Catholic Religious Orders For Late Vocations
Catholic Religious Orders For Late Vocations – Lack of imagination and fear of renewal on the part of the Church as a whole are two factors that prevent the renewal of contemporary religious life, because every baptized Catholic plays a role in the task of renewing this way of life. In announcing 2015 as the year of commitment to holy life and calling on religious men and women to “wake up the world”, Pope Francis spoke to the leadership of the Church and addressed lay men and women as well.
Faced with less purpose and involvement in aging, many believers seem to have forgotten the history of the holy life and the role of the Holy Spirit in the work of renewal. Religious life has become more difficult than now. In the years after the French Revolution, for example, not only its future became questionable; it was the same in the church.
Catholic Religious Orders For Late Vocations
Shortly before the Second Vatican Council, the Catholic Church resembled a pyramid, with priests, religious men and women, and lay people occupying the upper, middle, and lower levels of the structure. The unanimous declaration of the Council that all Christians, both clergy and laity, are baptized in the same mission of proclaiming the Kingdom of God and its approach, put an end to this view of the Church.
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This shift in understanding moved religious life from a hierarchical church existence to its proper place in the charismatic church and helped define its nature and purpose. It never means to be a spiritual force, religious sisters, priests and brothers must be a living reminder of the Church that it can be, wants to be and should be. Their duty is to constantly remind the great body of its true nature.
If we are tempted to wring our hands over the current state of religious life, we must remember that religious communities have problems at every stage of their development. In their early years, most groups struggle with three: leadership, direction, and legitimacy. As they grow in numbers and spread across geographies, they face another challenge: maintaining unity amid rapid growth.
As long as the expansion of the area does not slow down, the community is generally in a stable phase. Success is the sign of his promises; very respectable members. After accumulating large human and financial resources, the group as a whole often forgets the reason for its existence; members act as if everything depends on their efforts.
At the beginning of the assembly, many religious communities appeared in such places. A large number of religious men and women boast more members and aspirants than at any other time in their history, and renewal means increased numbers, bigger and better institutions, and more prestige.
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Instead, there was a period of dramatic change. Membership has dwindled with departures and absences; traditional ways of life and communication were established; The long-term tasks of the organizations were fulfilled. The service of this group to the church was accidental.
As congregations became smaller and smaller, fewer applicants came in, and their place and purpose in the church became uncertain, several groups began to wonder if their way of life was death. It may come as a surprise to some that religious life today is exactly where it is in the process of renewal. Like it or not, brokenness and separation seem to be used by God to prepare the church and its members for deep and profound change.
Were men and women ignorant of the value of religion when they started building their communities? Maybe. First, many people believed that if a change was necessary and clear, everything would be pointless. But unplanned change can be just as disruptive as unplanned change. It disrupts our lives and often distracts us. Also, many religious men and women do not know that change takes place on several levels: the level of the consecrated life itself, the level of individual communities and the level of individuals within each community.
Therefore, we must ask: Is there reason today to be optimistic about the future of religious life? To answer this question, we must admit that it is foolish to believe that all forms of the holy life are renewed in the same way or achieve the same result. Members of monastic, religious, and apostolic orders trace their origins to specific periods of history filled with unique challenges. They have different understandings about the life and mission of the society.
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Religious communities today face three possible outcomes when trying to reform themselves: extinction, survival, and renewal. Some congregations in the church have fulfilled their purpose and are no longer there. Others will continue, but with a larger number of members.
Others will renew themselves. For this, they must first of all have the courage to respond to the real challenges that the world and our Church are facing today; second, the presence of members who are willing to allow themselves to experience personal and community transformation; and third, rediscovering the spirit of one’s original gift.
In recent years, a number of ordinary men and women consider this or that religious group as their identity. They are not fake religious people or substitutes hired to replace sworn members in the services of the congregation, they are qualified members of the group and are responsible for its service. Therefore, these lay partners play an important role in promoting the holy life of the 21st century.
Today, many lay members are associated with a particular community through group work. Serving with religious men and women, they also try to distinguish the characteristics of their work from other congregations. A church or university founded in the Franciscan tradition must distinguish itself from one founded by Jesuits, Marists, or Dominicans. Over time, lay partners, along with members of the founding community, become living assets of the institution they serve, ensuring that the institution’s identity is clear and honoring the founding values.
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How can community members judge that they have turned a corner in the renewal process? When most of them recognize that their current life and group structures are not suitable for them personally and that they do not adequately respond to the great needs of the church and the world today.
At the same time, there must be a willingness on the part of the stakeholders to change their current patterns and behaviors and develop new and innovative ways of serving. It should be against the selfishness that is currently affecting some groups. Members should also develop interpersonal relationships and show a willingness to change personal plans for the mutual benefit.
The group will also know that they have turned a corner when they can honestly evaluate the community’s work. Many services for which religious men and women are responsible no longer need to exist. They should be willing to put aside their concerns with these institutions and ask themselves: If our Founder were to enter this country today, what absolute human need would he address? Where do we find him, what group did he choose to serve, and what method did he preach? Religious men and women should be out and about, in places where there are no churches.
Today’s congregations must take steps to reassess the biblical roots of religious life and use this foundation to renew community life. This calls for new models for adults gathered to share life around the Gospel. For true renewal to occur, change must go beyond the personal. A network of like-minded members is essential for any innovation process to take off and thrive.
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As they face these challenges, individual religious men and women and their congregations develop a new sense of personal and organizational identity and purpose. In order for personal identity to be clear, a religious sister, brother or priest must love Jesus Christ and become like the living image of his founder over time.
Corporate identity, although similar to personal identity, has its own characteristics. Groups with a strong organizational identity are good for something; there is a spine. They claim that the mission is unique, or if it is similar to the mission of other groups, it is uniquely different from their mission. Finally, these groups have a set of values that have stood the test of time.
It is not easy to give examples of communities that are moving into a new phase of innovation. Along with their number, there are groups that are deep in their basic spirit and have spent time to solve important problems of the society. Without redefining the family as a family, they emphasized once again that living together is a duty.
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