Pope Francis celebrates a Vigil Mass at the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, which is celebrated as the World Day of Consecrated Life. In his homily, the Pope invites men and women religious to be patient and courageous to continue moving forward, exploring new paths and responding to the Holy Spirit’s suggestions.
By the editor of Vatican News
At the Mass for the Presentation of the Lord, Pope Francis focused on Simeon’s words when he “waited for the consolation of Israel” (Lk 2:25).
He delivered the homily describing Simeon who recognized in the Child Jesus “the light that came to shine on the Gentiles”: He was an elderly man, explained the Pope, who waited patiently for the fulfillment of the Lord’s promises.
Simeon’s patience
“Let us take a closer look at Simeon’s patience,” said the Pope, “All his life he waited, exercising patience from the heart.”
He noted that “Simeon had learned that God does not come in extraordinary events, but works in the midst of the apparent monotony of our daily lives, in the often monotonous pace of our activities, in the little things that, working with tenacity and humility, we achieve in our efforts. to do your will. “
Simeon, the Pope continued, did not tire, although in his long life there were painful and difficult times, but he did not lose hope: “the flame was still burning intensely in his heart”.
In trusting the Lord’s promise, Pope Francis explained, he did not allow himself to be consumed by the regret or the feeling of discouragement that can arise as we approach the twilight of our lives.
“His hope and expectation find expression in the daily patience of a man who, despite everything, remains vigilant, until at last ‘his eyes have seen the salvation’ he was promised,” he said.
Pope Francis presides over Mass on the Day of Prayer for Consecrated Life
A mirror of God’s own patience
The Pope continued to note that Simeon’s patience was a mirror of God’s patience. In fact, from prayer and the history of his people, Simeon learned to see in the Lord “a merciful and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in constant love and faithfulness”.
He reflected on St. Paul’s letter to the Romans in which the apostle affirms that patience “leads us to repentance”, and quoting the German priest, author and scholar Romano Guardini, who once observed that patience is God’s way of responding to our weakness and giving us the time we need to change, the Pope said that “More than anyone else, the Messiah, Jesus, who Simeon held in his arms, shows us the patience of God, the merciful Father who continues to call us, also until our final hour. “
God, reiterated Pope Francis, does not demand perfection, but always opens up new possibilities when everything seems lost, in the desire to open a gap in our hardened hearts.
God never tires of waiting for us
“This is the reason for our hope: that God does not tire of waiting for us,” said the Pope, adding that “when we move away, he comes looking for us; when we fall, he lifts us up; when we return to him after we get lost, he awaits us with open arms. His love does not weigh in the balance of our human calculations, but unrestrictedly gives us the courage to start again. “
Pope Francis presides over Mass on the Day of Prayer for Consecrated Life
Our patience
Pope Francis then invited consecrated men and women to seek God’s patience and Simeon’s patience when considering their own lives of consecration.
Patience, he said, is not simply tolerating difficulties or showing relentless determination in the face of adversity, “it is not a sign of weakness, but the strength of spirit that allows us to ‘carry the burden’ of personal and community problems, to accept the others as different from us, persevere in the good when everything seems lost and keep moving forward, even when overcome by tiredness and apathy ”.
He pointed to what he called three “scenarios” in which patience can become concrete:
Personal life
Our personal life, in which the way we respond to the Lord’s call has not always been constant because of disappointments, frustrations and feelings of helplessness.
“In our lives as consecrated men and women, it can happen that hope slowly disappears as a result of unmet expectations. We must be patient with us and look forward to the times and places of God, as he always remains true to his promises. Remembering this can help us retrace our steps and relive our dreams, instead of giving in to inner sadness and discouragement, ”he said.
“Brothers and sisters”, the Pope exhorted, “the inner sadness in us consecrated people is like a worm: a worm that devours us inside. Flee from the inner sadness!”
Community life
A second environment in which patience can be realized, the Pope continued, is community life.
He affirmed that human relations are not always serene, especially when they involve sharing a life project or an apostolic activity: There are times when conflicts arise and an immediate solution is not expected, nor should any hasty judgments be made.
Time, said the Pope, is necessary to take a step back, to preserve peace and to wait for a better time to resolve situations in charity and in truth, and urged men and women living in communities to cultivate this kind of patience reciprocal: “the ability to support, that is, to carry on our own shoulders the life of one of our brothers or sisters, including their weaknesses and failures”.
“Let us keep in mind that the Lord does not call us to be soloists”, and there are many of those in the Church that he said, He calls us “to be part of a choir that can sometimes miss a note or two, but should always try to sing in unison. “
Our relationship with the world
The third scenario described by Pope Francis concerns our relationship with the world.
Recalling how Simeon and Anna cherished the hope proclaimed by the prophets, “although it is slow to be fulfilled and grows silently in the midst of the infidelities and ruins of our world”.
He said “they did not complain about how things are wrong, but they patiently sought the light that shines in the darkness of history”, and stressed that “we also need this kind of patience, so as not to fall into the trap of lamenting that ‘the world does not listen to us more ‘, or’ we have no more vocations’, ‘these are not easy times’ … ”
“It may happen that, even when God patiently plows the soil of history and our own heart, we show ourselves impatient and want to judge everything immediately. In this way, we lose hope, ”he said.
Pope Francis presides over Mass on the Day of Prayer for Consecrated Life
Patience helps us to be merciful
Pope Francis concluded his homily by explaining that “patience helps us to be merciful in the way we see ourselves, our communities and our world”.
He invited consecrated men and women and all the faithful to never fail to accept the patience of the Holy Spirit, to never fail to support one another and to radiate the joy of fraternal life, to never fail to patiently offer our service:
“These are real challenges for our consecrated life: we cannot be stuck in longing for the past or simply repeat the same things. We need patience and courage to continue moving forward, exploring new paths and responding to the promptings of the Holy Spirit ”.
Never gossip and don’t lose your sense of humor!
At the end of the Mass, Pope Francis thanked Cardinal João Braz de Aviz, Prefect of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life, for welcoming those present.
He noted that, in this time of pandemic, patience is sorely needed to move forward “offering our lives to the Lord”.
And referring again to his newly pronounced homily dedicated to “patience,” he reflected on how life in a religious community is fraught with the danger of gossip.
“Please stay away from gossip,” he said, “it kills the life of the community!”
The Pope acknowledged that sometimes it is not easy, but he invited consecrated men and women to “bite the tongue” before gossiping about others: “Bite your tongue so that it swells and occupies your mouth and you cannot speak badly! “
The other advice he reserved for his religious brothers and sisters is that they never lose their sense of humor: “It helps us a lot. It’s anti-gossip, knowing how to laugh at yourself, at situations, even at others – with a good heart! “
“Thank you,” concluded the Pope, “for what you do, thank you for your testimony. Thank you very much, thank you for your difficulties, for the way you carry them and for the way you bear the pain in the face of the lack of vocations: have courage, the Lord is great, the Lord loves us. Let’s follow the Lord! “
The World Day of Prayer for Consecrated Life was instituted in 1997 by Pope John Paul II. This celebration is attached to the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord on February 2. The celebration of World Day for Consecrated Life is transferred to the following Sunday, in order to highlight the gift of consecrated persons to the whole Church.
Pope Francis presides over Mass on the Day of Prayer for Consecrated Life