S. John Paul II Homil. 343


APOSTOLIC PILGRIMAGE TO INDIA

BEATIFICATION OF FATHER KURIAKOSE ELIAS CHAVARA

AND SISTER ALFONSA MUTTATHUPANDATHU


Nahru Stadium of Kottayam

344
Saturday, 8 February 1986

"I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth".


Dear Brothers and Sisters,

1. These are the words of Jesus of Nazareth, and he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit when he uttered them. How full of meaning they are for us today!

"I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to the little ones" .

What things has the Lord hidden? What mysteries has he revealed? Truly the deepest ones, the mysteries of his own divine life, those known here on earth only by him, only by Christ himself. For he says: "All things have been delivered to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him" .

And behold, the Son does reveal these things. At the same time he reveals the Father. The Father is revealed through the Son. And to whom does the Son reveal these things? He reveals them to those whom he chooses: "for such was your gracious will", Jesus tells the Father. He reveals these things to the little ones.

2. Today, in this Sacred Liturgy, we wish to unite ourselves in a special way with Christ the Lord. Together with him we wish to bless the Father, for the particular love which he has shown to a son and daughter of the Church in India. We praise the Father for his countless blessings during the two thousand years that the Church has existed on Indian soil. With Christ we glorify the Father for the love that he has shown to the little ones of Kerala and all India.

The Church throughout the world rejoices with the Church in India as Father Kuriakose Elias Chavara and Sister Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception are raised to the ranks of the Blessed in the great Communion of Saints. This man and this woman, both members of the Syro-Malabar Church here in Kerala, advanced to great heights of holiness through their wholehearted co-operation with the grace of God. Each possessed an ardent love of God, yet each followed a distinct spiritual path.

3. Father Kuriakose Elias Chavara was born here in Kerala, and for nearly all of his sixty-five years of earthly life he laboured generously for the renewal and enrichment of the Christian life. His deep love for Christ filled him with apostolic zeal and made him especially careful to promote the unity of the Church. With great generosity he collaborated with others, especially brother priests and religious, in the work of salvation.

In co-operation with Fathers Thomas Palackal and Thomas Porukara, Father Kuriakose founded an Indian religious congregation for men, now known as the Carmelites of Mary Immaculate. Later, with the help of an Italian missionary, Father Leopold Beccaro, he started an Indian religious congregation for women, the Congregation of the Mother of Carmel. These congregations grew and flourished, and religious vocations became better understood and appreciated. Through the common efforts of the members of new religious families, his hopes and works were multiplied many times over.

345 Father Kuriakose’s life, and the lives of these new religious, were dedicated to the service of the Syro-Malabar Church. Under his leadership or inspiration, a good number of apostolic initiatives were undertaken: the establishment of seminaries for the education and formation of the clergy, the introduction of annual retreats, a publishing house for Catholic works, a house to care for the destitute and dying, schools for general education and programmes for the training of catechumens. He contributed to the Syro-Malabar liturgy and spread devotion to the Holy Eucharist and the Holy Family. In particular, he dedicated himself to encouraging and counselling Christian families, convinced as he was of the fundamental role of the family in the life of society and the Church.

But no apostolic cause was dearer to the heart of this great man of faith than that of the unity and harmony within the Church. It was as if he had always before his mind the prayer of Jesus, on the night before his Sacrifice on the Cross: "That they may all be one; even as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us" . Today the Church solemnly recalls with love and gratitude all his efforts to resist threats of disunity and to encourage the clergy and faithful to maintain unity with the See of Peter and the universal Church. His success in this, as in all his many undertakings, was undoubtedly due to the intense charity and prayer which characterised his daily life, his close communion with Christ and his love for the Church as the visible Body of Christ on earth.

4. Sister Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception, born a century after Father Kuriakose Elias, would gladly have served the Lord with similar apostolic projects. And indeed, she possessed a personal devotion to Father Kuriakose from early in her religious life. But the path to holiness for Sister Alphonsa was clearly a different one. It was the way of the Cross, the way of sickness and suffering.

Already at a very young age, Sister Alphonsa desired to serve the Lord as a religious, but it was not without enduring trials that she was finally able to pursue this goal. When it became possible, she joined the Franciscan Clarist Congregation. Throughout her life, which was a brief thirty-six years, she continually gave thanks to God for the joy and privilege of her religious vocation, for the grace of her vows of chastity, poverty and obedience.

From early in her life, Sister Alphonsa experienced great suffering. With the passing of the years, the heavenly Father gave her an ever fuller share in the Passion of his beloved Son. We recall how she experienced not only physical pain of great intensity, but also the spiritual suffering of being misunderstood and misjudged by others. But she constantly accepted all her sufferings with serenity and trust in God, being firmly convinced that they would purify her motives, help her to overcome all selfishness, and unite her more closely with her beloved divine Spouse. She wrote to her spiritual director: "Dear Father, as my good Lord Jesus loves me so very much, I sincerely desire to remain on this sick bed and suffer not only this, but anything else besides, even to the end of the world. I feel now that God has intended my life to be an oblation, a sacrifice of suffering" (20 November 1944). She came to love suffering because she loved the suffering Christ. She learned to love the Cross through her love of the crucified Lord.

Sister Alphonsa knew that by her sufferings she shared in the Church’s apostolate; she found joy in them by offering them all to Christ. In this way, she seemed to have made her own the words of Saint Paul: "I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the Church" . She was endowed by God with an affectionate and happy disposition, with the ability to take delight in ordinary and simple things. The weight of human suffering, even the misunderstanding or jealousy of others, could not extinguish the joy of the Lord which filled her heart. In a letter written shortly before she died, at time of intense physical and mental suffering, she said: "I have given myself up completely to Jesus. Let him please himself in his dealings with me. My only desire in this world is to suffer for love of God and to rejoice in doing it" (February 1946).

5. Both Father Kuriakose and Sister Alphonsa bear witness to the beauty and greatness of the religious vocation. And I would like to take this occasion to direct my thoughts particularly to the men and women religious who are present here and to all the religious in India.

Every one who has been baptised into Christ has discovered a pearl of "great value" and a "treasure" worth all that one has in life . For all the baptised share in the very life of the Blessed Trinity and are called to be "light" and "salt" for the world . But within the great family of the Church, God our Father calls some of you to follow Christ still more closely and to dedicate your lives with a special consecration through the profession of chastity, poverty and obedience. You, the religious of the Church, bear public witness to the Gospel and to the primacy of the love of God. By a permanent commitment and lifelong fidelity to your vows, you seek to grow in union with Christ and to contribute in a unique way to the life and mission of the Church. And what a vital contribution is yours!

In a rich variety of forms, you live to the full your evangelical consecration. Some of you have heard the Lord’s personal call to the contemplative life where, though hidden from the world, you offer your lives and prayers for the sake of all humanity. Others have been called to an active apostolic life, where you serve in teaching, health care, parochial work, retreats, works of charity and many forms of pastoral activity.

No matter how you serve, dear brothers and sisters in Christ, never doubt the value of your consecrated life. Whether your service resembles the great apostolic endeavours of Father Kuriakose, or takes the form of hidden suffering like Sister Alphonsa, whatever it may be, it is important in the life of the Church. Remember the words of Saint Paul, in today’s second reading, "we know that in everything God works for good" . Even when you feel discouraged or weighed down by personal failures or sin, trust even more in the love of God for you. Turn to him for mercy, forgiveness and love. For as Saint Paul says in the same reading: "the Lord helps us in our weakness" . It is in him that we End our strength, our courage and our joy.

Without the vital contribution of men and women religious, the charity of the Church would be lessened, her fruitfulness would be diminished. Thus, I pray that the beatification of these two exemplary religious of India will give you renewed zeal for your precious vocation. In your own love for Christ may you be inspired by their fervour. And like them, may you keep the simplicity of the "little ones" of the Gospel. Be pure of heart and filled with compassion. Be always eager to please the Lord. For it is to the little ones that the mysteries of God are revealed .

346 6. And now, I wish to greet all who have come to Kottayam for this celebration. I greet my brother bishops and all the clergy and faithful who have come from the other dioceses of Kerala. With respect and esteem I thank all the other fellow Christians as well as our Hindu and Muslim brethren and the followers of other religions who honour me today by being here. I am grateful for the presence of the civil authorities and I invoke upon all the people the blessings of joy and peace.

Truly extraordinary is this day in the history of the Church and Christianity on Indian soil. It is important, too, in the history of the pastoral ministry of the Bishop of Rome, the Successor of Saint Peter. It is the first time that he has had the joy or raising to the glory of the altars a son and a daughter of the Church in India, in their native land.

Therefore we sing together with the Psalmist in today’s Liturgy. Together we give thanks:

"It is good to give thanks to the Lord
to make music to your name, O Most High;
Your deeds, O Lord, have made me glad;
for the work of your hands I shout with joy.
O Lord, how great are your works!" .

Truly great are the works of God! And the greatest work of God on earth is man. The glory of God is man fully alive with the life of God. The glory of God is the holiness of each person and of the whole Church.

Holiness is the work of divine grace. When we proclaim it solemnly in the midst of the People of God in this land, we give glory to the Most High. In the words of Saint Augustine we praise God, saying: "In crowning merits, you are crowning your own gifts".

7. Truly extraordinary is this day! The Prophet Isaiah says: "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts" .

347 Today it is given to us to penetrate more deeply into these divine thoughts. It is given to us to know better the divine ways.

And behold, what ways! What ways!

The Apostle writes: "For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the first-born among many brethren. And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified" .

These are the divine thoughts.

These are the divine ways.

Today it is given to us to see how these thoughts are accomplished in Blessed Kuriakose Elias and Blessed Sister Alphonsa. Today we see how these ways of God lead through their hearts, through their earthly pilgrimages, to the glory of the altars.

8. "Father, it is true", Jesus says, "you have graciously willed it so" .

And he continues: "Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" .

Jesus speaks in this way. And he speaks to everyone. We are called to holiness. We are all called to communion with him: with his Heart, with his Cross, with his glory.

Jesus speaks in this way. And together with Jesus so do Blessed Kuriakose and Blessed Alphonsa. Their hearts are united with the Heart of the Divine Redeemer and are filled with love for all the sons and daughters of your blessed land. Amen.



APOSTOLIC PILGRIMAGE TO INDIA

EUCHARISTIC CONCELEBRATION AT SHIVAJI PARK


Bombay

348
Sunday, 9 February 1986




"I will put my spirit within you".

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

1. These words of the Prophet Ezekiel End their fulfilment in the Cenacle at Jerusalem. On the eve of his Passion, Christ says to the Apostles: "The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you: my peace I give to you".

Today we have gathered in this city of Bombay, the capital of Maharashtra State, to pray in a special way for this peace which is given by Christ, for this peace which is communicated to human hearts and human communities in the power of the Holy Spirit.

It is God who transforms human hearts, just as the Prophet Ezekiel eloquently proclaimed: "A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you; and I will take out of your flesh the heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh" .

2. The Church never ceases to proclaim the truth that peace in the world has its roots in the human heart, in the conscience of each man and woman. Peace can only be the fruit of a spiritual change, beginning in the heart of every human being and spreading throughout communities. The first of these communities is the family. It is the family that is the first community to be called to peace, and the first community to call for peace – peace and fellowship between individuals and peoples.

For this reason our meditation and prayer today is concentrated on the family. It is our hope that a great cry for peace and fellowship will rise from this smallest and most basic cell of society. This cry must reach all groups; it must reach the family of each nation and finally the vast family of all the nations of the world.

Here may the voice of India and the voice of the Church be joined in unison.

3. We raise this voice in the place where, some twenty years ago, Pope Paul VI was with you during the International Eucharistic Congress here in Bombay. That momentous occasion was the first time in history that a Successor of Saint Peter had visited your motherland. Towards the end of those historic days, Paul VI expressed his admiration for the people of India and of this city in the following words: "In our memory, Bombay will remain as the symbol and epitome of the great continent of Asia, with its ancient cultures and traditions, with its vast populations, with its earnest desire for peace". I give thanks to God for the privilege of following in the footsteps of my predecessor. I am pleased to have been able to travel to a number of important places in your vast country. And it is a joy for me today to be with you in Bombay. I can assure you that, when I leave, I too shall carry within my heart a vivid memory of the rich cultures and traditions of India. I shall treasure my experience of the vitality of the Church in this ancient land.

I now wish to extend a special greeting to Archbishop Pimenta, to his auxiliary bishops and to all my brother bishops of this region of India. Together with them, I greet my brother priests, the men and women religious and all the faithful people. My greetings go not only to the Christian brethren, but also to the brothers and sisters of the Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain and Parsee religions, and also to the civil and religious authorities of this place. In particular I greet the families of Bombay and of all India, and I welcome this occasion to reflect with you on the role of the Christian family in building a new world of peace.

349 4. "I will put my spirit within you". When two human beings, a man and a woman, approach the altar, as ministers of the Sacrament of Matrimony, the Church invokes the Creator. She asks the Holy Spirit to come down on these two who are to become husband and wife and are to begin a family.

They are to live under one roof and create a home. The home is the place where the family lives, the outward framework of that life. But at the same time there is also the inner mystery of their hearts. People not only live in a home; they also create a home. And they create it by the fact of "living" in each other’s hearts: the husband in the wife and the wife in the husband, the children in the parents and the parents in the children. The parental home is the mutual indwelling of human hearts.

So in the home we see a reflection of the mystery which Christ speaks about in the Cenacle: "If a man loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him" .

5. Today’s liturgy reminds us of the most wonderful image of the community of marriage and the family that was ever written down in Sacred Scripture. It is found in the Letter to the Ephesians, in which Saint Paul says of the union of husband and wife in Christian marriage: "This mystery is a profound one, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the Church". The love of husband and wife has its model in the love of Christ for the Church and reflects that love in the world. Jesus expressed his love most completely on the Cross, when he sacrificed his own life for the sake of his bride, the Church. The Holy Spirit, which each of us has received in Baptism and Confirmation, makes husbands and wives capable of loving one another with the same sacrificial love. That is why Saint Paul exhorts husbands in the following words: "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the Church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her". The love of Christ endures for ever and is constantly life-giving and fruitful. Likewise, Christian spouses are indissolubly bound to each other in a union which is intended to bring forth and nourish new life.

6. Every couple approaching the altar to become the ministers of the Sacrament of Matrimony should have this image before their eyes. In this Sacrament the Church invokes the Holy Spirit, that by his sanctifying power he may bring about in the man and woman a spousal change of heart – a change that will become a firm foundation of the marriage covenant.

This spousal change of heart is at the same time a special consecration in marriage . As the man and woman entrust themselves to each other, they consecrate to God their souls and bodies, so that from their union there may develop a mature family community, a communion of love and life.

Husbands and wives receive this communion as a gift, a gift which they have the task of deepening and broadening. Though the responsible transmission of life they gladly accept children as a sign of fruitfulness and a gift of God. With the birth of a child, which calls for greater sacrificial love, they find their own loving union deepened and widened to include others. In the words of your own Indian sage, Rabindranath Tagore, they recognize this truth:

"Every baby that is born
Brings with it the message
That God has not lost faith in mankind".

For the Second Vatican Council, responsible parenthood means that parents should "take into account both their own welfare and that of their children, those already born and those which may be foreseen. For this accounting they will reckon with both the material and spiritual conditions of the times as well as of their state in life, maintaining regard finally for the good of the family community, of temporal society and of the Church herself" . The Council goes on to say that "when there is a question of harmonizing conjugal love with the responsible transmission of life, the moral aspect of any procedure does not depend solely on sincere intentions or on an evaluation of motives. It must be determined by objective standards. These, based on the nature of the human person and his acts, preserve the full sense of mutual self-giving and human procreation in the context of true love".

350 We see in the statements of Mahatma Gandhi certain similarities. While he asserted that "the act of generation should be controlled for the ordered growth of the world", he asked the question: "How is the suspension of procreation to be brought about?" And he answered: "Not by immoral and artificial checks... but by a life of discipline and self-control". And he added: "Moral results can only be produced by moral restraints". This, dear brothers and sisters, is the Church’s profound conviction.

Furthermore, it is the role of the family everywhere and of all society to proclaim that all human life is sacred from the moment of conception. It is the task of all mankind to reject whatever wounds, weakens or destroys human life – whatever offends the dignity of any human being.

7. The family is called by the word of the Living God to be a community of peace and fellowship. At the same time, the family calls all individuals and all nations to be such a community.

First of all, in order to develop properly, the family needs a social atmosphere of peace and fellowship which protects its rights. In significant ways, the situation of the family in India today presents certain encouraging signs: the esteem given to mutual fidelity; the worthy efforts being made to promote the dignity of women; the care of parents for their children and the devotion of children to their parents; the attention given to the quality of interpersonal relationships in marriage and to the education of children, to mention just a few.

On the other hand, the family today is under great stress due to certain trends in modern society, accelerated development and other pressures. The family faces the risk of fragmentation and a breakdown of authority. Parents experience difficulty in passing on authentic values to their children. The rapid increase of urbanisation brings with it crowded slums, housing problems and higher rate of unemployment or under-employment – all of which have negative effects on the family.

The well-known opposition of the Church to the moral evils that affect the family and married life is due to her profound conviction that such evils are contrary to God’s plan for humanity and that they violate the sacredness of marriage and the values of human life. The Church has a responsibility to defend the rights of the family and the total well-being of humanity, and it is for this reason that she renews her commitment to proclaiming the full truth about man.

8. Peace and fellowship are also necessary for the life of the local community and of larger social groups, and of the nation itself.

The quality of a nation’s life, or of the life of any community, depends on the presence or absence of peace and fellowship. Where there is an atmosphere of peace, tremendous energies for good spring up, giving people joy and creativity, helping them to grow to full maturity and to work together as sons and daughters of a loving God. Where there is true fraternal solidarity, the rights of the weak and defenceless are not violated; rather the dignity and well-being of all are safeguarded and promoted. And there can be peace only where there is justice and freedom and true respect for the nature of man.

But our modern world is all too familiar with the lack of brotherhood and with violence, tension, discrimination and injustice. The way we face these problems is a test of our humanity, a test of the quality of our communities and nations. It is a challenge which faces India and every other nation in the world.

9. The whole of humanity also makes up a family. This is the great family of man, with all its variety.

The cause of ensuring peace, international justice, and indeed the solidarity of all people throughout the world is a particular aspiration of our time. It is voiced by the leaders of nations and of international organisations. Programmes for peace are endorsed in varying degrees by nearly every political party in the world. Popular movements and public opinion support the same cause. In every country people are weary of conflict and division. The world longs for harmony and peace.

351 10. And therefore the Church of the twentieth century insistently calls for justice and integral human development. In episcopal conferences and local Churches, through the efforts of parishes and various associations, by teaching and by action for justice, and in many other ways, the Church works for harmony and brotherhood. Above all she counts on the contribution of Christian families to bear witness to Jesus’ Gospel of fraternal love.

She does not cease to ask that humanity may be given "a new spirit", that the "heart of stone" may be replaced by a "heart of flesh"; that there may be true peace in so many centres of conflict and in the international life of our time.

For the world is the home of individuals, peoples, nations, humanity. The human race is more numerous than ever before and is achieving scientific and technical progress never before known. Hence, ethical progress, spiritual progress, fully human progress is all the more necessary. In this point, the Church’s cry voices, I am sure, the sentiments of many hearts here in India.

11. At the same time, the earth – people’s home – belongs to God. Today’s Liturgy proclaims this in the words of the psalmist:

"Give the Lord, you families of peoples,
give the Lord glory and power,
Lord the glory of his name...
O earth, tremble before him.
Proclaim to the nations: ‘God is king’.
The world he made firm in its place;
he will judge the peoples in fairness...
352 He comes to rule the earth.
With justice he will rule the world,
he will judge the peoples with his truth".

May this voice rising from the Church’s heart, which makes itself one with the voice of India, with the cry of every family established upon the covenant with God, the Creator of life and source of love.

May this voice become ever stronger; may it not remain unanswered. Amen.

APOSTOLIC PILGRIMAGE TO INDIA

EUCHARISTIC CONCELEBRATION IN THE GROUNDS

OF THE PAPAL SEMINARY IN PUNE


Monday, 10 February 1986




"I am the vine, you are the branches".

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

1. It is a special joy to celebrate the Eucharist with you here in the grounds of the Papal Seminary in Pune. This city is full of hope for the future of the Church in India. Also located here are novitiates and houses of formation of various religious institutes, as well as the National Vocation Service Centre. For the great gift of a divine call, for this wonderful sign of hope, and for all the vocations throughout India, we give thanks and praise to the Lord.

I am very happy to see before me such a large number of seminarians, as well as numerous young men and women who are preparing for consecrated life in religious or secular institutes. Looking at your nation, with the enormous challenges which it faces, who can fail to be conscious of the need for more labourers in the vineyard of the Lord, for zealous and dedicated labourers who will respond to these challenges in accordance with the mind and heart of Christ?

With great joy I greet all of you who are present at this Sacred Liturgy: my brother bishops from this region of India, my brother priests and all the men and women religious, and all the faithful people. I offer my greetings especially to the families who are the first to prepare the hearts of young people to respond generously to a vocation in the Church, and also to the superiors and the staff of the seminaries and religious houses who continue the all-important work of the formation begun at home.

353 2. I would now like to speak to the seminarians. Dear brothers and sons in Christ: as future priests in the world you are called to be spiritual leaders with a specific identity: men of the Church, men dedicated to prayer and to the word of God, men who wish to share humbly and generously in Christ’s role of mediation.

Ours is a world that abounds in experts and leaders in countless areas of human existence. The Church’s ministers are not called to play leadership roles in the secular spheres of society. India has many competent lay men and women to attend to these matters. You may be tempted to emulate the secular leadership because of its growing attractiveness in society today. You may at times feel irrelevant because your call is specifically spiritual. It is therefore urgently necessary for you to be convinced of the precious value of your vocation from God. This is especially true because in this country there has always been an abiding interest in spiritual things: in the vidya and anubhav of God, the knowledge and experience of God. This interest applies likewise to the religious vocation.

3. In the hidden recesses of the human heart the grace of a vocation takes the form of a dialogue. It is a dialogue between Christ and an individual, in which a personal invitation is given. Christ calls the person by name and says: "Come, follow me". This call, this mysterious inner voice of Christ, is heard most clearly in silence and prayer. Its acceptance is an act of faith.

A vocation is both a sign of love and an invitation to love. In the Gospel account of the conversation of Jesus with the young man, we are told that "Jesus looking upon him loved him". The Lord’s call always demands a choice, a decision full awareness of one’s freedom. The decision to say "yes" to Christ’s call carries with it a number of important consequences: the need to give up other plans, a willingness to leave behind people who are dear, a readiness to set out with deep trust along the path that will lead to ever closer union with Christ.

The response of love to a vocation is well expressed by the Psalmist when he declares:

"I say to the Lord: You are my God.
My happiness lies in you alone,
O Lord, it is you who are my portion and cup; it is you yourself who are my prize.
You will show me the path of life, the fullness of joy in your presence, at your right hand happiness for ever".

4. This grace calls for a response, that is, a conscious effort to "assimilate" a mystery which is both beyond understanding and at the same time revealed by God.

Every vocation is a call to enter more fully into the mystery of God. Theological and philosophical studies offer opportunities for a deeper knowledge of the person of Christ. But this deeper knowledge does not depend on our intellectual efforts alone: above all it is a gift of the Father who through the Holy Spirit enables us to know the Son. Hence, in prayer and silence, you must learn to listen to the voice of God. A person must be conformed to Christ and not merely instructed in the faith.

354 Our whole conscious co-operation with the grace of a vocation must follow the programme outlined by Christ in the allegory of the true vine. Christ says: "I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser".

Your first priority is to live in union with Christ, to be one with him at all times, faithful to his invitation: "Abide in me, and I in you" . Only in this way can you bear abundant fruit for the Kingdom of God. Only by abiding in Christ can you accomplish great things in the Church today. For he says: "I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing".

The time of religious or seminary formation is intended to deepen your union with Christ. Under the influence of the Holy Spirit, the spiritual and supernatural link of the branch with the vine must be strengthened; the individual who is called and Christ who calls must be more closely united. And this necessarily involves discipline and sacrifice: the discipline of study and prayer in particular, and the sacrifices which free our heart to embrace God’s word eagerly and to give ourselves in service to others. This too is in accordance with Christ’s words: "Every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit". So never doubt the Lord’s love when you have to face hardships and suffering, for the Lord "prunes" those whom he loves, so that they may bear more fruit.

A condition for union with Christ is the total acceptance of his word, which in fact is communicated to us through the Sacred Scriptures and the Tradition of the Church. The Church herself guards and presents this word of God in all its purity, integrity and power. By the action of the Holy Spirit, and through the charism of her Magisterium, she transmits the Gospel intact to each generation. A loving adherence to the authentic Magisterium guarantees the real possession of God’s word, without which there can be no life-giving union with Christ. Fidelity to the Magisterium is also an indispensable condition for the proper interpretation of the "signs of the times".

5. Saint Paul, in the First Reading of this Liturgy, tells us about his own vocation from the Lord: "To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ". "To preach the unsearchable riches of Christ" – this was Saint Paul’s vocation; it is a principal duty of the Church; it is a principal task of every priest.

Religious and seminary formation and training must always be based on this. During the years of their preparation, young people must profoundly assimilate "the unsearchable riches of Christ", in order to be able to make those riches accessible to others. You must assimilate them so that you can proclaim them with conviction in years to come. Your responsibility is to communicate Christ. But you will be able to do this only if you have first experienced his love.

6. It is in this context that I now turn to you, dear parents, brothers and sisters, to all the members of the Christian family. The Christian home is not just a community of human life. The precious gift of human life must be complemented and enriched with the life of Christ. The family is rightly concerned with preserving human values, but it must also devote itself to the cultivation of Christian values.

Members of families can be tempted to think that it is only to priests and religious that the Church’s responsibility is entrusted. But this is far from the truth. It is all in the home that children first learn what it means to be "partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the Gospel". As the Second Vatican Council taught: "Christian husbands and wives are co-operators in grace and witnesses of faith on behalf of each other, their children, and all others in their household. They are the first to communicate the faith to their children and to educate them; by word and example they train their offspring for the Christian and apostolic life. They prudently help them in the choice of their vocation and carefully promote any religious calling which they may discern in them".

7. The Christian family is the first place where vocations develop. It is a seminary or novitiate in germ. This means that you, the parents, must deepen and cultivate your own Christian life continuously. Let us get rid of the false notion that Christianity is practised entirely in church. What happens in the liturgy must be carried over into daily life. It must be lived in the home. Then the home will become the place where life in Christ grows to maturity. Such a home is a real expression of the Church.

Bear in mind that vocations in the Church are fostered in families where priests and religious are respected and loved, where there is a real interest in the life of the local Church and the universal Church. Then, when it is time for your children to make their choice of a suitable way of life, they will think not only in terms of secular professions but will also consider the possibility of accepting a vocation to the priesthood or consecrated life. In an age of growing materialism one may be tempted to forget about the possibility of such vocations. But this possibility is real. Such vocations are needed for the well-being of families and society. They are needed so that the Church can fulfil Christ’s will.

8. "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide".

355 Dear seminarians and aspirants to the consecrated life: the initiative in every true vocation comes from the Lord. It is not your own plans that you are following. A vocation is a call from God and it requires a free response on our part. It is Christ who chooses and appoints us to the task he intends. What we are about, then, is God’s work, not our own. And God will see to it that the work is not only fruitful but that the fruit will last.

"You did not choose me, but I chose you". Christ also addresses these words to husbands and wives and to people who are called to lead a chaste single life in the Church. He addresses them to the whole Church in this ancient land of India. But in a particular way he addresses them to those whom he has destined for a special role of discipleship and of intercession for his Body, the Church. Let us, therefore, listen to Jesus as he says: "I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit... so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you".

Amen.

S. John Paul II Homil. 343