Dear Brothers and Sisters of the Congregation of Saint John,
Dear Friends,

It's with great joy that I welcome you, so many pilgrims who have come to Rome on the occasion of the Year of the Family, and also following the Synod of Bishops on consecrated life. I thank dear Father Marie-Dominique Philippe for having led you to me.
Religious and laity, your communal presence shows indeed that consecrated life and family and conjugal life are complementary ways in the Church of realizing the condition of disciples of Christ. Families and consecrated persons, on this pilgrimage you will be able to meditate upon the call of Saint John: "By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren" (1 Jn. 3:16).

These words are precious, for they give an essential key for the very life of the family. To defend its dignity and grandeur is above all to show generosity and the disinterested gift of self, so that between the beings united by the bonds of marriage the fruitful communion of love may mature. Always be witnesses of this immeasurable gift of God! In the very simplicity and humility of daily life may your homes reflect divine goodness: in the mutual respect of the spouses; in generously accepting the life of children; in all the devotion required by education; in the lasting bonds preserved with elderly parents or brothers or sisters who have perhaps taken other paths; in opening your homes to men and women in your area who have been hurt and who cannot be left along the wayside. Yes, in the intimacy of your family life and in the ecclesial and social community where you live, day after day be visible signs of the love with which God loves us!

The patient construction of a family constitutes a witness that the world expects from the disciples of Christ, and best contributes to the defense of the institution of the family. We ask that families benefit from an active solidarity that helps them to blossom and to carry out their duties. At the same time, we count upon families themselves, for they are on the front lines in spreading the civilization of love.

In this Year of the Family, I have insisted upon recalling often that the family is the Ecclesiola, the Domestic Church, as the Second Vatican Council has emphasized (cf. Lumen Gentium, 11). Actually, the vitality of the communities which constitute the Church depends to a great extent upon the faith and the charity lived in Christian families. The Church's spiritual and missionary elan depends on this, if only through the role of the parents in the religious awakening and the harmonious development of children and youth. And it seems to me that your pilgrimage also illustrates, with eloquence, the primordial importance of the family for priestly and religious vocations.

Dear friends, I am happy to have this occasion to amicably encourage the entire "family" of the Congregation of Saint John. And I thank you all for the faithful attention that you give to my ministry as Successor of Peter. One and all, be servants of the Gospel, witnesses of the wonders of God, builders of ecclesial community in fraternal unity of the particular Churches where you live! Religious and families, go forward in the pilgrimage of faith, guided by the Mother of the Savior, in joy and hope, gaudium et spes! May the Lord bless you!

Monday, October 31, 1994