention and for the translation; and Sr. Regina Consolação and the Provincial Council for choosing me to participate in this event.
Sr Marilene Souza Ferreira, Province of Brazil The World Meeting of Young Religious was wonderful. It encouraged us to move on and serve the Lord wholly and with more enthusiasm. We young religious from all over the world spent days together to reflect on the elements essential to our consecrated life: devotion, community life were renewing moments that served to reawaken my vocational path. I was also encouraged by the words of Pope Francis who encouraged us to be brave, strong, determined, and faithful, to produce fruit and to awaken the world. With those words I learned that to follow the paths of the Lord is to renounce that which is not important, to teach and to care, in the realization of the mission left us by Jesus: Go and make disciples. The Pope said that our heart should burn for our mission. In this meeting I received many blessings in meetings with different people. I also had the opportunity of strengthening the bonds of internationality in our Institute. There were moments of true communion with the Lord Jesus, where I could question myself about my relational and spiritual living within my community, my province and my Institute. This made me take again the path of renewal in Christ and with the charism of our foundress Saint Angela, that is, to embrace the merciful love of God. One of the most striking points of the meeting was the discussion about our community life. Those who run from community life are not truly devoted and self-emptying. Without breaking with old structures there is no conversion. Relationship with the other is concrete service in a concrete form. We need humility. The vocation to community life is to follow a person, Jesus, not an idea. In the path of vocation, the company of another is precious because the other is important to me, and I am important to them. It is humility that makes us like this.