"By faith, men and women have dedicated their lives to Christ, leaving all things to live in simplicity evangelical obedience, poverty and chastity, concrete signs of waiting for the Lord who is not slow to come"[i]. This quotation of the Apostolic Letter with which Benedict XVI proclaimed the Year of Faith were reminded at the conclusion of the annual Congress on Consecrated Life, organized by the Institute Claretianum. The theme of the Convention - the faith in the consecrated life - was chosen because of the solicitude coming from the Pope, deeply convinced that "the renewal of the Church is also achieved through the witness offered by the lives of believers: by their very existence in the world Christians are in fact called to radiate the Word of truth that the Lord Jesus has left us»[ii].

How believe consecrated persons?

The Convention was held in the auditorium of the Pontifical Urbanian University from 10 to 13 December and was introduced by Cardinal João Braz de Aviz, Prefect of the CIVCSVA, which, taking the greetings of the employees of the papal department who presides at the service of the all consecrated life, emphasized the importance of the topic that you would be deepened.
The responsibility to initiate reflection was given to Fr. Giovanni Dalpiaz, who wondered how they believe consecrated persons. What the sociological investigation can capture is substantially in line of the working hypothesis from which he started: to believe in the religious men and women reverberate terms of accession to the truth and the expression of faith that are  prevailing in the social realities in which they live. In Europe, we note that religious affiliation has lost the role that once had as an identifier socially shared, while it is risen  a vague and subjective believe, but at the same time unless directed to expectations of protection and more attentive to issues that affect the way of life. In parallel, the consecrated life reaches meaningful experiences in which it is a place of reflection, which combines to the traditional mandate the search for new languages.

In many areas of the South of the world , the Church is compared strongly with the issues of poverty, knowing the same time a great flowering of vocations to the consecrated life. Here we find two trends. While the themes of justice and liberation move and social action and theological reflection, on the other multiply combinations of Pentecostal - charismatic type in which there is a strong experiential dimension of belief. In view of these phenomena, a subject entirely within the consecrated life concerns the dynamics of the various religious families, more and more international and diversified.

In the light of the Word

The consecrated life, in its many forms, has taken its basic inspiration from Scripture, finding in them the invitation to follow the Lord. Fr Salvatore Maurizio Sessa has centered his attention on Elijah. Of this prophet, whose name means YHWH [the Lord] is my God, we discussed the journey of faith by his sudden rise to the biblical narrative (1 Kings 17:1), through successive commands received from the Lord to get in the way (17,3.9 18.2; 19,7.15), until his arrival at the mountain of God: a return to basics in which Elijah feels the presence of God in the "whisper of a gentle breeze" (19:12) and receives the last call to resume the mission and to anoint a prophet in his place. Thus, between voice and silence, in the experience of the desert, takes the faith and mission of Elijah, the prophet which the patristic tradition looked at as a model of monastic life.

Fr Riccardo Volo has deepened, however, an incident that throughout the centuries has inspired many consecrated: the call of the rich young man. By following the story in Mark's version (10,17-31), the exegesis of the text emphasized  the particular call given to this man, similar/assimilated to that of the apostles: "Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me" (10:21). It is this call to be received and interpreted charismatically in paths of consecrated life from many disciples of the Lord, men and women. Paradigmatic in this sense is the experience of Antonio: "He reflected on all of these things: how the apostles had left everything they had and made ​​to follow the Savior came into the church ... and it happened that at while he was reading the Gospel, he heard the Lord say to the rich: "If thou wilt be perfect, go ..."[iii]. You can see a perfect synergy between the textual exegesis and the charismatic - existential and, in the light of this, the faith journey of consecrated persons can be interpreted as a constant invitation to move from fear to love in the following of Christ.

The beauty of the faith

Arturo P. Pinacho has studied the theme of faith in the poetry of John of the Cross. Outlined the historical context in which it took place the human and religious story of the saint, the analysis has examined the poetic production. The faith was to him a source of inspiration in its content (thinking of the biblical readings of Romance), but mostly as a mystical experiential dimension, such as abandonment to God we finally called. That's how the reflection dwells on several steps of the Spiritual Canticle and the poem The source whose full title is Singing the soul that rejoices in knowing God through faith. In this composition, John of the Cross contemplates the mystery of God, the eternal source without the origin from which derives all sources, well aware that this happens in the darkness of faith, as evidenced by the verse that gives rhythm throughout the poem. "Even if it is night!" Unexpectedly, however, the song becomes an Eucharistic hymn. Here the unknowable God can be seen: "This living source, which I yearn, in this bread of life I see her, even if it is night".

Professor John Ancona continued reflection of the Convention dealing with the theme of the beauty of the faith. The first reference is Christological. Indeed, we can look to Jesus "the good/fine Shepherd" (Jn 10,11.14) whose beauty, however, is manifested dishonour of the cross. It is in the encounter with him that man is called to recognize the bad that has in him (his sin) and to accept the beauty that is given to him (the divine filiation). In the life of consecrated this understanding of faith takes on a particular importance as a witness by which "the eyes of the faithful is calling again towards the mystery of the Kingdom of God that is already at work in history, even as it awaits its full realization in heaven"[iv].

A contribution from psychology

"The psychology is not qualified  to prove or disprove the claims of faith". With these words Father Giuseppe Crea began his speech on the role of faith in the formative itinerary, in psychological perspective. What the psychologist can do is consider, from his point of view, the dynamics of belief. Thus, after describing the role that assumes faith in some schools of psychology, attention has turned to the motivational components of religiosity in the context of the consecrated life. An important distinction can be grasped - using the vocabulary of GW Allport - between extrinsic religiosity, which leads to living the faith in an instrumental and functional way, and intrinsic religiosity "that, lived more deeply consider faith as having value in itself»[v]. Likewise, the pathological doubt should not be confused with that existential, really of those who know to ask questions that lead him to seek more and more the truth. While it is clear that the relational style is influenced by the way of living the faith, as an experience of relationship with God and with others, even today some neurological studies seem to confirm a positive connection between the experience of faith and cognitive and emotional aspects of individual. It can thus be said that psychological well-being and transcendence are an inseparable pair that accompanies the journey toward holiness.

P. Franco Imoda has developed, however, his reflection on times of crisis in consecrated. The first consideration is that today's context is problematic at several levels, since everything can be questioned, even the existence of truth, and life can look just like a game of passions. Taking into account this environment in which they live also consecrated persons, at least in Western societies, the reflection has deepened the structure, the development and the treatment of anxiety, as a place where the crisis is configured as a threat or as "pass" of growth.

Rooted in Faith

The conclusion of the meeting was headed by Xabier P. Larrañaga, who moved from the assertion that believing is a good thing, good for the human being. This, however, is a statement that can be felt only by personal experience. It is faith that allows you to see the reality in harmony willed by God. As stated in the 1980 Plenary Assembly of the Congregation for Religious and Secular Institutes, "more the religious will open to the contemplative dimension, more he will become attentive to the needs of the Kingdom, intensely developing his theological  inner life, because he will observe events with the eyes of faith that will help him to discover everywhere the divine intention"[vi]. Faith, however, is good if it is actually good: "You believe that there is one God? You do well: the devils also believe, and tremble "(James 2:19). It is the close link between love and faith which makes operating the belief and gives a truly new vision of reality: "Faith knows as it is linked to love, because love itself brings a light. The understanding of faith is that which arises when we receive the great love of God that transforms us from within and gives us new eyes to see the reality"[vii].

 If the consecrated life wants to be a sign, has to worry about one’s faith journey. John Paul II said that to consecrated in a special way is entrusted with the task of pointing the Son of God made man as eschatological goal towards which all aims[viii]. It is also essential for this cure our faith in attention to the spiritual life and in fraternal dimension. It is a journey of growth because the fraternity becomes an invitation to have faith, and shared faith is to develop communion.

The consecrated person of tomorrow

In 1966 Karl Rahner wrote: "The pious person or tomorrow will be a "mystic", one that has "experienced" something, or will cease to be pious"[ix].

The contributions of the Convention organized by the Claretianum show us that the consecrated person of today and tomorrow will continue to have something to offer to the Church and to the world if he can testify a journey of faith that mature in love;  a way in which is deeply committed to both even in the dark.

He/she can say words and do meaningful actions as consecrated persons who have experienced, even in the night of our human condition, something that indicates to all - as exclaimed Teresa of Jesus - that "God alone suffices".