JOHN PAUL II
BUILDERS OF
CHRISTIAN CULTURE
IN THE MISSION OF
THE NEW EVANGELIZATION
On 24 July 1992
the Secretary of State sent a letter to Cardinal Eduardo Martinez Somalo, Prefect of the
Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life,
expressing the Holy Father's best wishes for and spiritual participation in the Fifth
World Congress of Secular Institutes. This is a translation of the letter, which was
written in Italian. (L'Osservatore Romano in English, 2 September 1992).
Your Eminence,
The Holy Father,
informed of the Fifth World Congress of Secular Institutes, has charged me to express his
cordial greetings to the meeting's organisers and all the participants.
First of all, His
Holiness expresses his appreciation of the choice of the theme, "Secular Institutes
and evangelization today", which is most opportunely inserted within the Church's
vast involvement in fostering the new evangelization. It is a process of grace which
reaches its climax in the ever necessary conversion of heart, which is to be understood as
a return to God, the provident and merciful Father, and availability towards one's
brothers and sisters, who expect understanding, love and an unwavering proclamation of the
revealed word.
Today the
Church's evangelising mission must take into consideration the profound cultural and
social transformations of our day, which can frequently create obstacles to evangelising
activity rather than promote it. Members of Secular Institutes are quite conscious of
these challenges which they are called to face, because they have received the gift of a
"new and original form of consecration, suggested by the Holy Spirit to be lived in
the midst of temporal realities, and to insert the power of, the evangelical counsels -
that is, of the divine, eternal values - into the human, temporal values"
(Insegnamenti di Paolo VI, X, 1972, p. 943).
The Holy Spirit
has granted them the grace of being more radically conformed to Jesus in the path he
walked to reconcile mankind with God, to break down the walls of enmity (cf. Heb 2:14) and
to create the New Humanity. A "new ardour" is needed to bring all this about;
the Secular Institutes are asked to make theirs an extraordinary involvement in witnessing
to the newness of the Gospel. Without a more zealous response to the call to holiness in
order to communicate the Gospel of Peace to the world which is about to enter the new
millennium, every effort would be reduced to attempts lacking apostolic effectiveness. New
methods are also required for communicating the newness of the Gospel to the world.
Towards such an end members of Secular Institutes must be open to new forms of
communication offered to them by the progress of technology. However, they must not forget
that the communication must also be adapted to the newness that it is called to spread. It
must be distinguished by its Gospel simplicity and the fact that it is offered freely (cf.
Mt 10:8) in order to promote a free, responsible and joyful response.
The new
evangelization, however, also requires a service to the world. There are many ways to
bring this about, according to one's particular vocation and the concrete necessities:
witness of life; dialogue and militancy; personal contact; individual and prophetic
denunciation; defence of truth; and the witness of love. It is important that, in a world
marked by the "culture of death" but which yearns for the values of the Spirit,
Secular Institutes are able to be signs of the living God and craftsmen of the
"culture of Christian solidarity".
The Holy Father,
therefore, urges everyone to continue on this path, to increase the many initiatives of
Christian inspiration and not to fear being present in the various "modern
Areopaguses" in order to bring the Good News of the Gospel there by the word and
deed. Commitment to peace and development of peoples, the defence of human rights,
promotion of women and the education of young people are some of there
"Areopaguses" of the modern world in which the Secular Institutes must be
involved.
With these
wishes, invoking the protection of Mary most holy, Queen of the Apostles and Star of
Evangelization, upon all those participating in the congress and upon all members of
Secular Institutes, the Supreme Pontiff cordially imparts his Apostolic Blessing as a
pledge of the most abundant heavenly favours.
I gladly take
this opportunity to express my deepest regards.
Cardinal Angelo
Sodano
Secretary of State