Redemptorists

Choosing a path, discerning our vocation is not always easy. Many challenges may present themselves and it is often difficult to be clear about the steps to take until, effectively, “getting there”. For those who choose the religious life is no different. Get to know the vocational and formative journey of the Redemptorist Missionaries in eight steps:

1- Feeling the call of God for the religious life

The understanding of the vocation happens through personal growth and maturation as a Christian. This is done through constant prayer, participation in the community and the Eucharist. These three pillars are the basis for the young person to respond consciously to the call of God.

2- To know about the various charisms of the Church

The Catholic Church is rich in gifts and charisms. Many congregations, institutes, and communities are scattered throughout Brazil and the world, each with a different history and mission. It is important for the young person to search for these religious families and to know those that arouse their interest according to the areas of activity. Discerning is knowing!

3- Making contact with the Redemptorist Vocation Ministry

When realizing that the Redemptorist Religious Life can be his way, it is necessary to make contact with the Vocation Ministry to begin the vocational accompaniment. In this first contact, you are asked for some basic information such as age, place of residence and schooling. With these data in hand, the Redemptorist Congregation sends the young person to the nearest Redemptorist unit.

4- Start the vocational accompaniment

After analyzing the data, the candidate is invited to initiate the vocational accompaniment. This is a great opportunity for the vocation to know better the charism and the mission of the Redemptorist Congregation. Usually this process lasts approximately one year and is done through internet training and participation in vocational meetings.

5- Participate in vocational meetings

The meetings are fundamental for the continuity of the discernment process. These are unique moments in which young people have the chance to live with Redemptorist Missionaries for a few days, sharing experiences and getting to know more closely the routine of a formation house. It is important to remember that no one joins the Redemptorist Congregation without having participated in vocation meetings.

6- Joining the Redemptorist formation

After the accompaniment, being considered fit to experience the formative experience, the candidate is welcomed in a house of formation. The long-awaited moment of entering the seminary has arrived. Vocational discernment continues throughout the formative process, which lasts an average of 10 years.

7- To assume the Redemptorist mission as a goal of life

Every new day is a new opportunity to learn more about the community life and about the Redemptorist Mission. This is the purpose of the formative journey, which assists in the confirmation of the Redemptorist Vocation.

8- Profess the vows of poverty, chastity, obedience and perseverance

Having experienced all the stages of the formative process, the young person consecrates himself through the evangelical vows as a Redemptorist Missionary. In this way, some opt for the priestly life and others for being Redemptorist Brothers. All share the same charism and spirituality. The difference between these two options is the ministerial question, the service – Sacrament of the Order – which receives the priesthood. A Missionary takes the vows of poverty, chastity, obedience and the vow of perseverance.

After two long years of working on the feature documentary film, "WHO IS MY NEIGHBOR?". I am glad to have a 'debut screening' at the National Shrine of St. John Neumann, Philadelphia, on April 30, 2019. The event was organized by the Shrine Center along with the inauguration of the new museum. A big thanks to the Rector and community at the National Shrine and Patrick Hayes for organizing the screening. We had few small screenings organized in New York from May 1st to 4th as well. There was another screening at St. Andrew the Apostle Church, Brooklyn. Our final pre-screening was at Liguori Publications, St. Louis on May 6th 2019

I want to thank you for all your support and prayers for this project and request your continued support as we take this film to the intended audience and raise awareness and build a positive and Christian response to the crisis of immigration and refugees globally. I can't miss mentioning my good friend and Chief Editor of the Film Vivek Rao Nipani who dedicated two years for this project.

Want to thank all my #Redemptorist family and #LMU folks for their help and support.

Check out our Website for more details and screening opportunities: www.whoismyneighbormovie.com

WITNESSES OF THE REDEEMER:

In Solidarity for Mission to a Wounded World

Dear Confreres, Sisters, Redemptorist Associates, and Friends,

“Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit through the wilderness, being tempted there by the devil for forty days” (Luke 4:1)

With these words from the Gospel on the First Sunday of Lent, we enter into our “journey of conversion” in preparation for the celebration of the Paschal Triduum of Christ’s passion death and resurrection (Pope Francis, Message for Lent 2019). This journey of conversion is a constitutive part of our Redemptorist identity and vocation: we are called to a constant and continual process of conversion of heart and renewal of the mind (cf. Const. 40, 41). We make this journey not only as individual disciples but also as communities of missionaries (Const. 42).

This year, in his Message for Lent, Pope Francis offers us some reflections which are very much in harmony with our Sexennial Theme. He invites us to recognize and touch the wounds of the world which cry out for Redemption. To do so, we must also recognize the wounds in ourselves, in those to whom we are sent, and in the society in which we live. Pope Francis recognizes that the root of these wounds is sin, which “has disrupted our communion with God, with others, and with creation itself… this rupture of communion with God likewise undermines our harmonious relationship with the environment in which we are called to live, so that the garden has become a wilderness.” With Jesus, may the Spirit lead us into this wilderness to touch and heal these wounds which continue to afflict us all as well as our common home.

The Holy Father invites us to “embody the paschal mystery more deeply and concretely in [our] personal, family and social lives, above all by fasting, prayer, and almsgiving.” How can we, as members of the Redemptorist Family, engage in these three traditional Lenten practices with renewed meaning and hope?

This Lent, let us pray to see the world through the eyes of God, as God sees the world. To develop this contemplative gaze, we need to take time to be still and quiet and to ponder God’s word and God’s world. This appreciative gaze can deepen our solidarity with others, and with the wounded earth which cries for healing.

Fasting teaches us to resist the temptation to devour everything we desire. May our Lenten fast help us develop the self-discipline and control to treat the world, and others, with respect and care. Perhaps we can ‘fast’ from some activity which damages our environment – walking or taking public transport rather than a car; using resources such as water and energy more efficiently; recycling our waste more carefully.

Almsgiving is the traditional Christian virtue of sharing with others in need. It reminds us that we are called to be the ‘Iglesia in salida’, the ‘Church-going-forth’, as Pope Francis reminds us. This Lent, we give not only from our financial resources but let us try to share our talents and time, our service and creativity. We can care for a garden, welcome a refugee family, support an environmental cause, promote justice and peace, prepare for the Synod on the Amazon. Lent invites us to solidarity with this wounded world which is our common home.

May this Lent be a time of conversion and grace for all of us, and a time of healing and reconciliation for our wounded world. May Mary, Alphonsus, and all our blessed Redemptorist confreres walk with us on this journey into the Paschal Mystery.

In Christ our Redeemer,

Michael Brehl, C.SS.R.

Superior General

(Rome, March 6, 2019, Prot. No 0000 071/2019)

2019.03.06 Message for Lent by Fr. Michael

Among the essential values of our Redemptorists Constitutions are that of fraternal and apostolic life.  Christ, the Redeemer is at the center of our Vita Apostolica (Const. 1 and 21), that is, our communal and ministerial lives.  We are invited to a process of continual conversion.

Our Constitutions express that, besides being evangelical and theological values, our community life, is essential for us as we respond to our specific mission in the Church, that is, the announcement of Abundant Redemption in Jesus.  For this reflection, instead of repeating the values of our Redemptorist communities as expressed in our Constitutions, and in order to offer us some different criteria, we place our Redemptorist community values in a broader perspective of the values, characteristics, and attractiveness of Vibrant Religious Communities.  This is presented in the spirit of reflections offered by Pope Francis who has indicated to Religious communities that for vocation promotion the attractiveness of our lives, which is a reflection of the fidelity to our particular charism, is the most effective way of doing vocation ministry.

Among the varied sources for this presentation are the reflections of the Puerto Rican Conference of Religious, the reflections that have come from the Latin American Conference of Religious (CLAR) and its ex-president, Sister Mercedes Casas, F.Sp.S., and reflections offered by Father John Fullenbach, a Divine Word Missionary who teaches at the Gregorian Pontifical University in Rome.

As we go through these values and characteristics of healthy and vibrant religious communities, you may want to reflect on St. Alphonsus and the beginnings of our own Congregation.  This reflection may give light as to the conversion we all must undertake in fidelity to our original foundational charism.

Healthy and Vibrant Religious Communities:

1.     Great confidence in the Holy Spirit: 

An example which is even foundational with us Redemptorists is, when faced with new missionary initiatives, the first question we should ask ourselves is not whether we have the money or the personnel, but rather, is the Holy Spirit calling us to do this work considering our faithful reading the signs of the times and our Charism?

2.       Concern about the Spiritual Growth of each member, each Community and of the Institute as a whole:

Repeatedly members of our own community have been in crisis, and the last to even recognize and accompany our brothers are the members of the same community.  One can speculate that perhaps so many would not have abandoned Redemptorist Religious Life if there were more interest and concern in the communities.

3.     Share the Experiences of their Spiritual Life:

Vibrant religious communities share their spiritual life experiences at least once a week.  They share what is called their second conversion (“New Wine in New Wineskins,” # 35 a).  The first conversion is the special moments, for example, professions, priesthood ordination, etc., when the consecrated person publicly declares his radical following of the Lord.  It’s a special occasion when the religious are supported and admired by family, fellow religious and friends.  The second conversions are the re-confirmation of this commitment after struggles, confusion, disappointments, disillusionments, disagreements with superiors, confreres, associates, health, emotional and other personal issues.  They are sessions of mutual support, edification, understanding and authentic brotherhood.  These second conversion experiences and sharing are not based on theoretic knowledge, but rather on personal and communal conversion.

4.     “PASSIONATE” about Jesus and His Kingdom:

These communities inspire and edify others by their “hearts on fire.”

5.     Do not “collapse” when faced with harsh realities:

These communities generate dreams of hope.  They communicate that the presence of Consecrated Life is necessary, valuable and possible, even in western, more secularized societies.

6.     Generate in others the desire to follow the Lord in this lifestyle:

By their joy, freshness, enthusiasm, and generosity, religious communicate that their vocation and option for Consecrated life is the best that could have happened to them in their lives.

7.     They are “new wine in new wine-skins”:

Vibrant Religious Communities are the “new wine” which the Spirit is producing in Consecrated Life and they generate the possibility of new “wineskins” (containers) that are more transparent, tolerant, human, and humanizing.

8.      A refined sensibility:

These communities enjoy a refined sensibility for experiencing the joys and the cries of humanity.  They generate a new mystical orientated to action (Karl Rahner).

9.      Tell the truth in love:

Because they do not conform with the establishment, they generate a more authentic and committed prophecy through Consecrated Life that is lighter in structures and more audacious.

10.  Recognize their limits, their littleness, their fragility:

They give witness to a more evangelical manner of being in the world, from the power of the unimportant and the ordinary, where the protagonist is the Spirit (Cf. the experience of St. Paul, II Cor. 12, 7 – 10).

11.  Their constant point of reference is the Word of God:

Vibrant communities faithfully re-read God´s Word from the perspective of their charismatic legacy and the abandoned poor.

12.  Maintain their attention on the cries in creation:

These communities care for life and our “common home.”   They care and foster a world that is more inhabitable physically and fraternally, where all feel that they are brothers and sisters.

13.  Generate new ways of thinking and being present in today’s world:

Vibrant communities know how to use skillfully and creatively social networking, without losing their capacity for solitude, silence and intimacy and concrete attention with those with whom they share daily their lives and mission.

14.  Promote continued education:

Besides promoting continued formation by workshops, courses and higher studies, vibrant and healthy communities emphasize and structure continued formation in their local communities.  (Pope Francis has commented that continued formation is not just a matter of participating in workshops and courses, for example on the larger communal level, but also must be done on the local community level.  He goes on to say that communities that do not have continued formation at the community level have no right to promote vocations to their Institutes!)

Besides these fourteen considerations of vibrant religious communities, something should be said about the leadership in this model of healthy and vibrant religious communities.

We know that vibrant and healthy communities need quality, faithful and credible leadership.  Also, quality, faithful and credible leadership needs vibrant and healthy communities.  The two play off each other and offer our charism the dynamism and effectiveness for the building up of God´s Kingdom.

Leaders (superiors) of healthy and vibrant religious communities are characterized by their simplicity and humility.  They, personally and communally, exercise their authority as did Jesús!  Even corporations have come to realize how much more effective and productive they are and can become with humble and encouraging leaders.   This is because the humble leader listens and promotes the talents of the employees and the shared responsibility for the corporation and its growth into the future.  The members of these corporations even begin to imitate their leaders.

Also, essential to leadership is a VISION.

We, Redemptorists, remember the retreat given to the Capitulars of the last General Chapter by the Cardenal of Manila, Cardenal Tagle.  The Cardenal described a healthy and evangelical vision as one that:

– elevates our focus (we look upward and concentrate on the important and significant)

– orientates a direction (there are objectives and goals to be reached), and,

– ignites, excites the heart.  On this last point he, jokingly but meaningfully commented, that the vision should not only much touch the heart and our emotions but also provokes tear in our eyes.  He mentioned how many visions provoke tears, but not from emotion, rather from disappointment!

Some possible questions that may enrich our reflections are:

1.      What do you think about the quality of your own experience of community life?

2.    Would you characterize your Religious local and Provincial Community as “vibrant”?

3.      What can you do to improve your community life and its mission?

Fr. Manuel Rodríguez Delgado, C.Ss.R.

General Secretariat of Formation

There are many indicators that we live in times that cause much anxiety for Consecrated Religious and Consecrated Religious Life.  This is true not only in the Western world but throughout the 82 countries where we as a Redemptorist family are present and exercise our ministry of Abundant Redemption.

Father General, Michael Brehl, in the introduction to the final documents of the XXV General Chapter wrote, “It is true that it is a time of epochal change, of a clash of civilizations, uncertainty, and fear…”  The Capitulars of this same chapter in their message to the Congregation wrote, “…although Consecrated Life is going through an important crisis…”

What are some of the elements that after 50 years since the Second Vatican Council, whose objective was the renewal of the life of the Church including Religious Life, seem to cause this anxiety among us?  The following are a few:

• The reality of the aging of our members.
• There has been a drastic reduction of vocations and the abandonment of Consecrated Religious Life by many, not only Redemptorists.
• The difficulty in maintaining traditional works (colleges and universities, hospitals, homes, parishes, pastoral and social centers, missions) due to lack of personnel and lack of economic resources.
• On a personal and internal level, as we begin a new quadrennial period, we may be feeling anxious thinking of the new quadrennial appointments and at the same time feeling overwhelmed by the ambitious agenda of restructuring and reconfiguration.

We may be thinking, “What are my (intelligent, wise, prudent, inspirited, saintly) superiors going to do with me now?”  In my personal experience, at times I thought them very wise and inspired, but admittedly, at other times, (as I grow older) I have felt very confused bytheir decisions!!!  “Where are they coming from?”  “How dare they challenge my comfort zone!!!”

• At the same time, new lay ecclesial movements are emerging that have hierarchical support, while Religious Life seems to be dying.
• Worthy of mention as a cause for anxiety is all that has happened as far as the protection of minors and vulnerable adults, which is an issue that is far from over and will continue to affect us well into the future.
• Perhaps another source of anxiety is the giving back to the dioceses missions that authentically conformed to our Redemptorist charism and even the sale of properties which have been a part of our Redemptorist identity and patrimony for many years (please see the commentaries added at the end as a note to this article).

All of this has led to the question being asked, has the time of Religious Life already passed in the Church?

Causes:

Quite justifiably we can ask, what are the fundamental causes of what can be considered a crisis (cf. XXV General Chapter)?  I propose that we can too easily resort to very simplistic and superficial reasons, for example, a perceived lack of missionary zeal, availability, commitment, authentic and joyous testimony of its members.

Without this being totally false, this is not the ultimate explanation of the current crisis.

We must recognize that there are historical and structural roots of the current crisis of the Church, for example, the change of epoch (not an epoch of change as explained by John Paul II), accompanied by new paradigms and the profound social, economic, technical, cultural, and religious changes that society has undergone in recent decades that naturally affect Religious Life.

As we do some introspection, another dimension to the cause of the today’s crisis in the Church is one that has been pointed out by several theological and spiritual writers and which touch us directly as a clerical Congregation, that is, the overcoming of models that have been called the “exaggerated centering on the priest, the temple and the altar”.

Our Response Founded on Our Faith and Redemptorist Charism and Spirituality:

As Religious, we cannot be overcome by these profound changes; we cannot use the expression of Pope Benedict XVI on renouncing the pontificate, which can be a summary of what is being experienced by many during these global changes, “I have no more strength.”

When we reflect with faith on the history of salvation, on the history of our Congregation, and on our own personal histories, we discover that God has constantly been surprising us.

The Scriptures which we prayed and reflected on this past Advent and Christmas Season spoke to us of many of God’s surprises.  When Our Savior became man and arrived among us two thousand years ago, the only ones who knew about it were Mary, Joseph, some shepherds and Kings from the Orient.  God, our Father, surprised mankind with the special gift of the birth of his only Son.

God surprised Saint Alphonsus leading him to be the founder of a Religious Missionary Congregation.  God surprised the Congregation inspiring St. Clement to take the Congregation beyond the Alps, and from there it has spread to every continent in the world.

If we honestly look at our own personal history, we find God, our Father, constantly surprising us and intervening in our lives, our vocation, and our mission.

God continues to surprise us but needs that we put ourselves in his hands and ALLOW HIM TO SURPRISE US personally and collectively.

The causes of anxiety for us as a Religious family are many and justified.  Nevertheless, unhealthy anxiety and worry are certainly contrary to what God´s wants for us, that is, He created us and wants us to be free and joyful.  We cannot and should not let anxiety and negative emotions define these times which we are living and allow them to intimidate us, but rather we who are living these present times with all of its confusion and anxiety have a responsibility to future generations, passing on to them our definition as faithful, hopeful, joyous and confident men and women filled with inner peace and always open to permitting the Lord to surprise us.

Living faith and the hope-filled attitude of LETTING GOD SURPRISE US, besides being a powerful testimony to the people to whom we minister, give us much peace and freedom.

Pope Francis in the Angelus of the third Sunday of Advent (December 16, 2018) shared this same message founded on St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians (4,6), “Today St. Paul exhorts us not to worry about anything, but in all circumstances to place before God our requests, our needs and our concerns.  Let us be aware that in difficulties we can always turn to the Lord and that He never rejects our supplications.  This is a great source of joy for us.

There does not exist any worry, fear or anxiety that can ever take away from us the serenity that comes, not from human things and human consolations, no, no, the serenity that comes from God in knowing that God always lovingly guides our life, also during problems and sufferings.  This certainty nurtures hope and courage.  To receive the Lord’s invitation to joy, we need to be people willing to question ourselves. But what does this mean? Like those who, after listening to the preaching of John the Baptist, asked him: You preach like that but “What should we do?” “What should I do?” (Lk 3, 10). This question is the first step in the conversion to which we are invited in this time of Advent. Each of us wonders: What can I do? What should I do? May the Virgin Mary help us to open our hearts to the God who comes, so that He may flood our entire lives with joy.   And then you will not be afraid of anything. In the presence of the Lord, our hearts are always joyous.”

To complete and apply these reflections to our own lives, we can reflect on the following questions:

1. What realities (personal, communal, Religious Life, social, etc.) cause in you a certain amount of ANXIETY?
2. Does the thought, “Let the Lord surprise you” resonate with your personal and communal experiences?

Note: I would like to make mention of a recent Congress (November 2018) sponsored by the Vatican Congregation on Culture entitle, “God does not live here anymore.”  The Congress centered on the theme of decommissioned Churches and their future use.  Pope Francis addressed the Congress saying that the fact that certain churches are no longer necessary “should be received in the Church not with anxiety but as a sign of the times that invites us to reflect and forces us to adapt.”  The Pope continued his comments adding that there is a constant Church teaching that the goods of the Church do not have an absolute value and that decommissioned Churches and properties should be destined for the poor rather than to commerce.

It is interesting that in Germany more than 500 churches were closed in the country between 2000 and 2017.  One third were demolished, and the rest sold or destined for other uses, unfortunately among the other uses are garages, discos, ice cream parlors, etc.

In Holland, the Church loses 267 followers each day, 100,000 each year.  In Holland, it is estimated that two-thirds of the 1,600 Catholic churches will be closed in the next 10 years.  Each week another Parish closes.  Many buildings have been used for libraries, discotheques, and recreational centers.

Manuel Rodríguez Delgado, C.Ss.R.

General Secretariat of Formation, Rome

Dear Confreres, Sisters, Lay Missionaries and all members of our Redemptorist Family,

In communion with Pope Francis and the whole Church, on Saturday, February 2, we celebrate the World Day for Consecrated Life. This is a special opportunity for us to reflect on the meaning and purpose of our missionary vocation, and especially, on the witness of the Consecrated Life of professed Redemptorist Missionaries.

In recent years on this occasion, Pope Francis has reminded us that we are invited to celebrate a feast of an encounter – with Christ our Redeemer, with one another in the community, and with the wounded, the abandoned and the poor with whom Jesus identifies himself so closely. In these messages, Pope Francis echoes the teaching of St. John Paul II who wrote that the joy of our encounter with Christ must overflow into our encounter with ‘the least of his brothers and sisters’:

“The quest for divine beauty impels consecrated persons to care for the deformed image of God on the faces of their brothers and sisters, faces disfigured by  hunger, faces disillusioned by political promises, faces humiliated by seeing their culture despised, faces frightened by constant and indiscriminate violence, the anguished faces of minors, the hurt and humiliated faces of women, the tired faces of migrants who are not given a warm welcome, the faces of the elderly who are without even the minimum conditions for a dignified life.”               [VITA CONSECRATA #75]

As Redemptorist Missionaries, this invitation resonates in our hearts: our encounter with Christ the Redeemer impels us to encounter the wounded, the abandoned and the poor. This is the spirit of our Constitutions – our religious consecration makes us truly missionary:

“Apostolic charity, through which the members share in the mission of Christ the Redeemer, is the principle that unifies their entire life. For it identifies them in a certain sense with Christ, who continues to fulfill the will of his Father by carrying on the redemption through them. Religious profession, therefore, becomes the definitive act of the whole missionary life of Redemptorists.” (Constitution 52)

Today, as we celebrate this feast in communion with the whole Church, let us renew our commitment as Redemptorist Missionaries personally and in our communities. May we become more prophetic and authentic Witness of the Redeemer in our wounded world today!

Your brother in Christ our Redeemer,

Michael Brehl, C.Ss.R.

Superior General.

Redemptorist Media Center released 'Icon of Love', a short documentary film about the incredible story of the icon of "Mother of Perpetual Help" now translated and reproduced in Kannada and Tamil.

The DVD was released at Holy Ghost Church during the Feast Mass on 27th January 2019. The original documentary was made by Fr. Biju Madathikunnel in Rome. And now it is translated into Kannada by Fr. Muthu and into Tamil by Fr. Anthony Frank and the recording was coordinated by Fr. Peter B.
RMC wants to thank all those who contributed for this reproduction including the voice artistes and the recording studio.

For copies in English, Kannada and Tamil, contact:- info@rmcbangalore.com
Ph: 080-41250373

Kannada Trailer - https://youtu.be/rdOLLQlai30

Tamil Trailer - https://youtu.be/fF98RgZXF7U

English Trailer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bg3rJxanTzw

“For to us a child is born, to us, a son is given… and his name will be called “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6)

Christmas is the time to recall the wonderful message of God’s love to His creatures. A God who did not want His own to perish in sin and darkness but rather wished to have life in abundance. That’s why we see God becoming a man in a manger. God became one like us to teach us what it means to love one another as God loves, to share the joy that only God fills our hearts with and to live in peace as brothers and sisters in Christ.

Let us recall the beautiful message of love, joy, and peace which is actualized during Christmas.

Office of Communications, Scala news, Rome.

There was a seminar in the Great Hall of the Alphonsian Academy on the recent Synod of Bishops on the theme “Youth, Faith, and Vocation Discernment” on November 26, 2018. Fr. Michael Brehl C.Ss.R., Superior General of the Redemptorist Missionaries and Moderator General of the Academy, and Briana Santiago, a Student at the Pontifical Lateran University, both members of the synodal assembly were main speakers. It was in a dialogue form between the students and the professors of the Academy.

After a brief introduction by Prof. Jules Mimeault C.Ss.R., a first phase of the meeting involved in an alternation of the voices between the two speakers. They roughly presented the themes and challenges faced at the Synod,  the final document presented to the Holy Father, as well as memories and testimonies of the experiences of sharing that was lived during the assembly.

Fr. Michael Brehl began by indicating the key to reading and correctly understanding the Final Document and the whole Synodal experience: The Gospel passage of the appearance of the Risen Lord to the disciples at Emmaus, which was translated by the Synodal Fathers into an attitude of sincere listening to the needs of young people to understand with them how to respond to them. Briana Santiago, on the other hand, expressed the point of view of the young people who were invited to the Synod: despite some initial reservations, they could only see and rejoice in the atmosphere of genuine dialogue and true participation by all the members of the assembly.

The topics dealt with during the discussions are later found their places in the Final Document. Although it has not really been the object of the discussions, as noted by Fr. Brehl, could only be recognized by the great majority of the fathers as the true ecclesial method of confrontation which has transversally animated all the works of the synodal assembly, thus fully deserving a full mention of the final document. The two main areas of challenges identified during the meeting were also listed by the two speakers, in the dual aspects of risk and opportunity: the digital environment, migration, the role of women in the Church, sexuality and the body. Briana Santiago then said that if “listening” was the first word of the synod, the last one was “humility”, as a key virtue for the path to be taken both in accompanying and in an on-going mission.

The second part of the meeting was dedicated for questions from students and professors aimed at clarifying some of the points shared by the two speakers.

The Focus on the Youth Synod was, therefore, an important moment of reflection for the Alphonsian Academy, but it was perhaps – and above all – an opportunity to share some of the fruits of grace of the XV Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, allowing themselves to be encouraged by the action of the Holy Spirit to undertake new and always fruitful paths of holiness.

Fr. Andrea Pizzichini

Student of the Alphonsian Academy

Poverty is not sought, but it is caused by selfishness, pride, greed and injustice.

WORLD DAY OF THE POOR

Sunday XXXIII of ordinary time

November 18, 2018

This Sunday, XXXIII of ordinary time and with the explicit wish of Pope Francis, the Church celebrates the Second World Day of the Poor. This day, quoting the words of Psalm 34: “this poor man cried to the Lord and listened to him”, Pope has given a special message. World day of poor gives us an opportunity to raise awareness, at the level of the Congregation and of communities where we carry out our pastoral work, on the reality of the poor around us. Moreover, it is an opportunity to celebrate in advance the solemnity of Jesus Christ, the King of the Universe, who identified himself with the little ones and the poor and who, in the end, will judge us with our works of mercy.

The constitution no. 1 shows us that the meeting with the poor constitutes the core that allows us to understand our discipleship as Christians and our identity as Redemptorists. Some have said that more than the recipients of our pastoral work, the poor are a theological place and a meeting place with the Redeemer. Well, we know the impact that the meeting of St. Alphonsus had with the bandits and poor of Scala. Antonio María Tannoia – his first biographer – tells us that, after leaving Scala, Alphonsus left some of his heart with the shepherds and the thieves and cried thinking about how to help them. It was compassion for them that led St. Alphonsus to found the Congregation and the one who determined his moral doctrine, his preaching, his writings and his whole life.

The intention of the Holy Father for this day is to bring us to similar experiences and help us find those with whom Jesus identifies himself: the poor (Mt 25, 31-46), because they, “before being a problem, are a  resource to receive and live the essence of the Gospel “(Day of the Poor 2017). Events like these link us to the evangelical option for the poor, which is not exclusive but preferential, and which is not different from the option of Christ the Redeemer. In his message for the day 2018, Pope Francis affirms that “it intends to be a small response that the whole Church, spread all over the world, directs the poor of all kinds and from every place so that they do not think that their cry has been lost in the void. It is probably like a drop of water in the desert of poverty. “

This is why, on this Sunday, as we celebrate the Eucharist, we might ask ourselves: what is the relationship between the Eucharist and the commitment to social justice? What do the consecratory words “do this in memory of me” mean in the context of a world wounded by inequalities? How do I read and interpret the proclamation of blessedness to the poor, to whom the Kingdom of God belongs? (See Lk 6, 20). How can the Redemptorist charism be expressed today in the light of the guidance of Pope Francis and the context of today’s world? These and other questions could help us to live better, personally and collectively, the spirit of this day. Those who occupy a special place in the apostolic priorities of the Redemptorists are also the protagonists of this Day and allow us to advance in our conversion process to continue proclaiming Christ’s abundant Redemption in a wounded world.

In her song of the Magnificat, Mary,  proclaims the greatness of God that fills the poor and oppressed with hope. May her praise also be ours and that his perpetual help will continue to inspire our mission.

Secretariat for Evangelization