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"WAKE UP THE WORLD"

World meeting for young consecrated men and women /Rome, 15th - 19th September 2015

 

"WAKE UP THE WORLD"

About 5000 young consecrated men and women from all parts of the world (127 countries) gathered in Rome from the 15th -19th of September to take part in the World Meeting for Young Consecrated Men and Women. The meeting was entitled “Wake up the World – Gospel, Prophecy, Hope” and was being organized by the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life as part of the Year of Consecrated Life.

The aims of the meeting were: a formative experience through Biblical, Theological-Charismatic and Ecclesiological reflections upon the fundamental elements of Consecrated Life; to offer the possibility of sharing one's reality, desires and formation expectations; to celebrate and witness the beauty of one's vocation.

We two sisters from our congregation - Sr. Bincy province Germany/Austria and Sr. Gabriela province Slovakia had the opportunity to attend this meeting. We would like to share with you some experiences we had during the meeting.

Each morning we gathered in the Paul VI Hall in Vatican City to listen to the keynote speeches on vocation, fraternal life and mission. We also reflected on the gift of our vocation to follow Christ "more closely" through the evangelical counsels of Poverty, Chastity and Obedience. The essential elements of consecrated life are illuminated by the words and examples of our beloved Pope Francis. The three words Take courage, be strong!, Remain, be faithful! and Bear fruit, wake up the world! help us in our journey of creative fidelity to which we have been called to follow Jesus Christ in consecrated life. On the 17th of September at 9:00 AM we were in the crowd of young consecrated people waiting for Pope Francis to come. It was a great event in our lives to which we are very grateful to God. The words of Holy Father have helped us to strengthen and deepen our vocation to which we have been called. He said „sisters you are the icon and maternity of the church, never forget that! Never forget to become the persons of adoration and prayers, accept each sister in the community as Jesus himself. Never forget to forgive each other, never gossip each other, gossip is a sin, more than that, it is terrorism and a bomb which destroys the person as well as the community. The key words which help us in following Christ are prophecy, closeness and memory. Be like a pencil in God’s hands.“

In the afternoons, we were divided into language groups in various locations in Rome and had the opportunity to express and share our feedback, we celebrated everyday Holy Eucharist in different languages in different churches.

In the evenings, we could choose from various itineraries on offer: the Pathway of Announcement: (missionary night in central Rome); the Pathway of Encounter (helping socio-ecclesial organizations, like Caritas, St. Egidio Community, Talitha Kum), and the Pathway of Beauty (guided visits to the Vatican Museums and the Sistine Chapel).

On the 16th we visited the Basilica of St. Bartholomew where we found an exhibition dedicated to the Martyrs of the XX and XXI centuries. There we could also take part on Evening Prayers.

The program included three events that were open to all: an evening Prayer Vigil in St Peter's Square presided by the Secretary Archbishop of CIVCSVA, Mgr José Rodríguez Carballo, OFM (15th September); an evening of music and witnessing in St Peter's Square (18th September) and a Eucharistic Celebration in St Peter's Papal Basilica presided by the Prefect of the Congregation, H. Em. Cardinal João Braz de Aviz (September 19).

On Saturday September 19th in the evening there was be a great Memorial Celebration of the Saints and Martyrs of Consecrated Life: a prayerful procession went from St. Maria in Aracoeli, crossed the Mamertino Prison and the Fori Imperiali to reached the Coliseum.

We are very grateful and happy to have had such a wonderful experience in Rome, especially meeting the Holy Father, listening to his words and hearing his voice directly. We were excited to see many places like St. Peter´s Square, St: Peter´s Basilica, St. Peters Tomb, St. John Paul II´s Tomb, Sistine Chapel, Room of Tears, Vatican Radio, especially Indian and Slovakian team, St. Bartholomew´s Tomb, Basilica of St John Lateran and many other churches and places.

We were surprised and happy to meet the great-grandnephew of Mother Alphonse Marie in St. Peter´s Square. He was happy to see some Niederbronn Sisters once again and said that he believes Mother Alphonse Marie will once become saint.

We did not have time to see everything but Sisters of the Congregation of Sopron/Rome took a lot of efforts to show the best, thanks a lot. We thank them for the accommodation, meals and being with us all throughout these days. We could experience the spirit of Mother Alphonse Marie within us and among our sisters. We want to thank Sr. Monika Heuser and her council, our provincials and their council for giving us this wonderful chance to participate in this meeting. Thank you for all your prayers. We also prayed for our congregation and each of our sisters, especially for the intercession that God may grant us the grace to venerate Mother Alphonse Marie among the Saints.

Sr. Bincy, Munich, Germany

Sr. Gabriela, Banská Bystrica, Slovakia