Holy Father,

In the name of the Union of Superiors General and in representation of the Superiors and Vicars General who accompany me today, I want to greet you fraternally and express our affection and our availability and commitment in the building of the Kingdom of God. Our Union is a mosaic of the diverse forms of religious life with which the Spirit enriches the Church. In fact, the Union of Superiors General is made up of clerics, clerical religious congregations, religious institutes of Brothers, societies of apostolic life, and congregations of diocesan right and other institutes of consecrated life.

The ministries that we carry out are many and they take place in very diverse areas and oftentimes under highly adverse circumstances. The majority of these activities are carried out in anonymity, humility and silence, with the only desire similar to the one expressed by John the Baptist before imminent presence of the Lord: "He must increase; I must decrease" (John 3: 30). We are convinced that without the Spirit of Jesus Christ which enlightens, encourages, and operates within our innermost being, any effort to make possible the Kingdom is useless: "Without me you can do nothing" (John 15: 5). This harmony, or rather, this identity with the "one thing needed" (Luke 10: 42), is the code from which we would hope that our intentions, assessments, and attitudes that we want to contribute as an alternative to the challenges presented by today's world to the Gospel spring forth. We want and we seek a model of consecrated life which, both in its structures and in each of its members, express a "Passion for Christ" and a "Passion for Humanity," and we want to be a visible sign of the face of the Father and to remake God's image so that it is recognized and respected in all persons, especially in the poor and in those who suffer.

Holy Father, we are deeply grateful for this meeting today. Please know that you can always count on our affection and on our prayers.

Brother Álvaro Rodríguez Echeverría, FSC
USG President

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