Madrid, Spain, Feb 2, 2006 / 22:00 pm
In a letter marking the World Day of Consecrated Life, celebrated on February 2, Bishop Jose Sanchez Gonzalez of Sigüenza-Guadalajara, Spain, said the “mere existence” of the vocation to religious life “is an inextinguishable sign and a contribution to our materialistic and short-sighted world.”
In emphasizing the importance of the consecrated life, the bishop noted such individuals “are at the heart of the Gospel and without them, the Church would be missing something of her own nature, and the world would be much poorer.”
Bishop Sanchez pointed out the wide variety of apostolic work and spiritual ministries carried out in the Church by those who live the consecrated life, either alone or in community, and that such persons “constitute, by their very existence, an inextinguishable sign and a contribution to our materialistic and short-sighted world.”
“They speak to us through who they are as persons, through what really motivates them and through their way of life, of other values, and other motives, of the transcendent dimension, of the supernatural life and of the spirit, which are not often valued or held high in our current culture and way of life,” said Bishop Sanchez.
In his letter the bishop also noted that consecrated persons “unite contemplation with apostolic love; they do not live with their heads in the clouds, unoccupied with the rest of the world, but rather, through the contemplation of God’s plan of salvation,” they “offer up their entire selves forever in the service of others, helping others to live with dignity and according to the plan of God, which leads to blessedness.”
“This World Day of Consecrated Life should be for all of us a motive and an occasion to get to know more deeply our consecrated brothers and sisters, to renew our affection and gratitude towards them, to pray for their faithfulness and for the multiple and various works they carry out in service to the Church and the world and to ask God to bless them with abundant vocations,” the bishop said in conclusion.