“A religious, a priest must be close, he must be merciful, he must be forgiving and tender, not aggressive but benevolent, patient.” Mass (17) in the Vatican
Jane Nogara Vatican News
This Friday morning (17th), Pope Francis received the participants of the General Chapter of the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Congregation celebrates in this General Chapter the 350th anniversary of its founding in Kraków, Poland, in December 1670 by St. Stalislaus of Jesus and Mary. St. Stanislaus went through many difficulties to found the congregation, but he did not give up because he “trusted in the power of the Holy Spirit,” Francis said. And just to “underline this legacy that their tenacity has left them”, the Pope continued, “I would like to recall three main strands of their spirituality, all marked by a lively ascetic and pastoral dynamism: love for the Virgin Mary, Elective Prayer and Attention to the Poor”.
Love for the Virgin Mary
“First of all, love for Mary”. And Francisco remembers what Saint Stanislaus teaches about Marian devotion: “For him, the main cult of Mary Immaculate is the imitation of her evangelical life.
“This is important because true devotion to the Mother of the Lord is nurtured and grows through hearing and meditating on the Word of God: Mary is the Woman of the Gospel”
About the second aspect, the elective prayer, the Pope said, “which characterizes the eschatological dimension of his Congregation. Saint Stanislaus,” he explained, adds in particular to this vision of the ultimate horizon prayer for two great groups of people of his time, the soldiers killed in war and those killed by the plague. The Pope recalled that at that time 60% of the European population had been wiped out by wars and epidemics.
And the third line of his spirituality, he continued, “is concern for the poor, especially support for parish priests. The Fathers of Mary thus helped to respond to some serious problems of the time: the weakening of the faith and the poverty of a large part of the population”.
“Dear brethren, St Stanislaus drew spiritual and action lines for his Congregation that are well embodied in the concrete history of the men and women of his day.”
Continuing to work with creativity for our time
And encouragingly, he said that “it is important for you to continue your work by responding creatively to the challenges that our times also bring.” “Don’t be discouraged by opposition or difficulties. Think of the great trials your religious family has faced over the centuries, for example when it was reduced to a single member in the early 20th century! “With God’s help you have recovered and today there are five hundred religious present in nineteen countries around the world”.
And Francisco remembered Blessed Jorg Matulaitis (18711927), Marian chaplain, priest, bishop and apostolic nuncio in Lithuania, who was one of the protagonists in the revival of the Congregation. “He knew how to restore the vitality of the community, updating its statutes and promoting its work without fear, until he went underground and risked imprisonment, without ever giving up promoting charity and unity among religious and believers” .
“I encourage you to stay true to your origins alive today in this prophetic focus.”
In conclusion, the Holy Father said that he wished to close the meeting “by taking up again three Marian titles with which John Paul II invited the clergy to venerate the Immaculate Conception: “Mary ‘Seat of Wisdom’ so that you evangelical testimony firm and firm is firm; Mary, “Comforter of the Afflicted”, so that the people of our time may find love and understanding in you and be drawn to God through your love and selfless service; Mary, “Mother of Mercy” so that you may be rich in maternal mercy and for the souls redeemed by the blood of Christ and entrusted to you. And on top of that” concluded the Pope:
“Don’t forget God’s style: closeness, mercy and tenderness. God is like this: he is close, he is merciful, he is tender. This is our god. A religious, a priest, must be close, must be merciful, must be allforgiving and gentle, nonaggressive, benevolent and patient.”