by Sister Maryann Lopiccolo
World Day for Consecrated Life is an annual recognition and celebration of the vocation to religious and consecrated life in the universal Church. The term “consecrated life” includes religious sisters, both active and monastic, religious brothers, religious order priests, members of secular institutes and consecrated virgins, all of whom are present in the Diocese of Brooklyn.
In 1997, Pope John Paul II instituted a day of prayer for women and men in consecrated life. This celebration is attached to the feast of the Presentation of the Lord on Feb. 2. This feast is also known as Candlemas Day, the day on which candles are blessed, symbolizing Christ who is the light of the world. So, too, those in consecrated life are called to reflect the light of Jesus Christ to all peoples.
Each year in the Diocese of Brooklyn, the Council of Religious sponsors and invites all in consecrated life to a Saturday afternoon of prayer, a presentation and sharing with a speaker, concluding with a vigil Mass for Sunday, offered this year by Bishop Brennan. We were graciously welcomed to St. Thomas More Church on the St. John’s University campus.
This year, our theme was “A Biblical Perspective on Consecrated Life,” presented by Sister Maria Pascuzzi, CSJ. A scripture scholar, Sister Maria delved into the long tradition of religious/ consecrated life, not so much with a focus on dates and developments, but rather on the continuing essence and grounding of the vocation.
This is a life fully consecrated to God through the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience lived in prayerful community with the members of a congregation sharing a particular charism within the universal Church. She stressed that religious/consecrated life is born in the Word of God, is sustained in the Word of God in our lives, and calls each of us to be an “exegesis” (a visible witness) of the living Word of God, Jesus Christ, in service and ministry.
Sister Maria brought us all to the reality and challenges of our mission and purpose in today’s Church and world. Her presentation challenged us to go beyond the “otherness” so prevalent in society today. In God’s design, there are no “others” divided by the polarization we experience all around us. As members of consecrated life, our mission is to live, love, and serve as Jesus did — the living Word of God, welcoming all, seeing with God’s eyes our oneness as God’s people.
Just as the cultural realities of the Diocese of Brooklyn as a whole continue to change and grow in many parishes, cultural and language groups, and new ministries, the same is happening with our consecrated life members. Many of our sisters and brothers continue to be present in our parishes and schools but in limited ways because of aging and numbers. Their commitment to continue to be present, to be visible and part of the life of the diocese is itself an ongoing gift to us.
Alongside this, new groups of sisters, brothers, and religious priests come to the diocese to pick up the ministry needs in Brooklyn and Queens. We have welcomed sisters from several countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America who serve in parish ministry, faith formation and catechesis, outreach programs, schools, and health care. We have a number of young sisters from Asia pursuing their college degrees through the generosity of St. Francis College and St. John’s University and live in community with sisters in nearby convents thanks to the Diocese of Brooklyn.
So, on this 2024 World Day for Consecrated Life, we celebrate the gift of our vocation to consecrated life in the universal Church amid the rich cultural and committed witness our women and men in consecrated life bring to the Diocese of Brooklyn. We are blessed indeed.
Sister Maryann Seton Lopiccolo, SC, is a Sister of Charity–Halifax who is currently the Episcopal Delegate for Religious in the Diocese of Brooklyn.