General Curia- Rome - 23.01.2001 by: Br. Stefano Ottenbreit ofm vicar general

We already know, in one way or another, that we are living a particular moment in the history of the world and of humanity. We have barely crossed the threshold of 2001, signalling the beginning of a new century and millennium. It is a special moment because we face questions regarding the future of the world, of humanity, of the Church and, among others, of the Consecrated Life. The answers are conditioned by three fundamental attitudes, which are: 1. The negative-pessimistic attitude Is there still a future? Will history have a positive outcome? Is it worth while to struggle? These are not artificial or absurd questions. In regard to the Order (cf. The Letter of the Minister General The Order Today: numbers decrease and ages increase, there is a reduction in vocations and a lack of perseverance, a lack of enthusiasm and creativity) we could very easily present a "negative balance sheet". We should not be surprised that there are those who prefer to cross their arms in the face of the situation and to interpret the "end of one time" as the end of a dignified future. Thus some are dedicated, in a frustrating manner, to criticism of everything and of everybody and lose the power to be reborn from the ashes.

2. The auto-sufficient-triumphalist attitude Others continue life as if nothing had changed. They prefer the triumphalism of times past as if "Christian history" still corresponds to Christianity, a time in which the Church was more Lord and Patron than Servant and Sign. They also lose the propitious occasion and are unaware of the urgency to respond, in an up-to-date way, to the challenges of our times. 3. The realistic-renewing attitude It is wise to recognise the mistakes made in the past. It is right to celebrate the triumphs and successes. But it is not enough to remember and recognise. The following are important questions to be made: And now? What should we do? How to continue? The search for the answer leads some to assume the attitude we call realistic-renewing. Realistic because it does not ignore the past. Indeed, it tries to learn from it. But its main attention rests on the present moment, so that it can take maximum advantage for a real renewal. After this premise there is still the "climate" of the historical moment in which we live to be considered. I think it is already known what attitude the Minister General, with his General Definitory, has chosen and tries to make concrete on the level of the whole Order. The annual meeting with the new Ministers Provincial is an eloquent proof of it. The Re-foundation of the Consecrated Life On the level of the Consecrated Life there is a widespread breathing in of "the air of re-foundation". The term, maybe, is not apt. It could be replaced by expressions such as renewal, revitalisation, restructuring, and modernisation.... The demand for evangelical radicalism, to pour new foundations and to assume fully the spirit of creativity and fidelity, encouraged by the apostolic exhortation "Vita Consecrata", is certainly felt to be alive in the Consecrated Life. Religious are evermore aware of their "crisis of identity" and many seek a new response, a new way to become concrete. Undoubtedly we live in a time of great searching. The restoration of significant charisma and evangelical counsels is spoken of (Letter of Minister General: The Order Today, the second part), there are new social-cultural contexts, restructuring of presence, models and services of the Consecrated Life. In other words, there is the consciousness, ever more widespread, that one model of the Consecrated Life is in decline and there is need to find a new "structure" that favours, maintains and consolidates the renewed spirit. "The services to the Church and to society must change, the religious themselves, who at one time have been administrators of works must change themselves into inspirers and transmitters of a charism" (José M. Arnaiz).

This is the great challenge to the whole of our Order. We have great potential in our hands: the charisma of Francis is very current. The people appreciate us everywhere as many friars still live the dynamism of the authentic Franciscan vocation. We still have vocations. Will we be able to find the right way to live the charism lived and passed on by Francis and so many friars during the course of the history of the Order? The Minister and Definitory General, elected in 1997, have taken the decision to serve the Order in this perspective, starting from the deep conviction that "it is only by safeguarding the essential elements of our charism that we will have something to offer to future generations" ("Priorities" for the Sexennium). This conviction is expressed in the Priorities for the Sexennium 1997-2003, which, in so far as it is the only "document" for the period, should inspire and orient a complete process of renovation and re-foundation. "Priority" and some convergent points The Minister and Definitory General have understood their service from the beginning as animation of the Franciscan vocation principally and not only as administration and organisation of the Order. They try to transmit the same consciousness on every occasion –especially during visits- to the Ministers Provincial and their collaborators (Definitory, Guardians and Formators). The Definitory General, on two occasions, have carried out a verification. The results have been "small", indicating a slow process, but positive nonetheless. It can be truly said that in the different Entities of the Order something is moving. Therefore, I would like to continue our reflection by indicating some convergent points, some tendencies to be considered with attention and deepened, in the hope that they can be useful indications for the Ministers Provincial at the beginning of their special service to the Friars. Even if they are small steps, more of desire than of reality, they truly indicate "where" the Order is going at the present moment. 1. The Founding of the Consecrated Life The search for the essential has immediately brought to light a great problem, possibly the greatest problem to be confronted. It deals with the understanding of our vocation and mission. We are too accustomed to founding our Consecrated Life in the dimension of doing and working, in the service we give, in the works we administer. We are recovering in these times, however, the consciousness that the Consecrated Life is first of all a consecration to God and as such also to men and to the world. In the reality of our life we usually reverse the process. We maintain the service to people and the world and we only think of Him who should be the reason for our consecration when we have time and are disposed. "In the re-founding of the Consecrated Life we should not rely on secondary options. It is a matter of opting for the God of life in the power of the Spirit, as he is revealed in Jesus Christ" (H. Schalück). Therefore, the Priorities for the Sexennium present the priority of the Priorities. On the threshold of the new millennium we re-discover that there is nothing more important than the option for the living God to whom we consecrate our life. To affirm the primacy of God and to express it in a spiritual life is the first vocation of a religious. It is necessary, therefore, to create space and atmosphere for an encounter, for quality of life and for solidarity based on the Word of God and to "dig wells before we die of thirst". In the contemplation of this living God the fundamental dimension of the following of Christ appears. And this contemplation is not simple passivity but rather implies the readiness to do all that is possible and necessary. This contemplation does not tempt one to take flight from the world but to solidarity. It overcomes the egotism and isolation of him who cuts himself off from society and the world. This contemplation, rather, influences the soul of the person, changes it and pushes it to commit itself to promoting the Kingdom of God throughout the world by means of works for peace and justice, especially in favour of the poor and marginalised.

The great challenge for the Order, undoubtedly, is our capacity to concentrate life, not on the work and structures to be maintained at all costs but on making real and significant the value of following Christ in the way of life proposed by the charism. Will we be able "to die in order to be re-born from on high, to get out from under the logic of saving ourselves and our institutions" in order to live and give testimony in our culture to the primacy of God? In many Provinces we are accomplishing the first and particularly significant steps. It is important to enter the right path in order to incarnate the "primacy of God" in the way of living our identity, that is, the fraternity, the minority, the mission of our Consecrated Life. It is not forgotten that, in practice, this spirit is often seen only on the personal level or on that of small communities. More global and efficient proposals on the level of the Province are still lacking. 2. The need for an evangelical project A realistic glance at the Order confirms for us that which we experience every day: our strength is diminishing because of various and well known reasons. We cannot continue in the slavery of "the logic of need". To re-found or re-plant our Consecrated Life really means taking on again the evangelical project, the marrow of the Franciscan vocation and mission. We cannot do everything at one time. We must make clear and definite choices and options. In the Consecrated Life today there is need for strong convictions, for brave initiatives and a lively faith in the mysterious and real intervention of God in our history. While we found our life on God, we must measure our presence and our services in the perspective of a greater quality of life. Our "reason for being" is evangelisation. Evangelisation, however, in the broad sense and not only as an activity directed towards others. For us Franciscans evangelisation is, first of all, a life "according to the Holy Gospel" and thus becomes an announcement through life, word and action. Our evangelical project in the light of the Priorities –or, if you wish, in light of the 1st article or more explicitly in the light of the 5th Chapter of our General Constitutions- cannot leave to one side any fundamental elements or values. For us Evangelisation must be the fruit and source of Contemplation, Fraternity and Minority. That is to say: Evangelisation, contemplative-fraternal-minor. Naturally, this "requirement" calls for creative, courageous fidelity and especially for the capacity to leave works, things and places that have become dear in time and by custom. Nevertheless, a "clear and decisive policy" is required, without which we will do nothing other than put new wine into old wineskins. In some Entities the great challenge and doubt is whether we should we cover our head or our feet? The fact is that the cover is becoming ever shorter. The commitment to the Pastoral Care of Vocations is also important in order to promote lay vocations and, having them, to respect and integrate them into the evangelical project. Finally, there comes the periodical verification, without which any project whatsoever becomes a "dead letter", especially if it does not become a dynamic structure that brings life, joy and hope.

3. The Growing Consciousness of Integration Specialisation in a determined field is, undoubtedly, a requirement of the times and circumstances in which we live. It is also natural that the gifts, capacities and personal interests should not only be respected, but also encouraged. All of this, however, should not bring us to a fragmentation that divides and isolates us. We have said that evangelisation is our "reason for being". It is also true that the ways of living and announcing the Gospel and of service, animated by the Gospel, can and should be diverse. Yet, we must maintain the elements or values that identify us, that is: our identity. To be more concrete: we will always have friars with certain capacities and inclinations. One prefers more recollection and the environment of retreat, another the concrete activity amidst the people. There are friars who are more active, more courageous, and more committed than others. The greater the group diversity, the greater the life there is in a Province. The important thing, however, is not to lose sight of that which we have in common as inheritance and responsibility. A friar committed to "Justice and Peace and the Integrity of Creation" but not to the "Fraternity" is not of any use to us. A friar recollected and dedicated to prayer without a commitment for a more just and fraternal world is of no use to us. At the same time that we promote diversity in respect to friars with their gifts, we must also create all the conditions in order to arrive at a unity in diversity. It is necessary to overcome any kind of division and parallelisms and especially the idea that certain things are "ad libitum" and pure caprice of one or other friar. The power of our testimony certainly comes from our capacity to foster and integrate all the elements or fundamental values of our vocation. We can give a concrete example of this. The Definitory General, reflecting for some time on the evangelising dimension of our vocation, has reached the conviction of having to redesign the Secretariate for Evangelisation. To animate the Order we have two Secretariates: the Secretariate for Formation and Studies and the Secretariate for Evangelisation that is, however, none other than the Secretariate for Missionary Evangelisation. The proposal is to have the Secretariate for Evangelisation include all the aspects, the activities and the services of the friars. The reason is simple: all should be animated in their vocation and mission that are common to us. To the extent that we become conscious of the fact that, for example, the dimension of justice, peace and the integration of creation and dialogue are inherent elements of the Franciscan Charism, we are placing a special emphasis –on an Office and a Service- in order to underline their importance. It would be, however, a mistake to think or even to admit that these constitutive elements of our charism are something apart or, worse still, optional. The Definitory General, therefore, wishes, with this effort at integration, to give an impulse, thinking that it could also inspire and consolidate similar initiatives in the Provinces. It is also necessary to overcome the parallelism or even the division between Formation and Evangelisation. Often, having invested a lot in Formation –especially in initial formation- we forget about its continuation in life and evangelising mission, that is, the long and important period of On-going Formation. Very often the situation found in the time of "evangelisation" contrasts strongly with the proposal and insistence of Initial Formation, bringing about not a few desertions and frustrations. We must, with full conviction, say today that it is impossible to think of Formation disassociated from Evangelisation and vice-versa.

4. The Growing Consciousness of Communication The second Priority speaks of "communion of life in fraternity". The Definitory General has purposely selected this expression in order to draw attention to the fact that the common life is not enough in order to speak of Fraternal Life. A life beneath the same roof, sharing at the same table, the observance of some common norms are still not enough to create a Fraternity from which the operative orientations for life and mission can spring. The great challenge is to arrive at a fraternal life in community, that is, a life rich in relationships and in communications. When communication is lacking fraternal communion deteriorates and dies. The of lack and the poverty of communication usually lead to the weakening of Fraternity through the lack of knowledge of the life of the other –be it of the individual or of the entity. The brother becomes evermore strange, relationships become insignificant, and things even go so far as to create real situations of isolation and solitude. There is thus fostered a mentality of self-management, together with an insensitivity to the other while, at the same time, significant relationships are sought outside the community (Cf. Fraternal Life in Community, 34). We must form ourselves to be able to meet the other, to listen to one another without getting tired, to accept the different, to appreciate and respect the other. We must learn to lose time in listening to others and to accept other ways of being and thinking, forcing ourselves to make deep ties and to avoid difference. Our future will depend a lot on the disposition and capacity to communicate: within the local and Provincial Fraternity, between the Entities and the Order, with other Institutes and Movements, with the Church and with the world. It is because of the complexity of life today that communication and more ample consultation, capable of overcoming all individualism, are required. We must do everything in order to open up to communion. It is necessary to overcome any kind of individualism or "provincialism". Rather must communication open up the way to collaboration.

5. The Growing Consciousness of Collaboration In this historic moment, mutual animation in our vocation and mission is indispensable. Animation, however, demands the efforts of all and nobody can speak for himself alone. We must share - especially in a spirit of minority- responsibilities. If, on the one hand, we feel that animation requires - today more than ever- the sharing of gifts and collaboration on various levels (Definitors, Guardians, Secretariates, Formators, those charged with Justice and Peace, Service, Dialogue and the Pastoral Care of Vocations), we can, on the other hand, see our insufficiency and our limitations in regard to personnel at this time. In many Entities people capable of facing up to all the demands that a good animation requires are no longer found. We see, more and more, that a few friars have to take on charges and responsibilities to such an extent that they can no longer do well even the minimum that they have to do. Animation and especially "accompaniment" on all levels is becoming more necessary. On the other hand we must administer the growing difficulty of finding the personnel necessary for the animation. The big challenge will undoubtedly be, therefore, the opening up to collaboration on all levels: within the local, Provincial, Regional (Conference) and universal levels and, at the same time, with the other institutes of Consecrated Life and especially with the laity. Our future as an Order –by virtue of its charism- cannot ignore the inter-provincial, international and inter-cultural aspect.

6. The Need for Formation It is impossible to conclude our reflection without explicit reference to the importance of Formation. Formation has always been important but today, more than ever, we feel with urgency the need of it. Especially the "on-going" in which the "initial" should be inserted. We must conclude that the objective of and the efforts at a "new founding of our vocation and mission", the elaboration of and the involvement in an evangelising project (involvement = commitment to the project), the harmonious integration of all the fundamental elements of our charism, the growth of communication and co-operation between us and with others in the Church and world, will be possible only if we are disposed to take the road of conversion that truly will be, above all, a grace of God but also fruit of a sincere effort through a continuous Formation to fidelity in creativity. "To take a thousand steps it is necessary to begin with the first".

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