Lagos, 02 February, 2024 / 9:00 pm (ACI Africa).
The Catholic Archbishop of Lagos in Nigeria has urged women and men Religious to found their lives and ministry on the virtue of love, in compliance with the teaching and life of St. Paul, St. Therese of Lisieux, and St. Francis of Assisi, among others.
In his statement for the annual World Day for Consecrated Life marked on February 2 since 1997, on the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, Archbishop Alfred Adewale Martins encouraged the Consecrated to nurture and guide the youth to embrace Religious Life.
“As you walk the path of consecrated life, the words of St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:1 must echo with profound relevance. Let love be the guiding virtue in all we do: correcting others with fraternal charity, welcoming with expected hospitality, kindliness in discussion about others, being considerate towards one another,” Archbishop Adewale says.
He adds, “As St. Therese of Lisieux would say: Miss no single opportunity of making some small sacrifice, here by a smiling look, there by a kindly word; always doing the smallest right and doing it all for love."
Love and being good examples “become the seeds that will blossom into a vibrant future for consecrated life on our continent,” the Nigerian Catholic Archbishop further says, adding that the Consecrated are “entrusted with the responsibility of nurturing and guiding the younger ones drawn to this sacred vocation.”