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By Junno Arocho Esteves

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Consecrated women are called to be prophets of hope and joy in the world and avoid putting on a superficial joy that withers the soul, Pope Francis said.

In order to live out the joy of the Gospel, "it must be a true joy, not a counterfeit joy" that brings about "the cancer of resignation," the pope told a group from the Sister Disciples of the Divine Master.

"Please, sisters, no resignation. Only joy! The devil will say, 'We are small, we don't have many vocations.' And your face will grow long -- down, down, down -- and you lose joy," he said. "No, you cannot live like that; the hope of Jesus is joy."

Founded in 1924, the Sister Disciples of the Divine Master are part of the nine institutes of consecrated life that form the Pauline Family established by Blessed James Alberione.

The congregation was in Rome April 30-May 28 for their ninth general chapter on the theme "New wine in new wineskins."

After receiving a warm applause from the sisters, the pope asked their pardon for his late arrival.

"I had a meeting with the bishops of Guatemala and these meetings go on and on and on and then, the sisters pay the price," he said as the sisters laughed.

In his speech, the pope expressed his hope that the congregation's general chapter would "bring forth abundant fruit," particularly the fruit of communion.

He asked them to practice "fraternal correction and respect for the weakest sisters" while warning of the dangers of divisions, envy and gossip that "destroy the congregation."

"For this reason, I invite you to cultivate dialogue and communion with other charisms and to fight self-referentialism in every way," the pope said. "It is ugly when a consecrated man or woman is self-referential, always looking at him/herself in the mirror. It's ugly."

The general chapter, he continued, is also a time to live out "the apostolate of the ear," that is, to listen to "the sisters as well as men and women of today." Listening to and sharing with others is necessary "if we want our lives to be fully meaningful for ourselves and the people we meet."

The vocation to consecrated life, he added, is also an opportunity for sisters to fulfill "the prophecy of joy" in their lives, which is both "a beautiful reality" and "a great challenge for all of us."

Pope Francis encouraged the sisters to not unite themselves with "the prophets of misfortune" who damage the church or give in to the temptation of "drowsiness" like the apostles in Gethsemane.

"Awaken the world, awaken the future," he said. "Always smiling; with joy, with hope."

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(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Monday greeted the Sister Disciples of the Divine Master (PDDM) and encouraged them to go forward in their mission to bring the Gospel to the men and women of today with joy in unity, giving voice to plurality and respecting each other’s differences.

The Pope words came as he addressed the Sisters who are holding their 9th General Chapter in Rome (10 April-28 May) on the theme “New wine in new wineskins.”

Listen to the report by Linda Bordoni:

First of all, Pope Francis said to the Sisters, always be open the Holy Spirit, Master of diversity, Master of unity within differences.

“Walk together in communion, he said, respecting plurality and tirelessly weaving your legitimate differences into unity, taking into account you are present in different Countries and cultures”.

Basing his discourse on the many fruits yielded by communion, the Pope encouraged the Sisters to allow each other to express themselves freely, to be accepted with their own special gifts, and to become fully co-responsible.

He urged them to cultivate mutual attention and practice sisterly correction and respect the weakest members.

“Grow in the spirit of living together, banish divisions, envy, and gossip from your communities, speak frankly and with charity” he said.

The Pope noted that the Disciples of the Divine Master share Fr. Giacomo Alberione as father and founder with the Pauline family, as well as the mission to bring the Gospel to the men and women of our time.

He spoke of the fruits of communion born from collaboration with other charisms saying it is the time for synergy between all consecrated persons who are called to welcome the riches of other charisms and put them all in the service of evangelization, remaining faithful to their identity.

“No one, he said, builds the future by isolating themselves or on their own strength alone” and he invited them to cultivate dialogue and communion with other charisms, and to combat self-referentialism in every way.

The Pope also mentioned the importance of the fruits produced by communion with the men and women of our time: “Our God is the God of history and our faith is a faith that works in history. In the questions and expectations of today's men and women, there are important indications for our pursuit of Christ”.

Pope Francis said the Chapter is a time to listen to the Lord who speaks to us through the signs of the times.

He said it is also a time for peaceful and unbiased confrontation which requires the opening of mind and heart, and he urged those present never to tire of the practice of listening and sharing with the men and women of today.

“In this time of great challenges, which require devoted creative fidelity and passionate research, listening and sharing are more than ever necessary if we want our lives to be fully meaningful to ourselves and to the people we meet” he said.

Pope Francis then told the Sisters that to this end it is necessary to maintain a climate of discernment, to recognize what belongs to the Spirit and what is contrary to it. 

He said that a world of possibilities is open before us and that “the culture in which we are immersed presents them all as valid and good, but if we do not want to fall victim to the culture of zapping and sometimes to a culture of death”, we must always be discerning and never tire of asking the Lord “What do you want me to do?”

The Chapter, the Pope said, is also a time in which to renew our docility towards the Spirit that animates prophecy. This, he said, is an indispensable value for consecrated life which itself is a special form of participation in the prophetic mission of Christ. 

“As consecrated women, you live the prophecy of joy, that joy that comes from your encounter with Christ through a life of personal and communal prayer” he said, as well as in a joyful life of fraternity within the community and in your embrace of Christ’s flesh when you minister to the poor.

Joy, the Pope said, is a beautiful reality in the lives of many consecrated persons, but it is also a great challenge for all of us because joy must be of the authentic kind, never self-referential or self-satisfied.

“This joy, Francis continued, which fills your hearts and shows on your faces will lead you to go out to the peripheries and participate in the joy of the Church that is evangelization, convinced that Jesus is the Good News and is joy for all. This joy distances you from the cancer of resignation, the fruit of sloth that withers the soul”.

Pope Francis concluded his address encouraging the Sisters to be prophets of hope with eyes turned to the future, and to let themselves be guided by the Spirit in order to continue to do great things.

Trusting in Christian hope and in the strength it gives you, he said: “fortify your vocation of morning sentinels in order to announce the coming of the dawn: Wake up the world, light up the future”.

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(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis on Monday afternoon met with Italian Church leaders who are holding the 70th General Assembly of their bishops’ conference.

The meeting began with a brief introduction from the outgoing President of the conference, Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco. After that, the Pope greeted the bishops during a session, open to journalists, in the Vatican Synod Hall, before continuing the meeting behind closed doors.

On Tuesday the bishops will elect three names which will be forwarded to the Pope to select a new president for the conference. They will then proceed with discussions on the main theme for this assembly, which is focused on an effective evangelization of young people. 

On Wednesday the bishops will celebrate Mass in St Peter’s Basilica and on Thursday they will hold a concluding press conference in the Paul VI audience hall.

After a brief speech of greeting during which Pope Francis thanked Cardinal Bagnasco for his ten years of service and for  his patience as, he said “it is not easy to work with this pope,” the bishops were handed prepared remarks by the Pope who, as he often does in such occasions, made it immediately clear he wanted a frank and open exchange with them behind closed doors.

Apologizing to all the others present Pope Francis said his face-to-face with his brother bishops represented an important and private moment of encounter, and he pointed out that “when dialogue is stifled, gossip is sown” so, he said, it is important to enter into true dialogue even when it means listening to opinions that one may not agree with, but, he stressed “it’s important to be able to speak in freedom”. 

Cardinal Bagnasco reflected briefly on one of the fundamental themes of the Assembly: young people’s formation.

“Their conditions of life, Bagnasco said, their capacity for sharing and building a future are an urgent reminder to us of our educational responsibility and witness; meeting them helps us to rediscover, every day, the primacy of God in our lives to be able to think and take action in freedom that is born from truth.”

And regarding the choice of his successor, Cardinal Bagnasco made assurances regarding the firm will of every one present to support and sustain whoever is chosen for the benefit of our Churches.

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