Pope Francis exhorted consecrated religious to take part in an evangelization which “burns in the heart,” cautioning against gossip and narcissism as prominent dangers of consecrated life. The Pope explained: “to evangelize is not only to convince, it's to give witness that Jesus Christ is alive. And how do I give you this witness? With your flesh, with your life.” While it is good to study and give courses in evangelization, the Pope said, “the ability of warming hearts doesn't come from books, it comes from the heart! If your heart is burning from love for Jesus Christ, you are a good evangelizer,” he said. He also warned that consecrated life can be sterile when it is “not quite prophetic” and “not allowed to dream.” Pope Francis acknowledged that consecrated life has moments of instability and temptations, especially the temptation to not forgive. He specifically warned that gossip impedes forgiveness and destroys others’ reputations. “But never, never drop the bomb of gossip. Never, never! It's the plague of community life!” he told his audience. The consecrated religious who gossip “drop a bomb on their community and the community is destroyed.” He said narcissism is one of the worst attitudes of a consecrated religious. “No to narcissism, to looking at oneself. And on the contrary, what strips everything of narcissism, is adoration.” While everyone prays, thanks God, and asks for favors, the Pope asked “do we adore the Lord? The prayer of silent adoration is the opposite of reflecting oneself in one's own narcissism,” he said, advising the religious to be “men and women of adoration”
The twelve apostles chosen by Jesus formed the bedrock of the early Church , and their Catholic identity is deeply rooted in their direct relationship with Christ and the mission He entrusted to them. The Catechism of the Catholic Church highlights this foundational role, stating that Jesus "instituted the Twelve as 'the seeds of the new Israel and the beginning of the sacred hierarchy'" ( CCC 860 ). These men were not simply followers; they were handpicked by Jesus, lived intimately with Him, witnessed His miracles and teachings firsthand, and were specifically commissioned to preach the Gospel to all nations ( Matthew 28:19-20 ). Their unique position as eyewitnesses to the life, death, and resurrection of Christ, and their reception of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, established them as the authoritative leaders of the nascent Church, a reality echoed in the writings of early Church Fathers like Ignatius of Antioch, who emphasized the apostles' authority as repre...