Celebrating A Special Witness Of Missionary Spirit And Outreach

Bishop Charles C. Thompson opened the Year for Consecrated Life with Mass Nov. 23 at St. Benedict Cathedral. He welcomed men and women religious serving the Diocese of Evansville, and noted that the Year of Consecrated Life – called by Pope Francis – formally begins Nov. 30.

“We have so much to celebrate as a result of your service,” he said, “we decided to begin a week early!”

In 2013, Pope Francis declared that a Year of Consecrated Life be celebrated throughout the world. It will close on the World Day of Consecrated Life, on Feb. 2, 2016.

“Pope Francis, in his apostolic exhortation “Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel), beckons every member of the Church to embrace the call to missionary discipleship,” Bishop Thompson said. “(That) involves turning outward to others rather than turning inward on oneself. It means seeking out those that are so often overlooked by society – namely, the poor, the sick, the elderly, the prisoner, the immigrant, the victims of human trafficking … all who are vulnerable.

“This is no more clearly illustrated than in our gospel passage from Matthew (Matthew 25: 31-46), often referred to as ‘The Last Judgment.’ Here,” Bishop Thompson continued, “Jesus makes no bones about the face that what we do or fail to do for the least of His brothers and sisters, we do or fail to do for Him.”

“Those among us of consecrated life provide a special witness to this missionary spirit and outreach to those in need,” he added. “As noted by Pope Francis and others, this special witness is marked as much by being as by doing.”

Bishop Thompson thanked diocesan vocations staff for their work in organizing the opening Mass and other events that will occur during the Year of Consecrated Life, and he offered gratitude to the men and women religious of the diocese. “Whatever this year will hold certainly will not do justice to the gratitude you deserve,” he said.

“We are greatly enriched and blessed by the presence and witness of various consecrated women and men through the 12 counties that comprise the Diocese of Evansville,” Bishop Thompson said. “This witness exists in practically every aspect of the Church – parish ministry, education, healthcare and social justice, just to name a few. Yet, as we are well aware, membership in the consecrated life is both aging and declining.

“The Year of Consecrated Life is a special opportunity to pray for vocations,” he added, “to encourage young men and women to courageously and generously remain open to the Holy Spirit, and to celebrate this great witness in our midst.”