Jesus Caritas Lay Fraternity of Boston

(3)

Bearing witness to Jesus,
you will live in the midst of mankind
as leaven in the dough

This is my will and testament:

You may ask yourself why I have called this chapter my testament. It is because everything I have written up until now is inspired entirely by Brother Charles of Jesus. It is his thought and soul in all their purity, and as such, his testament that I have passed on to you. It is not mine.

What follows is mine. I alone am responsible. The glory belongs to God for whatever is good in what I have said, and for whatever is wrong only I am to blame.

I have put all my heart into this work, and I am passing it on to you just as it is, in a simple clumsy way, as a mother who wants to pass on message to her daughters.

I ask all those who may read these pages not to think that I am in the least way criticizing other forms of religious life, which for centuries have produced saints in the Church. This is just a different conception of religious life that is trying to answer the needs of our times. And that is why I am calling this my will and testament, submitting very humbly what may come of it to the authorities of the Church, of whom I wish to remain more than ever, a most loving and obedient daughter. Therefore I must ask all those who are drawn by the ideal of the fraternity to follow after me, and to continue faithfully along this path.

Little Sister,

Do you understand what it means for a religious to have been called to live poor among the poor, leading an everyday life I the midst of mankind, and to live it as "leaven in the dough"? Until now it seemed as if religious life could not be lived in this way, because it was too different from the traditional idea that people have. But because I have been entrusted with founding a new congregation which is to be the Fraternity, I who am the least important and the last of all would say to you:

You have only One Model: Jesus. Do not look for another.

Like Jesus during his life on earth, make yourself "all things to all people." An Arab in the midst of Arabs, a nomad among nomads, a worker among working people, but above all be human among your fellow men. Do not think that living among people will hinder your life of union with God. Do not set up barriers between the world and yourself; do not think that as a religious you have a special dignity to safeguard.

Immerse yourself deeply among people by sharing their life, by friendship and by love. Give yourself to them completely, like Jesus who came to serve and not to be served; you, too, become one with them. Then you will be like leaven which must lose itself in the dough to make it rise.

And I would go even farther and say: Before being religious, be human and Christian in all the strength and beauty of these terms. Christ was true God and true man, so do not be afraid of being human; for the more you are totally human, the more you be able to give glory to the Father, who is glorified in his creatures. Then your religious life will grow and develop on a solid, well-balanced and normal basis.

And if I am so sure of what I say, in spite of the fact that such a form of religious life may seem rather daring, it is only because this life is in conformity with the Gospel and the Tradition of the Church, as St. Paul wrote in his letter to the Corinthians:

Though I am not the slave of any man, I have made myself the slave of everyone so as to win as many as I could. I made myself a Jew, to win the Jews. I made myself a subject to the Law, to win those who are subjects to the Law. To those who have no Law, I was free of the Law myself, to win those who have no Law. For the weak I made myself weak. I made myself all things to all men in order to save all. I still do this, for the sake of the Gospel, to have a share in its blessings. (1 Cor 9:19-24). The reason why I insist on this so much is that Jesus, our one and only Model, God Incarnate, made himself one of us, making it his delight to dwell among the children of men. Jesus, although he was divine, exalted our human nature by taking on our humanity.

And yet, what an abyss between God and man! And if God took on a human form in spite of this abyss, did he not mean his humanity to serve as an example for us? Do we think that we could do better than out divine model, Jesus? Jesus, Son of Mary and foster son of the carpenter Joseph, Jesus at Bethlehem, Jesus the workman at Nazareth, Jesus going about Palestine, Jesus during his Passion, accepting out of love to die on a cross before a crowd that mocked him with jeers and insults.

You will have to know how to defend this high ideal. And above all, help those you live among to understand it, for you will sometimes be a sign of contradiction.

Help others to understand that we are all united in the love of the Lord as members of one body, and that this love can be expressed in many different ways and can allow for many different forms of religious life.

As a little sister of Jesus you must always subordinate the external rules of your religious life to living the Gospel. Your vocation will tell you to put charity above all rules, for it is the fundamental rule, the greatest commandment of Jesus.

The reason for keeping a minimum of enclosure and for observing silence is for you to keep closely united to Jesus. It is to make you grow in his love, and not to set you apart from his brothers, who are your brothers too. Often you will have to be ready to break the silence you have grown to love so as to receive someone who comes to knock at your door, no matter how inconvenient or unrewarding his visit may seem to you. In every person you welcome, you welcome Jesus.

You must not set yourself apart from other people, thinking that this is how a religious must live. You will imitate Jesus, the perfect example for all human beings. Accept the hospitality of your neighbors in all simplicity, share their meals and rejoice with them. Through your respectful and fraternal friendship the beauty and joy of a Christian life and a religious life will become familiar and alive.

And maybe some people will criticize you as they criticized Jesus for eating with known sinners and publicans, for becoming one with the masses, for letting yourself be bothered by children. You may be criticized for lacking religious dignity, but do not let that worry you.

No pupil is greater than his teacher; but every pupil when he has completed his training, will be like his teacher.
I have set an example for you so that you will do just what I have done for you. (Jn. 13:15)

You will not cultivate only the virtues of religious life -- poverty, chastity and obedience -- but will graft these onto the human virtues, which you must develop to the fullest for the honor and glory of Jesus Christ, the Son of God who became a man. Your religious virtues would be unnatural if they were not based on solid human virtues.

Try to develop the human qualities of daring, courage, and vigor, and do away with the human defects of timidity and fear.

In the same way, do your best to root out the feminine defects of being too sensitive and too imaginative. On the other hand, be careful not to destroy the feminine qualities of gentleness and dedication, of knowing how to give yourself in complete self-forgetfulness.

To be a little sister you must develop good common sense, sound judgment, prudence and fairness. Practicing these qualities will help you to avoid all false ideas concerning charity. A religious formation like this should help you to be responsible, to have a sense of duty, and to be conscientious in your work ñ requirements that are essential to everyday life.

Your desire to become little and to remain in the background, to be lowly and humble would be an illusion if it prevented you from being open minded and truly understanding, and thus giving glory to God. Be careful not to be mean and petty; do not be too easily scandalized over unimportant things. Above all avoid being stiff or formal and acting like a Pharisee. Never be narrow minded for this can ruin true love.

Do not try to avoid difficulties and do not be afraid of danger or temptations. They are a part of your vocation as way-maker.

On the other hand, do not be too passive, for you could deceive yourself into believing that you have surrendered yourself entirely to Providence simply because you are willing to do as someone else says without having to think for yourself. On the contrary you must develop your will to the maximum, and you will see that by uniting your will to the divine will of Jesus, the Master of the Impossible, you can go very far, counting on his all-powerfulness to make you strong and courageous.

With the boldness of a faith capable of moving mountains you will believe that united to Jesus you can overcome the most difficult obstacles. Then words such as impossible, worry, fear or danger will no longer have meaning for you.

One thing we owe completely to our Lord is never to be afraid of anything. (Br. Charles of Jesus)

And you will remind yourself constantly that what is folly in the eyes of men is very often wisdom in the eyes of God.

In moments of discouragement and weariness you must again exercise patience and perseverance, telling yourself over and over again: "When you start out to do something, do not come back until you have done it." (Br. Charles of Jesus to his sister)

You will never be asked to keep your eyes lowered in the name of religious reserve, but instead keep them wide open so as to see very clearly the suffering and misery of the world, as well as the beauty of life and of the entire universe. Do not go around looking serious and austere, and likewise do not be too easily offended or put off by little things. Instead, try to be loving and friendly, with a sense of humor and a spirit of cheerfulness, so that your joy may bear witness to the one who is the Author of all joys, the Source of all goodness. For the love of him you will manage to keep smiling in spite of difficulties and weariness which are a part of everyday life.

You will not be asked to give up your love for your family and friends. Rather you will be reminded that the fourth commandment is natural law as well as divine law, and no rule in religious life could replace or abolish it. Only your love for Jesus can be greater than the love you owe your parents.

You will also be told that pure and upright friendship is too beautiful to be diminished or destroyed. Rather your friendship with others must grow, by being constantly transformed and purified in the love of Christ, who by becoming man has shown us the perfect ideal of friendship. In his name you will be told to have a great desire for universal friendship. A friendship that goes out to every person in the world, simply so that you may show your love, and not because you expect something in return, even in the way of apostolic satisfaction.

Under the pretext of humility, you will not be asked to stop thinking and acting for yourself, to stifle your personality, or to deny or hide your talents. Humility is truth, and a talent is above all a gift from God that he has entrusted to you so that you can make it grow and bear fruit. You are not the author of your talents so why be boastful? Do not dishonor the Lord by slighting the gift he has given you or by burying your talents. Instead, do your best to make them bear fruit to the fullest, for the glory of the Lord Jesus who gave you these talents. Develop your sense of responsibility, then submit it totally but intelligently to religious obedience. Develop your personality to the fullest, but only for the service of Christ. God does not give the same vocation, the same grace or enlightenment to everyone. You are not asked to be like anyone else. So try to discern your personal orientation in order to make it grow within the framework of the vocation common to all the Little Sisters of Jesus.

You will often be told that your religious vocation and your vows are to consecrate you more completely to all the members of Christ's Mystical Body. They are not to separate you from your brothers and his, or to make you believe that you are someone exceptional. Under no pretext whatever must your religious life be an obstacle to fraternal love.

Your vow of obedience must in no way lessen your responsibility or exempt you from taking certain initiatives. Such an attitude is of greater merit sometimes than taking refuge in passive obedience. However, your vow of obedience will liberate you from yourself and from the ties of your selfishness and the desire to do your own will, and it will make you completely free for the service of the Lord.

Your vow of chastity must not cause you to turn in on yourself in a self-centered pursuit of personal perfection. It must not lead you to become cold and distant, but will help you to be all the more open so as to love each person in the world with an even greater love. For the more you love Jesus, your beloved Brother and Lord, the more you will love your brothers and sisters.

Your vow of poverty is never to limit the love you must have for everyone and it should mean privations only for you. Freed from all personal anxieties and worries, you will be ready to help all the people whom by the Lord's Providence you may meet.

If you want to give your life to the fullest, do as your one and only Model, Jesus in the Gospel -- Jesus who on earth wanted to be just a common laborer lost among others -- divine leaven in the human dough.

So then, if you want to follow this way, a way Jesus traced, you may not always be understood, and sometimes it will be difficult to keep on going.

It will be difficult because this way, more than others, is full of dangers and hardships. If it frightens or upsets you, maybe that is a sign that you are made for a more structured and regular life where you are less openly exposed to temptations or difficulties. This way can be dangerous because you will find no safeguards to protect you and to guarantee your security in all situations and circumstances. To replace such safeguards you will need sound training. Your intelligence must be enlightened, your judgment sound, and your heart and will strong. And above all, you will need boundless love.

And to keep you from going off the track, you will have as a reminder everything that this beautiful ideal of Brother Charles of Jesus can mean for you. Following him, your strongest protection will be your desire for the lowest place and all that your contemplative life will ask of you personally. Above all you will have the requirements of your vocation which is one of love.

And then, you will hold fast, your eyes fixed on your one and only Model Jesus -- Jesus the perfect example of the human and of the divine.

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	(3) Bearing witness to Jesus, you will live in the midst of mankind as leaven in the dough This is my will and testament: You may ask yourself why I have called this chapter my testament. It is because everything I have written up until now is inspired entirely by Brother Charles of Jesus. It is his thought and soul in all their purity, and as such, his testament that I have passed on to you. It is not mine. What follows is mine. I alone am responsible. The glory belongs to God for whatever is good in what I have said, and for whatever is wrong only I am to blame. I have put all my heart into this work, and I am passing it on to you just as it is, in a simple clumsy way, as a mother who wants to pass on message to her daughters. I ask all those who may read these pages not to think that I am in the least way criticizing other forms of religious life, which for centuries have produced saints in the Church. This is just a different conception of religious life that is trying to answer the needs of our times. And that is why I am calling this my will and testament, submitting very humbly what may come of it to the authorities of the Church, of whom I wish to remain more than ever, a most loving and obedient daughter. Therefore I must ask all those who are drawn by the ideal of the fraternity to follow after me, and to continue faithfully along this path. Little Sister, Do you understand what it means for a religious to have been called to live poor among the poor, leading an everyday life I the midst of mankind, and to live it as "leaven in the dough"? Until now it seemed as if religious life could not be lived in this way, because it was too different from the traditional idea that people have. But because I have been entrusted with founding a new congregation which is to be the Fraternity, I who am the least important and the last of all would say to you: You have only One Model: Jesus. Do not look for another. Like Jesus during his life on earth, make yourself "all things to all people." An Arab in the midst of Arabs, a nomad among nomads, a worker among working people, but above all be human among your fellow men. Do not think that living among people will hinder your life of union with God. Do not set up barriers between the world and yourself; do not think that as a religious you have a special dignity to safeguard. Immerse yourself deeply among people by sharing their life, by friendship and by love. Give yourself to them completely, like Jesus who came to serve and not to be served; you, too, become one with them. Then you will be like leaven which must lose itself in the dough to make it rise. And I would go even farther and say: Before being religious, be human and Christian in all the strength and beauty of these terms. Christ was true God and true man, so do not be afraid of being human; for the more you are totally human, the more you be able to give glory to the Father, who is glorified in his creatures. Then your religious life will grow and develop on a solid, well-balanced and normal basis. And if I am so sure of what I say, in spite of the fact that such a form of religious life may seem rather daring, it is only because this life is in conformity with the Gospel and the Tradition of the Church, as St. Paul wrote in his letter to the Corinthians: Though I am not the slave of any man, I have made myself the slave of everyone so as to win as many as I could. I made myself a Jew, to win the Jews. I made myself a subject to the Law, to win those who are subjects to the Law. To those who have no Law, I was free of the Law myself, to win those who have no Law. For the weak I made myself weak. I made myself all things to all men in order to save all. I still do this, for the sake of the Gospel, to have a share in its blessings. (1 Cor 9:19-24). The reason why I insist on this so much is that Jesus, our one and only Model, God Incarnate, made himself one of us, making it his delight to dwell among the children of men. Jesus, although he was divine, exalted our human nature by taking on our humanity. And yet, what an abyss between God and man! And if God took on a human form in spite of this abyss, did he not mean his humanity to serve as an example for us? Do we think that we could do better than out divine model, Jesus? Jesus, Son of Mary and foster son of the carpenter Joseph, Jesus at Bethlehem, Jesus the workman at Nazareth, Jesus going about Palestine, Jesus during his Passion, accepting out of love to die on a cross before a crowd that mocked him with jeers and insults. You will have to know how to defend this high ideal. And above all, help those you live among to understand it, for you will sometimes be a sign of contradiction. Help others to understand that we are all united in the love of the Lord as members of one body, and that this love can be expressed in many different ways and can allow for many different forms of religious life. As a little sister of Jesus you must always subordinate the external rules of your religious life to living the Gospel. Your vocation will tell you to put charity above all rules, for it is the fundamental rule, the greatest commandment of Jesus. The reason for keeping a minimum of enclosure and for observing silence is for you to keep closely united to Jesus. It is to make you grow in his love, and not to set you apart from his brothers, who are your brothers too. Often you will have to be ready to break the silence you have grown to love so as to receive someone who comes to knock at your door, no matter how inconvenient or unrewarding his visit may seem to you. In every person you welcome, you welcome Jesus. You must not set yourself apart from other people, thinking that this is how a religious must live. You will imitate Jesus, the perfect example for all human beings. Accept the hospitality of your neighbors in all simplicity, share their meals and rejoice with them. Through your respectful and fraternal friendship the beauty and joy of a Christian life and a religious life will become familiar and alive. And maybe some people will criticize you as they criticized Jesus for eating with known sinners and publicans, for becoming one with the masses, for letting yourself be bothered by children. You may be criticized for lacking religious dignity, but do not let that worry you. No pupil is greater than his teacher; but every pupil when he has completed his training, will be like his teacher. I have set an example for you so that you will do just what I have done for you. (Jn. 13:15) You will not cultivate only the virtues of religious life -- poverty, chastity and obedience -- but will graft these onto the human virtues, which you must develop to the fullest for the honor and glory of Jesus Christ, the Son of God who became a man. Your religious virtues would be unnatural if they were not based on solid human virtues. Try to develop the human qualities of daring, courage, and vigor, and do away with the human defects of timidity and fear. In the same way, do your best to root out the feminine defects of being too sensitive and too imaginative. On the other hand, be careful not to destroy the feminine qualities of gentleness and dedication, of knowing how to give yourself in complete self-forgetfulness. To be a little sister you must develop good common sense, sound judgment, prudence and fairness. Practicing these qualities will help you to avoid all false ideas concerning charity. A religious formation like this should help you to be responsible, to have a sense of duty, and to be conscientious in your work ñ requirements that are essential to everyday life. Your desire to become little and to remain in the background, to be lowly and humble would be an illusion if it prevented you from being open minded and truly understanding, and thus giving glory to God. Be careful not to be mean and petty; do not be too easily scandalized over unimportant things. Above all avoid being stiff or formal and acting like a Pharisee. Never be narrow minded for this can ruin true love. Do not try to avoid difficulties and do not be afraid of danger or temptations. They are a part of your vocation as way-maker. On the other hand, do not be too passive, for you could deceive yourself into believing that you have surrendered yourself entirely to Providence simply because you are willing to do as someone else says without having to think for yourself. On the contrary you must develop your will to the maximum, and you will see that by uniting your will to the divine will of Jesus, the Master of the Impossible, you can go very far, counting on his all-powerfulness to make you strong and courageous. With the boldness of a faith capable of moving mountains you will believe that united to Jesus you can overcome the most difficult obstacles. Then words such as impossible, worry, fear or danger will no longer have meaning for you. One thing we owe completely to our Lord is never to be afraid of anything. (Br. Charles of Jesus) And you will remind yourself constantly that what is folly in the eyes of men is very often wisdom in the eyes of God. In moments of discouragement and weariness you must again exercise patience and perseverance, telling yourself over and over again: "When you start out to do something, do not come back until you have done it." (Br. Charles of Jesus to his sister) You will never be asked to keep your eyes lowered in the name of religious reserve, but instead keep them wide open so as to see very clearly the suffering and misery of the world, as well as the beauty of life and of the entire universe. Do not go around looking serious and austere, and likewise do not be too easily offended or put off by little things. Instead, try to be loving and friendly, with a sense of humor and a spirit of cheerfulness, so that your joy may bear witness to the one who is the Author of all joys, the Source of all goodness. For the love of him you will manage to keep smiling in spite of difficulties and weariness which are a part of everyday life. You will not be asked to give up your love for your family and friends. Rather you will be reminded that the fourth commandment is natural law as well as divine law, and no rule in religious life could replace or abolish it. Only your love for Jesus can be greater than the love you owe your parents. You will also be told that pure and upright friendship is too beautiful to be diminished or destroyed. Rather your friendship with others must grow, by being constantly transformed and purified in the love of Christ, who by becoming man has shown us the perfect ideal of friendship. In his name you will be told to have a great desire for universal friendship. A friendship that goes out to every person in the world, simply so that you may show your love, and not because you expect something in return, even in the way of apostolic satisfaction. Under the pretext of humility, you will not be asked to stop thinking and acting for yourself, to stifle your personality, or to deny or hide your talents. Humility is truth, and a talent is above all a gift from God that he has entrusted to you so that you can make it grow and bear fruit. You are not the author of your talents so why be boastful? Do not dishonor the Lord by slighting the gift he has given you or by burying your talents. Instead, do your best to make them bear fruit to the fullest, for the glory of the Lord Jesus who gave you these talents. Develop your sense of responsibility, then submit it totally but intelligently to religious obedience. Develop your personality to the fullest, but only for the service of Christ. God does not give the same vocation, the same grace or enlightenment to everyone. You are not asked to be like anyone else. So try to discern your personal orientation in order to make it grow within the framework of the vocation common to all the Little Sisters of Jesus. You will often be told that your religious vocation and your vows are to consecrate you more completely to all the members of Christ's Mystical Body. They are not to separate you from your brothers and his, or to make you believe that you are someone exceptional. Under no pretext whatever must your religious life be an obstacle to fraternal love. Your vow of obedience must in no way lessen your responsibility or exempt you from taking certain initiatives. Such an attitude is of greater merit sometimes than taking refuge in passive obedience. However, your vow of obedience will liberate you from yourself and from the ties of your selfishness and the desire to do your own will, and it will make you completely free for the service of the Lord. Your vow of chastity must not cause you to turn in on yourself in a self-centered pursuit of personal perfection. It must not lead you to become cold and distant, but will help you to be all the more open so as to love each person in the world with an even greater love. For the more you love Jesus, your beloved Brother and Lord, the more you will love your brothers and sisters. Your vow of poverty is never to limit the love you must have for everyone and it should mean privations only for you. Freed from all personal anxieties and worries, you will be ready to help all the people whom by the Lord's Providence you may meet. If you want to give your life to the fullest, do as your one and only Model, Jesus in the Gospel -- Jesus who on earth wanted to be just a common laborer lost among others -- divine leaven in the human dough. So then, if you want to follow this way, a way Jesus traced, you may not always be understood, and sometimes it will be difficult to keep on going. It will be difficult because this way, more than others, is full of dangers and hardships. If it frightens or upsets you, maybe that is a sign that you are made for a more structured and regular life where you are less openly exposed to temptations or difficulties. This way can be dangerous because you will find no safeguards to protect you and to guarantee your security in all situations and circumstances. To replace such safeguards you will need sound training. Your intelligence must be enlightened, your judgment sound, and your heart and will strong. And above all, you will need boundless love. And to keep you from going off the track, you will have as a reminder everything that this beautiful ideal of Brother Charles of Jesus can mean for you. Following him, your strongest protection will be your desire for the lowest place and all that your contemplative life will ask of you personally. Above all you will have the requirements of your vocation which is one of love. And then, you will hold fast, your eyes fixed on your one and only Model Jesus -- Jesus the perfect example of the human and of the divine. home top continue >>>>