By Israel Martínez

When Pope Francis inaugurated the Year of Consecrated Life, he invited all the consecrated to deepen, dialogue, and share the gift of their vocation. In this context, the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life proposed that the Pontifical Athenaeums carry out an activity around this theme. A group of consecrated men and women in Rome, continuing the reflection journey developed within Regnum Christi, proposed to the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum to organize an academic day to reflect on the gift of secular consecration in the Church.

The congress will take place on November 14, 2015, at the Athenaeum’s facilities. The participation of about fifteen ecclesial entities with lay consecrated members is expected, eight of which will contribute a representative as a speaker. The congress will also be open to those interested in deepening the topic.

Two meetings have been held, one in April and the other in September, where the theme of the congress was discussed and ideas exchanged. Participants included groups such as the Focolare Movement, the Marian Fraternity of Reconciliation, the Villaregia Missionary Community, the Emmanuel Community, the I.D.E.N.T.E.S. Missionaries, the Memores Domini, Canción Nueva, the Apostles of Inner Life, and the Schoenstatt Apostolic Movement. These sessions concluded with a Eucharistic Celebration to entrust the work to God.

The congress will feature alternating lectures and round tables addressing the history, identity, and mission of secular consecration. The main speakers will be Mons. José Rodríguez Carballo, OFM, Secretary of the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life; Fr. Gianfranco Ghirlanda SJ from the Pontifical Gregorian University; Prof. Emilio Martínez Albesa from the Pontifical Athenaeum Regina Apostolorum and the Regnum Christi Movement; Dr. Andrea Velarde from the Marian Fraternity of Reconciliation; Dr. Florence Gillet from the Focolare Movement; two round tables, one with Enrique Elias Dupuy (Sodalitium Christianae Vitae), Mary Patt Pirie (from the Regnum Christi Movement), and Carine Dequenne (from the Emmanuel Community); and another with Cristiane Aparecida Monteiro (from Canção Nova), Verónica Fernández (from the Regnum Christi Movement), and Mariella Carlotti (from Memores Domini). The participation of Cardinal Stanisław Rylko, President of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, is also expected, who will preside over the closing Mass.

More information and online registration can be found on the website http://www.missionkits.org/consacrazione/

You can download here a brochure with information about the congress. Additionally, there is an Italian video promoting the event.