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Each month, an aspect of our reparative, Eucharistic charism will be explored. In April, the topic is Eucharist and Mission. The following statement is an excerpt from a work by Francisca Luz entitled "Integration of Our Life -- In Everything to Love: To Adore - To Serve." Our Mission, Charism, and the Integration of Our Life In Number 2 of the Constitutions it says that "The call to religious life is concretized for us in the mission that the Institute has received from the Church through the foundresses: Reparation to the Heart of Jesus." God, through His Spirit, has, throughout history, raised up men and women whose special charisms responded to the needs of the moment in the Church and in the world. Like Ignatius of Loyola, Rafaela, open to the Spirit, responded to his call: "Our whole life is directed to God's greater glory." Ignatius of Loyola, in his century, a century of powerful temporal kings, placed the greater glory of God in the following of the King and Lord of the universe and the coming of his Kingdom. Rafaela Maria, child of another century, placed the greater glory of God in the emphasis of another dimension: reparation. Reparation as the following of Christ "in the Eucharist," "to work with him, through him and in him to reconcile all people among themselves and with God. We strive so that creation placed at the service of all might truly reflect God's glory." Both saints center the following of Christ within a vital synthesis, the key to which is the recapitulation of all things in Christ, so as to go in Him, with Him, and through Him, to the Father, in the Spirit.
For Rafaela Maria, the central point of the life of God made human was the love
with which He gave himself to the end in the Eucharist, as the reconciliation of
humanity and Each one of us, when we consecrate ourselves to Christ in the mission of the Institute, promise through our personal call to take part in this charism, to become united with Christ in His salvific work of Reparation. This union must be made real for each of us through sharing in the Eucharist -- Celebration and Adoration, in apostolic work, and through our own lives lived out in a fraternal community. Reparation / Redemption springs forth from the Eucharist as from its source -- Christ. Through His sacrifice He brings about Reparation, the restoration of the order of creation established by God but broken through sin. Through Christ, people can now enter into communion with God, and God Himself will be glorified in this new creation. Redemption is brought about once and for all in Christ. Yet, in order to be able to come to the fount of salvation, the Eucharist, people have to be called to faith and conversion. This is the basis of all evangelization and of the greatness and depth of our mission. Union with Christ impels us, with Him and like Him, into His redemptive work. There is, in the Eucharist, a radical unity in Christ -- his work and his person. United with him, we cannot remain idle or scattered. In this communion, in this sharing, we are called to a unity between our person and our work. This springs from our radical union in Christ. In this union with Him we are urged towards a personal renewal -- dynamism -- and to the renewal of the covenant of all people with God -- apostolate, redemptive action -- inspiring and drawing the faithful to the compelling love of Christ. Each of us has to work to bring about personal integration, to live it and make it manifest in the Church. Integration which can be brought about in Him, with Him, and through Him, transforming us in a daily "making Eucharist" of us. Identification with Christ. Living in service and commitment to others, as He Himself lived. Loving, forgiving, accepting, adoring. All Christ's work was towards a restoration of the order established by God, to the new creation, to glorification of God, to humankind's communion with Him. Christ, the living bread, gives life to everyone through His risen and life-giving body. The active life, therefore, promotes communion of all people among themselves and God.
We see the Eucharist as the point of departure and as the point of arrival: it is both source and summit. From it flows the power which is able to reunite everyone and so create community, create the Church. At the same time, it urges Christians to redemptive action in the most authentic sense of apostolate. A deeper understanding of our identity summons us to live our mission, our vocation, in a more integrated and transparent fashion. It is a real challenge for us, one that touches both our being and our doing. Former articles on our Charism:
Our Eucharistic life, as lived in Villatina,
Colombia
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the whole of the universe with the Father. This love,
symbolized by His Heart, impelled her to want to bring the Good News of
salvation to all peoples. She wanted everyone to love God, to receive the
salvific presence of Christ in the Eucharist, to make their own the cause of the
Kingdom. This is what Rafaela wanted for her own life, for those of us who
follow her, and for all of humanity. The call to the apostolate was born
of this love of Christ and led her to say, "If they want to take this away from
me, it would be like turning my head backwards!"