Dear brothers and sisters:
Today we celebrate with deep joy the Claretian Vocations Day under the motto: “WALKERS OF HOPE: RESPONDING TO THE CALL OF GOD”. In this Jubilee time of 2025, the Church invites us especially to renew our hope, that virtue which springs from the Holy Spirit and which impels us to look to the future with confidence, openness and courage, as Pope Francis reminds us in his message this year.
Hope is more than an expectation: it is a gift, a path and a living presence of Christ, who walks beside us and accompanies us at every step. Today more than ever, our world needs voices that bear witness to this hope in the face of today’s challenges, particularly in the face of the uncertainty and discouragement that sometimes deeply affect our young people.
Inspired by the exhortation of our XXVI General Chapter, we renew today our commitment to be close to young people, to accompany them in their search and to encourage them to listen and respond generously to God’s loving and faithful call. As pilgrims, we are invited to walk with them, sharing the certainty that God has a plan full of promise for every life, for every heart that opens itself to Him.
May this celebration strengthen our hope and urge us to carry it to every corner of our communities. Let us celebrate with enthusiasm, knowing that Christ himself sustains our steps, fills our hearts and fills our lives with dreams of a better tomorrow.
Carlos Verga, CMF
