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It’s Day 128!!
RELIGIOUS LIFE
SECULAR INSTITUTES
SOCIETIES OF APOSTOLIC LIFE
What are these things?
Paragraph 925 says, “Religious life…distinguished from other forms of consecrated life by its liturgical character, public profession of the evangelical counsels, fraternal life led in common, and witness given to the union of Christ with the Church.”
SECULAR INSTITUTES are different
They can include priests, consecrated people, etc.
They are typically lived in the world
They are communities that are dedicated to the evangelical counsels
They also live those counsels and live their mission in the world rather than living in a convent or monastery
They may not even live in community
They may simply live intentionally if not necessarily in community
SOCIETIES OF APOSTOLIC LIFE are made up of people who do not make public religious vows or make vows of the evangelical counsels in a public way
They are dedicated to the service of the people around them and service of the Church in a very specific way
These societies arise because the founder/foundress had seen some kind of need in the world or a need in the Church
It could be a need for teaching or a need for serving the poor so they created a society of people dedicated to that mission
It’s typically without public religious vows although they are dedicated to the evangelical counsels
CONSECRATION AND MISSION: PROCLAIMING THE KING WHO IS COMING
So let’s pray!!
Prayer by Fr. Mike: “Father in Heaven, we give you praise and glory. We thank you so much for this day. We thank you for the gift of your life. We thank you for the gift that you have placed a call on every one of our lives. That first call that you have placed on our lives is to belong to you, is to be yours, is to be holy, is to let you make us into the saint that you have created and redeemed us to be. Lord God, today we do give you permission to make us into the saint that you called us to be. First of all by receiving your love. We give you permission to love us today. We also give you permission and we ask that you please lead us today. Help us to take the next step, whatever the next step is that you want in our lives. And we ask, Lord, that you please bless all of those people committed to the apostolic life, all the societies of apostolic life, we ask you to please bless all those secular institutions, those people living in the world and serving in the world. We ask you to please bless all those in religious life. Please help them be faithful to their vows and help them to be united with you, the object of their affection and the lover of their lives. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen”
So there we have it!!
So hopefully we are getting a…
(SQUIRREL!! 😉)
This might seem a little confusing…
These are different PATHS in which a person responds to the call of Jesus and believes that the Lord is calling them to a life lived separately in religious life
Paragraph 925 says, “Religious life was born in the East during the first centuries of Christianity. Lived within institutes canonically erected by the Church, it is distinguished from other forms of consecrated life by its liturgical character, public profession of the evangelical counsels, fraternal life led in common, and witness given to the union of Christ with the Church.”
Fr. Mike thinks of the Benedictines here
There is depth of the Liturgy
The motto of the Benedictines is Ora et Labora (Prayer and Work)
The Liturgy becomes the touchstone of their entire lives and their entire day
Some people involved in SECULAR INSTITUTES may not make public vows of evangelical counsels
Paragraph 927 says, “All religious, whether exempt or not, take their place among the collaborators of the diocesan bishop in his pastoral duty.”
Even if there is a religious community in an area, they are connected to their bishop in a particular way
Paragraph 927 continues, “History witnesses to the outstanding service rendered by religious families in the propagation of the faith and in the formation of new Churches: from the ancient monastic institutions to the medieval orders, all the way to the more recent congregations.”
IT IS INCREDIBLE!!
The ways in which these communities have engaged the world and sanctified the Church is ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE
These communities are typically formed in response to a need
The founder/foundress saw a need and decided to go there and do this thing
Whether it is education, service to the poor, medicine, missionary work, etc.
SECULAR INSTITUTES
Paragraph 928 says, “‘A secular institute is an institute of consecrated life in which the Christian faithful living in the world strive for the perfection of charity and work for the sanctification of the world especially from within.’”
They are IN the world as opposed to some religious communities that live in a convent or monastery where they remove themselves from the world for the sake of the world so that they can do penance and pray
The SECULAR INSTITUTES enter into the world for the sake of the world
SOCIETIES OF APOSTOLIC LIFE
Paragraph 930 says, “Alongside the different forms of consecrated life are ‘societies of apostolic life whose members without religious vows pursue the particular apostolic purpose of their society, and lead a life as brothers or sisters in common according to a particular manner of life, strive for the perfection of charity through the observance of the constitutions.”
CONSECRATION AND MISSION: PROCLAIMING THE KING WHO IS COMING
YOU are consecrated to the Lord
Even if you are not a religious sister or brother…
Even if you are not a member of a society of apostolic life…
Paragraph 931 says, “Already dedicated to him through Baptism, the person who surrenders himself to the God he loves above all else thereby consecrates himself more intimately to God’s service and to the good of the Church. By this state of life consecrated to God, the Church manifests Christ and shows us how the Holy Spirit acts so wonderfully in her.”
That can be applied to ABSOLUTELY ANYBODY
In the context of the Catechism it’s for those who are pursuing apostolic societies, secular institutes, religious life, consecrated virgins, hermits, etc.
BUT…
Every one of us are called to surrender OURSELVES to the God we love ABOVE ALL ELSE
Paragraph 931 continues, “And so the first mission of those who profess the evangelical counsels is to live out their consecration.”
It’s not to go do something
It is simply to live out the vow of chastity, poverty, and obedience
The first way we experience participation in Christ’s kingly office is by ruling ourselves well
In this case, it’s simply to live out the consecration
Even if they do nothing in the world, their first mission is to do what they said they were going to do
To let their lives, hearts, actions, minds, love be conformed to Jesus
Paragraph 931 continues, “Moreover, ‘since members of institutes of consecrated life dedicate themselves through their consecration to the service of the Church they are obliged in a special manner to engage in missionary work, in accord with the character of the institute.’”
Let yourself be led first
Let the Lord make YOU holy and THEN engage in that missionary work
It’s not to say wait to be perfect and then start working
The order of hierarchy is this…
“Lord, I need to submit to you. I need to let you love me. I need to let you make me holy.”
In the midst of THAT…
NOT when we’re done or when we’re holy, or sanctified, or perfected
THEN we take those next steps and do the missionary work
That is the call for hermits, consecrated virgins and widows, religious life, secular institutes, and societies of apostolic life
That is all of our call as well
Does that make sense?
Tomorrow is MCNUGGET DAY!!
Fr. Mike is praying FOR YOU!!
Please pray for Fr. Mike and for each other!!
I cannot WAIT to see you tomorrow!!
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