The Redemptorist Family Lexicon

The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM The entries that make up this “PGVR Redemptorist family lexicon” come from the intuition of the General Secretariat for RYVM. This lexicon is addressed to both the leaders (priests and lay people) and the young people who “breathe” Redemptorist spirituality. We do not believe that the entries are exhaustive or the definitive word about the topics under consideration, but aim to outline some words and phrases that are used frequently by the priests and lay leaders who work with young people. The entries are brief and direct. They are not meant to be a formal, clerical discourse, but hope to offer an initial exposure to the most important con‐
cepts in the Redemptorist world. In the elaboration of the texts, the authors have always kept in mind three basic considerations: facility of expression and simple language, the spiritu‐
ality and the history of our religious family. In a certain sense, this is a work in progress, for many words, terms, phrases and expressions typical of our history and tradition are still missing. We consider this work to be a first attempt (to be completed and improved in the future) to create a base for understanding Redemptorist discourse. Perhaps we can consider the effort to write this lexicon as a kind of a Wikipedia encyclopedia where future users will be able to add new entries and improve the existing ones. Rome – March 12, 2008 Alfonso V. Amarante – Antonio Donato The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 2 The Abandoned and the Poor The Redemptorists exist to evangelize the abandoned and the poor. The purpose of the Congregation, in fact, as the Constitutions state from begin‐
ning to end, is «to follow the example of Jesus Christ, the Redeemer, by preaching the word of God to the poor, as he himself declared: 'He sent me to preach the Good News to the poor» (n. 1). The spirituality, community life, and the very structures of the Redemptor‐
ists strive to be an expression of the «unequivocal words of the Gospel» that find in the poor a «special presence» of Christ and require of believers, therefore, «a preferential option for them». They seek, thus, to witness to «the nature of God's love, to his providence and mercy» (cf. Novo millennio ineunte, n. 49). «Whoever is called to the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer – writes Saint Alphonsus to young Redemptorists – will never be a genuine follower of Jesus Christ nor will he ever be a saint unless he fulfills the purpose of his vocation and has the spirit of the Institute, which is to save souls, and those souls most deprived of spiritual help, as are the poor people of the country‐
side» (Opere, vol. IV, Torino 1847, 429‐430). The path that Alphonsus walked as founder serves as a fundamental point of reference for all Redemptorists. Leaving his career as a lawyer, he makes the preaching of the Gospel the reason for his life, dedicating himself to the ser‐
vice of the poor and making his home among the abandoned of his time. In this way he became, along with his first companions, an evangelizing com‐
munity among them and for them. This is the path that Redemptorists are called to walk constantly: by means of an evangelical reading of the social and ecclesial reality, they strive to dis‐
cern the situations and contexts where poverty and abandonment are found so that, faithful to their call, they may promptly undertake responsibility in these situations. Consequently, their apostolate is «distinguished more by its missionary dynamism than by any particular forms of activity; in other words, by evangelization in the true sense, and by service of persons and groups who are poor and more neglected within the Church and society» (Constitutions and Statutes, n. 14.) We are speaking of objective situations of poverty and abandonment due to social and ecclesial factors which Redemptorists strive to denounce frankly: «Indeed the Congregation's mandate to evangelize the poor is directed to the liberation and salvation of the whole human person. The members have the The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 3 duty of preaching the Gospel explicitly and of showing solidarity with the poor by promoting their fundamental rights to justice and freedom. The means employed must be effective and at the same time consistent with the Gospel» (Constitutions and Statutes, n. 5). The focus is placed always on the need for the Gospel. Redemptorists, in fact, feel called in a special way to «those for whom the Church has not yet been able to provide sufficient means of salvation, those who have never heard the Church's message, or at least do not receive it as the "Good News," and finally those who suffer harm because of division in the Church» (n. 3). I place myself, therefore, within the Church as a presence and stimulus so that it may always be faithful to its missionary mandate (cf. Mt 28, 18‐20). Sabatino Majorano The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 4 Alphonsus Mary de Liguori Alphonsus Mary Liguori was born at Marianella, a sector of Naples, on Sep‐
tember 27, 1696. The firstborn of an aristocratic Neapolitan family, he com‐
pleted his literary and scientific studies at home. He studied law and achieved his doctorate in civil and ecclesiastical law at the age of sixteen. At the age of twenty he was already known as a brilliant lawyer in the Nea‐
politan courts. The turning point in his life came in 1723 with the loss of an important case. This led him to leave the Tribunal and become a priest. He was or‐
dained on December 21, 1726. He immediately began an intense apostolate in the poor sectors of Naples with the urchins and hobos, giving himself es‐
pecially to the catechesis and moral formation of the simplest people, by way of the Evening Chapels. As a member of the Apostolic Missions, he also dedicated himself to the preaching of missions in the surrounding areas of the Kingdom of Naples. At a point where his health was seriously endangered by his apostolic labors, he went for a rest to Santa Maria dei Monti in the plateau above Amalfi. There he came in contact with the poor peasants and shepherds who were totally deprived of spiritual care. This experience gave birth, in the heart of Alphonsus, to the desire to found an institute for the evangelization of the poor, scattered in the countryside and rural villages. The Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer was born at Scala on November 9, 1732. Alphonsus, along with his first companions, went from village to village, giving all of his human and spiritual gifts for the conversion of sinners. Preaching and prayer formed the heart of his missionary activity. Where he could not reach people with the spoken word, he sought to do so through his writings. His 111 works went through many editions. The most important are: his Theologia moralis, The Great Means of Salvation, The Eternal Maxims, The Glories of Mary, and The Practice of the Love of Jesus Christ. In 1762 he was named bishop of Santa Agata dei Goti. As bishop, Alphonsus continued his missionary fervor. He worked especially for the formation of the clergy. In 1775 he left his diocese and withdrew to Pagani, where he died on August 1, 1787, at the age of 91. He was canonized by Gregory XVI on May 26, 1839. On March 23, 1871, Pius IX declared him a Doctor of the Church and on April 26, 1950, Pius XII proclaimed him patron of Confessors and Moral Theologians. The Redemptorist Sacramentary The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 5 Apostolic Dynamism When a person knowingly accepts a task that is entrusted to him, he immedi‐
ately puts into motion all his energies in order to fulfill it. He does not wait, in a fatalistic way, for it to get done by itself, but draws upon his stock of per‐
sonal resources in order to do it in the best possible way. If however he has received the task together with others, he must unite his personal resources to those of the entire community. A Redemptorist belongs to a Congregation that commits itself to carrying out the missionary mandate it has received, with courageous initiatives and se‐
rious efforts. In fact, the Redemptorist Congregation is called by God to faith‐
fully fulfill its missionary work and do it in a way that respects the changing times. The missionary mandate for the Redemptorist remains always the proclamation of the Gospel, most especially to the poor. Liberation and the integral salvation of people are essential to the proclamation of the Gospel: this is the work of salvation to which he has been called. This mission demands full awareness and unhindered dedication. The Re‐
demptorist must be free and ready for mission, unimpeded with regard to the people to whom he is sent and the methods to be employed. With crea‐
tivity and wisdom he will try to discover new ways to bring the Gospel to every creature (cf. Mc. 16, 15) One obligation remains, that is, the continual search for “always new” apos‐
tolic initiatives, under the guidance of legitimate authority. A Redemptorist knows he cannot allow himself to be bound by forms and structures that would make his activities no longer “missionary”. The apostolic work of the Redemptorist Congregation is, in fact, distin‐
guished more by its missionary dynamism than by any particular forms of ac‐
tivity; in other words, by evangelization in the true sense and by service to persons and groups who are poor and more neglected by spiritual and social conditions. One can say that the Gospel is always the same, but the way to announce it must be “always new”, able to reach people where they are, in their particu­
lar lives and situations. To be able to do this a Redemptorist must maintain, with continual enthusiasm, his energies and talents received from God, re‐
fusing any temptation to self‐satisfaction. A Redemptorist announces God’s Word tirelessly so that people will be converted and believe in the Gospel. This dynamic movement expresses the pastoral zeal of Redemptorists. It shows the missionary ardor of those who proclaim the Gospel, because the The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 6 first duty of the Church is to preach the Gospel to those who have not yet heard it. St. Alphonsus himself desired passionately to preach the Gospel to infidels (to the pagans). Therefore every kind of poverty, material, moral or spiritual should arouse the apostolic zeal and passion of a Redemptorist. He must set in motion all his talents, not even refusing “to confront” the children of this world who, “in relation to their own are more shrewd than the children of light”, according to the warning of Jesus (Lk 16, 8). Faced with the needs of our time, the Redemptorist is called to imitate the apostolic zeal of the Holy Founder, to have the creative imagination of St. Clement and to consider as a model of pastoral zeal, St. John Neumann, and all the other saints, blessed and martyrs of the Congregation. Salvatore Brugnano The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 7 Apostolic life As we look around us we discover, sometimes with surprise, that each one of us is engaged in constructing his style of life, influenced perhaps by external examples. Ever more often we meet young people whose style is modeled on the stars or celebrities of the moment. The first display of this style is gener‐
ally in having a certain look in one’s clothes and hairstyle that imitates these personalities. The term ‘apostolic life’ for the Redemptorist means essentially a style of life that follows the example of Christ, the Redeemer: a life based on special dedi‐
cation to God (The Redemptorist is consecrated to God by the religious vows) and by missionary activity in the thousand different ways possible. The purpose of the apostolic life is the proclamation of the Gospel in a spe‐
cial way to the poor with whom Christ always wished to identify himself and to live the same spirit that animated the first community of the apostles as we read in Acts (cf. Act. 2). This biblical reference is obligatory reading for both the personal and communitarian life of the Redemptorist. Therefore the mission of Christ the Redeemer is the raison d’être of the Re‐
demptorist. By his profession of the religious vows he is associated in the mission of Christ and his religious profession remains the decisive act of his whole missionary life. He chooses celibacy, embraces poverty and submits himself to obedience in order to dedicate himself ‘in complete freedom’ to the mission of Christ. By poverty the Redemptorist feels obliged by the law of work and together with his confreres he gives witness to evangelical, personal and communitarian poverty by leading a life in conformity with that of the poor. He has as well the duty to be in solidarity with the poor by promoting their fundamental rights and making his own their legitimate aspirations. Clearly it is a style of life influenced by the Christ‐event, having necessarily at the centre the person of Christ. It entails living like Jesus, acting like Jesus. Therefore following the example of Christ, the Redemptorist proclaims abundant redemption living in fraternal solidarity the problems of mankind. By living this lifestyle the Redemptorist finally becomes in every sense a com­
panion and minister of Jesus Christ in the work of Redemption and participates in the mission of the Church that is ‘the universal sacrament of salvation’. The idea of the following of Christ, continuing to act as Christ acted, proposes therefore the same way trodden by Christ, that is, a way of chastity for the The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 8 Kingdom, of poverty and obedience, a way of proclaiming the Gospel directly and explicitly or when this is not possible giving silent witness. The proclamation and witness of Christ are the marks of the apostolic style of life of the Redemptorist. He commits himself to be a humble and coura‐
geous servant of the Gospel, consecrating for this purpose all his energy and placing in common his personal gifts and charisms. One cannot describe as apostolic life in a Redemptorist who cuts himself off from the world and its expectations or if he takes refuge in a form of devo‐
tion with an end in itself. It is necessary that he give witness, the witness of the word, the witness of the hope that is in him, the witness of conversion since the first called to conversion is himself and the witness of apostolic zeal for the faithful… This style of apostolic life will find its origin and zenith in the liturgy and especially in the Eucharist. Here the Redemptorist finds present the mys‐
tery of Christ the Savior of mankind to be revealed and here he finds the energy necessary for that missionary solidarity that drives him forth to‐
wards the faithful. The Redemptorist considers the Eucharist as a sign of missionary solidarity and with personal and community prayer his mis‐
sionary spirit grows. The style of apostolic life requires living and working in common, simplicity in life and speech, simplicity and sincerity of heart. The Redemptorists carry out their mission in the Church united in community and all are equally re‐
sponsible for this mission. Salvatore Brugnano The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 9 Basil Velychovskyj Bishop of the Greek‐Catholic Ukrainian Church “clandestine,” was born on June 1, 1903 in Stanislaviv (Ivano‐Frankivsk). He entered the seminary of Lviv in 1920. After being ordained a deacon he was admitted to the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer. He was or‐
dained a priest on October 9, 1925. For over twenty years he dedicated him‐
self to the missions among the simple people of the villages and cities of Western Ukraine. On April 11, 1945 he was arrested together with the Greek‐Catholic hierar‐
chy. He was initially condemned to death by firing squad but the death sen‐
tence was commuted to ten years imprisonment. Released in 1955, he returned to Lviv, where he did pastoral work secretly. Nominated bishop in 1959, he was not consecrated until 1963, in a hotel room in Moscow. On January 2, 1969 he was arrested again and sentenced to three years of imprisonment, but was released after a few months because of a bad heart. On January 27, 1972 the Soviet authorities would not allow him to return to Lviv, but invited him to remain with his sister in Yugoslavia. After a brief stay in Yugoslavia he went to Rome where he was received by Pope Paul VI on April 8, 1972. On June 15, 1972 he went to Winnipeg, Canada. He died there on June 30, 1973. It is believed that his death was caused by a slow‐acting poison administered prior to his release. The Redemptorist Sacramentary The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 10 Charism The charism (tò chárisma) is a free gift of the Spirit, a favor, a benefit for the common good, a service of charity, a particular choice of life that edifies the Church. The Apostle Paul in the First Letter to the Corinthians (12,4‐7), speaking of the body of Christ, the Church, mentions a variety of charisms suitable for development. “There are different kinds of gifts but the same Spirit; there are different kinds of service, but the same Lord; there are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good”. Today people speak and perhaps improperly of the dialectic ‘authority –
liberty’, ‘institution‐charism’ giving to authority and to the institution an evil significance and a sense of liberty to charism. Charisms have their origins in Christ and must reflect Christ in his style of service. They must be lived and exercised in him, tend towards him and fol‐
low him cooperating in the unity of his Body. The organic structure of the Church increases therefore by means of gifts, particular service, pastoral activities and the ecclesial tasks and duties of people at different times. Paul, in fact, while enumerating the charisms leaves the ‘list open’. He gives space for every type of gift even the most humble and ordinary. In the history of the Church there have been many changes and variations. It has given birth according to the need to some great courageous spirits open to move forward to respond to the exigencies and challenges of the times. The saints are those privileged people in whom the Spirit speaks. He gives them a particular sensitivity and awareness of situations of need and in‐
spires them to breathe new vitality into the structures of the Church. Thus it happens that through the work of the Spirit there can be a multiplica‐
tion of special charisms that make the faithful “fit and ready to undertake various tasks and offices for the renewal of the Church” (Lumen Gentium, 12). Special vocations, Congregations and Religious Orders have arisen in the Church at various periods of its history to provide a specific presence, capa‐
ble of giving witness to the Gospel, the Beatitudes and the redemptive mercy of Christ in the Church and the world. The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 11 In the eighteenth century, a century noted for jansenistic currents, moral rig‐
orism, mystical experiences reserved to a privileged few and little opening to the kindness and mercy of God the Father, the Holy Spirit raised up Alphon‐
sus de Liguori (1696‐1787) sensitive to the needs of the people, the poor and the ‘most abandoned of spiritual help’ and those like Lazarus waiting for a few crumbs from the table of the rich. He felt that he was entrusted with a special mandate: “the Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach a joyful message to the poor and to heal the contrite of heart” (Lk 4, 19; Isa 61, 1). Following Christ, the Redeemer, as a good Samaritan he went around com‐
forting the poor, those sick in spirit, healing the wounded with the oil and wine of mercy in the most difficult and forgotten areas. At Scala (SA) on 9 November 1732 he founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer for the purpose of evangelizing the most abandoned, to foster justice and promote human development by solidarity with them and fighting for their fundamental rights. The option for the poor is the reason for the existence of the Congregation in the Church, the badge of its fidelity and the unifying cen‐
tre of Redemptorist life (cf. Constitution 5). This Alphonsian apostolic charism, the nuclear catalyst of the Redemptorist consecrated life, passes through the stages of missionary religious profes‐
sion, observance of rules that are the expression of God’s will into an open organized apostolic community based on chastity, poverty, obedience, per‐
severance, prayer, detachment love of Christ and Our Lady and the evangeli‐
zation of the poor. The charism is embodied in a community that ‘continues’ the Redeemer and becomes a dynamic welcoming centre irradiating the missionary spirit. The mission of Christ is the profound source of the missionary life. Spirituality is to be sought in the Gospel and in the living voice of the Church. Fidelity to this proper identity can be traced in the course of its history in dialogue with the world. Cultural changes demand a missionary service that gives an adequate response. This means fidelity to the spirit of Alphonsus while at the same time an openness to the prophetic moment. It is a question of dynamic fidelity. In this way the Saints and Blessed of the Institute, mod‐
els who were similar yet diverse at the same time incarnated in particular situations the charism of the Founder. Among these we recall St. Gerard Majella (1726‐1755) always close to moth‐
ers and children and to all those in need of the mercy of God; St. Clement Mary Hofbauer (1751‐1820) who brought the Congregation beyond Italy to The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 12 Warsaw and Vienna, a man always near to the poor and friend of intellectu‐
als; St. John Nepomucene Neumann (1811‐1860) the evangelizer of emi‐
grants in the United States; Blessed Gennaro Sarnelli (1702‐1744) a mis‐
sionary in Naples among the sick, the elderly and fallen women; Blessed Pe‐
ter Donders (1809 1887) apostle of the lepers in Batavia, Surinam; Blessed Gaspar Stanggassinger (1871‐1899) animator and guide of youth to Christ. For those who feel called to a particular apostolic task, though always in the Alphonsian spirit, there is what may be called a ‘charism within a charism’, a personal method, shared by the community, of following this call. Whoever with heart and souls knocks at the door of the Redemptorist Institute does not enter into the ‘past’ in a stale atmosphere out of touch with the times and fashions, though the Redemptorists have their own spirituality shaped by history that is not to be undervalued or disowned. Their charism is not something metaphysical or abstract. It has succeeded in being incarnated in the lives of many Saints, Blessed and Servants of God in the Institute. Here are to be found noble traditions, methods of prayer, solid devotions, examples of ascetical life, lifestyles that correspond to expecta‐
tions that are livable and capable of being passed on to others. As he looks at Christ and the poor the Redemptorist feels himself thoroughly imbued with pastoral charity and apostolic ardor. He is open to new initia‐
tives, dynamism and courage (cf. ibid, 14‐16), he is supported by confidence faith and love (ibid, 10) and eager to proclaim the good news even ‘ad gentes’ (ibid, 3). Here there is no question of fossilized zeal but openness to renewal and to pastoral theological research. The Alphonsian charism offers all this and it is not small! There are so many Gospel poor, in fact too many still awaiting the Word of God and signs of mercy. Alfonso Amarante The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 13 Christmas The Birth of Christ, is, for St. Alphonsus, the most particular and special set‐
ting for the “appearance” of God’s love. For him, clearly there is a direct, un‐
broken, ink between the stable or crib at Bethlehem and Golgotha, the place of the skull, at Jerusalem. The content of each matches perfectly: the glory the angels sang on Christmas night is the glory St. John’s Gospel describes on Good Friday. Faced with the Infant Jesus, St. Alphonsus is, as it were, beside himself, in ec‐
stasy, overwhelmed with joy. His unrestrained delight is obvious, and his en‐
tire approach to God can be understood. There, precisely, we can see the af‐
fectionate attachment he reveals. Anyone wishing to know what sort of God is seen as one gazes into the Crib learns: pure love. Alphonsus in this vein, free and enchanted, is perhaps not to be met with in any of his writings, apart from those about Christmas, and to be more precise, in his Christmas carols. (You came down from the stars; When a little boy was born; Loveliest of babies, mine; When the heavens were closed; I wish you well so much.) We can select four “feelings” which seem to characterize St. Alphonsus’ atti‐
tude in front of the crib. The first of these is amazement. First of all, amaze‐
ment at what he sees: a baby “wrapped in swaddling clothes” from whose face shines out the face of God. An infant‐God who chooses to come “from heaven down to a cold, a freezing world”, is seen: one who has laid aside the form of God and has taken on, in St. Paul’s phrase, “the form of a slave.” And what is the reason for all this? What is it that drives God to “become man?” St. Alphonsus replies: “Love!” That infant‐God, lying in a manger amidst those animals, is the enchanting expression of the fact that God loves (see Incarnation). “Tenderness” is another of St. Alphonsus’ feelings. This is his gentle affec‐
tion for the child. Jesus’ birth is attractive, even seductive: “Babies of them­
selves prompt loving feelings. They draw out love from everyone who looks at them.” (Novena for Christmas: Second Sermon.) This tenderness of St. Alphonsus is not simply contemplative. It leads to action. It requires a re‐
sponse from us: adoration of the God who has become a little child. This Alphonsian tenderness goes further. There is a sorrowful element to it which we can call compassion. It is linked to the Cross, whose shadow al‐
ready lies over the baby’s cradle. God’s love is not a parade or charade. In the cave at Bethlehem the first act of the drama of God’s love which ends so star‐
tlingly at Calvary in the defeat of death is played out. That cradle is domi‐
nated by the idea of the mission, the task to be laid on this child: to restore The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 14 the whole world to loving order. To be compassionate is to live with those we love, to make ones own their sorrow: “Compassion brings pain” said Alphonsus. Love is not just an idea for a debate. Finally, there is gratitude: the response to transcendent love. This is the logical, the fitting reaction: love cannot be refused to the one who loves. St. Alphonsus’ appeal, like the call of the Gospel, is directed to the heart, that is, to human freedom. We can only respond to God freely. St. Alphonsus is to‐
tally convinced that love cannot be coerced. But, if God cannot compel, God can wait. God can keep watch, waiting for men and women to be convinced of His love. For St. Alphonsus, when the Christ is born, God’s faithful vigil begins. Antonio Pupo The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 15 Clement Mary Hofbauer He was born in Tasswitz in Moravia (Czech Republic) on December 26, 1751. In his early youth, after the death of his father, he worked as an apprentice baker. Then, having become a servant in the Premonstratensian Abbey at Klosterbruck (Znaim), he was able to follow the call to the priesthood, first by completing his secondary schooling, and then his catechetical, philoso‐
phical and theological studies in Vienna. During this time, he made yearly pilgrimages to Rome, where he encountered the Redemptorists. On October 24, 1784, with his friend, Thaddeus Hübl, he was received by the Redemptorists. Both were professed on March 19, 1785, and ordained priests shortly after at Alatri on March 29. After a few months of study in the house of Frosinone, he returned beyond the Alps, where in his role as vicar general of the Congregation he founded the first house of the Redemptorists in War‐
saw. Other houses followed in Poland, Prussia, Germany, Switzerland and Romania. In Warsaw, where he lived from 1787 to 1808, with the collabora‐
tion of young men of various nationalities, a very fruitful apostolate was de‐
veloped, promoting good works and strengthening the piety of the faithful. With the dissolution of the Redemptorists in Warsaw, after the takeover of Poland by Napoleon, he was forced to leave Warsaw and found his way to Vienna where he ministered until his death. In 1813 he was appointed rector of the church of the Ursulines and also their confessor. Through the charism of spiritual direction, preaching, confession and works of charity, he con‐
verted and helped people of every social class. Through his activity, he had an influence on the Congress of Vienna, on the culture of the time, and nota‐
bly on the romantic movement. He died at Vienna on March 15, 1820. On April 19, the Emperor admitted the Congregation into the Austro‐Hungarian Empire. Thanks to Father Joseph Passerat, one of Clement’s first companions, the Congregation spread from Vienna throughout Northern Europe. Clement was canonized by Saint Pius X on May 20, 1909. He is co‐patron of Vienna and Warsaw. The Redemptorist Sacramentary The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 16 Community Community for Redemptorists is a fundamental necessity for their aposto‐
late and an indispensable condition of life. The Constitutions present it as their fundamental law: “To fulfill their mission in the Church, Redemptorists perform their missionary work as a community. Therefore, an essential law of life for the members is this: that they live in community and carry out their apostolic work through community” (no. 21). They make their own the communitarian vision of salvation developed in Lumen Gentium: “At all times and in every race, anyone who fears God and does what is right has been acceptable to him (cf. Acts 10,35). He has, how‐
ever, willed to make men holy and save them, not as individuals without any bond or link between them, but rather to make them into a people who might acknowledge him and serve him in holiness” (no. 9). Redemptorists therefore undertake to witness that only “the escape from the prison of our ‘I’” (Spe salvi, no.14) enables us to give a lively welcome to the hope given us in Christ. The fraternal life of Redemptorists is essentially apostolic. This does not sig‐
nify merely the need for individual members to shape their own community but above all those of the mission. They are to be constantly inspired by the words of Christ: “Father, just as you are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me” (Jn.17, 21). It is this that the Constitutions stress at all levels: “The whole purpose of community life is to have members, like the apostles (cf. Mark 3:14; Acts 2:42‐45; 4:32), in a spirit of genuine brotherly union, combine their prayers and deliberations, their labors and sufferings, their successes and failures and their material goods as well, for the service of the Gospel” (no. 22). At the very beginning of the Congregation the apostolic dimension of the community was particularly stressed. For Crostarosa the community is the ‘living memorial’ that should remind all of how radical is the love of the Fa‐
ther in Christ and his project of communion effected through the Spirit. For St. Alphonsus the community formed among the abandoned for the purpose of being totally at the service of their evangelization by irradiating a welcom‐
ing apostolic spirit is the ‘distinctive mark’ of the Congregation. In line with this prospective, the Redemptorist community, in the different contexts, wishes to be the Church itself among the abandoned so that they may know that they are not regarded as such by God. They do this by deter‐
mining at all levels to ‘follow the example’ of the Redeemer: “Since the mem‐
The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 17 bers are called to continue the presence of Christ and his mission of redemp‐
tion in the world, they choose the person of Christ as the centre of their life, and strive every day to enter ever more intimately into personal union with him. Thus, at the heart of the community, to form it and sustain it is the Re‐
deemer himself and his Spirit of love. And the closer their union with Christ, the stronger will become their union with each other” (Constitutions, no. 23). All this demands constant and faithful prayer. The Redemptorist community is engaged to live it and develop it by sharing with the poor and the aban‐
doned. For this reason they endeavor to combine liturgy and popular piety. Their ambition is to be a school of prayer for the people, stimulating them continually to listen and assimilate the Word of God. Having to be ready to face new emergencies as a result of the rapid changes in society, the structures of the Redemptorist community need to be simple but at the same time efficient. The same is true for its style of life. All this must be thought out in fidelity to the way the Redeemer came among us so as to give witness to the depth of his love. Sabatino Majorano The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 18 Confession In ordinary language, confession means to admit, either publicly or privately, that we have made an error. In theological jargon the term has long desig‐
nated the fourth sacrament, the sacrament of spiritual healing. Confession, however, is not a magic trick. If it is not sufficiently prepared and has no results, it becomes useless. It was not by accident that Alphonsus, proclaimed Patron Saint of Confessors in 1950, put confession into the cen‐
ter of the journey that all believers and called to take: conversion. The first confession that we usually make is faith. When we hear the news of salvation by a God who is willing to give up his life to show us his love, our heart opens in loving response. We quickly realize, however, that we are far from him. With the help of grace we are called to follow a path that leads us to holiness, that is, to become more and more like Christ, the living Image of God. This pathway has different steps: 1. The examination of con­
science: by holding our conscience up to the light of Christ’s conscience, we understand that in many of our attitudes, thoughts, and actions we do what is evil. 2. Repentance and resolution: just admitting our errors is not enough. We seriously begin to change when we realize that the evil we have done has caused wounds and death within us, in others, in the world. It is then that we decide to amend our life. 3. Confession: we are then ready for the second confession. Before a priest we ask God’s forgiveness as well as that of our brothers and sisters for the evil we have done. The priest then be‐
comes a gentle doctor who gives us a cure that will heal our wounds, a good friend who offers us pardon, and a forgiving father who gives us back the heritage that is we should have as children [of God’s family]. 4. Penance: to show that we have truly changed, we try to repair the parts of our life where we have been deficient by accepting a small concrete task that the priest suggests. 5. Happiness: the love of God is stronger than all our faults. God, by his grace, give us a new chance to live our union with him and with our brothers and sisters. Finally, [we reach] the third confession, the most beautiful [of all]: we praise God because he has brought us back home so we can again call him “Father” and again embrace others as brothers and sisters and together build up the Church. When we look back over this journey, we realize that there is no sense in making a confession of faults that is not motivated by the confession of faith and which is not open to the confession of praise. Francesco Visciano The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 19 Conformity to the Will of God In spiritual theology, the theme of conformity to the divine will is part of a theme yet more vast and more difficult, like union with God, how it is at‐
tained, when it occurs, the journey, the goal, the means, etc., etc. The theme of conformity to the will of God is one of the most particular in the language of the Holy Doctor Alphonsus de Liguori; abundantly used, es‐
pecially in his “Practice of the love of Jesus Christ”, but also in his “Prepara‐
tion for death”, it points out the perfect union of the human will with the di‐
vine, so that there are no longer two wills but one only. And this, the most Zealous Doctor teaches, is the fullness of love. Thus in chapter XXXVI of the “Preparation for death” he writes: “all our health and the fullness of perfec‐
tion reside in the love of God. Whoever doesn’t love has no life (1Jn. 3, 14). Charity is the bond of perfection (Col. 3, 14). So the perfection of love con‐
sists then of conforming our will to the divine will; since this is the principal effect of love: to unite the wills of lovers.” Francesco Ansalone The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 20 Conscience Please go back in your mind for a minute… to your childhood! O God! Even today we sometimes watch [animated] cartoons! Yeah, exactly! Please think back to those cartoons. In fact, think of Tom and Jerry. Didn’t you notice how, when they hit a difficult moment and had to stop to make a decision, two cute little images of them appear behind Tom or Jerry, one dressed like an angel and the other like a devil? And what do these two strange little creatures do? They whisper in the ear of the two unfortunate [heroes] just what they should do. And we can’t miss the fact that the little devil’s message is exactly the opposite of the little an‐
gel’s! So what helps Tom or Jerry to decide? What helps them to know what is the best thing to do? Let’s try to figure it out. The little devil stands for what we call temptation, that small, external voice, persuasive, bewitching, captivating…in other words, something beguiling that raises a strong tremor inside us and pulls us to its side. The little angel, on the other hand, is also a little voice, but this one is inside us. A whispering sound, deep, gentle, apparently more difficult to hear be‐
cause all the captivating noise coming from outside is distracting us. But also because this “angelic” voice tells us in a clear, firm voice what we should do and what, on the other hand, we should avoid, even though what it is telling us most often is not what we like to hear. This second little voice we call conscience. For Saint Alphonsus, conscience “is the close [proximate] and formal rule about what we do.” Our actions, according to this Doctor of the Church, are guided both by the divine law which he calls the remote or material [rule] as well as by the close and formal law, which is precisely conscience. Said like this it sounds difficult…but let us try to think it through together… A lot of us have a [driver’s] license. They know that in order to drive it is necessary to learn a theory or code that is a collection of directions and laws that together forms a help for understanding what to do and how to behave in different situations. For example, who has precedence at an intersection, when to stop and when to start again at a signal light, how to conduct your‐
self on a highway, etc. This theory, if we use the language of Saint Alphonsus, is what we mean by the remote or material rule. The moment we start to drive our classy car and get to an intersection we remember that we have “remotely” learned and we put it into practice. The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 21 But not all intersections are the same, vehicles are not all equal, there are always different drivers. So, then how do we act? We quickly figure out the situation and in a new and creative way we deal “prudently” with the inter‐
section always relying on what we have learned, but in different ways ac‐
cording to the situation we are facing. This creative and prudent capacity, again to use the language of Alphonsus is what we define as the close or for­
mal law, exactly because this shapes the contents of the remote or material law according to the concrete situation in which we find ourselves; [other‐
wise, this remote law] remains stillborn, just as in the case of someone who gets a license but never drives. This person has learned a “law” but has never tried to put it into practice… We should not overlook the fact that, according to Saint Alphonsus, there is a really important obligation for a person to give life in this creative way to God’s Law, the commandments and precepts which otherwise, without any force or life in themselves, would remain a dead letter for person who does not try to learn them and live them. This creative ability of conscience, therefore, calls the person to the re‐
sponsibility of developing himself or herself away from blind choices into uniformity with the Will of God. The judgment which we make about reality and in the different situations of life ought to always find in God, whose voice is resounding with us, the criterion for evaluating correctly what is right and what is wrong. So that this might happen, it is necessary to always delve deeper into God and God’s law, since this is what makes human be‐
ings to be truly human. Antonio Donato The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 22 Coordinator This word refers to the person who is responsible for youth and vocational ministry in a local community or in a youth group. He or she is a one who re‐
sponds to the call of God, preaching the Gospel to the young, dedicating him‐
self or herself actively as a representative of youth ministry. It is presumed or course that he or she is a Christian who has completed the Rites of Chris‐
tian Initiation. After having received the gift of the Holy Spirit for mission and witness, he or she chooses Youth Ministry as a channel for deepening his or her faith and for building the Kingdom of God. This personal choice en‐
riches community and ecclesial life. Yet, at the same time, it is a beginning and a mission that one receives from the Church by means of those respon‐
sible for the community. The Redemptorist community supports his or her pastoral work, after having verified their suitability and entrusted this spe‐
cific pastoral task to them. The mission is evangelization, which announces and offers God's revelation to young people, through the love and dedication of Christ, manifested in the love and dedication to the young people on the part of the Coordinator. The Coordinator is a person enthusiastic about his vocation for mission, in love with the person of Jesus Christ and his face reflected in the young people, sent to evangelize the poor and abandoned, familiar with the world and lan‐
guage of youth, blessed with the ability to walk side by side with them, con‐
cerned about their formation and conversion, involved in the ecclesial com‐
munity, and open to the future with hope. This mission is entrusted first all to the youth themselves and, later, is brought to life also by adults, laity, reli‐
gious and priests (Redemptorists), who help them to accomplish it. The proper formation and skill of the Coordinator is as much the responsibil‐
ity of the person called to this ministry as it is of the Redemptorist commu‐
nity, which ought to ensure that the Coordinator has the resources, knowl‐
edge and ability necessary for the mission. Further, it is indispensable that the person be in harmony with young people and with all "youth." There are certain "constants" – particular to youth – which all Coordinators must know so that the proclamation of Jesus Christ may be a fruitful seed in the lives of the youth that it reaches: the value of love, the question about the meaning of life, and the attractiveness of any project. To affirm this value and these con‐
stants for young people means ensuring that the passion they feel for life will not remain an empty ideal; it means helping young people to flourish as hu‐
man beings and to find their place in the Church and in society. In other words, it means helping them to discover and to live their vocation. Identified with Saint Alphonsus as a model evangelizer, the Coordinator takes on with creative fidelity the challenge to discover the proper means so that young The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 23 men and women know the Risen Redeemer. Following the Redemptorist tra‐
dition, he or she accomplishes the mission with simplicity and beauty, con‐
vinced that young people are abandoned in many areas of the church. The mission of the Coordinator demands that it be realized in a spirit of com­
munion, creating bonds of fraternity with other vocations and with other coor­
dinators, functioning as a communal entity (centers of Youth or vocational ministry). The Coordinator's ministry, therefore, is not limited to the com‐
munity where he or she began or serves, but, at the same time, is part of youth and vocational ministry (PGVR) at eh (vice) provincial, regional, and general government levels. In this sense, the Coordinator fulfills his or her tasks through Redemptorist Parish Missions, in Missions for Youth and in other similar projects that might arise in various areas of the Congregation. Laureano Del Otero The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 24 Death “Death” in today’s vocabulary is considered to be something totally negative. It brings to mind gloomy thoughts about the end, the conclusion, of every human life and of everything else. Over the centuries, numerous philosophi‐
cal theories have tried to make sense of death. This negative attitude is something we can recognize straightaway in St. Alphonsus’ thinking too, along with its results, or its consequences, intended or not. Life on earth, in his writings, is presented as something of little or no value. Death is simply the wretched ending for our human condition. Yet the Saint’s writings do hint at something else, namely, conversion and the fleet‐
ing chance Christians have of making good use of time, of life today, to pre‐
pare to meet their Lord. One noteworthy example is found in a book he wrote entitled: “Preparation for death”. There the Saint seems to dwell at length on a description of a man at the point of death, at least in the first part of the book, but then he suddenly switches to the need for a complete review of life which will result in a speedy return to God. Francesco Ansalone The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 25 Discernment The word literally means to test, to evaluate, to distinguish in order to clarify, to determine in a proper way before deciding, to succeed in choosing. In ancient Greece the term indicated the action of weighing gold or silver money to prove whether it was authentic and fit to use as a means of exchange. In a Christian context discernment indicates the vital dynamic to live Jesus’ Gos‐
pel, to weigh events and facts wisely and prudently in order to discover the Will of God. The Gospel invites us to examine our own hearts to determine what is really moving us, whether it is for good or evil. Today by discernment we mean the capacity to study one’s own life in the light of the Word of God. The word is used at different levels. We usually speak of moral discern­
ment to indicate the capacity to understand what we are asked to do, whether it is good for us in the different situations of life or whether it is to be avoided. Then, there is spiritual discernment, which expresses a life lived under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Its task is to discover the Will of God in our lives and to acquire Christ’s mentality. Finally, there is vocational discernment, by which is meant recognizing the call, the appeal of God; this seeks to help the person to discover his or her own vocation in life. Discernment shows itself as a whole series of moments and steps laid out to enable a person to understand his or her self in the light of God. This type of discernment requires an attentive listening, a deep understanding of oneself and of reality, a great humility, and clarity of vision to be able to unravel the signs of the times and to trace the signals of God’s Will. Saint Alphonsus was convinced that God manifests his will to everyone and guides each one in a mysterious way along the highways of life so that each can discern what God is really asking of him or her. According to the Saint, there exists a multitude of factors that lead to a decision “pleasing to God.” Alphonsus does not use the word “discernment” in his writings, but prefers to underline the importance of “making sure of the Will of God” to catch on to the divine plan of salvation. To do this, it is necessary to live with com‐
mitted faithfulness the life we now have, to bear its difficulties, and to pray so that God can act on us in order that we may comprehend his plans step by step. To be sure of God’s will it is also necessary that the believer sets up a dialogue with a spiritual director so that together they can understand God’s will. The RYVM speaks of discernment as a necessary and unavoidable journey for young people who want to seek and respond personally to God’s call, whatever it may be, in deciding one’s future. In order to have clarity in her The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 26 or his call, a young person is invited to pay attention to his or her own natural abilities. A Redemptorist leader must always have respect for con‐
science and personal liberty and should act in a way that every step of the growth process for young people is marked by a suitable choice made in a climate of discernment. Every Redemptorist, whenever he finds himself in the midst of apostolic ac‐
tivity, is called to be attentive in discovering and discerning the gifts that the Spirit dispenses to many young people. The best method, the most ef‐
fective method, for discernment is prayer, listening, testimony of life, and apostolic zeal. Pietro Sulkowski The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 27 Discipleship ‘Follow me’, ‘You follow me’, are the words that characterize the call of the first disciples, beginning with Peter and Andrew: Jesus ‘sees two brothers Simon called Peter and Andrew his brother who were casting their nets into the lake for they were fishermen. And he said to them: ‘Come, follow me and I will make you fishers of men’. And at once they left their nets and followed him. Going on from there he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, who were in the boat with their father Zebedee prepar‐
ing their nets and he called them. ‘And immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him’ (Mt 4, 18‐22). By degrees the fact of living with Jesus led to thinking like him, evaluating like him, making decisions like him and acting like him. This invitation to follow continues to characterize the life of every baptized person. Faith does not mean simply belief in a doctrine, much less in an ide‐
ology, but is a communion of love with Christ who by the Spirit gradually shapes our life making us think and act like him and turning us into his joyful witnesses. The vocation to religious life has always been seen by the Church as a more radical following of Christ. By the vows the religious shares his choice of poverty, chastity and obedience, placing himself with him and like him at the service of the Kingdom: “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me” (Mt. 19, 21). In the course of history there have been different models of this following. Sometimes the accent has been placed on the concrete actions of Christ that was called ‘imitation’ and at other times on his attitudes. For some the moral and ascetic aspects of his life were the main attraction, for others sharing in his mystical life. More people have been mainly concerned with their personal perfection while others were devoted to works of charity and the apostolate. This diversity comes from the richness and complexity of the following but also from the need to witness to its fundamental value in response to other possibilities and the challenges of the social contexts that are always evolving. In the history of the Redemptorist family right from the beginning these dif‐
ferent attitudes intertwine and are mutually enriching. The unifying bond is the Alphonsian following of Christ as a missionary for the abandoned, shar‐
ing their attitudes and life style as concrete choices. In this way the following becomes a continuation in history of the way in which Christ came among us and for us, beginning with the poor to make his proclamation and gift of sal‐
vation. It means therefore an imitation that is the fruit of sharing his life in The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 28 complete openness to the Spirit who enables us to follow the same road as Christ in new situations (cf. Lumen Gentium, 8). The missionary dimension of this following depends therefore on the per‐
sonal depth of one’s imitation and communion as we see in Const. 20: ‘Strong in faith, rejoicing in hope, burning with charity, on fire with zeal, in humility of heart and persevering in prayer, Redemptorists as apostolic men and genuine disciples of St. Alphonsus follow Christ the Redeemer with hearts full of joy, denying themselves and always ready to undertake what is demanding, they share in the mystery of Christ and proclaim it in Gospel simplicity of life and language, that they may bring to people plenti‐
ful redemption’. Alfonso V. Amarante The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 29 Easter or Passover As an event and as a solemn feast, Easter serves as the hinge or pivot around which the whole history of salvation and the sequence of the liturgical year revolve. Passover, in the Old and New Testaments, means the intervention of God in favor of his people, understood as a “crossing over” to “liberation.” In the Old Testament, Passover is evident on two special occasions: - God “passes over” and “sets free,” when he allows the Hebrews to “cross over” and to be freed from slavery. - God completes his intervention with the gift of the “Law” which has its high point in the “Covenant” at Sinai. These two moments in a single Passover are recalled and revisited when the Jews celebrate Passover each year. In the New Testament Jesus brought to fulfillment the ancient meaning of Passover in his own person, and also in two moments. ‐ He “passed” through life and death and “freed” mankind definitively from slavery to sin ‐ His saving work was ratified by the gift of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. These two moments, though celebrated at distinct liturgical solemnities, form part of a single New Passover, and form the beginning and the end of the Easter season. The heart of the Easter celebration is the Triduum, the three days, “of the blessed Passion, Death and Resurrection of the Lord.” There we see the fun‐
damental importance of the words of St. Paul: “For our Passover has been sacrificed, that is, Christ.” (I Cor. 5:7) St. Alphonsus insists, in his writings, that the mystery of the Passion and Death of Jesus is, for him, the foundation for our knowing and living the pas‐
chal mystery. If “our Passover is Christ sacrificed,” Easter cannot be proclaimed without reference to the sacrifice of Christ, the spotless lamb, offered for the salva‐
tion of the world. Easter is present within the celebration of the sacraments of the Church, above all in the celebration of the Eucharist. During the Jewish celebration of the Passover, Jesus instituted the new Passover, anticipating in his actions The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 30 with the bread and wine, the offering of his body and the shedding of his blood on the cross. In saying to his disciples: “Do this in memory of me”, he extends his sacrificial Passover through time until the moment of his return. “The Church celebrates the paschal mystery every seventh day, which day is appropriately called the Lord’s Day or Sunday.” (Sacrosanctum Concilium, 106). Ciro Vitiello The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 31 Eucharist The Eucharist is the sacrament of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and this is why it is the high‐point and source of the Church’s life and of preaching the Good News. The central role of the Eucharist emerges from the Redemptorist tradition drawn from the works of its Founder, Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori, par‐
ticularly from the booklet, The Sacrifice of Jesus Christ with a Short Statement on the Prayers Said at Mass. In it, he explains the spirituality of knowing, celebrating and living the Mystery of Christ the Redeemer. We must consider the Eucharist under its two aspects of sacrifice and sac‐
rament: • In the Eucharist the sacrifice of Jesus Christ is presented as the memorial of the sacrifice of the cross, of which it is a “continuation.” • In thinking of the Eucharist as a sacrifice, we must not overlook the elements of Old Testament sacrifices, especially the Pascal Sacrifice, for it is the activities within it (offering, immolating, consuming, and participating) that are repeated in the celebration of Mass. • The celebration of the Mass is a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving but, above all, of seeking forgiveness and purification in which the Lord pardons sins and reconciles us to himself. • The Eucharistic sacrifice is the completion of the mystery of salva‐
tion. It contains all of the ways God has intervened [in the world], from the Incarnation to the Second Coming; all of the other sacra‐
ments depend on the Eucharist. • The Eucharist is the sacred banquet that intimately unites to Christ, safeguards and perfects our spiritual life, as well as foretells the resurrection and prepares us for its glory. Therefore, the celebra‐
tion is completed by our communion, to which it naturally leads. Frequent, even daily, communion assures us of a sacramental life fully shared in. • It is from the Eucharist that all perfection of the spiritual life comes: for the priests who must always reverently celebrate it, for the consecrated religious who must unite the offering of their lives to this mystery, and for the believers with their duties to family and society. The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 32 • If the celebration of the Eucharist is going to be fruitful, it requires “devotion”: that is, preparation (awareness of the mystery and preparation beforehand) and thanksgiving (meditation and con‐
tinuation into daily life). • The presence of Christ in the Eucharist continues after the celebra‐
tion of Mass. Because of this, we adore [Christ in] the sacrament, a necessity for someone who wants to lead a Christian life inspired by the liturgy, especially for those who are called to the priesthood or consecrated religious life. • The Eucharistic sacrifice nourishes our baptismal grace. If the be‐
liever participates and lives this grace it dedicates him or her in the daily realities of life. • Since it is the sacrament of love, the Eucharist contains the reality of Christ’s love for us and the ability to love our brothers and sis‐
ters with the love by becoming like him, “bread broken for the life of the world.” • A church that is authentically Eucharistic is also a missionary church. That is why the Eucharist is the source and highpoint not only of the Church’s life, but of its mission as well. • The first and basic mission that springs from the celebration of the Eucharistic Mystery is the witness of one’s way of living. Ciro Vitiello The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 33 Freedom “Mama, I am going out this evening. May I stay out after midnight?” “No! It is too late”. “Dad, tomorrow I could use the car! May I have it?” “No! You have only recently got the license and it is too dangerous”. “Professor, may I go to the bathroom?” “No, you were there within the last hour”. “Gosh! I’m not free to do anything!” How often have we not used such a phrase: “I’m not free to do anything.” “There is always someone to say No…” “I cannot do anything…” “If I could I would do it but my mother will not allow me…” The problem concerns our freedom or at least that which we consider free‐
dom. Often we think of freedom as the possibility of indulging all our caprices, impulses and desires, in other words the freedom to do what pleases us with‐
out worry or restraint. But freedom is something more. In one of his most important works the Re‐
demptorist theologian, Fr. Bernard Häring, declares that freedom with a capi‐
tal ‘F’ must not be confused with license to do what we like while ignoring the fact that freedom is never contrary to responsibility We might try to give a precise definition of freedom as the capacity to dispose oneself and one’s future creatively and responsibly. By creatively we mean that since we have the use of reason in contrast to animals that are guided by in‐
stinct, we can always do something ‘new’. We can introduce in the chain of normal events something unforeseen that did not exist before. Responsibly means that we cannot speak of freedom without responsibility. It is responsibil‐
ity that helps man to overcome his instincts and to plan his life in his own time. Freedom is therefore a dynamic value. It is a reality in continual movement, a journey of liberation from internal and external conditions that psychologists call freedom – from in order to reach the fullness of liberty that is freedom – for so as to grow in responsibility in view of some life project to be carried out that is capable of focusing one’s whole existence. Therefore it is not negative replies that challenge our liberty. Perhaps they condition it or better still condition us. But rather it is the ‘no and its brothers’ that must be considered when we are faced with the necessity of making a de‐
cision and therefore to exercise our freedom in a responsible or irresponsible way. When we are given an order whether positive or negative we are called to make a decision about some reality and about ourselves having always in view ‘what ought I do’. There is always in question the responsibility of the present moment when I am called to make a decision here and now and the re‐
sponsibility of my whole life ‘my future’. We are the fruit of our choices! Antonio Donato The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 34 Francis Xavier Seelos Francis Xavier Seelos was born in Füssen, Bavaria, on January 11, 1819. He studied philosophy at the University of Munich and began theology as a seminarian for the diocesan clergy. After visiting the Redemptorists in Altötting, where he heard of their missionary work in North America, he decided to join them. With their approval, he set off for the United States in 1843 where he made his novitiate. He made his profession in Baltimore in May 1844 and was or‐
dained priest there in December. His first assignment was to St. Philomena’s in Pittsburgh where he served for six years as assistant pastor with (Saint) John Neumann as pastor and superior of the community. He then served as superior of the community for three more years. During this time he was also the novice master. In 1854, he was appointed pastor of St. Alphonsus Parish in Baltimore and in 1857 pastor of Ss. Peter and Paul Parish in Cumberland as well as prefect of students there and, in 1862, in Annapolis, Maryland. In 1860 he was a candidate to be the bishop of Pittsburgh but received a dispensation from this pastoral responsibility from Pope Pius IX. Once replaced as the prefect of students, he preached missions in German and English throughout the Northeast and Midwest United States (Connecti‐
cut, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Illi‐
nois, Wisconsin and Missouri). Father Seelos was always an active and highly successful preacher of missions – particularly devoted to the confessional – and was revered as an exceptional confessor and spiritual director. After a year as assistant pastor in St. Mary’s in Detroit, in 1866 he was as‐
signed to the parish of the Assumption in New Orleans, Louisiana as pastor. There he made a great effort to care for the poor, sick, and neglected. While caring for victims of yellow fever, he contracted the disease himself. Only a year after being assigned, he died in New Orleans on October 4, 1867, at the age of 48 years, nine months. Francis Seelos was beatified by Pope John Paul II on April 9, 2000. The Redemptorist Sacramentary The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 35 Gaspar Stanggassinger Gaspar Stanggassinger, the second of sixteen children, was born in Berchtes‐
garden, Germany on January 12, 1871. From his youth Gaspar had a growing desire to become a priest. He used to engage his brothers and sisters with preaching and processions. At the age of ten, he went to Freising to continue his schooling where he found the studies rather difficult, so that there was even question of quitting his studies. But he succeeded in making steady progress with effort and prayer. In 1884 he was admitted to the minor seminary in Freising. During summer vacations he or‐
ganized boys’ clubs with the intent of forming them in the Christian life. In 1890, after his baccalaureate diploma, he entered the diocesan seminary. During this time it became clear to him that the Lord was calling him to live as a religious. In 1892, after a visit of the Redemptorist missionaries, he was inspired to follow their vocation as missionaries. In spite of his fathers’ opposition, he entered the novitiate the same year and was ordained a priest in 1895. Gaspar entered the Congregation with the intention of preaching the Gospel to the most abandoned. Instead his superiors appointed him to form future missionaries. In addition to teaching he always gave pastoral assistance at churches in neighboring villages, especially by preaching. Although very busy, he was always available especially to the students who saw in him more a friend than a superior. He was deeply devoted to the Eucharistic Lord and in his preaching invited all to have recourse to the Blessed Sacrament in times of need and anxiety. In his preaching, he did not have recourse to the threats of punishment that were common in the preaching of the time. Rather he was simple and direct, inspiring the faithful to confidence and fraternal charity and to take Chris‐
tian life seriously. In 1899, the Redemptorists opened a seminary in Gars, Bavaria, and he was sent there as director. He was twenty‐eight years old at the time. But on ar‐
rival, he was only able to preach the retreat to the students and to partici‐
pate in the opening of the school year before succumbing to a fatal case of peritonitis on September 26. He used to say: “The saints have a special intuition. For me, who am not a saint, what is important are the simple eternal truths; the Incarnation, the Redemption and the Holy Eucharist.” He was proclaimed blessed by John Paul II on April 24, 1988. The Redemptorist Sacramentary The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 36 Gennaro Sarnelli Gennaro Sarnelli was born in Naples on September 12, 1702. Son of the Baron of Ciorani, he had a solid cultural and spiritual formation. Dedicating himself to the study of jurisprudence, he gained a doctorate in civil and canon law at the age of twenty. Caring for the sick in the Hospital for the Incurables, he felt the call to the priesthood. During this time he also came to know Alphonsus Maria de Liguori, who was his first biographer. Ordained a priest in 1732, he dedicated himself especially to the catechesis of young boys and to the rehabilitation of girls at risk of becoming prostitutes. In June of the following year he entered the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, founded by Alphonsus Maria de Liguori on the ninth of Novem‐
ber, 1732. He dedicated himself to the preaching of the Word of God to those who were most destitute of spiritual help. For reasons of health, in 1736, he returned to Naples, where, while continuing the missionary activity in the Redemptorist Congregation, he took up again his previous pastoral and charitable activities, especially among the sick, the old, those in prison and the young boys forced to work as dock‐laborers. He also initiated a fervent movement against the spread of prostitution. A prodigious writer, he published more than thirty books on a wide range of subjects: socio‐juridical studies, moral issues, mysticism, pedagogy, pastoral practice, mariology and ascetical theology. In 1741 he organized and took part in the great mission among the spiritu‐
ally abandoned areas in the outskirts of Naples. Spent by his burning zeal, he died in Naples on June 30, 1744, at the age of forty‐two. Pope John Paul II beatified him on May 12, 1996. The Redemptorist Sacramentary The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 37 Gerard Majella Gerard Majella was born in Muro Lucano (Potenza) in southern Italy on April 6, 1726, in a family of humble circumstances. From his parents, Gerard learned the love of prayer and sacrifice. When his father died, Gerard, being the only boy, had to provide for his family by working as a tailor. At the age of fourteen he sought to enter the Capuchin friary but he was re‐
jected because of his delicate health. After a short time as the domestic ser‐
vant of the bishop of Lacedonia, he returned to tailoring, but with minimal income. In April of 1749, with utter tenacity, he succeeded in getting himself ac‐
cepted by the Redemptorists who had preached a popular mission in Muro. After a trial period and a year of novitiate in the house at Deliceto, he made his religious profession on July 16, 1752. He was very observant of the rule, while at the same time going about the surrounding countryside to collect money for the material needs of the community. His presence to people, who were weighed down by poverty and illiteracy, and at the mercy of epidemics and crop failures, was seen as a sign of hope. Gerard had a deep empathy for them and gave to all a testi‐
mony to trust in the love and the compassion of God. During his five years as a lay brother in the Congregation, he was remarkable for his apostolic zeal, his patience in sickness, his love for the poor, his deep humility in the face of false accusation, heroic obedience, his spirit of pen‐
ance and his constancy in prayer. He wrote numerous letters of spiritual direction and a “Rule of Life.” The Lord favored him with numerous spiritual gifts, among which were proph‐
ecy, the reading of people’s hearts, and the gift of miracles. He died at Mater‐
domini (Avellino) on October 16, 1755. He was beatified by Leo XIII on January 29, 1893, and canonized by Pius X on December 11, 1904. Remembered among the people for his love for them, he is especially invoked as patron for mothers, particularly in time of pregnancy and for their infants. The Redemptorist Sacramentary The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 38 Incarnation The whole mystery of the Incarnation is summed up by St. Alphonsus in the one word: Love. God is madly in love with mankind. And when man in his disobedience de‐
served to be driven from Eden it broke God’s heart. In justice man was driven out because he had broken trust, friendship and his alliance with God and from that moment he had to ransom his life by his sweat, labor and sacrifices. But who was capable of rendering full justice to God? Only another God could do so being of the same greatness and equal dignity. How could human sacri‐
fices reach the appropriate dignity and render justice to God? By his own strength man could not acquire the dignity of being equal to his Creator. If man could not become God, God then became man in order to allow man, the object of his love, to be justified and thus ransomed or as the Latin term puts it redeemed. It was the Son of God himself who proposed this sacrifice convinced that only the complete giving of himself in love could reopen the heart of man to God. The Son of God could be incarnated as a perfect man already formed as Adam was and appear in all his majesty and power according to the idea of the Messiah expected by Israel. But God did not wish to terrorize man or at‐
tract him to himself by force or the fear of eternal punishment. He wished that his loved one should return to Him in a thrust of love, just as the lover to his spouse. The Incarnation therefore must be an image of the tender‐
ness of God. And what image could be more tender than that of a child who in order to grow needs caresses, affection and loving care? God has become little to make us great; He came down to earth to enable us to go up to heaven. The Incarnation is the time of lovers. In order to under‐
stand this mystery we also must become little children, because the heart of a child does not bear rancor or hate and quickly forgets an offence. And even if we have been sinners for a long time by welcoming Christ we are pardoned and redeemed because ‘the Eternal Father cannot despise the blood of Jesus Christ that paid for us’. In the Incarnation the Son of God from being mighty makes Himself little, poor, a servant, and weak. He assumes the guilt of man not only to redeem him with his blood, with his own life sacrificed on the Cross but also by helping him on his journey of interior rebirth that should lead him to love with the same love with which God loves him. By his example he wishes to make man understand that a heart that loves should give itself fully to all, The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 39 overcome its passions that aim at riches, pride and the love of earthly pleasures so as to be able to open his heart to his brothers and sisters and thus to God himself who loves all in equal measure. God whom nobody can conquer is conquered by love and this love has brought him to become man and sacrifice himself for the love of mankind. Antonio Pupo The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 40 Holiness Holiness is God. He alone is the Holy One. Man has been created in the image of the ‘Holy One’, in the image of God. For this reason man is the most living and immediate sign of the holiness of God. The Lord says ‘Be ye holy because I the Lord, your God am holy’ (Lv. 19, 3). Man, therefore, the nearer he is to God the more holy he is. Holiness is not a virtue; rather it is the constitutive entity of man. That which disfigures the imprint of the holiness of God in his soul and degrades the dignity of his per‐
son is sin. Sin is ‘impiety’; it refuses to recognize God as God. Sin creates a separating barrier that prevents God from transmitting to man his breath of life. Jesus has restored the bond broken by sin and has guaranteed the stabil‐
ity of the relationship by pouring the Holy Spirit into the heart of man. The Spirit, being holy, brings holiness. Therefore we are all called to holiness. Paul affirms this solemnly: ‘it is God’s will that you should be sanctified’ (1Ts 4, 3). Because: - We are created in the image of God; - God has transmitted his life to us; - We are redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ; - The Holy Spirit dwells in us. Saint Alphonsus has collected all the biblical doctrine on holiness in his book, The Practice of the love of Jesus Christ: God wishes all to be saints and each one according to his state, the religious as religious, the secular as secular, the priest as priest, the married as married, the merchant as merchant, the soldier as soldier and so on with every other state’. What is the concrete method of becoming saints? St. Alphonsus having col‐
lected the ascetical works of the Saints and Doctors of the Church concen‐
trates it on love: ‘All the holiness and perfection of a soul consists in loving Jesus Christ, our God, our highest good and our Savior’. The love of Jesus Christ is the fundamental principle on which the whole Christian life is based, sustained, enhanced, directed, amended and finalized. It is from the love of Jesus Christ that everything that characterizes the au‐
thentic component of holiness and perfection is derived. For this reason he who loves Jesus Christ loves to suffer; he who loves Jesus Christ loves gen‐
tleness, kindness and meekness; he who loves Jesus Christ desires nothing else but to always do what He wishes; he who loves Jesus Christ shuns tepid‐
ity and grows in the desire to belong totally to Him; he who loves Jesus The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 41 Christ lives in communion with Him in prayer; he who loves Jesus Christ ab‐
hors self‐love and keeps himself humble; he who loves Jesus Christ loves the neighbor with the same love of Jesus Christ; he who loves Jesus Christ lives a life of great faith and strong hope; he who loves Jesus Christ never allows himself to be upset by temptations or depressed by his weakness of spirit. Saint Alphonsus concludes: ‘From all that has been said you see how neces‐
sary is the virtue of charity to become saints.’ Ciro Vitiello The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 42 Ivan Ziatyk Ivan Ziatyk was priest and vicar general of the Ukrainian Greek‐Catholic Church, he was born on December 26, 1899 at Odrekhova (Sjanok, Sanok) in Galizia. After his elementary education in Sjanok, he entered the seminary at Peremyshl in 1919. In 1923 he was ordained a priest. From 1925 to 1935 he was a prefect of students and professor of theology in the seminary of Pere‐
myshl. On July 15, 1935 he joined the Redemptorists. After novitiate, he taught theology and Scripture in the studendate at Gholosko (Lviv). In Janu‐
ary 1948 he was named Vice‐Provincial Superior and Vicar General for all of the Ukrainian Greek‐Catholic Church. He was arrested on January 24, 1950 and for almost two years he lived im‐
prisoned in Zolochiv, Lviv and Kiev. On November 21, 1951 he was con‐
demned to ten years of hard labor and sent to the forced labor camp in Ozer‐
lag (Ozernyj), Siberia. On Good Friday, 1953, he was savagely tortured and beaten. He died three days later, on May 17, in a local hospital. He was beatified, with other Ukrainian martyrs, during the Papal visit to Lviv in 2001. The Redemptorist Sacramentary The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 43 John Nepomucene Neumann John Nepomucene Neumann was born in Prachatitz in Bohemia (Czech Re‐
public) on March 28, 1811. He studied theology at the seminary of Budweis. Zealous for the missionary life and wanting to lead souls to Christ, he de‐
cided to leave his homeland to dedicate himself to the European immigrants in America, who were deprived of spiritual support. He was ordained a priest by the bishop of New York, and gave himself to the pastoral care of people in the vast area around Niagara Falls. Since he wanted to live in a religious community that corresponded more closely to his missionary vocation, he entered the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, being professed on January 16, 1842. He was a tireless mis‐
sionary, busying himself in particular with the German immigrants, first in Baltimore, then in Pittsburgh. He filled the role of vice‐provincial of the Re‐
demptorists from 1846 to 1849, after which he became the parish priest of St. Alphonsus Church in Baltimore. In 1852, at the age of forty‐two, he was named bishop of Philadelphia. He had a strong effect on the religious life of the United States by founding Catholic schools and promoting devotion to the Eucharist. In two years the number of students in the parochial schools went from 500 to 9000. He founded a new religious institute: the Sisters of the Third Order of St. Francis. In the brief space of seven years he built eighty‐nine churches, as well as several hospitals and orphanages. A worthy son of St. Alphonsus, like him, he made a vow never to lose a min‐
ute of time. As a bishop he was holy and tireless. Uninterruptedly he visited his vast diocese, on one occasion traveling more than twenty five miles of mountain roads by mule in order to confirm a young boy who was sick. On January 5, 1860, he died suddenly of a heart attack on a street in Phila‐
delphia. He was beatified during the Second Vatican Council on October 13, 1963, and was canonized on June 19, 1977. In the homily on the occasion of his canonization, Paul VI summarized the activity of the new saint in these words: “He was close to the sick, he loved to be with the poor, he was friend of sinners, and now he is the glory of all emigrants.” The Redemptorist Sacramentary The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 44 Lay person In ecclesiastical language the term lay person indicates one who is not a member of the ecclesiastical hierarchy (see religious). In New Testament texts the term layperson does not explicitly appear but they do report the experience of the first Christians who gave witness to the Gospel before the world. In the time of Saint Alphonsus we have confraternities or societies that were associations of laypeople canonically erected with their own statutes. They performed works of charity to the neighbor, helping sick members and pray‐
ing for the dead. In big centers they helped prisoners condemned to death, erected hospitals for poor invalids and shelters for pilgrims on their way to the Holy Land or to Rome to visit the tomb of St. Peter. Our St. Clement Maria Hofbauer gave special attention to the laity especially in the last period of his life when he was in Vienna at the beginning of the nineteenth century. He sought to involve them in his various apostolic activi‐
ties so that they would have a deeper and more lasting affect on the Euro‐
pean society of his time. In the second half of the XX century thanks to the Second Vatican Council the laity began to find a ‘vital dimension’ in which to express their gifts. The apos‐
tolic exhortation of Pope John Paul II Christifideles laici offered clear stimula‐
tion that marked profound changes, now making the laity also capable of be‐
ing active participators in the salvific action of the Church in its pastoral work. Following this impulse of the Spirit even our own Congregation began to think about and define the figure of the Lay Missionary as an active collaborator and participant in the apostolic life of the Redemptorist Congregation for real mu‐
tual enrichment. Lay Missionaries are the faithful laity, men or women, mar‐
ried or not, of mature faith and consistent witness who called by the Spirit to follow Christ, the Redeemer more closely decide to share the spirituality and the mission of the Redemptorist community. They choose a stable form of as‐
sociation that is of collaboration and participation in its apostolic life. They strive to carry out the Redemptorist mission as lay people, that is, ‘according to their state in life, their obligations or circumstances and using these means’ (Lumen gentium, 41). The Redemptorist community places at the disposition of the laity the richness and abundance of its spiritual and material patrimony. The Lay Missionaries begin a journey of discernment that leads them to re‐
discover their baptismal vocation and their capacity to respond to it promptly and generously and to the experience of being immerged in Re‐
The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 45 demptorist spirituality and mission. The Redemptorist community commits itself to engage in useful dialogue and every Redemptorist is stimulated to take an increased interest in the world of the laity so that he may be en‐
riched by all that the Holy Spirit freely gives us through them. A clear sign of this journey of community growth will be the dedication of one’s life to the most abandoned, especially those marginalized by society and to those who are poor both materially and spiritually. It is the task of the Redemptorist community together with the laity to select the pastoral ‘strategies’ best adapted to meet the different needs in the social context in which we live. They must avoid ‘ready made’ plans by finding out the actual necessities. Animated by the charism of Alphonsus they undertake to find those ways of evangelizing the poor that will result in missionary practices where the poor themselves will evangelize. The Redemptorist and Lay Mis‐
sionaries in the school of the Gospel will understand and live ever better the riches that God has sown in the furrows of humanity. With these guidelines the Congregation for the past 20 years has begun a very stimulating experience that has produced lay groups under various ti‐
tles: as associates, collaborators, volunteers, lay missionaries etc. Some of these laypeople after appropriate discernment bind themselves to the Con‐
gregation in a public way by oath. They share with the Redemptorists their charism, spirituality and apostolate. Aldo Savo The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 46 Mary Devotion to the Madonna, Mother of God (theotókos) and our mother, is rooted in the heart of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer and in‐
herited integrally from the Church’s tradition, from the doctrine and heart of Alphonsus Liguori, as an expression of his piety and religious experience. Thus the Congregation has a physiognomy completely Christological and Marian. Alphonsus, with his life and in his preaching and writings has eve‐
rywhere sung The Glories of Mary (Napoli, 1750), together with the joyful proclamation of plentiful redemption. Like Mary, mother of mercy, every Redemptorist is called to reveal to the poor the face of God, rich in mercy, in a relationship of confident, child‐like and respectful love. During the 18th century, a century marked by Jansenism and reduced devo‐
tion to the Madonna (cf. Della regolata devozione de’cristiani di L. A. Muratori del 1747), Alphonsus was a generous apostle and “extremist” of Marian de‐
votion. “It does not obscure the glory of the Son, he often said, to greatly honor the Mother.” In 1730, at Scala, in the “Grotto of revelations”, he hears the voice of Mary who calls him to found an Institute for the evangelization of the most aban‐
doned. And so in the Redemptorist Congregation the Madonna is venerated under two particular titles: • Immaculate, a truth which Alphonsus firmly believed already 100 years before its definition as a dogma and which he maintains in the first and most celebrated of his Discourses (cf. Le Glorie di Maria, in Opere ascetiche, VII, 9‐43). He also made a vow to defend this truth even to shedding his blood and declared her the heavenly patron of the Institute; • Mother of Perpetual Help (Madonna of the Passion), whose image was entrusted to the Redemptorists by Pope Pius IX in 1865, to make her known and loved throughout the world. The title symbolizes the charism of a Redemptorist missionary, one constantly occupied with evangelization. “The holy missions are none other but a continuance of the Redemption that the Son of God is doing in the world by means of their ministries…” (Consti‐
tutions of 1764, I, 1). “The merits and most powerful intercession of Mary and of the holy Apostles who, with the blessed Virgin, are the principal protectors of all missionaries, especially those of our Institute” must be added, in order to respond to this sublime mandate. (ibid., I, 5). The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 47 Eternally predestined, Mary has embraced, from the “yes” of the Annuncia‐
tion to Calvary, God’s redemptive project, becoming Co‐Redemptrix and res‐
cuer of humankind. Redemptorists, like Mary, are free and ready “to serve” redemption, in complete availability to the poor, to the most sinful. In the itinerant, popular missions, together with the preaching, one should never forget the statue of the Blessed Mother, neither the preaching about her motherly care. “It is she who preaches the mission” – Alphonsus often reminded. The coat of arms of the Congregation itself contains the monograms of both Jesus and Mary (General Statutes of 1982, 6). Also, the Redemptorist lifestyle recalls this Marian devotion. In every room, inhabited by the confreres of the Institute, there must be an image of Mary. The religious habit, with the profession cross on the chest and crowned with the rosary on the left side (Constitutions of 1982 – 45,4) is an identifying sign of Redemptorist spirituality (ibid.) Also, continual meditation on Marian texts, daily praying of the rosary, small abstinences on Saturday, vespers of Marian liturgical feasts (ibid. 32) and the recitation of a Hail Mary before be‐
ginning work all confirm the solid yet tender devotion to the Mother of Jesus, the Redeemer. Alphonsus wore with devotion and encouraged the practice of wearing the scapular of our Lady of Carmel. He recommended that the confreres preach every Saturday about Mary (sabatino = Saturday practice). In more recent times this tradition has been lost due to the Sunday liturgy being celebrated on Saturday evenings. Mary, perfectly united to Christ, the Redeemer, in solidarity with people in need of salvation, a true icon and the beginning of the Church, model of per‐
fection and life for everyone, a lively hope, mediatrix of all graces, our ad‐
vocate close to God, is the image that summarizes the apostolic life of a Re‐
demptorist. Finally, Mary, “most motherly of Mothers”, is offered to young people, espe‐
cially today, as a response to the crises that envelop their lives with every kind of danger. Mary is not someone from the past, no longer needed or unattain‐
able, fragile or unreal, but more than ever the unique and special young daughter of the human family. True youth is in the innocence of the heart. Mary, invoked as Immaculate, full of Grace, ready with Perpetual Help, re‐
veals herself as always ready to reach out and welcome, to protect and com‐
fort anyone who enters and becomes part of the great Redemptorist family. Alfonso Amarante The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 48 Mental Prayer Mental prayer is like oxygen for “life in the Spirit,” and the essential neighborhood of prayer itself, which, without meditation, ultimately is de‐
bilitated. Mental prayer is necessary for everyone to persevere in grace and to progress in charity. “It is certain that one of the greatest means for becom‐
ing a saint is mental prayer, as all the masters of the spirit say… The light, the force and the fervor that are necessary to walk toward perfection are ac‐
quired in prayer. Thus all the saints have been people of prayer” (Riflessione ai Vescovi, in Opere Complete, vol. III, Torino 1847, p. 871). The matter for mental prayer according to Saint Alphonsus is always the truths that comfort and give hope such as: the mercy of God, God’s goodness and love, the mysteries of Jesus Christ, and the intercession of Mary. And, in particular, the Passion, because here, more than in any other topic, one sees the love of God toward humanity. The passion of Jesus is “a good meditation for everyone.” We summarize briefly the way of making mental pray according to Saint Alphonsus: 1. A brief preparation (acts of faith in the presence of God, of hu‐
mility, and of petition for enlightenment); 2. The meditation (to dwell on some eternal truth and on the Mysteries of Christ, ordinarily using some book); 3. Three fruits arise from meditation: a. expression of affections (acts of faith, of thanksgiving, of humility, of hope, but above all of love and of sorrow); b. prayer (asking God principally for love and perseverance); c. resolutions (prayer ought to end with a specific resolution that touches one’s life). Finally, the conclusion consists in thanking God for insights received; to pro‐
pose to observe the resolutions made; and to ask God, through the love of Je‐
sus and Mary, for the power to keep the intentions made. (cf. Regolamento di vita di un cristiano, in Opere Ascetiche, vol. X, Roma 1968, pp. 282‐284). This method that Saint Alphonsus proposed can be useful even today, espe‐
cially if in meditation we dispose ourselves to “listen” to the Word, allowing it to penetrate our mind and heart in order to return to Him as prayer. The moment of prayer is the response of the person who has thus assimilated the vital potentiality of the Word, through meditation. When the Word, read and meditated upon, manages to warm the mind and heart with love for God, it is the time to move to contemplation. This allows the soul to rest peacefully in Him, in a communion of peace and love. From this simple and profound union, stirred up by meditation and prayer, many fruits are derived that will lead necessarily to a continual conversion and to a life of charity. Antonio Perillo The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 49 Methodius Dominick Trčka Blessed Methodius Dominick Trčka was born in Frydlant, Moravia (now the Czech Republic) on July 6, 1886. He joined the Redemptorists in 1902 and made his profession August 25, 1904. He was ordained in Prague on July 17, 1910. He spent the early years of his ministry as a parish missioner. His desire to work among the Greek Catholics was blessed by his superiors. With this in mind he was sent to Lviv, where he learned Ukrainian and Old Slavonic along with the Byzantine Rite. After a brief period of inculturation, he worked among the Greek Catholics in the area of Halic, in Galicia, and then in East Slovakia in the Eparchy of Prešov, where he carried on intense missionary activity. He was nominated first Vice‐Provincial Superior of the Vice‐Province of Michalovce in 1946. He began to work zealously to found new houses and to form young Redemptorists. On the night of April 13 and 14, 1950, all religious communities were sup‐
pressed by the Czech government. Father Methodius was arrested, tortured and condemned to twelve years imprisonment. In 1958 he was transferred to the prison of Leopoldov. He was suffering from pneumonia contracted during solitary confinement, which was im‐
posed on him for singing a Christmas carol. As a result of those harsh condi‐
tions, he contracted tuberculosis. He died on March 23, 1959. He was first interred in the prison cemetery, and then in 1969 his remains were transferred to the Redemptorist plot in the cemetery of Michalovce. Pope John Paul II proclaimed him to be Blessed Methodius Dominick on No‐
vember 4, 2001. The Redemptorist Sacramentary The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 50 Mission The term “Mission” literally means “dispatch” or “sending”. In the ancient world it referred to a soldier, an emissary, who would leap on to a horse and ride miles and miles to bring a letter or some news. The origin of the theologi‐
cal term is, however, a Latin translation of the Greek word, “apostle”. An apos‐
tle was someone who had received, had made his own, the teaching of Jesus and was then sent among Jews and pagans to proclaim the “Kingdom of God”. In the thinking of St. Alphonsus and his first companions, a Redemptorist community is an apostolic community which “follows” the Redeemer among those most in need, in preaching the Word. Evangelization of the most needy, or “most abandoned” is the key to understanding all the choices the Congrega‐
tion has made, right up to the present day. Mission in the classical sense of the word, as a form of the apostolate, is one way of being faithful to this insight. Saint Alphonsus considered everyone to be called to holiness, which consists in the love of God and conformity to His will. Human beings are frail, and are in danger on earth of straying far from God. The Redemptorist view is that a mission is a form of the apostolate which, through the preaching of the Word, allows men and women to return to God. Mission therefore includes every form of the apostolate to the abandoned. The missionary methodology is directed towards meeting the longings and the needs of the abandoned. A Redemptorist mission is a pastoral encounter with those most in need wherever they happen to live. It is an extraordinary pas‐
toral outreach to places where ordinary pastoral care has been unable to go. Redemptorist missionary work may be summarized under several headings, such as: 1. Missions, which aim to proclaim the word of God among the most abandoned, those deprived of spiritual help, particularly people in country villages and hamlets. 2. Popular mission: called “popular” because the style of language the missioners use, and the time‐table of their services, has to be geared to the needs of the “last and least” in society. 3. Parochial mission is the term used to describe the kind of apostolate Redemptorists pursue in their own communities. These must be centers of welcome, instruction and prayer. 4. Preaching: this is built round the theme of God’s redemptive love given through his Son, Jesus Christ. 5. The devout life: the missioners teach some simple acts through which the Faith and the fruits of the mission may mature, such as Visits to the Blessed Sacrament, recitation of the Rosary and so on. 6. Mission renewal: after the good news of salvation has been pro‐
claimed in a town, Redemptorists return some time later to consolidate the good achieved and to strengthen the converted. The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 51 Every professed Redemptorist, whether he works in a mission territory (a city or land in some other continent), or fulfils his ministry at home in a community, is driven by the conviction that he must preach the Gospel to the most abandoned. Alfonso V. Amarante The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 52 Moral theology The development of moral theology has always been seen by Redemptorists as an essential component of their mission. The merciful love of God in Christ cannot be announced, without announcing at the same time how to welcome and respond to it. The General Statutes ask every Redemptorist to “give particular attention to the study of moral and pastoral theology and spirituality, as required by the character of the Congregation and according to its history” (Gen. St. 023). St. Alphonsus believed that whoever was appointed to teach moral theology “should be the best subject of the Congregation, because for us moral theol‐
ogy is the most necessary matter for study” (Letters I, Rome 1887, 598). In‐
deed a good deal of his life was devoted precisely to the deeper study of moral theology, often melding together the demands of truth with the de‐
mands of human history that is often tragic. Moral theology done by Redemptorists is characterized by a clear pastoral imprint. This does not imply the suspension of the scientific demands proper to theological discourse, but rather allows reality to constantly question the discourse in order to discern the presence of the Spirit who is working to ful‐
fill the Father’s plan of salvation in Christ. It is the way outlined by the Sec‐
ond Vatican Council in Gaudium et spes. In moral theology Redemptorists are also convinced of the duty “to continue the example” of the Redeemer, evangelizer of the poor. Sharing their joys and hopes as well as their sufferings and defeats, Redemptorists want to proclaim the possibility of liberation and the fullness of life that Christ gives us with his Spirit. Thus, the moral proposition is elucidated by the characteristic of pastoral kindness: “the joy and the demands of Christ’s way” (Catechism of the Catho­
lic Church, 1997) are particularized by the perspective of the person called to live them, beginning with those who are most vulnerable. This is not to meant to relativize them, but to make it possible to embrace them with joy because the demands are made achievable by grace: “Because God has first loved us (cf. 1Jn 4, 10), love is no longer just a ‘commandment’, but it is the response to the gift of love by which God comes to us” (Deus caritas est, 1). Relating everything to the commandment of love, Redemptorists strive to make it so that the moral proposal helps us experience “the possibility of the ‘commandment’ of love because it is not just a demand: love can only be ‘commanded’ because it has first been given” (ivi, 14). The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 53 Moral truth is proposed as a “remedy” for people wounded by sin: it wants to restore them, to give them back the meaning of life, to impel them toward ho‐
liness. The point of reference will always be the being “led by the Redeemer”, as St. Alphonsus never tired of saying: “considering the present fragility of the human condition, it is not always true that is more certain to lead souls by the narrowest path, even though we see that the Church has more often con‐
demned excessive freedom than excessive rigor" (Teologia moralis, II, Rome 1907). John Paul II makes these affirmations in the letter Spiritus Domini to highlight that Alphonsus was “a renovator of moral theology” and adds that he treats it with “admirable words” [AAS 79 (1987) 1367‐1368]. In the Alphonsian proposition, the whole moral life springs from the mem‐
ory, renewed constantly, especially in the prayer, of the “primacy” of God’s love in Christ. It is enough to read the first chapters of the Practice of the Love of Jesus Christ with their insistence on the economy of “gift” with which God looks “to captivate” the human heart. The moral imperative then will be experienced as a heart striving to respond. However it is recognized and ar‐
ticulated by the conscience, the moral law does not oppose freedom, but points the way to its authentic fulfillment in solidarity with others. Sabatino Majorano The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 54 Mother of Perpetual Help The Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, participated intimately in the econ‐
omy of salvation, especially in the mystery of the Redemption realized by Christ. She cooperated with her Son in the salvation of the human race. As a result, she is, for all, Mother of Perpetual Help. According to an old tradition, one of her images under this title was brought to Rome from the Island of Crete toward the end of the fifteenth century. It was placed in the Church of St. Matthew on via Merulana during the pontifi‐
cate of Alexander VI and was venerated there for about three centuries. When this church was destroyed during the Napoleonic invasions, the icon disappeared. Providentially, it was found again in 1866. At that time Pius IX confided it to the Redemptorists who exposed it for public veneration in the Church of the Most Holy Redeemer dedicated to St. Alphonsus. From then on, the veneration of this miraculous image has continued to grow among the faithful, and is now widely diffused throughout the whole world. The Redemptorist Sacramentary The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 55 Music The definition of the term presents more than a few difficulties because of the complexity of the very nature of music. As a rule it is still acceptable to say that: “Music is the art of melody and rhythm.” Today, the idea of lan‐
guage once again enters the concept of music. In fact, music is presented as the universal non‐verbal language. The nearness of musical language to the spoken is based on the common denominator of analogous grammars and linguistic syntax. Music varies from people to people, from generation to generation. In rela‐
tionship to its content – at least in western societies – it is normally divided into Gregorian, Polyphonic (further categorized as Ancient, New, Flemish and Renaissance), Melodramatic (we also include in this the various forms of vo‐
cal music) and Instrumental Music. In relation to periods, it is categorized as Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic and Modern. Gregorian chant and Polyphonic share the same modal base in so much as they are built on those particular scales called Gregorian modalities or eccle­
siastical tones. Melodramatic and Instrumental Musical, on the other hand, are labeled as harmonic‐tonal music, in as much as they are built on the ba‐
sis of keys (majors and minors) and harmony that were developed from the 17th century on. In the 19th century the tonal‐harmonic grammar is shat‐
tered, giving birth to the atonality and the 12­tone row series or 12­tone dis­
sonance resulting from the diffusion of harmony, thanks to the concordance of 23 sounds theorized by A. Vitale C.Ss.R. In this complex historical panorama of music we must yet illuminate the popular aspect and particularly the sacred, of which the Alphonsian‐
Redemptorist style is part. By this we are sketching the historical trajectory and recognizing the intimate connection this specific style has with evangeli‐
zation. With the term Alphonsian‐Redemptorist style we mean the produc‐
tion of music that originated from the songs of St. Alphonsus – Hymns and the Duet between the soul and Jesus Christ – and is continued today in Italy and in all the countries of the world where Redemptorists work. Alphonsian‐Redemptorist music embraces both popular and cultured forms. To a great extent it originated as a support for Redemptorist apostolic activi‐
ties. In this sense, it has developed and develops a pedagogic‐didactic role or a missionary stratagem (cf. International Conference Music and Pastoral Strate­
gies of the Modern Age – University of Rome “La Sapienza” 17‐18/02/2006). So it must be said that, among all the music produced in the 17th‐19th centu‐
ries for the same purpose, it remains the only repertoire still known and stud‐
The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 56 ied. Though not liturgical in the strict sense, it is also useful for liturgy. The hymns of the Alphonsian‐Redemptorist tradition are comparable, by design and content, to the choral‐laudatory Hymns of the oriental and western Chris‐
tian tradition, the 14th century Franciscan hymns of praise, the 15th century Justinian and the Filipino of the 16th‐17th centuries. Alphonsian hymns, in particular, have represented the formal model of analogous production that continues on an international level to this day. This model narrates the essential moments of Christian devotional life (Na‐
tivity, Passion, Eucharist, Mary, Saints, etc.). As a result of oral tradition, this model forms part of Ethnomusicology. It has also influenced the production of musical works of considerable quality such as, for example, the oratory music of A. Vitale. His musical pieces have stimulated musicological research of sacred Italian music from the 18th century. The Alphonsian hymn Tu scendi dalle stelle (You descend from the stars) remains the melody par ex‐
cellence of Christian‐Catholic Christmas. Paolo Saturno The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 57 Nicholas Charnetsky Nicholas Charnetsky was born in Semakivci in Halychyna, Western Ukraine on December 14, 1884. He did his theological studies at the Ukrainian College in Rome from 1903‐
1909 and was ordained as a diocesan priest on October 2, 1909. After ob‐
taining his doctorate in theology from the Pontifical Urbanian University, he was spiritual director and professor of philosophy and theology at the major seminary in Stanislaviv. He entered the Redemptorist novitiate in Zboisk in 1919 and was professed in 1920. During his early years he was assigned to teach in the minor semi‐
nary and subsequently to preaching popular missions. From 1926 he was a missionary among the Greek‐Catholics in Volyn. Named titular bishop of Le‐
bed and apostolic visitor for the Ukrainian Catholics of Volyn and Podlachia, he was ordained bishop on February 8, 1931 in St. Alphonsus Church, Rome. From 1931 to 1939 he ministered to the people of Volyn, Polisia, Pidliasia, and Belorussia. Expelled from Volyn in 1939 and after the Soviet occupation, he moved to Lviv. During World War II he was in Lviv, ministering pastorally and teaching at the theological academy. He was arrested on April 11, 1945 together with all the Greek‐Catholic bishops. He was first condemned to five years of hard la‐
bor in Siberia, but this sentence was soon increased by another ten years. From 1945 to 1956, he was imprisoned in about thirty Soviet labor camps and prisons, suffering a total of 600 hours of torture and interrogation. He was released in 1956 and returned to Lviv nearly half dead. But he recov‐
ered somewhat and, from his bed, guided the suppressed Greek‐Catholic Church in the Ukraine. He died in Lviv on April 2, 1959, at the age of 75. He is buried in the Redemptorist church of St. Josaphat in Lviv. The four Redemptorists were among twenty‐five Ukrainian martyrs beati‐
fied during the papal visit to Lviv in 2001. His Holiness, Pope John Paul II, on June 27, 2001, during his apostolic visit to Lviv, proclaimed his beatification together with another 24 martyrs of the Greek‐Catholic Church in the Ukraine. The Redemptorist Sacramentary The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 58 Novices Novices are those young people who, after an intense journey of faith and careful vocational discernment, ask to experience the life of the Congrega‐
tion. During the novitiate, which ordinarily lasts for one year, they commit themselves to deepen and to evaluate the authenticity of their vocation to follow Christ, and to learn the history, the life, and the spirit of the Congrega‐
tion, which they come to love and appreciate. Aided by the novice master and the community, they follow an intense formative course that engages them to mature in those areas which are indispensable for a Redemptorist missionary. First of all is human maturity: one must accept oneself, one’s own limits and virtues or qualities, to arrive at a psychic‐affective equilib‐
rium from which flows an attitude of responsibility, dedication, openness, dialogue, collaboration, and humble and unselfish service, especially toward the most abandoned. United to and in proportion with the former is the spiritual growth to which the novice commits himself to follow, above all by means of an authentic personal and communal prayer life, continual recourse to the will of God in his life, and by being open to the ongoing process of continual conversion. In addition, during the novitiate, through experiences of community life, novices do their best to grow in the vocation of fraternal life. In this they learn to build communities that are places of faith, of service, and of mutual acceptance, that thus render the proclamation of the Word of Salvation more credible and efficacious. Last, but not least, there will be a deepening in Redemptorist life through study and meditation: on the Constitutions and Statutes of the Congregation, on the life and message of its founder, St. Alphonsus Liguori and the lives of the saints and blessed Redemptorists, and on the great spiritual and apos‐
tolic patrimony of the Congregation that has developed in its nearly three hundred years of life. The purpose of this whole journey is so that the novices will grow in their love of Christ and will come to give and to dedicate their very lives to Him without reserve so as to become, with their other Redemptorist brothers, daring, simple, and free apostles of the Word of God, especially among those in our day who are the most abandoned. Antonio Perillo The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 59 Passion Generally, the term “passion” means the feeling which can overwhelm a per‐
son, when rationality gives way to emotion. Psychology warns us about neu‐
rosis: someone dominated by passion can be in danger of going mad. In eve‐
ryday language we do speak of someone in love as having “lost their head!” When we examine the Scriptures, we all agree that the Passion is the central point of the history of Salvation, so much so that many exegetes declare that “the Gospels are Passion narratives with lengthy introductions.” So, why do we use such a seemingly unsuitable word for the Wisdom of God to describe his greatest gift? Because the Lord God literally “lost his head” for mankind! God “so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, so that those who believe in Him should not perish but might have eternal life.” (Jn. 3: 16‐17.) God is essentially love, love that longs to reach and transform humanity. Out of love he humbled himself, first at the Incarnation, then at the Cross, to prove to us that there is no love greater or more real than love given freely, and that there is no true peace or happiness until we become servants to each other. To give oneself to another in prosperous times is easy enough. But when dif‐
ficulties arise we start calculating and rationalizing. As we look at the Cross we see a love that sets no limits, a God who is ready for total self‐surrender so as to give the supreme proof of his love. In his writings St. Alphonsus insists on the personal aspect of salvation. In his meditations for the Way of the Cross he says: “Consider how Jesus, in making this journey with the Cross on His shoulders thought of us, and of‐
fered for us to his Father the death he was about to undergo.” For us, that is, for you, for me. This immense love challenges each of us personally. The way to holiness is not, therefore, just an attempt to reach the heights, but be‐
comes a total, grateful, response to a love given totally and without limits. So “passion” takes on the positive meaning of “being passionate,” of directing all our abilities towards a genuine response to this overwhelming offer of love. The transformation our world and our hearts is brought about by contempla‐
tion of “the one whom they have pierced.” We are asked to recognize in that disfigured face the Redeemer of the world. If, like the centurion, we are brave enough to declare “truly this is the Son of God,” even the pain and suffering can lose their dark side, their desperate absurdity, to be filled with light and meaning. Our life is a gift, a gift of love, and makes sense only when we make it a gift, only when we become a living sacrifice in Christ, only when we become merciful and forgiving, “giving for”, freely giving ourselves for others. Francesco Visciano The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 60 Peter Donders Peter Donders was born in Tilburg, Holland on October 27, 1809. From his youth he felt himself called to the priesthood, but, because of the poverty of his family, his schooling was cut short so he could take up the weaver’s trade of his father. This did not prevent him from teaching catechism to children in his free time. He also had a good influence on young people his same age. At the age of twenty‐two, with the help of his parish priest, he entered the mi‐
nor seminary of St. Michael‐Gestel as a seminarian and part‐time worker, thus paying for his room and board. He was ordained a priest on June 5, 1841. He was able to follow his mission‐
ary vocation, setting out for Suriname, which was then a Dutch colony. For the next fourteen years, his base of ministry was in the city of Paramar‐
ibo where he dedicated himself to some 2,000 resident Catholics and also regularly visited the slaves of the plantations (around 8,000 of them in the Paramaribo area of some 40,000 in all of Suriname), as well as the military garrisons and the native Indians and black slaves along the rivers. In 1856, he offered himself as a volunteer for the government leprosarium of Batavia, where he remained, with the exception of a few short intervals, for the next twenty‐eight years, caring for the residents bodily and spiritually. He left them, only for a few months, in 1866, when he asked to join the Re‐
demptorists to whom Pope Pius IX had confided the Apostolic Vicariate of Suriname. He was invested with the religious habit on November 1 of that year and professed his vows on June 24, 1867. Religious profession, in associating him with a missionary congregation, gave him a more vivid sense of the apostolic life in community, allowing him to leave Batavia more often to give himself to the conversion of the native Indians and black slaves. But the name of Donders remained bound to the leprosarium of Batavia. He died among his lepers, poor among the poor, on January 14, 1887, mourned as their benefactor and invoked as a saint. Pope John Paul II beatified him in St. Peter’s on May 23, 1982, during the 250th jubilee year of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer. The Redemptorist Sacramentary The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 61 Prayer “God does not deny anyone the grace to pray, by which one obtains from God the help needed to overcome any and all temptation (…). And I say, and repeat, and will always repeat while I yet have life, that all our health is in prayer, (…) pray, pray, and never ever stop praying because, if you pray your salvation will be assured; but if you stop praying, your damnation will be certain.” (Of the Great Means of Prayer, in Opere Asetiche, vol. II, Roma 1962, p. 171). These strong and clear affirmations of St. Alphonsus might leave us per‐
plexed and confused. One question then arises spontaneously: Do I condemn myself forever if I do not prayer? To pray is not to say prayers, to say the words, even reciting them by heart or reading them… even if absentmindedly. To pray cannot be reduced to reading booklets, in which are already written so many prayers. To pray is not to say the Our Father, the Hail Mary or the Glory Be to the Father before going to sleep… So what then is prayer? What makes prayer to be prayer? St. Theresa of Avila, with just a few words, expresses the most profound and genuine meaning of prayer: “For me, prayer is nothing other than an inti‐
mate relationship of friendship, a frequent one to one encounter with the One in whom we know we are loved.” This definition of prayer tells us that the dialogue between God and man is an existential experience of life truly lived, a deep friendship, and still yet, a filial relationship. Prayer becomes, therefore, the noblest human relation‐
ship possible. It is on this path that one understands the true essence of prayer. What it doesn’t concern is neither the duration nor the form nor the way we pray, but rather the recognition and the awareness of God’s pres‐
ence in our life and in history. To pray is to meet God, to let oneself be loved by God, to love God, to speak to God; but, above all, it is to listen to him, to praise him, to thank him, to adore him. To pray is to intercede for one’s brothers and sisters, to ask any‐
thing with confidence, certain of his fatherly love. To pray is not so much to say words, but to meet God. To pray is to want to be with God, like two friends that spend time together conversing, so to know one another better and to support one another. The meaning of prayer is not exhausted in merely saying words, but it involves all of life, because it allows God to enter one’s very existence. The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 62 One understands then St. Alphonsus’ strong insistence on the necessity of prayer as the source of salvation, because to pray is to meet and welcome Christ Jesus and begin a marvelous dialogue of love with him that will neces‐
sarily transform and change one’s existence. Prayer that does not lead to conversion of heart, mind and actions is not au‐
thentic. “Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord”, will enter the Kingdom of Heaven but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Mt. 7,21). “An authentic meeting with Christ changes life”: here is the purpose of prayer. If prayer leads to an encounter with God, then one cannot but be converted to him, one cannot but recognize one’s own sin and repent with all one’s heart. In and with prayer a radical change of one’s existence begins, where the path of faith and the Christian life are sustained and nourished, in charity and in mercy, by the strength of prayer. Antonio Perillo The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 63 Redeemer The Church, as she seeks to lead us into the mystery of Christ, our Lord and Savior, offers a variety of routes. Redemptorists are convinced that all these roads converge in love. ”All Redemptorists,” according to our Constitutions, “ever following the magisterium of the Church, must be humble and coura‐
geous servants among people of the Gospel of Christ, the Redeemer and Lord, who is the head and model of the new humanity. This message has for its special object plentiful redemption; it proclaims the love of God the Fa‐
ther ‘who first loved us and sent his Son to be the expiation for our sins,’ (II John 4:10) and through the Holy Spirit gives life to all who believe in him.” (Constitutions, no. 6) This love cannot be defeated even by its most amazing contradiction: the Cross. In contemplating the Crucified, a Redemptorist does not look on a defeat; he sees the paschal victory of love. He makes his own the attitude St. Alphonsus revealed in his Practice of the Love of Jesus Christ: “In the expres‐
sion St. Paul, that great lover of Jesus Christ, uses; the love of Christ over­
whelms us (II Cor. 5, 14), the Apostle really wants to say that it is not so much what Christ suffered as the love He showed when suffering for us, that obliges, almost forces us, to love Him.” cf., Opere Ascetiche, vol I, Rome, 1933, ch. I, no. 8, 5.) Since it is an expression of Love, “this redemption affects the entire person. It brings to perfection and transforms all human values, so as to unite all things in Christ (cf. Eph. 1:10; I Cor. 3:23), and thus lead them to their com‐
pletion in a new earth and a new heaven” (cf. Rev. 21:1). (Constitutions, 6) This is why Redemptorists never weary of declaring that only in the Re‐
deemer “does the mystery of man truly become clear…Christ…in the very revelation of the mystery of the Father and of his love fully reveals man to himself and brings to light his most high calling.” (Gaudium et spes, no. 22). The Redeemer is out‐going love. He is love which seeks to share itself in bringing all mankind to fullness and happiness. His self‐emptying, his ken‐
osis, even to the folly of the cross (cf. Phil. 2:6‐7), rebuts all the charges our secular world has leveled against God. God does not restrict mankind; God gives himself unconditionally, and so fills all our history with hope. Every Redemptorist, when he devotes himself entirely to preaching “fullness of redemption”, is aware that it is his “principal duty,” in St. Alphonsus’ words, to “use such expressions in every sermon as will inflame his hearers with the love of God.” (The Complete Works, Italian edition, vol. III, Turin, 1847, 288) The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 64 To do this, Redemptorists try to understand the mystery of the Redeemer from the point of view of those who, because they are more deeply affected by the dire consequences of sin, have the greatest need of Him. Their duty is not merely to proclaim the Redeemer, but to “follow” Him, so that their preaching is genuine. Sharing the problems of those who find it hardest to be open to the Redeemer’s love is always the first stage in true evangelism. The message is: everyday life is where the Redeemer’s love reaches out to everyone: while there’s life, there’s hope. This should lead the poor and the abandoned to re‐discover their baptismal dignity and their call to holiness. Sabatino Majorano The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 65 Redemptorist As a noun, the word signifies all those who belong to the Congregation (CSsR) or the Order (OSsR) of the Most Holy Redeemer, by whichever among the varied ways of consecration or aggregation they have chosen: i.e. as reli‐
gious, priest, sister or layperson. The Constitutions of the CSsR define a religious as a humble and courageous servant of Christ the Redeemer, who, in a particular way, and always in ac‐
cord with the magisterium of the Church, preaches fullness of Redemption. As a witness to the Gospel of divine grace, he recognizes the great vocation of the entire human person and of the whole human race, and sets out to meet the Lord wherever He is mysteriously present and active. He preaches the Good News of the Lord both by a quiet, brotherly, prayerful and helpful pres‐
ence and by courageous, public proclamation of the Word of God. He regards himself as an apostle of conversion, seeking both to bring people to a radical option for Christ through his preaching, and to form and develop communi‐
ties which are to be signs of God’s presence in the world. Unencumbered and available, free from any ties or limits, he engages in the continual quest for new apostolic opportunities within the Congregation of the Most Holy Re‐
deemer, to serve the needs of the local or the world‐wide Church. He tries to discern the signs of God’s presence and God’s purposes by proper awareness of and contact with the world, in assured dialogue with current culture and with a real appreciation of the questions people ask today. The Redemptoristine Sisters, on the other hand, are contemplative reli‐
gious whose vocation is to a radical transformation in Jesus Christ, so as to be united personally and as a community in a lively remembrance of the paschal mystery of Christ the Redeemer. Their style of life, characterized by their monastic calling, and modeled on the example of their founder, Mary Celeste Crostarosa, differs from that of the missioners. Nonetheless, they follow their vocation closely united to the members of the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, because of their common origin, name, spiritual‐
ity and real fellowship. The third category, the laity, covers people who in a particular way are linked to a Redemptorist community, generally on the basis of their role in the Church and their deep involvement in its apostolic life. They, in other words, are people whose lives as laity at the service of the Church have been enriched with a missionary identity and our Redemptorist spirituality. They have undertaken to share in the mission of the Congregation as it is put into practice in one or other of its Provinces or Vice‐Provinces. The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 66 As an adjective, the word refers to the evangelizing activity of Redemptorists. It is synonymous with “missionary” and signifies the charism which Saint Alphonsus has brought to the universal Church ever since 1732. It refers to a specific kind of evangelization: one which is dynamic, creative, prophetic, bold, simple and accessible, appropriate to the pressing needs of the Church and directed in a special way to the poorest and most abandoned. Redemptor­
ist therefore refers to a missionary dynamic, rather than to a particular activ‐
ity, to evangelization strictly so called, directed towards individuals and groups who are poorest and most in need in society and in the Church. Laureano Del Otero The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 67 Redemptorist Priest From among his people the Lord chooses some men and reserves them for himself renewing in them the effusion of the Holy Spirit: they are priests. The priest is called to be the living presence of Jesus, the Savior, living out in his own existence the same sentiments and attitudes. Once he has received the sacrament of Orders he becomes a sign of the Risen Christ. He makes present His invisible Presence. The greatness of this sign appears at certain particular moments of his min‐
istry such as the celebration of the Eucharist. When he breaks the bread it is Christ who breaks it and offers it with his hands. In the same way when he absolves from sin it is Christ himself who welcomes and reconciles the sin‐
ner. Christ uses him as his living instrument of love and mercy for humanity. The Redemptorist priest experiences all this and carries it out with that great missionary dynamism that derives from his charism. Strong in faith, re‐
joicing in hope, burning with charity, on fire with zeal he makes the explicit proclamation of the Gospel the reason for his existence. Nourished abundantly by the Word of God that he must proclaim he exam‐
ines the problems and demands of the world that the Church must confront seeking together with his confreres to give an adequate response. He is anx‐
ious to be near to people giving them a genuine welcome and being open to them. Furthermore he is always simple in his life and in his words to any person who feels abandoned. His pastoral choice is always for the poor. In addition to proclaiming the Good News he feels it important to devote him‐
self to the ministry of the sacrament of Reconciliation. In his contact with those abandoned spiritually, the Redemptorist priest like St. Alphonsus is convinced that simple and serious preaching and mercy and patience in the confessional are the hinges of all pastoral work. In fact St. Alphonsus has written: ‘in preaching we throw out the nets while in the confessional we draw the fish to the shore’. For him the sacrament of Confession became the high moment in the formation of the conscience of the faithful in which is proclaimed and celebrated in a marvelous way the Gospel of the Mercy of God in Jesus Christ. Persevering in prayer and in the gift of himself the Redemptorist priest as an apostolic man is always ready to face any trial that he may bring to mankind the abundance of the Re‐
demption of Christ (cf. Const. No. 20). Maurizio Iannuario The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 68 Redemptorist Spirituality What does spirituality mean? To answer this question we must be guided by a passage from St. Paul to the Romans where he speaks of “life according to the Spirit” (cf. Rm 8, 1 ‐12). For the Christian “to live according to the Spirit” it is to allow oneself to be moved, inspired and led by that Spirit which moved, inspired and led Jesus Christ. Christian spirituality has its principal and exact point of reference in the per‐
son of Jesus Christ. It is essentially a personal and communal experience of God in Christ by the working of the Holy Spirit. There cannot be, therefore, Christian life without spiritual life. As you can see, first and foremost spirituality is not meant to be something abstract and theoretical, but an expression of life and personal involvement in the history of the Church and the world. In the context of continual cultural and religious change in society, the Gospel has been expressed historically in a variety of traditions that have given origin to different ways of living it and testifying to it. Among these traditions one finds Redemptorist spirituality. From its beginnings, the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer has per‐
ceived and spread some particular aspects of its spiritual life, allowing itself to be guided and sustained by the testimony and the teachings of its founder, St. Alphonsus. The center of Redemptorist spirituality is Christ the Redeemer, as he pre‐
sents himself especially in the Mystery of the Incarnation, Passion and Res‐
urrection celebrated in the Eucharist: “Since the members are called to con‐
tinue the presence of Christ and his mission of redemption in the world, they choose the person of Christ as the center of their life, and strive day by day to enter ever more intimately into personal union with him” (Const. 23). The centrality of Christ the Redeemer impels Redemptorists to be living wit‐
nesses in continuing His mission of salvation in the world. Thus, the mission gives unity to their whole life. This unifying force is called “apostolic life, which comprises at one and the same time a life specially dedicated to God and life of missionary work” (Const. 1). This apostolic purpose imbues the entire life of the members: everything serves the proclamation of the Gospel, characterized by a strong missionary dynamism toward people and groups who are poor and more neglected within the Church and society (Const. 14). Redemptorists, therefore, are more present where the spiritual abandonment of the people is most serious. The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 69 The heart of this proclamation is abundant Redemption: the declaration of God’s merciful love which, in Christ, is offered to everyone. This love leads to conversion, to a radical decision for Christ, expressing itself in a walk of faith that leads to the fullness of Christian life, both personal and communal. Redemptorists live in community, an essential reality for their mission: to live in community and promote apostolic activity together with the community. The community is not only a place where they pray and live together, but is itself a continuous proclamation of the Gospel. Following the example of St. Alphonsus, their choice for the abandoned is realized by living, with apostolic zeal, in the midst of people and approaching them with simplicity of life and word. The Blessed Virgin Mary, going before us on the path of faith and em‐
bracing with her whole being God’s plan of salvation, is a model for every Re‐
demptorist. She has always collaborated and continues to collaborate with Redemption, perpetually helping, in Christ, God's people (Const. 32). A symbolic representation of Redemptorist spirituality can be seen in the Congregation’s coat of arms: the cross with the lance and the sponge placed on three mountains; to the sides of the cross, the abbreviations of the names of Jesus and Mary; above the cross, an eye with bright rays; and above that, the crown. Around the coat of arms one reads: “Copiosa apud Eum Redemp‐
tio” (Psalm 129: With Him is Plentiful Redemption). Maurizio Iannuario The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 70 Religious The word basically designates someone who is a follower of a religion. Amongst Catholics, however, from the sixth century onward, the term has been applied to people who by solemn and public profession of vows of poverty, chastity and obedience in a religious Order have become monks (nuns) or friars. Subsequently, the term has been used to refer to the members of religious Congregations such as our own, the Congregation of the Most Holy Re‐
deemer. Such Congregations are generally qualified by the adjectives, clerical or lay, a distinction which indicates whether their members are predomi‐
nantly either priests or laypeople. Religious Congregations date from the seventeenth century onwards. Origi‐
nally their members were not obliged to live the monastic lifestyle typical of religious Orders. St. Alphonsus regarded that as a very important character‐
istic for his new‐born Congregation, in as much as it gave his colleagues greater freedom from any “rigid monasticism” and provided them with greater flexibility in the conduct of their mission‐priestly ministry. In ordinary church language, the category of religious serves to identify sis‐
ters and coadjutor lay‐brothers, those, in other words, who are not able to proceed to ordination, either because they are women or because their voca‐
tion is not directed to Holy Orders. Within our own religious family one particularly important coadjutor brother is St. Gerard Majella who chose, aged 23, to seek to become a saint by spend‐
ing the rest of his life in the Congregation of Redemptorist Missioners. For further information on this subject see the under the headings: postu­
lants, Redemptorist students and novices. Aldo Savo The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 71 Responsibility Literally, the term responsibility indicates a response, the ability to respond to a word that is directed toward us. It is certainly not the same as to re‐
spond to a doorbell or telephone, because this word is an appeal addressed to our conscience that does not allow us to remain indifferent, but involves our whole being and demands a word­of­reply, an exact response. In fact, in the civil world we define a responsible person as one who takes charge of a task and, by means of his choices, is capable of accomplishing some project. In a theological sense the proposed appeal we call by the term calling or vo‐
cation. And the response makes one responsible in a double sense: as one who can respond and one who must respond. This distinction, even though subtle, is not useless, because it presents two huge problems: 1. The great drama of God and the human response: even though we are creatures, God did not create us as some kind of marionette or puppet with which to entertain himself, but wanting us always to be partners, as people effectively capable of entering into a loving dialogue with Him. For this end we have been given freedom, intelligence, con‐
science, feelings and will. So, in responding, we are really capable of entering into a relationship with Him. God’s plan, since creation, is to “walk by our side” in the Garden of Eden. But the human response too often denies this relationship. The whole history of salvation is a con‐
stant appeal by God who, in his faithfulness, cries out in every moment and in every way the same question: “Adam (= man), where are you?” And, like a person in love, anxiously awaits an answer from each one of us who are responsible, capable of responding. 2. The great human drama – sin: human beings, however, often misun‐
derstand freedom. From the possibility of being with God, we have created something else, that is, to be against God, away from Him, without Him. Thus is born that which is absurd, contrary to reason, sin. God is Life, Love, Happiness… far from Him we are condemned to death as the prodigal son who, having exhausted his means of suste‐
nance, becomes a slave and no longer has even the possibility of feed‐
ing himself (= to stay alive) except with the most impure of animals. From this last affirmation we can deduce that true responsibility must be understood as obedience: in fact, our freedom is never absolute or bound‐
less. The moment it is activated in a choice, it always becomes responsibility. In short, the moment we choose freely, we seek to respond to God’s call. The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 72 But how to characterize responsibility? It is the result of two consciences and two liberties that meet to choose one another in a dialogue of love (this can be divided, perhaps…). The synthesis of this encounter we find in the person of Jesus Christ. He is, on the one hand, the eternal Word of the Father, a radical call to the project of living in love; and, on the other hand, the response in to‐
tal obedience that realizes this project. But even more: Christ, in assuming our human flesh, liberates our freedom, because he humanizes the divine and divinizes the human, thus making it truly possible for us to respond in love to the love of God. Jesus becomes, therefore, the model to follow in developing our capacity for responsibility. The yes response to God is never a completely realized action. I do not respond to the love God once and for all. The response gives direc‐
tion (= fundamental option), but it must be continually confirmed and deep‐
ened in fidelity to the word spoken (= particular options). Jesus (= God saves) works in a virtuous circle, incessantly alternating words and works of salvation in the search for intimate dialogue with God. Prayer always redi‐
rects and radicalizes his choices more, up to the moment when, in Geth‐
semane, he understands fully that love implies the total sacrifice of self. If love is total gift, he must make a gift of his own life, to become Eucharist, bread broken for the salvation of many. To choose responsibly is inevitable because we become what we choose to be. We can choose "for" (God and others) and become responsible. We can choose "against" and we become inconsistent. But if we don't choose at all we become nothingness. Francesco Visciano The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 73 RYVM – Redemptorist Youth Vocational Ministry Throughout his life, Alphonsus de Liguori, the founder of the Redemptorists, devoted himself completely to proclaiming to the most neglected the won‐
derful joy of salvation, the chance of a new life, renewed by love. The Redemptorist charism, which incarnates the basic intuition of Alphon‐
sus’ and his first companions, is built on two principles: 1. following Jesus Christ; 2. preaching fullness of Redemption to the most abandoned. Who today could be more in need of hearing about and engaging together in a broad program of human and spiritual development than young peo‐
ple, who are so often abandoned or mistreated in and by our vast public educational systems? The ecclesial Ministry of Apostolate for Youth can be defined as the Christian community’s response to the needs of young people and, at the same time, “the sharing of that unique gift which is youth with the community at large.” Beginning from this broad Church background, the Redemptorist Congrega‐
tion, under the acronym RYVM, signifies a dynamic apostolate which brings young people to the joyful discovery that the Church is walking beside them, constantly offering and giving them an experience of community which de‐
clares that life itself only makes sense if it becomes a gift for others. RYVM has three basic aims: • To encourage each young person in full human and spiritual develop‐
ment; • To invite and encourage young people to live in today’s world as the disciples of Christ; • To spur young people on to a mature sharing in the Catholic life, mis‐
sion and work of the believing community. Consequent on these ideals, RYVM plans to promote a program which is crea‐
tive and participatory, flexible and adaptable, attractive and geared to young people’s growth. RYVM is characterized by a warm family spirit, which brings people together across the generations. RYVM is both multicultural and able to foster integration, and it seeks collaboration rooted in community. In this way it should become obvious that the essential task of RYVM is to bring about a personal encounter between young people and the overwhelm‐
ing love of God. RYVM seeks to establish how this encounter can become the source of a plan for life (or a “vocation”) for young people in today’s world. The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 74 RYVM has to pay particular attention to young people who are clearly on the fringes of society. RYVM intends to stand by them and give them a voice. On this foundation RYVM puts forward these practical proposals: - It will invite young people to share experience of life and community with the Redemptorist apostolic community; - It will undertake to adapt and share the Word of God with young peo‐
ple in a “familial” and creative way, so that young people can live the community experience as an encounter with God’s stunning and overwhelming love; - It will encourage personal meetings with young people and will try to make these times the source of vocational plans for living; - It will invite young people to take part in organized “sharing and vol‐
untary work”; - It will undertake the formation of young leaders, encouraging and enabling the exercise of leadership; - It will promote young peoples’ development, and be particularly con‐
cerned for those in critical situations. RYVM is not an ecclesial group or a movement. It is a human and spiritual formation program offered to the young people who live in our midst, to those we meet during our missions and apostolic work (e.g. in schools and employment), and who freely seek to come closer to our style of life. We can sum up what RYVM means for us in these sentences. MINISTRY means a journey which starts from human frailty and ends in a meeting with God; YOUTH means, broadly speaking, those aged between 14 and 23; VOCATIONAL means recognition of a personal call to lead a true Christian life; REDEMPTORIST means that the actual shaping of this journey in faith fol‐
lows the basic features of our spirituality which has, at its heart, the mes‐
sage: Christ freely gives redemption to everyone. Michael Kelleher – Alfonso V. Amarante The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 75 Redemptorist postulants and students When a young man, after initial orientation and vocational accompaniment, decides to share life with Redemptorist missionaries, he must undertake a journey of initial formation that will help him grow and mature and in his vo‐
cational journey. This journey is made up of various stages that articulate the gradual discovery and assimilation of the Redemptorist identity and charism. In the beginning there is the so‐called period of being a postulant (or postu‐
lancy): that stage of the vocational formation journey that takes place imme‐
diately before novitiate. The meaning of the term itself points to a pedagogic climate of searching: to postulate, to ask, to seek to enter. The purpose of this stage is to accompany a young man in his first experience of Redemptorist apostolic life. The postulancy must be an initiation into community life that makes it pos‐
sible for the postulant to know himself and to make himself known for better vocational discernment before entering the novitiate. The postulant, accom‐
panied by the formator, verifies the validity of his vocation. This verification supposes an investigation of the attitudes and qualities required by a Re‐
demptorist vocation, as well as the motivations that sustain such a decision. Concerning its duration, the Code of Canon Law limits itself to say that “no‐
body is admitted to the novitiate without a suitable preparation” (can. 597 §2). It is left to the particular right of every Congregation to specify the time limits and the content that candidates will need in different circumstances in order to be considered ready for admission to novitiate. For this reason, every Missionary Redemptorist reality, present in the various parts of the world, assures the necessary conditions for this objective to be realized. After novitiate, another important stage is that called the studendate or jun‐
iorate. It constitutes a new period of formation that extends from the first to the perpetual profession of vows. It is a time for deepening and maturing the initiation into the Redemptorist way of life experienced in novitiate. It is called the Studendate because it is a time for studying theology, in preparation for the reception of the Sacrament of Holy Orders and this is its characteristic and fundamental purpose. Thus one reads n. 87 of our Con‐
stitutions: “The members who aspire to the priesthood shall be trained with the object of forming them in the image of Christ the Eternal Priest. Let them learn to unite themselves with him, and endeavor to explore thoroughly the total mystery of Christ, by a scientific and systematic study of the sacred sciences and by a deeper knowledge of the human sciences. The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 76 They will likewise share fully in community life, and participate in an ap‐
propriate way in the missionary apostolate.” The Redemptorist student, in this period of formation, should strive to con‐
tinue growing and maturing in his commitment to Christ through the apos‐
tolic life of the Congregation. By means of personalized accompaniment he will be helped to coordinate study with life, apostolic experience with life in community, integrating everything in his consecration to Christ the Re‐
deemer. Maurizio Iannuario The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 77 The Last Things In the old catechisms, we learned the phrase “the Last Things” and then pro‐
ceeded to forget them. Perhaps we have removed them from our conscious‐
ness. In the catechism it was explained to us that the “Last Things” are: Death, Judgment, Hell and Heaven. The phrase “Last Things” is not always well understood. It points to the last realities, those at the end of history. Normally we live our lives experiencing more the next to last truths: our study, job, family life, cultural commitments, politics. All these things belong to the next to last realities. Last realities are those that become definitive. Death is a definitive reality because there is no appeal; there is no possibility of postponing or repeating it. In the same way judgment, hell and heaven are definitive, final realities. They are the “Last Things”. Substantially they corre‐
spond to that which is called Christian eschatology. (“Eschatology” means the same thing as “Last Things”; it is the Greek word instead of the Latin). At first sight this theme doesn't really seem to be a very beautiful approach to the dialogue of love that unites us to our God. Nevertheless these words contain the essential nucleus of Christian hope. But to understand their fun‐
damental meaning one must avoid an attitude of vain curiosity: for example, to know the signs that will announce the end of humanity, how many will be saved and how many will be damned, etc. The Bible doesn’t respond to these curiosities. It doesn’t present us with a chronicle of future events. There are still those today who would like to read the Book of Apocalypse (that is, the book of the final revelation) as if it were a scene filmed in advance of the last events at the end of time... For us these final events remain a mystery: they constitute the final meeting with God, and since God is a mystery, the meeting with Him remains wrapped in the veil of mystery. Just as we know many features (but not everything) of the face of God (the love, the mercy, the holiness) so too, about our future we can know some things; but above all we can give valid content to our hope concerning the future. This is the thing that must interest us most: an attitude of hope. It is not so important to know things, but rather to hope in the correct way. The Bible doesn't give us information about the future, but rather some exhortations for walking toward future salvation. The “Last Things” were the firm nucleus of the “strong” sermons, intended to move the heart and convert the souls of the faithful hardened in sin. The tra‐
The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 78 dition of Redemptorist preaching has honored this theme, arousing numer‐
ous and sensitive conversions. St. Alphonsus himself, a man of his time and not indifferent to the expressive vitality of the Baroque, directed his attention to the simple and illiterate people with the "visual" techniques of the day, which often took the place of reading: for example, to show the image of a damned person to the people after the sermon on hell; at the end of the sermon on death to take a skull in hand, not for a “fictitious judgment” but for a very realistic verification… (for example, “Before you were beautiful… and now?...”). St. Alphonsus, later on, was no longer content with the "strong sermons" and around 1768 printed a 28‐page text in which he asked Redemptorist preachers to speak, less of the “Last Things”, and more of love, the holy love that "inflames hearts". Salvatore Brugnano The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 79 Song The term song is used in all cultures, with particular characteristics. It con‐
sists, in modern musical culture, of melody and rhythm. These two compo‐
nents make it distinct from one culture to another. From the historical point of view, song is manifested first as a sacred ex‐
pression connected to cult (Egyptians, Mesopotamians, Hebrews, Greeks, Christians) and then, as a profane expression (folk song, lyrical, classical, jazz, pop, etc.). From the vocal and technical point of view – at least in western cultures – it is always based on diaphragmatic support, which represents its most natu‐
ral position. From the point of view of transmission, only lyrical and classical music use the head register. The other types use primarily the throat or chest registers. The distinctiveness of every sound, whether human or of musical instru‐
ments, is defined by tone, pitch or range and density or intensity. Song is possible for everyone. However, not everybody knows how to use the phonetic apparatus to sing correctly. The incapacity to sing on‐key is expressed as being off­key. Contrary to what many think, the off‐key singer can easily be taught to sing on‐key. Most of the time, the cause of this defect is not physiological, but psychological. To help people overcome the prob‐
lem of singing off‐key almost always entails helping them to believe more in themselves. Knowledge of music is not essential to singing well. Song is a spontaneous phenomenon like speaking. It can, however, be improved with study. One can sing as well knowing music as not. Today sacred song can also be considered liturgical because the II Vatican Council (Sacrosanctum Concilium) has, in practice, combined their roles. Pre‐
viously there was difference between liturgical music (used exclusively in a liturgical setting and most often with texts extrapolated from the liturgy) and sacred music, used outside liturgy for the most part. Relating these fundamental concepts to Redemptorist music, it can be said that – at least Alphonsian music and its direct derivatives – are rich in mel­
ody, sober in rhythm and never excessively striking or cheerfully popular. They are limited in range (rarely more than an octave) and in their dynamics or intensity. They lend themselves equally well to vocal quality that is either The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 80 gently lyrical or elegantly popular. They are appropriate for all vocal ranges. They are easy to sing. They lend themselves well to both solo and choral presentation. They are useful in either a liturgical context or simply as sa‐
cred music. They can be sung equally well a cappella or with instrumental accompaniment. Instrumental accompaniment is more preferable because it facilitates and supports the singing, and the polyphonic‐imitative potential‐
ity is more easily accomplished with an instrument that has many tonal ranges, such as an organ, a harmonium or a simple keyboard. Paolo Saturno The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 81 Spiritual Director In general we mean by this term one who offers spiritual assistance to do God’s Will. The term ‘Director’ brings to mind a journey and for this the spiritual Director is a person who accompanies us on the way of the Spirit, stimulates the growth of our faith on our journey and leads us to discover the will of God. Various terms are used to describe the role of Director such as: Spiritual Fa­
ther, Director, Master, one who accompanies… Many hold today that the spiri‐
tual guide is first of all a man of the Spirit. His role is joined to the action of the Holy Spirit in the person whom he is accompanying. The service of the spiritual guide is one of the most delicate ministries exist‐
ing in the Church. It is called the ‘art of arts’. This ministry of spiritual sup‐
port calls for precise personal qualities, a certain formation, maturity and relevant spiritual experience. In the Alphonsian view spiritual direction is a privileged help on the Chris‐
tian way forward. It is a necessary aid on the spiritual journey, an important means of following the way of perfection: a good guide leads the person to sanctity. Alphonsus advised the laity to avail of this direction and strongly recommended it to all religious. He is convinced that one cannot make pro‐
gress in the spiritual life and reach sanctity without the help of another. Therefore the primary task of the spiritual guide is to accompany souls from conversion to perfection and sanctity. The role of the spiritual guide is to make the way to sanctity and conformity with the Divine Will more secure for the believer. Sanctity, perfection and the development of the interior life to reach its fullness are the aims of spiritual direction for Alphonsus. Its purpose is growth in the love of Christ and in gradually attaining sanctity. The precepts, laws and counsels of the guide are the tangible means by which it is possible to discern the call of God and reach sanctity. Alphonsus regards the work of the spiritual guide as an important role. He even holds that he represents God Himself, ascertains the Divine Will and guarantees the way forward for the person and helps him to correct defects. According to Alphonsus the characteristics of the spiritual guide are: knowl‐
edge, experience, kindness and personal sanctity. The saint recommends to anyone seeking spiritual guidance to pray for a good Director. The RYVM considers a spiritual guide to be one who is capable of helping young people to realize the necessity of personal direction in order to develop The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 82 and carry out a Project of Life. The Redemptorist is called to develop the con‐
templative aspect of his life so as to be capable of enabling a young person to discover the richness of his interior life. This aspect presupposes that he has a good pair of eyes or the capacity to scrutinize the souls of the people in search of light on their vocation. Only guides of deep spirituality will be capable of helping, discerning and orientating people to a true vocational decision. To at‐
tain this profound spirituality one has to have a spirit of prayer, reflect on the Word of God, have an attitude of continual conversion and lead a virtuous life. This ministry of spiritual direction should be a most enlightening and appre‐
ciated task for Redemptorists. In our times when people are given to such continual self‐questioning the members of the Congregation are called to make themselves available for this service (cf. Statute 024). Pietro Sulkowski The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 83 Spiritual Formation Spiritual formation is above all a journey of continual assimilation to Christ in love rather than an ensemble of projects and various forms of assistance. St. Alphonsus gives a clear synthesis of this process when he says: ‘the height of sanctity and perfection is to love Jesus Christ …true perfection is to love God with all our heart’ (Practice of the love of Jesus Christ, in Ascetical Works, vol. 1, Rome 1933, chapter 1, p 1.) Therefore every authentic spiritual journey must of necessity be a ‘life in Christ’ and needs must lead to make him the ‘centre and sense of one’s exis‐
tence’. It is only in this way that one can live a full life, an existence totally transformed in charity. For the Redemptorist spiritual formation is a priority that he cannot do without because he knows that the more he strives to cling to Christ the more he will be called to continue His presence and His mission of redemp‐
tion in the world. Our Constitutions invite us to cultivate a spirit of contemplation in order to develop and strengthen our faith and make us more docile to the action of the Holy Spirit who works without ceasing to conform us to Christ (Consti­
tutions 23‐25). Naturally to nourish and sustain this process of adherence to and transfor‐
mation in Christ it is necessary to be refreshed at the main wellspring that is the Word of God. “Because Redemptorists are ministers of the revelation of Christ’s mystery among people they ought to remain in constant contact with this Word and do so by personal and communitarian meditation” (Con­
stitution 28). Other indispensable sources include, prayer, mental prayer, the liturgy, the Sacraments and especially the Eucharistic Celebration, the source and summit of the apostolic life of the Redemptorist. ‘Life in the Spirit’ is a primary need because it is here that the Redemptorist finds his proper identity and that profound serenity that makes him seek and hold on to the necessary times of prayer, silence, solitude and adoration …and all these spiritual ways that can nourish and sustain the missionary spirit, apostolic charity and the continual search for new methods of evan‐
gelizing the most abandoned of our time. Antonio Perillo The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 84 Vocation The term literally means to call, convoke, invite. Normally by this word we understand the response of a person to the call of God. In the Bible this term describes the profound relation between God and his people. Vocation means especially the call for life. It is a divine invitation to continue the work of creation. In the Old Testament vocation indicated that a man had been chosen by God for a task or mission. In the Gospels Jesus calls the disciples to follow him and to continue his mission. Today’s conception of vocation considers that all are called and each one re‐
sponds according to his capacity. Vocation is not an accomplished fact. Every authentic choice obliges the person each day to rediscover the motives of his choice and to renew them. From the theological point of view the word vocation may be attributed to every style of life. Each person is the object of the personal love of God who calls him or her to holiness. One has not only a vocation but is a vocation. On this basis the term ‘vocation’ is understood in different ways: • Vocation to life: is a universal vocation. Each person is called to grow and develop because every life is a vocation. • The Christian vocation: the call to live one’s own life in Christ and in the Church on a personal and community level. • The specific vocations: the particular call marked by a radical re‐
sponse to the gift of God (priestly or religious). The constituent elements of a vocation can be summed up in choice, mission, and assistance. When God calls there is a choice offered, expressed by a word addressed to man or woman. With this call God confides a mission. This mis‐
sion requires divine assistance that consists in God drawing near in the doubts and needs of the person as he or she goes forward on the way that must be followed as a result of his or her response. According to the mind of Alphonsus God calls every person to holiness and gives them a specific vocation and the means to carry it out. The Saint there‐
fore invites each one to discover the life project that God has for each person and to carry it out by listening to the will of God. He invites him also to thank God and to love his vocation. In the mind of Alphonsus vocation is a manifes‐
tation of the will of God in the life of every person and requires the gift of perseverance to carry it out. He reaffirms that a privileged position pertains to the religious vocation. The religious state is more in conformity with the The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 85 life of Jesus. One who feels called and does not respond to this vocation com‐
promises his own salvation. The RYVM reminds us that vocation is not something external to a person but rather something that reveals the profound basis of the mystery of his or her existence. Our vocation and our happiness consist in displaying love in all its fullness. The vocation of a person is defined by three points: God who calls to life, the community in which he was born and the person himself who is the means of carrying out the vocation confided to him by God. In its apostolate the RYVM seeks to enable youth to discover that the Chris‐
tian vocation means being a disciple of Jesus Christ. In its work with youth it desires to help them to understand through discernment the different forms of vocation that embody the Christian vocation. In this process when the ap‐
propriate time comes they pay special attention to the specific Redemptorist vocation. In the initials RYVM the ‘V’ of vocation means that this is a pastoral ministry trying to respond to the call and the search that begins at baptism. As a matter of fact a sign of the Redemptorist charism is helping to discover a vocation and incarnating the Gospel in a project for life. It is in this way that Redemptorists are called by God to carry out their mis‐
sionary work. Our Rule therefore shows the image of the true Redemptorist, his vocation, his formation, but also his concern to help young people to dis‐
cern their vocation. The Redemptorist is placed beside the young people not only to proclaim but also to listen. It must not be forgotten that the best way to promote vocations is by prayer, the example of one’s life and fraternal witness. It is necessary also to stress the fact of the common responsibility for the promotion of vocations. We could say that all members of the Con‐
gregation are vocational animators. Puerto Sulkowski The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 86 Youth A young person eligible for RYVM would be a person between 16 and 30 years of age. They are those who during their lives as Christians are happy in their faith and are involved in it in a coherent and creative way since their Christian Initiation and in the choice of a vocation in life. All young people are not equal. In order to evangelize them it is necessary to know and understand the society to which they belong since society condi‐
tions the life of young people as well as that of all others who belong to it. Young people in all ages are a faithful reflection of the values that shape so‐
ciety and we must not forget that adults have constructed this society by their choices. On the other hand to be young implies a form of life different from that of adults. The young person is characterized by a peculiar way of life, very different from the other stages of human development. In this spe‐
cial way he is seeking a personal and original identity. A young person’s life is always an awakening to all the dimensions on offer in the construction of his or her own future. Their hearts are open to life, to friendship and deep love, to emotions, to the need for preparation and quali‐
fication, to sensations, to their limited experiences and to the impressions made on them from what they hear be it real or unreal. At the same time they relatively easily embrace great causes and movements for social change even though this does not guarantee their involvement. Youth is idealistic by nature, open to the future and capable of taking risks. In this characteristic there is also hidden a certain openness to transcendence. Besides young people possess a different vital rhythm that identifies them as such in the midst of society. Their priorities, tastes, hours and activities are normal at that stage of their life. In general they are half way between the aesthetic and ethics and worried about their image and how others will accept them as they become inserted into the human community. They do not always find in the Church a space in which to live their faith in harmony with their being and outlook, even though there are not lacking in the Church young people who find in the God of Jesus Christ a call to be happy and responsible. A young person feels the need for Christ, the Re‐
deemer. Therefore if his greatest longing is for a full and happy life, he will find in Christ the answer to his highest aspirations. Young people have a very important role in the Church. They are good at re‐
newing the Christian community and calling for a discussion of these ele‐
ments that make its witness and mission less radical. They are a challenge, however, for Redemptorists and at the same time a matter of urgency. They The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 87 are a challenge in so far as they express the Gospel in a spontaneous way that reveals a new form of Christian life. They are a matter of urgency be‐
cause they are abandoned in the pastoral activity of many Christian commu‐
nities and they require space for reflection, togetherness in groups and prayer. The RYVM therefore provides adequate space for youth so that they may discover the sense of their own life and vocation. This reason makes it a priority for Redemptorists. Finally young people are not only eligible members of RYVM but they are also called to action, to be animators and missionaries. Therefore there are two ways of belonging to RYVM, one is as a simple member, the other as an active agent. Laureano Del Otero The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 88 “Youth” verses “Young Adult” Throughout the world, the terms “Youth” and “Young Adult” have different meanings in the area of ministry. In Europe, the definition of “Youth” has al‐
ways referred to men and women between the ages of 18‐35. In North America, the term “Youth” often applies to young people between the ages 14‐17, while those who are between the ages of 18‐30 are consid‐
ered “Young Adult”. In the United States, it is often understood that “Young Adult” can go up to 35 years of age. It seems that fewer “Young Adults” are as settled in their life choices and decisions at an early age. The classifications of “Youth” and “Young Adults” helps to identify both the sociological and the pastoral needs of these age groups, and how to best meet both the sociologi‐
cal and pastoral needs through ministry. Santo Arrigo The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 89 Zeal In normal language the word zeal indicates enthusiasm, fervor or ardor that urges one to make an effort for a certain purpose or to diffuse an ideal. In the Christian sense it indicates that drive and commitment that impels a person or group for the glory of God by preaching or the propagation and diffusion of good works and other things. In the Redemptorist context this term is particularly accented because dur‐
ing the XIX century when Saint Alphonsus was declared a Doctor of the Church he was given the title of ‘Most Zealous Doctor’, showing that what most characterized his life was his missionary zeal and the proclamation of the Good News. In his writings this term frequently occurs, as he wanted his missionaries to be properly prepared but especially zealous. At the death of Clement XIV in 1784 when consulted by Cardinal Castelli on the qualities that the new Bishop of Rome should possess he wrote: ‘It is neces‐
sary to pray to Jesus Christ that he gives us as Head of the Church one who is learned and gifted with human prudence, but more important one who has a spirit of zeal for the glory of God, one who is completely detached from any party and human respect. If unfortunately a Pope who has not solely the glory of God before his eyes should be chosen, the Lord will give him little assistance and things as they are at present will go from bad to worse’ (Letters, II, 307). Because of his particular emphasis on this he wanted the Redemptorist mis‐
sionary to devote all his energies intellectual as well as physical so that all men would hear the news of the plentiful redemption given to us by Christ. The Constitutions themselves urge the members to be on fire with apostolic zeal (Constitution 20) and ‘poverty of every kind, whether it be material, moral or spiritual, must challenge their apostolic zeal’ (General Statute 044). Francesco Ansalone The Redemptorist Family Lexicon of the RYVM 90 Zenone Kovalyk Zenone Kovalyk was born on August 18, 1903 in Ivatsciv Horiscnij (Terno‐
pil). He entered the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer and professed his religious vows on August 28, 1926. After finishing his philosophical and theological studies in Belgium, he was ordained a priest on August 9, 1932. From 1932 on he developed a missionary apostolate among the orthodox in Volynia. Then, sent to Lviv, he assumed the task of bursar for the community and the metropolitan of Lviv. Arrested by the Bolsheviks on December 20, 1940, he suffered torture and brutal interrogation. When, on June 29, 1941, the city of Lviv was taken by German troops and the Soviet prisons were opened, Blessed Zenone was found crucified on a corridor wall of Brihidchy prison. The Redemptorist Sacramentary