The Evangelical Counsels, lived in fraternal community
“The Evangelical counsels are thus above all a gift of the Holy Trinity. The consecrated life proclaims what the Father, through the Son and in the Spirit, brings about by his love, his goodness and his beauty.”
(Blessed John Paul 11, Vita Consecrata, Rome 1996, No.20)
Grateful to God and faithful to our Baptism, we want to consecrate all our talents and gifts, material as well as spiritual, to God and to his service. We daily reflect that it is our call from God to consecrated life in prayer, Eucharist, Adoration and contemplation that came first and remains at the core of our life of consecration; all else flows from that. We therefore determine to be mindful never to neglect, “…the God of works for the works of God,” (Soul of the Apostolate, Chautard, P.7). We wish to live this consecration as a community in fraternal cooperation and love in a communal residence and in service in our apostolate to the Deaf.
“Members must live in a house or in a legitimately established community and must observe a common life…..” (C.740) We earnestly desire that our prayer room may eventually be established as an oratory where the Blessed Sacrament will be reserved and adored. “Consent to erect a house entails the right to have at least an oratory in which the Most Holy Eucharist is to be celebrated and reserved.” (C.733.2).
The Marian Servants of Hope, through professing vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, make visible the love of God.
A fourth vow to be Witnesses of Hope requires that goodness and patience impregnate our whole spirit and heart.
“…All….must direct their efforts to lead a holy life…..” (C.210)
Signs of our consecration; a visible witness to the Church and in the world.
Our Habit.
– As a sign of our consecration we wear a Habit consisting of a simple dress in lavender colour, the colour of Advent, of Hope in the Lord of his coming among us first as a babe, the promised Messiah, and later during his ministry, his message of Hope for all humankind.
– It also reminds us of Lent and our need to acknowledge our weak human state. Our dress leads our minds to ask for the gift of humility and, as we daily pray the Prayer of Dressing, we are reminded of our Vow of Poverty. This colour also reminds us of the eventual joy in the resurrection of the Lord as Lent ends and we become an Easter people, and so we are renewed in our charism of HOPE.
– Our scapulars are navy or the same colour as the Habit dress. The navy is to be worn when interpreting, teaching or giving a presentation to the Deaf to provide a dark background for our hands. This is to facilitate comfort and clarity for the Deaf audience and is the norm for Interpreters & Teachers of the Deaf.
– We may choose to wear the scapular in the same colour as our Habit dress at other times, especially in the summer.
– On the right side of the scapular, above the heart is a white embroidered Easter Cross, signifying Jesus, our Divine Hope, has risen. It also reminds us of our Patroness, Our Lady of Hope who, at the end of her apparition at Pontmain France, (1871), no longer held the red Crucifix but two white Crosses, without a Corpus, appeared at the level of her shoulders. The Prayer of Dressing for the scapular reminds us of our consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary and our Vow of Chastity. We wear a medallion of Our Lady of Hope, Mother of Peace (which can be worn beneath the scapular while interpreting to avoid distraction).
– During the summer we may wear a white veil of a style that does no cover the ears and will not inhibit Hearing Aides, BAHA, Cochlear Implants or other technologies used for Hearing loss or muffle sound for Interpreters. Novices will also wear a white veil during their two-years in the novitiate. A navy veil is worn by professed members.
– The veil is a symbol and reminder of our Obedience to God, Church, and Community Leaders and as we pray our Prayer of Dressing each day we relive our Vow of Obedience.
“Religious are to wear the habit of the institute, made according to the norm of proper law, as a sign of their consecration and as a witness to poverty.” (C.669.1)