The year dedicated to leadership in service of the mission begins in the Congregation

Message from Father General on the occasion of the Feast of Saint Clement Maria Hofbauer

Prot. N.: 0000   056/2026
Rome, March 15, 2026
Feast of St. Clement Mary Hofbauer

Missionaries of Hope in the Footsteps of the Redeemer
YEAR DEDICATED TO LEADERSHIP AT THE SERVICE OF THE MISSION
Leading, Encouraging, Caring and Reconciling:
Leadership as a Fraternal Service for the Mission of the Redeemer

Texts for Personal or Community Meditation: Wis 9:13–18; Ezek 34:1–16; Ps 23; Mk 10:42–45; Jn 10:1–18; Jn 13:1–15; Jn 17:1–26; Lk 10:25–37; Lk 15:11–32; Acts 15:6–28; Rom 12:5–10; 1 Pet 5:2–5; 1 Cor 1:10–13; Constitutions 91–144; General Statutes 086–0208; Pastoral Guide for Superiors; Communicanda 2/2019.

Dear Confreres and Formandi,

1. On this day as we celebrate the Feast of St. Clement Mary Hofbauer (1751–1820), we inaugurate the Year Dedicated to Leadership at the Service of the Mission. Certain aspects of his life illuminate this important service of animating Redemptorist apostolic life. Hofbauer was a missionary leader marked by evangelical courage, creative fidelity to the Redemptorist charism, and profound trust in God’s action in history. He lived in politically and ecclesiastically unstable contexts, often hostile to religious life, yet he guided the mission without relying on institutional securities. Instead, he placed persons at the centre and devoted his energies to the spiritual formation of lay people, young people, and intellectuals. His leadership was not imposed through the authority of office, but flowed from the power of his witness, the coherence of his life, and his pastoral closeness, qualities capable of generating communion and commitment. Even in the face of failures, expulsions, and misunderstandings, he demonstrated a remarkable capacity to begin anew, transforming crises into missionary opportunities. In this way, he embodied a servant-like, resilient, and prophetic leadership that encouraged the Congregation to cross cultural and historical boundaries with hope, boldness, and forward-looking vision.
2. As religious, in one way or another, we are always called to exercise leadership. This dimension flows above all from our capacity for relationship. Leadership is not necessarily tied to a formal office or function, but to the ability to build bonds, foster trust, and, with empathy, walk alongside others, guiding persons and communities toward a common goal. Whenever we encounter people, listen to them, encourage them, and help them discern, assume responsibility, discover the meaning of their lives, and live well–both personally and communally –we are exercising a form of leadership that is often quiet and unseen, yet profoundly transformative. Each confrere, reflecting on his own vocational and missionary journey, can recognize this deep dimension of leadership present in his life and in his service to others, especially the poorest and most abandoned. For this reason, it is essential to remain constantly vigilant that leadership never degenerates into manipulation or abuse of power, but always remains a form of service, care, and the promotion of the freedom and dignity of every person.
3. Today, in every sector of society, there is frequent talk of a crisis of leadership and a shortage of persons capable of guiding a group with maturity, helping it to become conscious of its mission and to give its best in its service. Yet when we look at history –especially in political and ecclesial contexts– we see that leadership crises often arise from a group’s loss of trust in its leaders. Some of those elected by the community to promote the common good have succumbed to corruption and begun to exercise power for personal gain. The corruption of power is profoundly destructive because it breaks the bond of trust that sustains all authentic authority. In turn, this leads to the loss of authority understood not as the power to impose upon others, but as the capacity to convene, to engage in dialogue, and to offer clear and compelling direction. When the power entrusted by the group is stripped of its dimension of service, what emerges is not true authority, but authoritarianism.
4. For us Redemptorists, leadership is not the exercise of power, but a dynamic and relational authority at the service of the mission. It is this dynamic that grants a person recognized authority so that, in the name of the community, he may carry out the responsibility entrusted to him with accountability and a spirit of service. The leader possesses a personal charism and is also the custodian of the institutional charism, exercising this responsibility with constant attentiveness to the persons who constitute the institution and the community. From this perspective, the one who leads is called to guide, encourage, care for, and reconcile. These qualities are likewise essential criteria for communal discernment in choosing those who will guide us.
5. To lead does not mean to impose oneself in an authoritarian manner, but to provide direction and initiate processes. It means rekindling the charismatic flame of the community in the light of the Gospel, the founding charism, the Constitutions, and the Statutes, stirring into flame the gift that each confrere has received (cf. 2 Tim 1:6). It entails offering clear guidance born of attentive listening in General and Provincial Chapters, Assemblies, Councils, and other Synodal bodies, in order to help discern the path forward, maintain focus on the mission and its values, and lead with responsibility, authority, and a spirit of service. It is leadership exercised with vision and fidelity to the charism, enabling the apostolic community to journey with purpose, in communion and unity. It also requires the ability to read the signs of the times and the discernment necessary to indicate the way forward, keeping our gaze fixed on the Redeemer and on the poorest. Without such guidance, the community risks becoming dispersed and losing the centrality of its mission.
6. To animate is to give soul (from the Latin anima); it is to rekindle the heart of the community, especially when it finds itself at the crossroads of history and mission. “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was speaking to us on the way?” (Lk 24:32). Such leadership becomes a source of hope and renewed strength in times of weariness, safeguarding the deepest meaning of consecration and mission. It awakens within the community the memory of redemption and a grateful awareness of the call received. To encourage also means gently challenging those who are discouraged, helping them rediscover the beauty of their vocation and engage in sincere discernment, embracing their own history with maturity. A leader truly encourages when he believes in people, supports creative processes of renewal in apostolic life, and fosters an atmosphere of trust in which missionary zeal can once again flourish and bear fruit.
7. To care is to show concrete attentiveness to persons, with their joys and, above all, their wounds. It requires deep and evangelical listening, sensitivity to human frailty, and a fraternal and Samaritan like presence in the daily life of the community (cf. Lk 10:33–37). It is not a matter of control or infantilization, but of promoting co-responsibility, helping others to mature and to walk in freedom and awareness. Like a shepherd, it also means knowing how to call a sheep back to the flock and to warn it when it is in danger, always with charity and truth (cf. Lk 15:4-7). To care is to recognize that mission passes through persons and that there can be no apostolic fruitfulness without human, spiritual, and communal care. It is in a heart that is cared for that vocation is strengthened and mission flourishes.
8. It is important to remember that leadership is a demanding service, one that must respond to a wide range of expectations within the community. Behind every act of governance stand real persons, each with his own life story, worldview, gifts, and abilities, but also with limitations, joys, sorrows, and wounds. For this reason, we must ask a fundamental question: who cares for the shepherd? The community, too, is called to care for those entrusted with the responsibility of animating and governing. It is essential that leaders be supported through fraternal closeness, constant prayer, sincere openness, and words of encouragement, especially when facing difficult decisions or moments of particular tension. To care for those who serve is itself a concrete way of strengthening communion and co-responsibility in the mission.
9. Conflict and relational breakdowns are part of the human condition; consecrated life is no exception. The path to overcoming them is reconciliation. To reconcile means to restore communion where it has been broken, rebuilding bonds wounded by conflict, misunderstanding, or estrangement. It entails facing conflicts without denial, addressing them with truth and charity, overcoming divisions, healing personal and institutional wounds, and restoring trust among confreres. It is about building bridges where walls once stood, fostering sincere dialogue and impartial listening among all involved, and transforming tensions into opportunities for communal growth. It is participation in the ministry of reconciliation entrusted to us by Christ (cf. 2 Cor 5:18), leading individuals and communities from conflict to communion, from resentment to forgiveness, from polarization to unity. In this context, it is also important that those entrusted with leadership cherish the Sacrament of Reconciliation as a privileged space for the healing of their own wounds. Shepherds, too, must care for themselves.
10. Every confrere participates, in some way, in the exercise of governance in the Congregation, as Constitution 92 reminds us: “All members and communities must, in their own way, play an active and responsible role in the government of the Congregation in its different parts, making use of the various instruments of government with which it is provided. To each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the sake of the common good (cf. 1 Cor. 12:7; cf. C. 72)”. Responsibility does not rest solely with those who hold positions of authority, but with every member of the community, by virtue of the co-responsibility that flows from our shared vocation and obedience. Obedience, understood in its deepest sense, is not merely the execution of orders, but an interior disposition of listening, discernment, and active collaboration for the common good. Without such an attitude, there can be no authentic authority and no true communion.
11. This Year, Dedicated to Leadership at the Service of the Mission includes a particularly significant moment: the process of discernment and election of new Major Superiors and their Councils. Elections in the Congregation are to be lived as a spiritual and ecclesial act, not merely an organizational procedure: a time of wisdom, sought and received (cf. Wis 9), of attentive listening to the Spirit, and of communal discernment for the greater good of the mission (cf. Acts 15). We are called to choose confreres who embody the logic of Jesus: not to dominate, but to serve (cf. Mk 10), according to the style of the Good Shepherd who knows his flock, calls them by name, leads them, and protects them, especially the most fragile (cf. Ezek 34; Ps 23; Jn 10). The decisive criterion, therefore, is not the strength of power, but the authority of service. This is expressed in the readiness to “wash feet” (cf. Jn 13), to promote unity and communion (cf. Jn 17; 1 Cor 1:10–13), and to foster a community in which every gift finds its place and each confrere is cared for with fraternal affection (cf. Rom 12). Within this horizon, the poorest and most abandoned must remain at the heart of our discernment. They are the concrete “place” where the authenticity of evangelical leadership is tested (cf. Lk 10; 15). To choose, therefore, is to assume co-responsibility in selecting servant shepherds, humble and vigilant, who care for the flock not out of self-interest, but generously and by the witness of their lives (cf. 1 Pet 5), guiding, encouraging, caring for, and reconciling the apostolic life of the Congregation.
12. I believe that the words of Pope Leo XIV to the General Chapter of the Legionaries of Christ can assist us in our discernment: “Authority in religious life is likewise at the service of animating the common life, centring it on Christ and directing it toward the fullness of life in Him, while avoiding every form of control that fails to respect the dignity and freedom of persons. Among the fundamental responsibilities of religious governance is also the promotion of fidelity to the charism. To this end, it is necessary to strengthen a style of governance characterized by mutual listening, co-responsibility, transparency, fraternal closeness, and communal discernment. Good governance, rather than concentrating everything within itself, fosters subsidiarity and the responsible participation of all members of the community.” (L’Osservatore Romano, Italian edition, Year CLXVI, no. 41 [50,147], Vatican City, February 19, 2026, p. 4.).
13. May this time of personal and communal discernment be lived with profound evangelical awareness. In the most recent elections, the General Council, with deep sorrow, was obliged to intervene in six electoral processes due to particularly delicate situations that wounded the Gospel, the Constitutions and Statutes, and the apostolic community itself. May the call of Jesus to his disciples always resound among us: “It shall not be so among you. Rather, whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be the servant of all” (Mk 10:43–44). To accompany this process of discernment, I recommend the reading of two letters from my predecessor, Bishop Michael Brehl, addressed to the Congregation on discernment in the electoral process within our Institute: Elections for Government in the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer and Witnesses of the Redeemer: Solidarity for Mission in a Wounded World (Rome, May 14, 2014, Feast of St. Matthias, Prot. No. 0000 078/2014; Rome, May 20, 2018, Prot. No. 0000 070/2018).
14. In this regard, as we prepare as a Congregation for this significant moment, I invite all to participate –individually or as a community– in the meeting with Fr. García Paredes on the 26^th of March at 2:00 p.m. (Rome time), on the theme: “Towards Visionary, Regenerative, and Synodal Leadership: Accomplices of the Spirit!”. It would be most fitting for our formandi, especially those in the novitiate and in theological formation, to participate as far as possible. From this stage onward, they are called to deepen their evangelical, synodal, and missionary understanding of the service of authority in the Congregation, since they will be the shepherds of tomorrow, imbued with this essential dimension of service.
15. Enclosed with this letter is a Prayer Resource to help us prepare adequately, both individually and as a community, for the elections, as well as for the elective Chapters and Assemblies. It is important that this significant moment in the life of the Congregation be lived and sustained in the light of the Gospel, with the invocation of the Holy Spirit and in a spirit of prayer, for it constitutes a true missionary service to the Congregation and to the People of God. It is recommended that at least one vigil or a day of retreat be organized for this purpose.
16. Dear Confreres and Formandi, in this Year, Dedicated to Leadership at the Service of the Mission, we wish to reaffirm that leadership among us can only be understood as fraternal service to the mission of the Redeemer. It is not the exercise of power imposed from above, but an evangelical authority that arises from communion, is strengthened through listening, and is expressed in generous self-giving. Those who are called to lead in the Congregation are, first and foremost, confreres among confreres, custodians of the charism, and servants of communal discernment. They are called to lead without dominating, to encourage with hope, to care with tenderness, and to reconcile with mercy. In this way, authority becomes concrete pastoral charity, promoting co-responsibility, respecting the dignity and freedom of each person, and safeguarding the centrality of Christ and of the poorest and most abandoned. Only in this way will our leadership be truly evangelical, synodal, and missionary, a faithful reflection of the heart of the Redeemer.
17. Let us entrust this Year, Dedicated to Leadership at the Service of the Mission to the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Perpetual Help, that she may teach us to lead with humility, to encourage with hope, to care with tenderness, and to reconcile with a merciful heart. May the courageous witness of our Saints –especially St. Clement, whose memory we celebrate– as well as that of the Redemptorist Martyrs and Blessed who gave their lives for the Gospel in creative fidelity to the charism, inspire us to live this time with a paschal spirit, with a missionary readiness, and a deep fraternal communion. Sustained by their example and intercession, may we learn to choose and to exercise authority as a true service to the Redeemer and to the poorest and most abandoned, so that our Congregation may continue to be a sign of hope and a faithful witness to the abundant redemption.

Fraternally,

Fr. Rogério Gomes, C.Ss.R
Superior General

Original: Spanish

Guiding, encouraging, caring, and reconciling: Leadership as fraternal service to the Redeemer’s mission – a proposal for community prayer during the Chapter or Elective Assembly.