Father Alvaro Corcuera, LC, the General Director of the Legion of Christ and Regnum Christi, wrote the following Mother´s Day letter offering some words of encouragement and guidance for all women who are mothers.

Download a printable version of the letter in pdf format here.

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Mother’s Day, May 10, 2009

To the members of the Regnum Christi Women’s Sections:

My very dear friends in Christ:

 With deep joy I send you my warm greetings on this fifth Sunday of Easter, which in most countries coincides with the celebration of Mother’s Day. I pray that God continues to bathe your lives and homes in the joy of Christ’s Resurrection.

 My reason for writing is to offer you a simple and sincere tribute of gratitude for the fruitful, silent and eloquent witness you offer us daily with your conscientious dedication to the care of your families. In this sense, the vision that God calls us to have of woman and her mission in society is truly beautiful. In late March, the Holy Father traveled to Africa; in his visit to Angola, he was able to meet with Catholic movements for the advancement of women. The Pope told the participants in that meeting that “the presence of a mother within the family is so important for the stability and growth of this fundamental cell of society, that it ought to be recognized, commended, and supported in every possible way” (cf. Benedict XVI, Address on March 22, 2009).

 Therefore, I want to invite you to continue to discover each day the beauty of the innate capacity that is yours, especially as mothers, to transform the world around you with the power of love. How it helps us to remember our own mother and gratefully recognize all that we owe her! You play a fundamental role in your family. Being a mother is a unique and special calling that for many of you is your principal vocation and mission. What beauty there is in the woman who is unafraid to dedicate her best times to her children, to devote a substantial part of her life to her family, strengthening and supporting her husband. This is the woman Scripture speaks of when it says: “A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than pearls. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value” (Prov. 31:10-11).

 In the same vein, the Regnum Christi Handbook for Members encourages you to remember that, “The women of the Movement, spouses and mothers, have a unique mission in the care of the family. With their close and affectionate presence and their firm and prudent action, they are their children’s primary formators, teachers and collaborators, helping them build a future grounded on faith and love. Furthermore, they have the very important responsibility in the family of guarding its living traditions and passing them on; and also in the home, at school and in social life, that of spreading faith and trust in God, love for the sources of life, esteem for family values and compassion for our neighbor, especially the most needy. (n. 290).

 A special element of this number refers to the education of your children in faith and love for God. In a very beautiful text, John Paul II said: “Thank you, woman and mother! You become the womb of human life with the joy and birth-pangs of a unique experience, which makes of you God´s own smile upon the newborn, guide of his first steps, support as he grows, and a point of reference in his later journey through life,” (cf John Paul II, Letter to Women, n. 2).

 In your role as educators in your family, I believe that your first duty must be to gather your spirit in prayer to discern where God’s will is pointing in your own life and circumstances. In

	"Christ is very close to you as you live as wives, mothers and women who seek to make visible in society the feminine genius of which John Paul II spoke."

this mission, you will need to cultivate daily the virtue of patience, —understood as unshakeable trust in the frequently mysterious and slow pace of God’s Providence, while making the most of every instant to sow seeds of eternity in souls, both your children’s your husband’s. Children will learn from their parents, and especially from their mother, how to live the typically Christian virtues such as joy, charity in speech, modesty, the spirit of service, etc. In fact, in many cases it will be the mother who guides the family’s prayer life and teaches her children to pray and discover God’s presence in all things. It is she who teaches them the path of holy abandonment in God’s hands, so that her children’s plans will be God’s plans. The mother is the source of peace in the home, for her presence and words always help us to see the heavens beyond the clouds that arise in life. It is she that sustains us, like Mary amid the apostles at Pentecost, with her always faithful presence, desiring only the happiness of her spouse and children, for the good of all society. It is she that leads us to the path of faith, not as a theory but by showing us that life is a gift and mystery of love. She leads us to hope, so that in her home the authentic Christian joy of those who seek God’s will always overcome any sadness and the most difficult times. She leads us to charity, as she mirrors for us the kindness of Christ’s love.

 The mission of motherhood is perhaps one of the most difficult in today’s world. Nevertheless, you are not alone in this mission. Christ is very close to you as you live as wives, mothers and women who seek to make

	"In your role as educators in your family, I believe that your first duty must be to gather your spirit in prayer to discern where God’s will is pointing in your own life and circumstances."

visible in society the feminine genius of which John Paul II spoke. May Christ, who came to bring us God’s love, always be a part of your daily life, your decisions, joys, battles, sufferings and sacrifices, to which people so often react with indifference or misunderstanding.

 Some essential means to achieve this will once again be your personal and family prayer, and sacramental life. In addition, there is also the area of your ongoing formation in all areas, for which you can use the opportunities Regnum Christi offers you, —spiritual direction, study circles, Encounters with Christ, monthly retreats, mini-courses, etc. In this regard, it would be a very helpful for you to set aside some time every week to keep up on the life of the Church as far as you can, reading and assimilating the Pope’s teachings, especially his Wednesday addresses, continually studying the content of the faith, reading good books and thus watching the type of spiritual nourishment you give your soul. I especially recommend reading the lives of the saints, knowing that we all are called to holiness and that each one of your children has the call to be holy. It is a good thing prudently and charitably to continue figuring how to invite your husbands and children to Regnum Christi activities for the whole family, so that they too can use these means to grow humanly and spiritually —inviting them in a way that shows that these means are not ends in themselves, but a means to help us as a Christian family to live the lifestyle that Christ presents to us in the Gospel alive in each one of your homes. It is a blessing from God to see how you are his main apostles, and how you do everything with the heart of Christ.

 I cannot help thinking of those who for various reasons cannot have children. It is difficult to understand the pain and cross that this sacrifice means for a woman and for a married couple. Live this sacrifice very close to Christ who identifies himself in a special way with those who suffer. Feel his close presence, draw from it strength and courage to carry this cross and not succumb to the seductions of a form of science that would claim the place of goodness and truth: “Spouses who still suffer from infertility after exhausting legitimate medical procedures should unite themselves with the Lord´s Cross, the source of all spiritual fecundity. They can give expression to their generosity by adopting abandoned children or performing demanding services for others” (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 2379).

 On the other hand, many of you also fulfill an important mission in society in the professional world. In this task, I encourage you to be women of deep, true andpractical convictions, make them part of your faith and daily life, so that you can communicate and teach them to others. A principled woman is one who loves, who allows her life to be im-bued with the spirit and virtues of the Gospel. “Holy women are an incarnation of the feminine ideal; they are also a model for all Christians, a model of the "sequela Christi" —the following of Christ— an example of how the Bride must respond with love to the Bridegroom’s love” (cf.

	"The Virgin Mary is an unquestionable point of reference. Let her always be your model woman and mother."

John Paul II, Mulieris Dignitatem, n. 27). These convictions will lead you to determine well the parameters of success in life, whether married or professional, and on this basis decide which are the values you must uphold in all circumstances, even the most difficult. Thus, you can also serve as witnesses in society, so frequently in thrall to frivolity. The standard of authenticity will be inseparable from to how we fulfill God’s will in every aspect of our life, our consistency between what we are and what we say we are, and how we fulfill our mission as evangelizers in the heart of society. I must admit that we priests are the first to learn all these attitudes from you, as you so fill our lives with your example, words and the power of your prayers.

 Today’s Gospel speaks to us of the Vine and the Branches. Christ shows us our need to be constantly united to him: “Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing” (Jn 15:5). Only in Christ do we find the meaning of our mission, since he alone knows our true dignity and its value in God’s eyes. “Jesus´ attitude toward the women he meets in the course of his Messianic service reflects the eternal plan of God, who, in creating each one of them, chooses her and loves her in Christ (cf. Eph 1:1-5). Each woman therefore is ‘the only creature on earth which God willed for its own sake’. From the ‘beginning’ each one inherits the dignity of personhood precisely as a woman. Jesus of Nazareth confirms this dignity, recalls it, renews it, and makes it a part of the Gospel and of the Redemption for which he is sent into the world” (cf John Paul II, Mulieris Dignitatem, n. 13).

 Thus you can see how important it is to be aware of your own dignity as daughters of God, as the image and likeness of the Creator. This awareness is difficult in our materialistic, fast-paced and consumer society, and perhaps that is why so many women are unhappy and seek fulfillment outside God’s plan for them. The awareness of her personal dignity should give rise to a style of behavior that dignifies each woman. This is the basis of the typically feminine values such as simplicity, elegance —which is not vanity but a dignified personal presentation that better reflects God’s beauty— refinement, the capacity for self-giving, modesty and admiration for the marvel of each human life, all of which you are called to transmit. These times call for decision, daring, not to be afraid to continue rescuing woman’s most genuine values.

 In all of this, the Virgin Mary is an unquestionable point of reference. Let her al-ways be your model woman and mother. As the Holy Father said to the women of Angola, I too encourage you to “accept Mary as your advocate with the Lord. This is how we see her at the wedding-feast in Cana: a kind woman, full of motherly care and courage, the woman who realizes the needs of others and, wanting to help, places those needs before the Lord. If we stay close to her, we can all – men and women alike – recover the sense of serenity and deep trust that makes us feel blessed by God and undaunted in our struggle for life” (cf. Benedict XVI, Address on March 22, 2009).

 Before I end, I want to thank you for your prayers, spiritual bouquets, support, closeness and dedication in these times that God is allowing in our lives. Everything leads us to love more and to embrace in our heart our call to be holy. Abandonment in our Lord’s hands leads us to unlimited trust, and thus to peace in our hearts. When fears, difficulties and worries arise, we know that trust and faith are perfected in the midst of these fears. And so, with the Blessed Virgin, Queen of Peace, everything leads us to live in the security of faith. Sincerely, I do not have enough words to thank you and to express all the closeness and union of our lives in prayer, especially before the Tabernacle.

 With deep appreciation and assuring you of a constant place in my prayers, I remain your affectionate servant in Christ,

Fr Alvaro Corcuera, LC