On the 19th of October, Anthony Ho Quoc Vu, CMF, and Lemuel Paul Tuvilla Ayuyang, CMF, made their perpetual profession in Granada (Spain). Likewise, Tiago Ramos, CMF, Vítor Barbosa, CMF, George Chidyamatondo, CMF, and Xavier Moyo, CMF, renewed their profession.
In the days leading up to their perpetual profession, Lemuel and Vu shared these words about the step they were about to take.
- What does perpetual profession mean to you?
Lemuel
In the most technical sense, it is the “final profession” for a religious. What does that mean? It means that there is no longer a need to renew the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience, because from this moment onward, they will be professed forever.
In a deeper sense, it is the moment when I consecrate my entire life to God as a religious. That is to say, I give a definitive response to God’s love and call to service, which I had already offered from the start of my vocational journey, offering my life to Him forever, the One who has offered and continues to offer His life to me.
Vu
Perpetual profession is a personal and public response in which we commit to live the evangelical counsels forever, participating in a special way in the life of holiness and the mission of the Church. These counsels are lived through the three vows: obedience, chastity, and poverty.
In obedience, we place our lives in God’s hands, obeying our superiors, who act in the name of the Church and God. Through chastity, we seek to live a fraternal love, reserving nothing of our hearts for ourselves. And through poverty, we adopt a simple lifestyle in solidarity with the poor, rejecting anything that is unnecessarily luxurious.
2. How did you know you wanted to make this commitment forever?
Lemuel
I believe it is a slow process of discernment and discovery. Discernment of what God is asking of me, of what God wants for me—a slow but necessary process to ensure that I am not seeking my own will but His, the One who has called me. It is also a journey made easier by the many Claretian brothers who accompanied me and showed me the beauty of offering one’s life to God forever. And it is also a discovery of God’s love, of how He has been present in my life, loving me and accompanying me in times of joy and sorrow, triumph and defeat. It is the discovery of this profound and undeserved love.
That is why, at a certain point, I realised that this love calls for reciprocity and definitiveness: to offer my life and love to Him, putting myself at the service of those He loves deeply—my brothers—not just for one or two years, but forever.
I thank God for calling me and for giving me the opportunity to dedicate my life to serving others, despite my fragility and sins. This is why I ask for your prayers, which we need so much. I ask that you take a moment of your prayer time to pray for us, so that we may be faithful servants of the Word, and also for vocations to the Church and the Claretian family.
Vu
I believe that there comes a time when one reaches a certain maturity and understands that God’s love is something unchanging. This gives you the confidence to give a definitive response. It is not about being able to do everything by yourself, but about trusting in God’s help and in the support of the community. True security lies in God’s plan, which is also reflected in the path of the congregation you have chosen to join.
I ask that you accompany me with your prayers. The missionary vocation is a precious gift, but one we carry in fragile earthen vessels. Now more than ever, we need hearts that will pray for us, so that we may hear clearly what God expects from His consecrated missionaries. Thank you very much.
