Dearest Sisters,
I think that these lines from a poetic composition by our sister, Sr. Annamaria Galliano, are a beautiful gift on this day of the Resurrection, in which the love of Christ possesses and envelops us (cf. 2 Co. 5:14), giving us wings of flame….
With love and tenderness, we would like to make the joyful words of Pope Francis in his latest Apostolic Exhortation resound in all hearts:
Christ is alive! He is our hope, and in a wonderful way he brings youth to our world. Everything he touches becomes young, new, full of life…. Youth is more than simply a period of time; it is a state of mind (cf. Christus Vivit, 1, 34).
Easter is truly fullness of Life:
The Holy Spirit fills the heart of the risen Christ and then flows over into our lives…. He draws us ever more deeply into the heart of Christ so that we can grow in his love, his life and his power (ChV, 130).
As we strain ahead toward our 11th General Chapter, which urges us to cultivate a young heart so as to get up and continue our journey, trusting in the Promise, let us listen once again to the prophetic invitation of Pope Francis to not lose our ardor, to be creative and bold, to broaden our horizons, to make the most of and nourish the seeds of good, to return to the essentials of our first love, to open ourselves to an increasingly passionate search for the Lord Jesus.
We too feel called upon to resonate in harmony with the Church by deepening and sharing, in preparation for the World Day of Vocations (12 May), during this Vocation Year of the Pauline Family, the pages of this Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation, which are brimming over with faith and dynamism and which direct our gaze to the young Church we all dream of.
Warmest best wishes to all of you, to our young women and to all our Cooperators and collaborators. May our communities and apostolic centers become to an ever-greater degree “lights of hope,” places that communicate the beauty of the Risen One, the grace of communion, and the enchantment and freshness of a meeting that transforms our existence.
With gratitude and profound affection,
Sr. Anna Maria Parenzan
Superior General
