Greetings from Sri Lanka! Greetings from Poland! Greetings from India, Australia, Zimbabwe, Argentina… A few minutes before 2:00 PM Rome time, confreres from different time zones and continents began connecting. The online meeting organized by the General Government on Monday, March 23, was attended by over 50 Redemptorist confreres who will celebrate their jubilees of religious and priestly life in 2026.
The meeting was moderated by Father Paul Vinh, General Consultor, who this year celebrates the 25th anniversary of his priestly ordination. After a common prayer, he invited the participants to briefly introduce themselves and their work and the anniversary that they are celebrating.
“We turn to you who are celebrating 25, 50, 60, 70, 75, and 80 years of religious profession and priestly ordination,” Fr. Rogério Gomes greeted the jubilarians on behalf of the General Government. “As consecrated Redemptorists, and thanks to your missionary availability, as you are collaborators in the divine mission, which is revealed and made concretely known in the daily experience of human life, especially in history, relationships, and lived situations.”
In his message, Father General emphasized that fidelity to one’s vocation is expressed in daily life. He thanked the sick Jubilee members, “who from their beds offer a testimony of profound dedication to the Lord and continue, with their silent prayer, to support the mission of the Congregation and the apostolic work of their confreres.”
Father General also reminded the Jubilee recipients that in times of uncertainty, their witness forcefully proclaims the worthwhileness of following Christ the Redeemer and devoting one’s life to the Gospel. “Your persevering fidelity and your life of total dedication can become a true vocational call, capable of reawakening hearts and eliciting generous responses. Your journeying experience enlightens young people in their process of discernment,” he said.
After the General’s address, each member of the General Council briefly greeted the Jubilarians, thanking them for the witness of their lives and service to the Congregation, congratulating them, and wishing them perseverance and God’s blessing. The participants were asked to share their experiences and comment on the content of Father General’s message.
The voices of those who seized this opportunity resonated with gratitude to God and the Congregation, joy at the shared encounter, and gratitude for this initiative. At the end of the meeting, Father General imparted his blessing to everyone. Even after the meeting officially concluded, participants remained connected for a few minutes, joyfully bidding farewell and quickly sharing comments and good wishes.
Below we publish the full message from Father General.
Scala News
Message to Redemptorist Jubilarians Celebrating 25, 50, 60, 70, 75, and 80 Years of Profession and Priestly Ordination
- Dear confreres celebrating jubilees, It is a great joy for us, members of the General Council, to be with you on this occasion of greeting and gratitude. We address those who are celebrating 25, 50, 60, 70, 75, and 80 years of religious profession and priestly ordination
- This simple gathering is a way of expressing to you, from the depths of our hearts, our profound gratitude for all that you have lived and given within the Congregation, proclaiming the abundant redemption of Christ. The years you have lived are not merely a succession of dates, but an accumulation of life experiences over time, revealing how God has been writing His work in you with patience and faithfulness. The “yes” spoken along the way—especially amid trials and darkness—has revealed the fidelity of the Redeemer, who never abandons His own (cf. 2 Tim 2:13).
- As we contemplate this jubilee journey, we come to understand that vocation is, above all, a pilgrimage of faith: a non-linear process in which the Lord has purified the heart, broadened horizons, and taught us to love selflessly. Each one of you is a living memory of this love and of God’s passage through our missionary history. Your lives are true places of theological meaning, where the action of the Spirit in the Congregation can be contemplated: in the communities you have animated, in the missions you have sustained, in the poor whom you have served, and in those whose faith has been strengthened by your witness. Through your self-giving, abundant redemption has taken on a face, a voice, and closeness. As consecrated Redemptorists, and through your missionary availability, you are collaborators in the divine mission, which is revealed and made known concretely in daily human life—especially in history, in relationships, and in lived situations. Thank you for allowing God to make His dwelling in your lives (cf. Jn 14:23), and for becoming yourselves a home and refuge for those who need to be heard, encouraged, and consoled (cf. Lk 4:16–18; 2 Cor 1:3–4; Mt 25:35).
- Thus, this jubilee celebration is a kairos, a time of grace that invites us to reread our lives in the light of God, recognizing how the Lord has carried out His mission through the availability of each one, with both gifts and limitations. We may say that when the Lord calls us, He does not dwell on our frailties but trusts in our willingness and counts on it. Think of the times when you have been a sacrament of the Redeemer’s presence: sometimes in visible and fruitful ways, at other times in discretion and silence, yet always with an effectiveness known only to the Spirit.
- We live in a complex world, with its beauty and its suffering. In a context marked by speed, superficiality, fragmentation, and the logic of efficiency, your consecrated life reminds the entire Congregation that missionary fruitfulness is born of daily fidelity. It bears witness that the Gospel takes flesh in patience, perseverance, and the ability to remain steadfast, even when the fruits are not immediate (cf. Gal 6:9.
- At this moment, I also wish to remember those sick confreres who are celebrating their jubilees and who, from their sickbeds, offer a profound witness of self-giving to the Lord. Through their silent prayer, they continue to sustain the mission of the Congregation and the apostolic work of their confreres (cf. Col 1:24). Constitution 55 frees us from a narrow logic of efficiency and introduces us into the Paschal logic of communion and total self-giving. It reminds us that we are truly missionaries in every circumstance, even in fragility, suffering, and the twilight of life. Where the world sees uselessness, the Spirit reveals fruitfulness; where everything seems to end, God continues to work salvation. Thus, until the last breath, the missionary’s life becomes an offering, an intercession, and a silent proclamation of abundant redemption (cf. 2 Tim 4:7).
- For the new generations, you are witnesses—a living word. In a time of vocational uncertainty, your witness proclaims with strength that it is worthwhile to follow Christ the Redeemer and to spend one’s life for the Gospel. Your persevering fidelity and total self-giving can become a true vocational call, capable of awakening hearts and inspiring generous responses. Your journey enlightens young people in their process of discernment: over the years you have learned—and continue to learn—to listen to God’s voice amid the changes of history, to be challenged by the signs of the times, and to respond with creative boldness without losing your charismatic identity. Through your consecrated life, new generations can discover that vocation is a constant search, a journey with the Lord who sends us forth and confirms us in His mission each day.
- Dear jubilarians, may your lives continue to bear fruit: in prayer that sustains the Congregation, in accompaniment of those most in need, in shared wisdom, in fraternity lived with simplicity, and in the daily offering of yourselves. May this moment rekindle the gift within you (cf. 2 Tim 1:6) and allow you to experience the serene joy of those who recognize that their lives have been, and continue to be, filled with grace. Continue to spend your lives for the abundant redemption with enthusiasm!
- I take this opportunity to express my most cordial wishes for a holy and joyful Easter. May the celebration of the Paschal Mystery deeply renew your consecrated life and strengthen you in fidelity to the mission you have received. Enlightened by the light of the Risen Lord, may you continue to proclaim with joy God’s infinite love for humanity: a love that gave His Son for our salvation, raised Him by the power of the Spirit, and remains alive and active in our midst. May the Risen Lord fill your hearts with peace, hope, and renewed missionary zeal.
- We entrust your journey to Mary, Mother of Perpetual Help, the faithful woman who knew how to remain at the foot of the Cross and to welcome the newness of the Resurrection (cf. Jn 19:25). May our Redemptorist saints and blessed intercede for you, so that your lives may continue to be a sign of hope for the Church and for the world, and that you may celebrate many more jubilees.
Congratulations, and thank you for your Redemptorist life!
Fr. Rogério Gomes, C.Ss.R.
Superior General
Rome, March 23, 2026
