By Sr Lini Sheeja, MSC –
Jesus, our Master broke the silence. Today it is our call to break the silence as consecrated men and women, who are specially called and blessed. Each one of us, on the day of our consecration said, ‘Take my life, let it be consecrated’. We have consecrated our lives to be prophets by following in the footsteps of our Master who was a prophet, who broke the silence in the face of injustice. He was never afraid for his life. He challenged the authorities, to the point of getting himself crucified. I always used to reflect on how Jesus challenged the authorities, the Pharisees, teachers of the law and the scribes. He never challenged the powerless and the weak, rather had mercy and compassion for them and reached out to them in their need. He confronted the authorities, understanding their power in society. He knew that they had human authority and power but never withheld himself from confronting them. He knew who he was and the power of his heavenly Father.
Jesus Confronts…..
Consecrated life is a blessing and we are called to make it a grace by breaking the silence. ‘Break to make is the Master’s call today’. We are blessed more than we deserve. We are called to be servants and leaders as our master has set the way before us. Be a servant where you can be a servant and be a leader where you can be a leader. To be courageous men and women demands a lot from us. To stand for the truth courageously is the prophetic call addressed to all us. God bestows his blessings without discrimination. Our vocation is in the Master’s hands. He is the owner of our vocation and we are only guardians of it. So, there is no need to fear when we stand up for truth courageously, because His right hand is strongly upon us. Religious life provides much comfort and at times some of us tend to please the authorities for our survival. If Jesus had pleased the authorities he would not have been crucified. And, that’s why we have the Good Friday, the day on which Jesus our Redeemer was hung. Now, it is our time to reflect on what we ought to do as consecrated men and women.
Braveness – A Gift of the Holy Spirit
There is great amount of injustice that prevails within and outside the curtain. How many of us have the courage to raise our voices at the face of it? If we are afraid in our religious life, our consecration loses its meaning. What does it mean to break the silence? It is the moment when you begin to talk. It is the precious moment where you raise your voice despite knowing that there is a threat to your comforts. First and foremost, break out of your comfort zones, come out on to the streets and open your eyes to reality. I came across a woman who was sold by her husband to prostitution. She was beaten and tortured by the owners and customers and many things were done to her against her will. How many of us can break the silence, when many women in our society are suppressed, to speak for them by breaking our silence?
Consecrated Life – A Call to be a Bold Servant
We the Consecrated men/women are called to be bold. For, our Saviour was bold. He was bold when He stood for truth. He was bold when He cleansed the Church. He was bold when He called the Pharisees and Sadducees white washed tombs. He was bold when He allowed the sinful woman to wash His feet with her tears. He was bold when He ate with sinners and outcasts. He was bold when He touched the lepers and healed them. He was bold when He asked the disciples to gather the lost after feeding 5000. He was bold when He went in search of the one leaving 99. He was bold when He preached publicly courageously. Jesus was bold when He said to the paralyzed man, “your sins are forgiven” (Mk 2:5). He was bold when he said to the woman caught in adultery,” neither do I judge you, go and sin no more” (Jn 8:11).
He was bold when He forgave sinners. He was bold when He carried the Cross and walked patiently to Calvary. He was bold when He forgave the thief on the Cross. He was bold when He gave up His life on the cross to gather the scattered children of God. And this is the call of each consecrated person and we gaze upon our God who spoke boldly, walked boldly, acted boldly, lived boldly and died boldly.
Break the Silence – A Unique Call
Domestic violence is experienced by a number of women and children, who feel it in the form of physical, emotional, psychological, sexual and economical threats. A huge number of them are homeless and flies take shelter in them. A large number of children are sent for begging as their families face starvation. The numbers of suicides keep increasing in our society as they lack support and guidance in their lives. So many innocent brethren languish behind the bars and suffer for no fault of theirs. There are so many areas where silence has to be broken.
Why are we so indifferent, cherishing our security within the four walls of our convents and institutions? If we are silent and blind to these, how are we going to answer to the Lord on the day of our judgment? We are proud to say that we stand for our faith. How many of us can say today that we stand by truth and for truth. Jesus said, “Be perfect as our Heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt 5:48). He also said, “I am the truth and the life” (Jn 4:16). Our heavenly Father is the truth and Jesus our master is the truth. If you have the truth, you have life. Never be afraid to break the silence; rather be glad that you are privileged to break the silence! Take this unique call as a blessing.
Sr Lini Sheeja MSC belongs to the Congregation of Missionary Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. She worked as the team member of Child-line, BOSCO Bangalore. She served as the Chief-Editor for Prison Voice, a national monthly magazine and she authored a book named, Prison Ministry: The Dreamers’ Mission in which she invites all dreamers to join hands together to do wonders for broken humanity.