As we head towards the end of the calendar year, we are entering into the season of Advent and a new liturgical year. This liturgical year will be an extra exciting one for us, as Pope Francis has declared it The Year for Consecrated Life.
All of us who are living in consecrated life welcome this recognition from the Holy Father that there is much to celebrate in the Gospel-centred life we have been called to live. It is not a life without challenges, but it is a life filled with deep joy.
“I want to say one word
to you and this word is joy.
Wherever consecrated people are,
there is always joy!”.
Pope FRANCIS
Much has been said in recent decades about the decline in the numbers of people taking up religious life, particularly in the western world. What better time, then, to celebrate all that is wonderful about consecrated life, to remind the Church and the world of the value of consecrated life, and to ask the Holy Spirit to come and enflame us in a special way to find new and bold ways to live out our vocation for others.
The Society of the Divine Word is blessed to have a strong and growing membership, right across the world. We give thanks to God for this. We look forward to celebrating this special year in the Church’s calendar with enthusiasm and a renewed focus on our calling to bring the love of Jesus Christ to all, especially the poor and marginalised.
As part of this we are preparing for our Provincial Chapter meeting in June 2015. This will be a time when our Province comes together to listen to where God is calling us to be and from that prayerful listening, to set our priorities for the coming three years. Please keep us in your prayers as we prepare for this important gathering.
In this edition of In the Word, we are kicking off the Year for Consecrated Life with a range of stories highlighting our mission and activities, including a special focus on religious life, with Br Bernd Ruffing SVD’s story of his vocation as a missionary Brother, and a lovely reflection from Fr Bill Burt SVD on the growth of religious life in Indonesia.
Finally, many readers will recall the inspirational story from last month’s edition of In the Word in which Fr Gerard Mulholland SVD described how he was looking forward to heaven, following his diagnosis with late-stage Motor Neurone Disease. Gerard died on Wednesday, November 26, with family and confreres at his bed-side. Please pray for him and for his family.
Yours in the Word,
Fr Henry Adler SVD
Provincial
IMAGE: Catholic Religious Australia's logo for the Year of Consecrated Life
