Part One

CONSECRATED LIFE:
THE PRESENCE OF THE LOVE OF CHRIST
IN THE MIDST OF HUMANITY

5. Considering the presence and many commitments of consecrated men and women in all areas of ecclesial and social life, the members of the Plenary Session wanted to express to them their sincere appreciation, recognition, and solidarity. This is the feeling of the whole Church which the Pope, addressing the Father, the Source of all good, expressed in this way: “ We thank you for the gift of consecrated life which seeks you in faith and which through its universal mission invites all people to draw near to you”.¹⁷ Through a transformed existence, it participates in the life of the Trinity and confesses it as the love which saves.¹⁸

Consecrated persons—monks and nuns, contemplatives, religious dedicated to the works of the apostolate, members of Secular Institutes and Societies of Apostolic life, hermits and consecrated virgins—truly deserve the gratitude of the ecclesial community. Their existence witnesses to their love for Christ as they walk the path proposed in the Gospel and with deep joy commit themselves to the same style of life which he chose for himself.¹⁹ This praiseworthy fidelity, while not seeking any other approval than that of the Lord, “also becomes a living memorial of Jesus' way of living and acting as the Incarnate Word in relation to the Father and in relation to the brethren”.²⁰