Holiness: The heart of renewal in religious life

 In Perfectae Caritatis, (the decree on the appropriate renewal of religious life), the council
speaks of two guiding principles for renewal in the Church and in the religious communities
– constant return to the sources of the Christian life and return to the original inspiration
(charism) of the religious foundation.
o In short, for renewal to take place in each religious community, there must be both
renewal of vocation to holiness and a rediscovery of the original charism of the
congregation from the founders.
 These two principles should be pursued together.
 Sadly, there is division and confusion instead of renewal in religious life because the
focus has been on reclaiming the original charism and mission without seeking for
holiness in the members.
 Focus has been on revising the structures and forms in order to make them
better suited to the life and demands of our times. Focus is on the outward
thrust towards the world in the name of doing apostolate.
 The inner journey is ignored or even neglected. Personal holiness is ignored.
 Ignoring the call to personal holiness – till today, this is one of the reasons why we
are having fewer religious members.
 It is an illusion to seek to renew religious life and congregations without holy
religious men and women.
 Religious men and women must be the leaders in the Church’s renewal in each
age and this demands holiness on their part.
 St. Teresa of Calcutta was once asked, “How do you feel about being called a living saint?”
she replied, “You have to be holy in the position you are in, and I have to be holy in the
position that God has given me. There is nothing extraordinary about being holy. It is simply
a duty for you and for me.”
o All of us are called to holiness by virtue of our baptism; but the form of holiness varies
from one state of life to another.
o “All the Christian faithful, of whatever state or rank, are called to the fullness of the
Christian life and to the perfection of charity.”(LG #5)

 What exactly is holiness? It has two main aspects from the above definition.
o It is first of all the possession of the Christian life. (It is not primarily about human effort
or reputation)
 Christian life is our participation in the very life of God by the power of the Holy
Spirit whom Jesus and the Father pour into our hearts.
 Holiness is first of all what God does in us and what He bestows in us.
 Holiness is first of all our full and active participation in the life of God, who alone is
holy.
 We share in the very life of God by divine grace through union with Christ.
  See “God has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavens.”
o It is also a striving to grow in charity. (Holiness demands constant effort on our own
part)
 This means that we also strive to please God in all that we think, say and do.
 We please God by loving Him above all things and loving others for His own sake.
 It means that we are not only to be united to Christ but we must strive to be
conformed to Him by His grace and our free action.
 Jesus Christ is both the source and the model of holiness because He shows us
the way of true charity.

 Why should we strive for holiness?

o God calls us to holiness and He desires our holiness. See 1Thes 4:3, “For this is the will
of God for you: your sanctification.”
 In everything that God does and permits in our life, in every gift that He gives to us,
in all the sufferings that He permits in our lives, etc., He has one goal in mind – our
sanctification in this life and eternal salvation in the life to come.
 When we are not growing in our sanctification in this life, there is no way that we
can be hoping for eternal salvation in the next.
o Christ has become one like us, suffered, died and rose from the dead so that we can
share in His own holiness.
 God has given us His own Son, Jesus Christ, so that we share in His own inner life and
thus become holy.
 Jesus has become one like us and given Himself for us on the Cross so that we can
share in His own Spirit of holiness.
 For us to be truly holy, we must know Jesus Christ intimately and fall in love with
Him to the point that we become more like Him in all things.
o We cannot be truly happy in this life and in the next without striving for holiness.
 We were made for holiness and redeemed for the sake of holiness.
 Thus, holy souls are the happiest and most satisfied souls, “Blessed are those
who thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.”
 We too must strive to be holy if we are going to be happy.
 Nothing can take from us this happiness that comes from being holy because it is a
happiness that comes from communion with God within and not from the world or
outside of us.

Theme: Holiness: The heart of renewal in religious life

Grace to pray for: “Lord God I beg of you the grace to embrace wholeheartedly my own
vocation to holiness through my consecrated life.”
Scripture passages and points for reflection