Pope Leo XIV has called consecrated men and women to lead the way in forming communities where every person—especially the most vulnerable—is honored, protected, and heard. His message was delivered Monday to participants of “Building Communities that Safeguard Dignity,” a conference organized by the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, according to Vatican News.
The Pope reminded those gathered that human dignity is not something earned or achieved but something bestowed by God Himself. As he stated, human dignity “is born from the loving gaze with which God has willed each of us, one by one, and with which He continues to will us,” according to Vatican News. Even in suffering, he continued, “In every human face—even when marked by fatigue or pain—there is the reflection of the Creator’s goodness, a light that no darkness can extinguish.”
Pope Leo encouraged religious communities to be places where the burdens and hopes of others are shared with tenderness. Authentic Christian care, he emphasized, begins with presence and listening. “Care and protection for our neighbor also arise from a gaze able to recognize and a heart able to listen,” he said, according to Vatican News. True freedom, he added, is discovered precisely when we take responsibility for one another, noting it is “the kind that does not dominate but serves, does not possess but accompanies.”
For religious men and women, the vows of chastity, poverty, and obedience offer a unique foundation for this mission. Their “total self-gift to Christ,” the Pope said, can shape them into people capable of loving others with purity of heart and authentic freedom.
He also called on participants to strengthen efforts to prevent harm and abuse in all Church settings. Pope Leo urged them “to carry this commitment forward so that communities may increasingly become examples of trust and dialogue, where each person is respected, heard, and valued,” according to Vatican News. In such places, he said, justice and mercy come together, and “wounds become openings of grace.”
Concluding his message, the Pope expressed firm support for the ongoing work of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors and encouraged all consecrated religious to cooperate in fostering what he called a genuine “culture of safeguarding,” according to Vatican News.
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