Monday, February 7, 2022. João Braz Cardinal DE AVIZ, prefect of the Congregation of the Consecrated Life opened the Order’s General Diet 2022, with a celebration of the Mass. In his homily, the Cardinal, mentioned that the chapter fathers must strive to go back to the roots of the Order, on how the founders followed Jesus in holiness of life and to be open to the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
After the Mass, Fr. Teodoro O. Kalaw, CRM, Superior General of the Order, and Fr. Pierpaolo Ottene, CRM, General Economo presented a gift to the cardinal, a reproduction of the painting of our three founders, St. Francis Caracciolo, Ven. Agustine Adorno, and Fr. Fabrizio Caracciolo. The original painting, located in the Order’s Generalate (Casa Generalizia) in Sant’Angelo in Pescheria, Rome, is by the Filipino artist Mark Jay V. Bambao.
On the first day of the Diet, Msgr. Anthony Figueiredo, former professor at Seton Hall University, media consultant of the Vatican Affairs and who now works as an assistant priest of the Bishop of Assisi gave the spiritual conferences. He reminded the CRM priests, gathered for the Dieta, the importance of being at peace with God and with one another.
Msgr. Figueiredo highlighted the virtue of Humility, mentioning the words of the Holy Father Pope Francis who, during a recent interview, when asked who he was, responded that he was a sinner. The Monsignor shared insights from great saints like St. Augustine, St. Ignatius of Loyola, St. Alphonsus de Liguori and the saints of Assisi, St. Francis and St. Clare and Blessed Carlo Acutis, often reminding the CRM Fathers their fourth vow of not seeking ecclesiastical dignities and honors.
But what is humility? It comes from the word humus: earth. Msgr. Figueiredo posed another question: can we be weak as priests? He mentions that we can be weak to love the weak. In our moments of weakness, God touches our life; when we are weak, it is when God is strong in our life. In our experience of suffering and weakness, we can identify with the people of God who suffer and who are weak. He mentions the good example of Pope Francis who loves the poor and he spends time with them.
Humility of heart in the Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector (Luke 18:9-14) he quotes that gives us a clear vision of what this means for the Adorno religious.
If we are not humble, God will find a way to make us humble. The parable reminds us the importance of praying from the heart: “O God, be merciful to me a sinner.” The Lord wants to teach us how to be his disciples, the attitude of humility and with a contrite heart.
The charism of the Order especially the fourth vow, not seeking ecclesiastical dignities is the closest virtue to humility. Msgr. Figueirido ended the first part of the spiritual conference in the morning, sharing copies of the Litany of Humility composed and prayed daily by Cardinal Rafael Merry del Val and who once worked as Vatican’s Secretary of State.
