Pope Francis says "When the path becomes difficult...look at Jesus Crucified and look at the eyes and wounds of the poor, and you will see that the answers..."

Pope Francis, on Monday, addressed the Canossian Sons of Charity (also known as Canossian Fathers) and the Montfort Brothers of St. Gabriel gathered for their respective General Chapters.
The chapters are taking place as the two religious congregations celebrate the anniversaries of the birth of their founders, the Italian Saint Magdalene of Canossa (born in 1774) and French Saint Louis Maria Grignion de Montfort (born in 1673).

SPEECH OF THE HOLY FATHER FRANCIS

TO PARTICIPANTS IN THE GENERAL CHAPTERS OF

CHILDREN OF CHARITY "CANOSSIANS" AND GODS

BROTHERS OF SAINT GABRIEL

Clementine Hall - Monday, April 29, 2024

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Dear brothers and sisters, welcome!

I joyfully greet all of you, the "Canossian" Sons of Charity and Brothers of Saint Gabriel, and in particular the Superiors General. I am pleased to meet you on the occasion of your Chapters, which are fundamental synodal events for every religious Congregation.

Above all, they are entrusted with the protection of the heritage of intentions and projects that the Spirit inspired in your Founders, and of all the good that has flowed from them (see CIC 578; 631). These are therefore moments of grace - a Chapter is a moment of grace - to be lived first of all in docility to the action of the Holy Spirit, gratefully remembering the past, paying attention to the present - in listening to each other and in reading the signs of the times (see Gaudium et spes, 4) – and looking to the future with an open and confident heart, for personal and community verification and renewal. Past, present and future enter into a Chapter, to remember, to evaluate and to move forward in the development of the Congregation.

Dear Canossian friends, it is very beautiful to see you here, men committed to following Christ more closely (see Perfectae caritatis, 1; Catechism of the Catholic Church, 916) in the footsteps of a woman, Magdalene of Canossa, whose two hundred and fifty years since birth. This courageous Saint, in a world no less difficult than ours, set out to "make Jesus known and loved, who is not loved because he is not known". And you, who want to continue his missionary work, have chosen this phrase as the theme for your works: "He who does not burn does not set fire". It makes me sad when I see religious people who look more like firefighters than men and women with ardor for setting fires. Please, not firefighters! We already have many. You therefore commit yourself to burning to set fire, reviving and nourishing "the gift of God that is within you" to "bear witness to the Lord" (see 2 Tim 1:6). And you do it in a family that, in over two centuries of history, has been enriched with many gifts: present in seven countries and made up of members of ten different nationalities, supported by communion and collaboration with the Canossian sisters and with a lay reality increasingly active and involved. This is important, having lay people involved in the spirituality of an institute and collaborating in its apostolic work. Of course, it is a legacy that also brings with it challenges, but Saint Magdalene showed you how to overcome difficulties: with your eyes turned to the Crucifix and your arms open towards the least, the little ones, the poor and the sick , to care for, educate and serve our brothers with joy and simplicity. When the path becomes difficult, then, do as she did: look at Jesus Crucified and look at the eyes and wounds of the poor, and you will see that the answers will slowly make their way into your hearts with ever greater clarity.

As Saint Louis Maria Grignion de Montfort and Father Gabriele Deshayes, to whose work we owe the foundation of the Brothers of Saint Gabriel, also taught us, you too, dear brothers, are committed in these days to discerning the will of God for your journey , approaching an important anniversary: three hundred and fifty years since the birth of San Luigi Maria. Your family, born from a small group of lay collaborators of the great preacher, today numbers more than a thousand religious, engaged in pastoral assistance, human and social promotion and education - especially in favor of the blind and deaf - in thirty-four Different countries. To keep your presence alive, which is a prophetic presence, you have chosen to reflect on the theme "Listening and acting with courage". “Courage”: that apostolic parrhesia, the courage that we read, for example, in the Book of the Acts of the Apostles. That courage. It is the Spirit who gives us that courage, and we must ask for it.

They are two attitudes - listening and courage - which require humility and faith, and which well reflect the spirit and action of Saint Louis Marie and Father Deshayes, who also left you a precious triptych as a compass for your decisions : “God alone”, the “Cross” – carved in the heart – and “Mary”. To you too, then, Providence has given the richness of a varied internationality: it will do so much good for your growth and your apostolate, if you know how to live it by welcoming and constructively sharing diversity among yourselves and with everyone. This is an important message, especially in our world, often divided by selfishness and particularism: diversity is gifts to be shared, diversity is precious gifts! Be prophets of this, with your life. And the One who creates harmony among diversities is the Holy Spirit, who is the master of harmony. Uniformity in a religious institute, in a diocese, in a lay group, kills! Diversity in harmony makes you grow. Don't forget this. Diversity in harmony. 

Dear friends, a Chapter is a «family event, but also a Church event and a salvific event» (Blessed E.F. Pironio, Speech to the General Chapter of the Salesians, 14 January 1984). I thank you for what you are doing, and for the work you do every day in many different places and conditions. I bless you and entrust you to Mary; and I ask you, please, do not forget to pray for me. Thank you!

Source: Vatican News Bulltin Translation