The Passionists are a group of Catholics and other Christians who support and encourage each other to enter into deeper personal relationship with Jesus through our encounter with Him in his Life, Passion and Resurrection. Our starting point is the love of God: that God who, in Jesus, ‘emptied Himself to take on human form and being humbler yet became weak and mortal as we are, accepting death, even death on a cross.’ (cf Phil 2:6-11)
We recognise that the cross of Jesus is to be found wherever we meet suffering humanity and the suffering of God’s earth. We know that no one is excluded from God’s love but our special concern is for those whose lives are led in ‘sites of suffering’ - the poor, the marginalised, the oppressed, the powerless, the forgotten and the ecological suffering of the planet. We try to use our talents, resources and ministries in such a way that our lives reflect the light of the Gospel and contribute to the renewal of creation, society and church. We recognise in each other something that we sense in ourselves – a restlessness for love and for change that calls us into solidarity with those who are without power. This awareness of power and powerlessness, of talents and opportunities, of freely given gifts and consequent gratitude, leads us to action as well as to reflection. We are committed to help to relieve the suffering of our fellow human beings and of creation, recognising and accepting that we each have our own gifts, resources and ministries. Inspired by the spirituality of the Congregation of the Passion, we are involved in a journey to find other ‘Passionists’ in the church and in the world who share our passion to enter into deeper personal and collective relationship with Christ through our encounter with Jesus in His life, Passion and Resurrection; not just in prayer and meditation but through our solidarity with the poor, the marginalised, the forgotten and the suffering earth. We recognise that there are many Passionists at work in creation, society and the church. We recognise also that St Paul of the Cross gathered round him ‘companions’ with the aim of:
‘evangelising others by means of the Word of the Cross...the greatest and most overwhelming work of God’s love.’
The community of the Passion is a way of carrying on that work. To support us as we try to live out this vocation, we meet regularly to pray together, to share our experiences, our reflections on experience and to encourage one another.
