Community June 17
We also hold that we can find personal fulfillment in committing ourselves fully, in fraternal solidarity, to the community (Const. 7.1).
Imagine a tree, big and strong, rising majestically toward the sky, glorious in the sun, solid against the wind, laden with good fruit that is ripe and sweet. This tree is evidently well rooted in rich and fertile soil, watered by living water. It is the image found in Psalm 1:3 of the dynamic person who observes the Law of the Lord. It is the image found in the prophet Jeremiah (17:8) to describe the person who has put all confidence in God. This image makes clear that the fulfillment of the person, like that of the majestic tree, depends on where it is rooted. If it has been poorly planted, it will grow poorly. This image can be applied to the Crosier. He is full of human and religious potential. He wants to develop as a source of vital strength, as a generous contributor to the life of others, as the model of Christian maturity. As he grows in the Order first as a “postulant-shoot,” then as a “novice-plant,” and finally as a “young professed-sapling,” the Crosier is invited to put roots down in the only soil that promotes his growth, that is, in selflessness and total dedication to the needs of others, in imitation of the one who hung in self-denial from the Tree of Life.
The tooth is white, but there is blood underneath. (Mali)
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