Pope Leo recognized how members of the Neocatechumenal Way have \u201crekindled the fire of the Gospel\u201d and accompany many people in \u201crediscovering the beauty of knowing Jesus.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pope Leo XIV received the leaders of the Neocatechumenal Way \u2014 including Kiko Arg\u00fcello, who along with the late Carmen Hern\u00e1ndez founded the apostolate \u2014 and members of the international team, Mar\u00eda Ascensi\u00f3n Romero and Father Mario Pezzi, in an audience at the Vatican on Monday.<\/p>\n
In his Jan. 19 address, the Holy Father highlighted the missionary zeal of the families that make up this ecclesial movement of Catholic initiation, founded in Madrid, Spain, in 1964, which, as the pontiff recalled, invites people \u201cto rediscover the meaning of baptism.\u201d<\/p>\n
He also praised their charism, as well as their evangelization and catechetical work, which, according to the Holy Father, represents \u201ca valuable contribution to the life of the Church.\u201d<\/p>\n
In this context, he emphasized that the members of the Neocatechumenal Way have \u201crekindled the fire of the Gospel wherever it seemed to be dying out\u201d and have accompanied many people and Christian communities in \u201crediscovering the beauty of knowing Jesus.\u201d<\/p>\n
He also emphasized that living the experience of the Neocatechumenal Way and carrying out its mission requires \u201cinner vigilance and a wise critical capacity\u201d to discern certain risks that are always lurking in spiritual and ecclesial life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pope Leo XIV stressed that charisms \u201cmust always be placed at the service of the kingdom of God and the one Church of Christ.\u201d In this regard, he noted that \u201cno gift of God is more important than others \u2014 except for charity, which perfects and harmonizes all of them \u2014 and no ministry should become a reason to feel superior to our brothers and sisters or to exclude those who think differently.\u201d<\/p>\n
He therefore invited them to be witnesses of unity and reminded them: \u201cYour mission is unique, but not exclusive; your charism is specific, but it bears fruit in communion with the other gifts present in the life of the Church; you do much good, but its purpose is to enable people to know Christ, always respecting each person\u2019s life journey and conscience.\u201d <\/p>\n
The Holy Father also exhorted them to live their spirituality \u201cwithout ever separating themselves from the rest of the ecclesial body, as a living part of the ordinary pastoral care of parishes and their various realities and in communion with your brothers and sisters and in particular with priests and bishops.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cContinue forward with joy and humility, without closed-mindedness, as builders and witnesses of communion,\u201d he counseled them.<\/p>\n
At the end of his address, the Holy Father added that catechesis and various forms of pastoral action must always be free from constraint, rigidity, and moralism,\u201d so that they do not give rise to \u201cfeelings of guilt and fear instead of inner liberation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Finally, Pope Leo thanked them for their commitment, witness, and service to the Church in the world.<\/p>\n
This story\u00a0was first published\u00a0by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.<\/p>\n