To celebrate the Day of Consecrated Life, the Pope prayed Vespers with thousands of religious at the Vatican.
He reflected on the three vows: poverty, obedience, and chastity. Commenting on
celibacy, he said it is a choice that requires maturity. In fact, he regretted that, in many countries, an ultra-individualistic mindset has spread which ends up using and throwing away people.
POPE FRANCIS
In relationships this gives rise to superficial and unstable attitudes, selfishness and hedonism, immaturity and moral irresponsibility. The chosen spouse of a lifetime is replaced by the “partner” of the moment, while children freely accepted as a gift are replaced by those demanded as a “right” or eliminated as “unwanted”.
In order to prevent this type of attitude from entering into consecrated persons, the Pope recommended that great attention be paid to others, both young and old.
POPE FRANCIS
To this end, however, it is important that our communities provide for the spiritual and affective growth of their members, already during initial formation as well as in ongoing formation. In this way, chastity can truly reveal the beauty of a self-giving love, and avoid such harmful phenomena as the souring of the heart or questionable choices that are a symptom of unhappiness, dissatisfaction, and lead at times, in more fragile individuals, to living “double lives”. Daily there is a battle against the temptation of a double life. It is every day.
The Pope concluded by suggesting an examination of one's own life by devoting much time to prayer before the tabernacle.
