SERVE YOUR FELLOWS WITHOUT LIMIT OR RESERVE

VATICAN CITY, FEB 7, 2002 (VIS) - This morning, John Paul II received the Capuchin Sisters of Mother Rubatto who have been holding their General Chapter in Rome. The Pope recalled his joy in proclaiming the foundress of the order, Frances Rubatto, as blessed on October 10, 1993, and emphasized that her life had been sustained by two pillars: "ardent love for God, perceived as 'highest good,' and tireless service of her fellows, especially the most needy and abandoned."

"As her spiritual daughters, may you too know how to render yourselves poor in your individual lives and daily activities. ... In this way you will be the missionary sisters of the people, committed to announcing and witnessing the Gospel to all those you meet on your journey."
John Paul II highlighted the fact that "Mother Frances had an ardent and lively faith in Jesus of the Holy Sacrament and wished the Eucharist to be the heart of the religious family she founded;" and he invited the religious to "share the bread" of their lives in the various sectors of their service to others: from catechesis to school education; from assisting the sick to solidarity with the needy; from collaborating in parish pastoral care to the 'ad gentes' mission. ... In the face of modern-day challenges, revive the fundamental inspiration of Mother Frances, translating it for the new apostolic fields that open before you."

At the close of his address, the Holy Father recalled the members of the order who, in Alto Alegre, Brazil, on March 13 1901, "with the supreme sacrifice of their lives," bore witness "to faith in Christ and love for others." He affirmed that they had been animated by the same spirit that inspired Mother Frances to "serve our fellows without limit or reserve" thus opening "her heart and the life of the institute to the missionary dimension."

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