Father ROBERT MORIN,CSC

THE HOPES OF THE YOUNG RELIGIOUS.
SEVERAL MAJOR POINTS FROM THE PARTICIPANTS' REFLECTIONS

Introduction

The French-speaking Group was composed of 135 members coming from five continents and thirty-five countries. By means of their many forms of exchange—in small groups, in plenary sessions, during meals and other informal gatherings—these young women and men gave expression to their great faith in religious life.

They lived this faith among themselves by their prayer, their fraternity and their joy. They also voiced their expectations, their fears and their hopes. They made an appeal to the solidarity of all religious women and men throughout the world.

They opened their hands and hearts to welcome into their midst all young people of good will who want to follow Jesus closely in order to fashion a better world and to build the Kingdom.

What follows is my synthesis of the more important points that these young religious themselves highlighted in the course of the Congress and which they now carry with them to the four corners of the world through their own commitments wherever they live and work.

The Universality of Religious Life

"We have never felt so deeply and strongly that we are part of the universal Church—one, holy, catholic and apostolic—a living Church in which the young have a place and responsibilities."

This is the CREDO that our young members in religious life have expressed with clarity, conviction and even some emotion from the very first days of the Congress. They became aware that religious life was not limited to a personal dimension, local or regional, but that it crossed over all boundaries of every country to be established as a commitment in the universal Church to which all Christians are to belong.

Following Jesus

They constantly referred to the person of Jesus in all their conversations and meetings. These young religious affirmed that the meaning and the fullness of their vocation was found in the imitation of Christ, following Jesus and proclaiming his message.

They insisted that intimacy with the Lord was the true source of their fidelity in the face of any daily difficulties, any challenges from their surroundings, any enticements from opposing values presented by a society often imbued with the spirit of individualism and materialism.

The young religious unanimously told of their thirst for prayer, in solitude and in community. They made it clear that only an intimate communion with Jesus, deep and sustained, can ever lead them to maturity on the path of their baptismal commitment and profession of vows.

Aware of the inherent difficulties in realizing such an ideal (for example, heavy burdens at work; dangers of routine; resistance to change), they have committed themselves to find the necessary time to deepen their communion with God. They declared themselves ready, wherever they may be, to recall and to live out this fundamental truth of religious life. They want the time of liturgical prayer to be truly sacred moments for "meeting up with God."

Desire to live fully the radicalism of the Gospel

Many of the participants of the Congress spoke strongly of their desire to live fully the radicalism of the Gospel. For them, there can be no half commitments. The gift of self requires the courage of a martyr expressed in their daily obligations by a total gift of their life to the Lord as they serve the People of God and especially the poor.

From this point of view, these young religious expressed their concern about a certain half-heartedness that they sometimes find in some parts of their communities.

In the face of that kind of lukewarmness, they feel torn between their desire to give themselves totally and what they call a false compromise in their response to the Lord’s call. And so they do not hesitate to challenge their fellow community members. They ask their superiors to assure a spiritual leadership that will revitalize religious life, and even in some cases, to re-invent it so that there can be a renewed understanding and living out of religious life as a true response to the call to follow Jesus Christ.

Living the Vows as a Prophetic Witness for Today’s World

It is likewise in the perspective of living "like" Jesus and of living as closely as possible according to his teaching that the young religious confirmed their desire to live a consecrated vowed life. In the practice of Gospel poverty, the chastity of consecrated celibacy and obedience they see a privileged way of being "signs" of the Kingdom in today’s world, witnesses of the Absolute, prophets of God. They acknowledge that sometimes they are pestered, opposed and even rejected, even by people close to them, precisely because of their profession of vows. They accept, not without difficulty but certainly with much faith, this situation that unites them with the very mystery of the cross of the One whom they want to follow and imitate. They strongly insist on transparency, honesty, truth and authenticity. They denounce with a certain legitimate vehemence the discrepancies that they sometimes find within their own communities between what is said and what is actually done. They expect their superiors to intervene courageously in situations that call for a realignment in the name of Gospel values.

Community, a Place of Growth and Holiness

The young religious of this Congress did not only speak but shouted out their desire to live the community dimension of religious life. In various ways they affirmed that religious life implied, as one of its fundamental and vital components, a real and concrete communion among its members. For them, this fraternal communion is a necessary catalyst for spiritual growth, a pledge of fidelity and an indispensable support for carrying out their apostolic commitments.

They are very sensitive to the psychological, affective and spiritual dimensions of their human relations. It is "in community" that they want to build the Kingdom and not as solitary or merely juxtaposed individuals. They willingly acknowledge the serious difficulties connected with such an ideal way of life.

They know how to identify clearly the obstacles that hinder the formation of living and joyous communities. They openly say that they are ready to do what is necessary to reinforce among themselves bonds of belonging, of solidarity and of mutual love.

They call upon the generation of their brothers and sisters who entered religious life before they did to try to understand them, to help them and also to walk together with them. These younger members are also asking to have an active part in making decisions that concern their lives and ministries. They believe in the value of dialogue and give-and-take in their relationship with superiors.

They consider questions of authority and obedience as important elements of community life and of discerning the will of God for them and their communities.

The Mission to Build the Kingdom

Young religious, both men and women, are eager for apostolic ministry. They have a deep desire to serve. They want to be evangelisers; they want to spread the message of the Good News of Jesus Christ. For those who belong to apostolic congregations, the mission is of the utmost importance.

Nonetheless, these young religious are not ready to give themselves to just any old thing. They want to respond to the needs of today’s women and men. They want to be on the front lines of those who work with the most needy, spiritually or materially. They want to be creative and innovative people to make the Church present, heard and active in today’s society.

They believe in new forms of presence, a new way of speaking, a continually updated dialogue with the people around them who represent some of the most diverse tendencies and currents of thought.

Consequently, they say that they have to live with some tensions in their lives. Some of them are asked to take on certain ministries simply in order to replace older religious because of the lack of personnel to maintain works that have been in the charge of their community for many years. Others have to undertake several functions at a time.

These religious feel themselves scattered, gasping for breath, stretched too thin. Still others have to take on in-house services for the community, providing for the needs of the elderly religious, when they would prefer to devote their youthful energies to apostolic ministries out among the people.

Even as they recognize the validity and value of certain traditional works and express admiration and gratitude for their predecessors, they still dare to question the relevance of some of these works. They want authority to pay attention to their desire to respond to new needs in the Church and to the call that they feel for taking responsibility in meeting them.

Joyous Witnesses of Christian Hope

Beyond the somewhat exalted atmosphere of the Aula Magna where the music and the theme song of the Congress lifted the spirits of all those present, the young religious expressed over and over again with deep sincerity their joy at being religious in this present time. The difficulties, the tensions, the questioning which they would mention from time to time did not take away from the expressions—oral, written and even in theatrical form—of the joy that fills them because of their hope as Christians.

These young women and young men religious sang out their joy. They asked us to believe in its reality, to be one with them in sharing it and spreading it to others.

This is perhaps the most important message they have passed on to everyone who had the privilege to hear them and to live with them, from close up or from a distance, the outstanding and memorable event of this First International Congress of Young Religious. Hopefully, this First Congress will not be the last.