35 or system that advocates the creation, development and maintenance of social structures for the equitable distribution of power—related to anarchism—note of the proofreader]. John Paul II speaks very explicitly about it in Vita consecrata, while refl ecting on the Gospels’ passage describing the Transfi guration (see Mt 17:1). The Transfi guration is, on one hand, the foretelling of the tragedy of the Cross; and on the other hand—the glory of the Resurrection. The Pope writes: “It is the duty of the consecrated life to show that the Incarnate Son of God is the eschatological goal towards which all things tend, the splendor before which every other light pales, and the infi nite beauty which alone can fully satisfy the human heart. In the consecrated life, then, it is not only a matter of following Christ with one’s whole heart, of loving him ‘more than father or mother, more than son or daughter’ (cf. Mt 10:37) — for this is required of every disciple — but of living and expressing this by conforming one’s whole existence to Christ in an all-encompassing commitment which foreshadows the eschatological perfection, to the extent that this is possible in time and in accordance with the different charisms.”7 The Paschal Dimension of the Sequela Christi I left this dimension of following Christ for last not because it is the least important one, but because it seems to be the summation of all of the above-considered aspects, as well as a necessary context for the remaining dimensions. The paschal mystery is inscribed into the very essence of the religious consecration. We read in the Catechism: “In the Church, which is like the sacrament—the sign and instrument—of God’s own life, the consecrated life is seen as a special sign of the mystery of redemption. To follow and imitate Christ more nearly and to manifest more clearly his self-emptying is to be more deeply present to one’s contemporaries, in the heart of Christ. For those who are on this ‘narrower’ path encourage their brethren by their example, and bear striking witness «that the world cannot be transfi gured and offered to God without the spirit of the beatitudes.»”8 In the Rite of Religious Profession, the alternative formula of petition for the candidate’s admission to the novitiate is thus given in the text: “Drawn by God’s mercy, we have come here to learn your way of life. We ask you to teach us to follow Christ crucifi ed and to live in poverty, obedience and chastity. Teach us to persevere in prayer and penance, in the service of the Church and of humankind. 7 Ibid, 16. 8 CCC, 932.
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