"Through your commitment to follow Christ more closely—sharing in his self-emptying and in his life in the Spirit—you can show the world the way to overcome conflict, sowing fraternity through the freedom of those who love and forgive without measure."
Pope Leo gave this powerful reminder during the Mass he celebrated on Monday for the World Day for Consecrated Life, an annual observance that was instituted in 1997 by Pope Saint John Paul II which is celebrated on the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, 2 February.
In his remarks, Pope Leo recalled that on this Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, St. Luke's Gospel recounts how Simeon and Anna recognised and proclaimed Jesus as the Messiah in the Temple, noting, "What unfolds before us is a meeting between two movements of love: that of God, who comes to save his people, and that of humanity, which awaits his coming with vigilant faith."
He said that as we celebrate the 30th World Day of Consecrated Life with this scene in mind, consecrated persons are meant to recognize it as an image of the mission of religious men and women in the Church and in the world
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By Deborah Castellano Lubov